Sunday 27th January

Today is a sea day. We have left the Amazon and are now back on the Atlantic Ocean, which has been a bit rough. Net result? Me in bed feeling seasick. The weather improved about 3 O’clock tho’, and I enjoyed the an evening meal and the nights entertainment with “the gang”. We take part in the quizzes as a group. The rest of them are really knowledgeable and answer all the questions, ( I can normally manage about one by myself). The get full marks near enough every time. Good job we are not allowed to claim the prizes eh? We’d be buried under CMV bookmarks and lanyards.

Isle De Salut tomorrow. Class!

Saturday 26th January – Santana

What can I tell you about Santana? Well basically, it’s not a nice place. The ship had to stop here overnight, but we didn’t bother going ashore, and this morning, just to stretch our legs, we took a walk out into town. We stopped just long enough to buy water and take a few photo’s, and then walked back.

The port is industrial, so there is nothing to see, and if wasn’t for the fact that Santana is the port closest to Macapa, then there would be absolutely no reason to be here. The overriding impression of the town is dirty, with rubbish and foul smells everywhere. Not pleasant at all. Tip for following passengers, get a tour, or a taxi into Macapa if you visit this way, otherwise you may feel better staying on the ship.

Pictures provided to prove the point. The church is the only thing that could be described as attractive.

My sunburn hasn’t browned off yet, so I’m still feeling a little sore. The ship has just left Santana and we are now on our way down river and leaving the Amazon, (Booooooooo!). But our next stop is Isle De Salut (Yippeeeeeee!). We absolutely loved it there last time, and we are really hoping to get the same conditions again.

We've been here before, read about it
Santana and Macapa 2012
Santana and Macapa 2014

Thursday 24th January – Alter Do Chao and a red face

We were looking forward to this place. Alter Do Chao is a small town of sandy beaches, smooth lagoon water, hotels and beach bars. Not what you’d expect in the middle of the Amazon rain forest. It is the tourist destination for the Brazilians, and last year, because we visited at the weekend, the place was packed.

This year it wonderfully quiet, (except for the rowdy brits), so first we aimed for the central market square to take advantage of the free wi-fi. Once Peter and I had done as much as we could, it was down to the beach. 

Now we’d come prepared. So once we’d pitched our beach mat under a tree, we stripped down to the swimming cossies under our clothes, and within minutes we were in the water, which was ever so slightly cooler than the hot humid air around us. 

We had a brilliant, lounge about the beach sort of afternoon. The sky was mostly overcast, but I’ve got burnt here before. Once bitten twice shy, so when we weren’t in the water, we stayed in the shade of the tree, watching the vultures circle overhead. 

Well, I thought we had stayed in the shade of a tree. The colour of my skin today suggests that this was not the case. I glow in the dark at the moment, hot, and a rather attractive shade of red, a bit like the coals in a fire. How did that happen? It looks like my very lily white skin has been microwaved!

I’ve worked out that the sun had been very bright and strong on the two 10-15 minute occasions I’d been out in it. (Once talking to a passenger as we came out of the water, and the second time on the walk back to the tender.) And of course, numpty me did not think I’d been out in the sun long enough to apply the Factor 40 sunscreen I had my bag. Well, that’ll learn me. Still, on the bright side, red is a very nice colour, sort of brings out the blue of my eyes............... 

We were supposed to go to Almerim tomorrow, but it seems the port authorities further down the river in Santana have changed the rules, and in order to abide by them, we have to leggit downriver to get to Santana for high water. And then we’ll have to stop overnight and leave on high water the following day. They’re not being very tourist friendly are they? It’s a shame, cos Almerim is nice, and many passengers would have preferred to stop at Alter De Chao and see Almerim than stop overnight than Santana. Still, I think there are tour obligations, and filling up with water and supplies, and all those sort of things to take care of.

So tomorrow is Santana. An industrial port, from where you can travel to Macapa. I’m not sure what we are gonna do when we get there. We’ll see.

