Day 22 - Sunday 26th Jan - Day 22 - Swimming at Alter do Chao

Market in Alter do Chao

Alter do Chao sits on a lovely little sandy lagoon in the middle of the Amazon. It's a small town well known to the Brazilians as a tourist destination. It's not actually on the Amazon River itself, but one of its biggest tributaries, the Tapajos River. This means the water is relatively clear and dark green, rather than the milky tea colour we've been sailing along for the last 5-6 days.
We like Alter Do Chao, it's a bit like going to the seaside, Brazilian style. There is a little sort of market square, surrounded by shops and restaurants. It's a lovely place to spend money in, and even better, it has free wi-fi, which meant Peter was entertained whilst I spent cash.
From there we walked down to and along the river front. There is a little island in the centre of the lagoon called Love Island. For a small cost, a water taxi will take you across to the island where you can enjoy food and drinks in the bars and restaurants as well as a swim in the Lago Verde, (Green Lake).

Love Island, Alter do Chao

We didn't get to Love Island, but we did enjoy a swim in the wonderfully warm water. It really is a lovely place and it was a shame we couldn't spend more time there.
We did get to see some beautiful birds though. I'm sorry that the pictures are a little blurry, but you'll appreciate the colours.

Oriole Blackbird at Alter do Chao

Red Capped Cardinal at Alter do Chao

From Alter do Chao, the ship continued downriver to Santana. We watched Richard Sykes' tribute to Victoria Wood later in the evening, which was really good fun, before going to the cabin to bed.
We'll get to Santana about lunchtime tomorrow. It'll be our last port on the Amazon which is sad, but Peter and I are escorting, so we'll get to have another look the Marco Zero Monument in Macapa, which is good. So here's to tomorrow.