To read about our last visit to Alter De Chao in 2012, click here

Wednesday 23rd January – Parantins

Well, we didn’t break down (see the posts from our last two visits), nor did we go to the Boi Bumba festival, (overheard being described as the Bumba Boy festival), which we know is brilliant, but we have seen before.

We did take the tender across to have a mooch around though. There isn’t a lot in Parintins for the tourist. We took a walk along the sea front, which was pleasant, and there are plenty of birds about for the twitchers to see, and then had a beer in one of the local cafes.

Tip for others visiting the area, although the Brazilians will happily take dollars, the conversion rate is ridiculous, and you pay a lot more for things than you would if you using Real. (We learned this one a little late). But a pleasant chilled out afternoon all the same

Tomorrow is Alter Do Chao, where we get to go swimming. Yippee!

Tuesday 22nd January – The Amazonian Experience

Manaus Dock

We’ve had another packed day and we’re both shattered, but it has been well worth it. Peter was one of the Escorts on “The Amazonian Experience” tour and we were down on the pier at 8am ready to see the passengers on board. 

It’s definitely one of the better tours in terms of value for money and experience. It includes the meeting of the waters, a visit to a local village where you are educated on the production of rubber, a trip in a motorised canoe across January Lake to see the wildlife that’s out for the day, lunch from the local cuisine and a walk across a high wooden platform to a lily pad lake. 

Manuas is a major city which sits on the banks of the Black River where it meets the Amazon. All around are the “lowlands”, the constantly shifting islands and river banks of the Amazon, which change according to the mood f the river. The lowlands are home to the farmers and fishermen. Their produce is taken across river to feed the city, and their lives are very different from the city folk. 

So today we were taken across to see the lifestyle of the people in the lowlands, but first we saw the floating petrol stations,(which I think are brilliant),

Petrol Station

and the meeting of the waters. There were plenty of river dolphins keeping us entertained too. 

Then we passed whole villages of floating houses and villages stilts. The floating houses are built on tree trunks. The trees are similar to balsa apparently, and about four trunks are strapped together on which the house is built. These houses last about 40 years, with the advantage that it is very easy to move, and obviously when the river rises, so does your house. Floating schools, bars and churches are also built.

And we were able to walk through a caboclo, (means descendents from the original Portuguese and local Indian couples), village of houses on stilts. A lovely peaceful place without roads. Children played, adults worked, and all as if we weren’t there. The villagers work together on the land around them to cultivate it and share the produce. The disadvantage of a house on stilts is it that it doesn’t rise with the water. Last year, the river rose to its highest level in memory. Described as “terrible” by our guide, we were told that there were no lowlands to see, just water and treetops. The city flooded too. As we walked through the village on stilts, you could see the on the walls the line marking where the water level had reached. The people here have a canny way of getting round the problem though. They just build another floor inside their home, and live above the water until it recedes. Admittedly some are forced to move though.

On from there to see the rest of the wonderful sights on offer, there was so much to see in the canoe ride, and walking over the bridge to see the lily pads was awesome, as was the huge caiman lying quietly in the water when we go there. (I’m glad we didn’t catch that one last night, it was as big as the boat).

A brilliant, brilliant day. Some pictures for you:

Wasps Nest high up in the trees

Amazonian Village

Floating House

Egrets everywhere

Blue capped heron

Black banded hawk 

Very large caiman

Lily pads on Lake January

Dragonfly

Monday 21st January –Caiman Hunting.

We arrived at Manaus this afternoon.  We had a trip out planned for the evening; “Caiman Spotting”, and we decided to take it easy in the heat and humidity and just take a stroll out.  It’s odd how the city is becoming familiar, or at least the area around the dock is.  The market is the same, as are all the shops, the stalls and the manic traffic.   We did find a little park area that we’ve not come across before.  It looks quite new and is very nice.

Market stalls lining a Manaus street

But our highlight was going to be the Caiman Spotting trip in the evening, which we were really looking forward to.  So after an early tea, we joined the rest of the passengers on board the river boat that took us out to Lake January.   This lake is sort of temporary.  In the dry season it dries up, but in the rainy season – January to June – the lake reappears.   Our guide explained to us that the lake is considered of ecological importance, because of the wildlife.  It is also the place all the tourists are brought to show of the wildlife and way of life.

The riverboat moored up at a floating restaurant (which we know we are going to visit tomorrow), and from there we climbed into smaller, motorised canoes.  Each canoe holds 10 passengers.  At the back is the driver, in charge of the outboard motor, and on the front stands the “caiman hunter”.  We managed to get the front seats, just behind him.   The canoes dashed off across the lake in the darkness, the only light being the torch held by the man stood at the front of the boat – but in all honesty, it wasn’t that dark and we could see quite well in the moon light.  And there were also the magical flashes of light from the fireflies amongst the long grasses.  Wonderful. 

Our caiman hunter stood on the front of the canoe, scanning the surrounding grasses with his torch. The idea is that he spots the red reflection of the torch in the eyes of the caiman, he indicates to the driver where he wants the canoe to go, then goes flat on his belly and grabs the caiman out of the water and weeds as the canoe goes past. 

What surprised us was how quickly this happened.  First in that the young lad caught the first one within a few minutes of our canoe ride starting, and secondly in the way one second he was standing on the front of the boat, and the next he was on his belly in front of us with a caiman in his hand. 

The whole experience was amazing.  Because we were in the front of the boat, Peter and I got to hold the caiman first, although everyone else got to see it as the lad took him along the deck for photographs n stuff.   And it got better, because  a second was caught, which was handed to me to hold whilst our hunter stood up to see if he could catch another one.  How class is that?  I had to it to Peter after a few minutes though, cos I worried that my hands would tire.   Of course, the caiman are returned to the water once we’d all had a chance to see, and hold, and photograph.

The second caiman he caught

All in all it was brilliant, brilliant experience and I am so glad we went.   Tomorrow we are to go back to Lake January when we go on the “Amazonian Experience” tour.  We’ve been on it before, and liked it so much, we’re back for more.   Awesome. 

To read about the other days we've spent in Manaus, click here

Sunday 20th January – Boca Do Valeria

The ships blurb describes it as “This remote and primitive Indian village of 75 inhabitants.......”.  This confused the ship full of tourists - as when we got off the tender, there were at least double that number of children waiting at the pier.

Boca Do Valeria Church and School

The ships blurb does go on to explain that people from all the surrounding villages turn up when a ship drops anchor in the river nearby, and 75 must easily swell to 2-300.  In fact, the ships blurb gives a very good description of the place and what to expect.   Not everyone reads that though, do they?  The “primitive Indians” are getting wise to the tourist trade, and turn up with all sorts of means of persuading money out of us.  Many of the children just straight out and beg for a dollar, which of course gets right up the nose of us Brits, so everyone refuses, although most of the passengers being of grandparent age, cannot resist giving or buying the children sweets, crisps and pop.  Then there are the pets.  They are brought in for the passengers to take photos of.  Caiman, parrots, monkeys, giant bugs, sloths, a toucan and little guinea pig rat things were on show everywhere.  As were catfish?  Giant examples were on display, apparently breathing in the air, and I’m told one child had a fish on a lead?   I am sure most of these pets are well looked after, but seeing the way some of them are handled makes me wary of encouraging the practice and handing over the obligatory dollar to take a photo.  I am always happy to encourage fair trade though.  Each time we have visited there seem to be more stalls, and this year I bought a couple of little handmade items for just a few dollars. 

Villager dressed up and posing for photographs.  Note the fish model, and the painted back drop.  The villagers really are working out how to get our money.

We love this place.  Not because of the hundreds of begging children, but because it is remote.  The little village really is in the middle of the jungle, and for $5 dollars each you can take a canoe ride further up the tributaries to see more of the area where these people live.  If you’re lucky, you get to see more of the wildlife, such as an eagle or an egret, but mostly you get to soak up the environment of lush green vegetation, and water everywhere.   As usual, our guide slowed when he could see we were interested in particular things on the river banks, taking us closer when he’d worked out we were curious about something.  And this was without speaking a word of English.

One of the villagers offering a boat ride

A riverside house

 We also took the walk along the path behind the little bar again.  This path is clear and well trodden and goes on for a long way, probably to the next village or something.  We walked along it for as far as we thought right, as always hoping for sightings of monkeys, or birds, or any of the weird and wonderful.  As per our last walk along this way, we heard an orchestra of birds and insects. I think we heard monkeys too.  But we saw very little in comparison, the butterflies were pretty though, it was just a shame the large and stunningly beautiful blue ones didn’t rest long enough to have their picture taken.  These did though.

 And then sadly, it was another visit over, and we took the tender back to the ship. 

Tomorrow we get to Manaus which is basically the largest city on the Amazon.  We’re hoping to go Caiman Spotting tomorrow night, and then do the Amazonian trip the next day.  Awesome!

Boca da Valeria, Brazil, 2014

Boca da Valeria, Brazil, 2012

Boca da Valeria, Brazil, 2011

Saturday 19th January – Oy! Who nicked our space?

Santarem.  We’ve been here before, explored the market and the cathedral, checked out the fish market and found free wi-fi.  We’ve also been on the “Lake Maica and Piranha Fishing” tour before, but we enjoyed it so much last time, we had to do it again.

So when Peter’s alarm woke us, we got ready and went upstairs for breakfast and to take our first look at a familiar dock. But this time, looking out the Bistro windows, we noticed something very odd.  We weren’t berthed?  We were still in the middle of the river, and the Port of Santarem was over there, about half a mile away.

Then we looked closer and realised why.  Another cruise ship, The Quest of Adventure, was in port, and since the dock is only a little one, our ship could not fit as well. We wondered if it was late leaving, or had broken down?   Maybe it would leave shortly?  Maybe someone had made an almighty cock up and double-booked the dock?  Maybe someone in CMV had made an even mightier cock up and forgot to make the booking?  Who knows?  Speculation was rife, and most people automatically assumed that CMV had cocked up.  Well they would, wouldn’t they?   It’s a British trait.

Space Stealer!

The Guest Services Manager, Morgan Van Selman, explained over the tannoy system that basically, despite us arriving early, the other ship had nicked our slot, and, (he stated in a tone of barely suppressed anger), the Marco Polo management team were going to get some answers! 

After breakfast we went out on deck and watched as loads of river boats made their way over to us and formed an orderly queue.  We realised that the ship in dock was not moving, that the riverboats would act as shuttles to get people back and forth to Santarem.  Because of all the changes, it  took ages to get everyone onto their tours, but finally it was our turn, and we sat at the back of our little river boat to enjoy the fishing trip.

The reason we liked this little excursion the first time, and chose to come on it again is that we get to see and hear some of the Amazonian wildlife. Then there are the wooden houses on stilts, the livestock kept by the locals, and a glimpse of how the other half live, so to speak.

This trip was no different.  Our guide this time was an American called Frank who’d been in the area since 1981.  He was full of loads of interesting snippets of information, but my favourite was about the boat we were sailing in.  He explained that the design is such that the top floor was for people, and the floor beneath was for cargo. Originally cargo meant livestock, and in particular, cattle.  The problem with that was that cattle do not like being loaded onto riverboats.   They get a bit mad about it, making it difficult to get them on board it seems.  Luckily, riverboats are not the usual method of cattle transportation anymore, and riverboat drivers are a much happier crowd because of it.

As usual, we were taken to see the meeting of the waters, where the dark river Tapajos and the tea coloured Amazon run alongside each other for several miles.

Then we were taken up the Tapajos river to Lake Maica to have a go at catching fish.

Riverside life on Rio Tapajos

Our prized sightings of the day included loads of river dolphins, a couple of fish eagles, an iguana and a sloth.  

Our group also managed to catch about 6 piranhas all different colours.  We had at least one white, one yellow and one black piranha.  The fish were thrown back in the water once photographs were taken.   Neither Peter nor I caught anything, but we could feel the meat being eaten from the hook in loads of little tiny tugs.  In fact, if you looked, you could see it just under the surface doing a dance as the fish came and tugged tiny pieces from it.  I went through three chunks of meat that way, but never once saw the fish?

Due to the late start of the trip, we didn’t get back to the ship until about 2.30pm. We had lunch, and then worked out that if we tried to take a tender to Santarem, we would have very little time in the town before we had to come back, and with temperatures around 30^oC, it was too hot and humid to be rushing around.   So Peter retired to the cabin to work on student stuff, and I went looking for the moths that would have landed last night.  I got a new camera for Christmas, and I wanted to see if I could make some of its magical features work.

I love all these creepy crawlies.  The only thing I wish for is broadband, so I could spend time finding out what they are, and how they live n stuff.    

Then this evening, Morgan followed up his earlier announcement to explain what had happened this morning re our parking space.  It turns out that the Quest for Adventure ended up with a quest for water.  It was due at Alter Do Chao today, which does not have a dock and subsequently no facilities to load the ship up with water.  So the crew of the Adventure asked the Santarem port authorities if they could arrive a day early and take on water.  The port people said yes, but only if the ship was berthed to leave enough room for us to fit in behind.  The rest is history......

Thing is, who pays for the extra costs?  I’m sure strongly worded  correspondence on this very subject is winging it’s way across electronic airways to sort it all out.

  

Tomorrow we’re at Boca Do Valeria.  More wildlife, more Amazonian people, more wonderful experiences.  Cool.

Santarem, Brazil 2011

Santarem, Brazil 2012

Santarem, Brazil 2014

Friday 18th January – The Amazon River

We’re here!  We awoke to see the familiar island type shapes that we have come to recognise as Macapa pilot station.  The ship waits here in the Amazon Delta until Brazilian officials clear all the paperwork, put a couple of customs type personnel on board, give us a pilot, and then let us go on our way.  It only took a couple of hours, (much less than in previous years), and then, the ship was moving and we were on our way upriver.

Out on deck to watch the jungle go by, the heat and humidity are extraordinary.  Luckily, there wasn’t much rain until late afternoon, although the sky was overcast.  The rain poured down about 4pm, by which time we had put away our binoculars and spend a little time in the cabins.  Peter is always trying to keep up with his online student.  So whilst he’s doing that I get the enviable task of washing smalls.

The day was rounded off with a pleasant evening.  Dinner first, the “Quiz with a Twist”, (really good fun that one), and finally a little cabaret from Andy Saunders, one of the ships entertainment team.  Very nice.

Tomorrow were get to get off the ship for the first time in aaaaaages.  Santarem here we come. 

Thursday 17th January – A brilliant day at sea.

We awoke this morning early, both feeling much better.  Well.... nearly.  Peter was still coughing, I still had a red nose that thought it was a tap, and we both felt a little drained, and washed out.  But still better

So after breakfast we headed out of the Bistro onto the deck to see what was occurring.  As we opened the door, we were almost forced back into the Bistro by the humidity and heat.  Temperatures were due to rise to 30^o C today, and it was already like an oven outside..  The haze caused by the humidity did nothing to ease the burn of the sun.  Hats on, sunglasses on, we headed for the front deck and some fresh air.  We were hoping that time out of the air conditioned environment of the ship might help Peter’s cough.  The sea is, and has been amazingly flat and comfortable, the skies blue and the sun bright and warm, Although I’ve been hiding in me cabin for the last two days, everyone else have been cooking themselves into a glorious shade of chestnut.  Bare brown flesh everywhere!   Nice then, as long as we didn’t stay out too long.

Back indoors, Peter’s classes went well, and once they’d finished, we grabbed a very quick lunch and headed out onto the rear deck for one of the main events of the day, “The Equator Ceremony”.  The heat was intense, but everyone had been reminded re hats, fluids and sunscreen.  Temperatures, parasols and spirits were up, and fluids were going down,  judging by the worn out look on the bar and waiting staff.

 

During the Equator Ceremony, the ship asks permission of King Neptune, the God of the Sea, to cross the Equator.  For us, (and similar to last year), it was an hour of fun along the lines of “I’m An Entertainer, Get Me Out of Here!”  The entertainnment team performed hilarious tasks, got voted off and then pushed into the pool.  I think they were grateful for the last bit, as at least the water was cool.  At the end of the competition, the winner was presented to King Neptune as proof that the ship was worthy to cross the line, and King Neptune very kindly agreed.

One of the contestants on "I'm an Entertainer, Get Me Out of Here"

King Neptune’s fishy seafaring attire is created for him by the handmaidens of the craft clubs.  Last year, they carefully designed a crown of card, lined inside, and out with metal beaten mirror smooth.  (Tin foil).   Unfortunately King Neptune suffers from a common affliction of his sex in that as he has grown older, his hair has grown less, and he now sports the traditional bowling ball shine where his hair used to be.  This, coupled with the cunning design of the crown, the heat from the sun, and an hour waiting for the contestants to complete their tasks resulted in King Neptunes cranium glowing fiery red beneath his crown.  The handmaidens were concerned that the glowing pattern created might be permanent, like a tattoo.  Luckily there was no long term damage. 

Therefore  the design this year did not include the ability to cook popcorn on top the head of the Sea God, (although they did wonder if they should try it), and the Kings glorious headdress was seen once again to be as bright as the sun, but inside was a lot cooler.  So was his “robe” I believe...... I’m sure they hid his knees last time!

King Neptune in his specially designed crown.  Please note his trident is made of the same beaten metal.

 A brilliant afternoon for all, but it didn’t stop there.  We went to the front deck to stare at the sea as it changed from deep blue, to green, to muddy brown.  There was no land on the horizon, and wouldn’t be for several hours, but we were seeing the effects of the millions of gallons of fresh water pouring into the sea from the Amazon.  I’m told sailors have found fresh water a hundred miles out from land (or something like that).  It is amazing to see, as is the fact that water takes on an eerie flatness.  No swell and only little rippling waves.  We also managed to see some odd looking fish.  Fascinating!

After a nap and dinner we went out on deck at 9pm to watch “Rock Your Socks Off”.  I didn’t know what to expect and assumed it would be a music quiz.......  Which it was....... Sort of.......   If by music quiz you include a petulant quiz master, everyone singing, a conga, an assistant cruise director being “knobbled” to prevent her side winning and a dance off.  I don’t think anyone left the deck until the “quiz” was finished, but the audience swelled as passengers  came out to see what all the noise was about.  If you ever sail on the Marco Polo and this quiz is on the entertainment program, I highly recommend that you go take part.  Fantastic fun.

And then, before you know it, it was the “Crossing the Equator Party”.  Everyone was still in high spirits from the “Rock Your Socks” Off quiz, and the mood carried on.  Peter has found a soul mate in the guest comedian Andi Ford.  You should have seen them together dancing to “Greased Lightening”!  An excellent end to a really good day. 

Runny nose?  Drained and washed out?  Did I say that?  Nah, we finished on a high.  (Although maybe a little knackered after dancing in that humidity).  Tomorrow is another “sea day”, although not really, as we’ll be sailing up river to our first port, Santarem.  So it’ll be a “river day”.  I am so looking forward to it.   

Wednesday 16th January – all at sea

Leaving Mindelo

Leaving Mindelo

According to the daily blurb, the Marco Polo is on Day 15 of its 42 day cruise. I’ve been on board 6 days, and today is the 3rd day since we left Mindelo. Tomorrow is the Equator crossing ceremony as we approach the Amazon Delta , and on Saturday we visit the first river port, Santarem. The ship has been travelling through what is known as the “dead zone”, where there is no telephone signals, no internet, and I assume only navigational and essential information transmitted from the satellites over our heads.

As we’ve seen in the last two years, the flying fish appeared once we left Mindelo. As they realise there is a massive predator coming at them, (the ship), they leap out of the water, flying away gracefully for ages across the surface, before losing all their street cred as they unceremoniously flop back into the water. It’s interesting to watch them flick their tails on the water surface to push themselves another 10 or 15 feet. We could stand and watch for them for hours. Peter tried to get photographs, but they appear out of the water anywhere and everywhere and move so fast. However, perseverance paid off and he managed to get this picture.

So what’s been happening? Well not a lot to be honest. Peter has been suffering with a lost voice, but he also picked up a cold. It’s quite a nasty one actually, quite a temperature, loss of appetite, and real misery for two days. I caught it too, and hid in the cabin feeling really sorry for meself. But today I feel better, apart from the dry, sore top lip. Peter is still coughing, but hopefully that will improve over the next couple of days – just in time for Brazil.

I’ve had me hair cut. Anyone who knows me knows that is a newsworthy item! To be honest, I missed an appointment just before I left England, because I wasn’t well, so I decided to risk it and let the ships hairdresser have a go. Her name is Sofia, she is Serbian and has been cutting hair on the ships for the last 7 years. She made me smile, as she pointed out that she had started working on the cruise ships to get away from the Serbs, and the Marco Polo is full of Serbians. (Aside - If I remember rightly, it was the Serbians that came out of their last war looking like the bad guys. For today’s Serbs, it must be like having Hitler as your last leader. I didn’t ask, but I wonder how the normal run of the mill person like Sofia felt about that? Ashamed? Defensive? Angry? )

Sofia also told me that she lived in a London YMCA for a month. She commented that British men were mice before they had a drink, and lions afterwards, full of bravado and in your face. She’s right of course. And she’s also right when she said she preferred a guy to have the courage to ask her out before they’d had a gut full of alcohol. Anyway. After all that, Sofia buried me under a cloud of hairspray – (which I hate), charged me less than I would have been at home (Peter get’s discounts on some things), and left me with one of the best haircuts I’ve ever had. I am very impressed.

And that’s it for the last three days to be honest. I think I’ve spent most of it feeling miserable in the cabin. I’m sure I’ll feel a lot better tomorrow though.

Sunday 13th January - Mindelo

Here we are again. Although it's not everyone's cup of tea, me n Peter really like Mindelo. Maybe cos it's like us, scruffy, with not a lot of money. But the people are friendly, and we can see the place changing year on year.

This year, because Peter is still quite poorly, we decided to take it really easy. We wandered over to the market place where we had a drink and Peter bought a hat. It's such a shame that every time we've come here it's been a Sunday and everywhere has been closed. I suspect this place is alive and vibrant during the week days.

We took a few photographs before making our way to the posh touristy bit where we met with some of the other lecturers, and had another drink. We didn't stay long, and now we are at the marina we found last year, enjoying the cheap wi-fi. I've had me lunch here, local cuisine, stewed chicken and rice, which had a creole flavour to it. (Peter wasn't up to it, although he didn't mind eating half of mine), and we've sat in the sun whilst Peter worked. I like it here.

Some pictures for you.

The volcanic hills surround the water filled crater that is Mindelo Bay

Marco Polo at Mindelo

Mindelo Marina

The Market Place in Mindelo, sadly not a lot going on today, as it's Sunday

One of the better streets.  We were amazed at the trees growing in the road

It's been a really nice day.  We going back to the ship shortly, to survey the sun damage.

There are five days at sea after Mindelo.  We’ll cross the equator during this time, but there will also be a “dead zone”, where there is very little satellite communication for either phones or internet.  We’re looking forward to the crossing the equator ceremony and flying fish.  Our first port in Brazil is Santarem. As Peter sez...... “Bring it on”.


Mindelo 2011
Mindelo 2012
Mindelo 2014