Day 31 - Tuesday 4th February - Bridgetown, Barbados. Time to go home.

I spent the last two days in our cabin.  Peter was confined too, and we spent our time living through a zombie apocalypse.......... That is, we watched two complete series of "The Walking Dead"........... Stuff to give you nightmares.

But now we are here in Barbados.  The good news is that we are out of our cabin and able to wander the streets of Bridgetown.  The bad news is that I am booked on a flight at 5.10pm and my holiday is over.

We've made the most of it though, wandering the city, buying presents for the grandkids and enjoying the gloriously hot sunshine.

Loads of expensive looking yachts along the river into town

Zenaida Dove

Nelson's column

But it wasn't long before I had to return to the ship, collect my travel bag and kiss Peter goodbye. There were eight other people who had decided to fly home for various reasons.  As I result I was able to share a minibus, (organised by the very organised Sheena), which meant that first of all the costs were reduced, but also that getting through customs etc was all sorted out for us.  Fantastic.  I have to admit that my heart was pumping when I got to the airport.  I remember the farce and panic I'd gone through two years ago when I was leaving Antigua, and I didn't want to repeat that experience!

So, I set off another journey of planes, trains and automobiles to get me home.  This time I experienced the automated monorail that gets you from one side of Gatwick Airport to another, which looked and felt very futuristic!  Then there was the tube strike in London, which meant I had to get a bus across the city to Kings Cross.  This took ages cos the bus didn't stop where it was supposed to, and of course it was freezing at 6 o'clock in the morning.  But it wasn't a bad journey all in, and then all of a sudden, I'm back at home and getting myself ready for work in the morning, almost like I'd never been away.

So that's it for a while.  The end of another wonderful Amazon Cruise.  I have loads of photographs and this blog is my diary, all of which will remind of the fantastic places, people and wildlife I've seen.  I am looking forward to the next cruise already.

Last look at Marco Polo, berthed in Bridgetown, Barbados.

Bridgetown, Barbados 2011

Day 28 - Saturday 1st Feb - St Georges, Grenada

We've had a day at sea, and now we are here, in the Caribbean, hot sun, blue skies, white beaches and all day to enjoy it.
The first island of our four days here is Grenada.  Peter and I have been here before, and since we don't have any tours to escort, we get to do what we like.  And what we wanted to do was have an afternoon on the beach, swimming and generally chilling out.

That's our beach ahead.

So directly off the ship, through the terminal and turn right to where the water taxi is ready and waiting to take you to the .  It's only a few dollars each and a 15 min ride around the corner.

Once we were there, we hired a couple of loungers, got a couple of drinks from the bar, and then just had a brilliant afternoon.  We swam, sunbathed and snorkelled.  I loved the snorkelling part, especially has I found a shoal of silver white fish near the pier.  They just kept swimming around me.  Seeing the crabs and the spiny sea urchins, and so many different types and colours of fish amongst the seaweed on the sea floor was my idea of heaven.   I could have stayed for days.

But eventually it was time to go back, so we caught the water taxi back and got caught up in the dismay of four of the crew.  They were late for their shift, but the water taxi wasn't going to go any faster.  They were off the little boat before it even docked, running as fast as they could to get back to the ship.  I hope they didn't get into too much bother.

Our plan now was to go back to the ship for a quick shower and a change, and then go back into town and find a nice restaurant for our evening meal.  We had one in mind, Sails.  Sadly, everyone else had the same mind, and when we got there it was fully booked for the evening.

So we tried a place called Nutmeg, encouraged in by a few of the Marco Polo staff who were already sitting at a table.  What a disaster!  1 person had about 90 mins between starter and main course, another got her starter and main course at the same time, (but at different times to the first person), and everyone was made to wait.  Not recommended.

After the meal, we returned to the ship, and shortly after that I began to feel very unwell.  Unfortunately, I'd caught the bug that's being going around the ship.  We had to notify the medical centre, and were subsequently confined to the cabin for the next 48 hrs.  We were going to miss the next two Caribbean islands, which I had really been looking forward to.  Peter was absolutely fine, and I learnt although the bug could be considered highly contagious, not everyone gets it, probably due to their immune system.  I also learnt that the incubation period is up to 48 hrs.  I could have caught it two days ago!

So, disappointingly, we had two days in the cabin when everyone else was enjoying the sun, beach and rum punch.  Then we'll be in Bridgetown, Barbados, which will be my last day with the Marco Polo.  Sadly, I have to fly home and go back to work.  I'm not looking forward to that.

St Geroges, Grenada 2012
St Georges, Grenada 2013

Day 26 - Thursday 30th January - Iles Du Salut - a windy paradise

Devils Island from Royal Island

We watched the film Papillion again last night, mostly I was keen to see the buildings in the movie, and relate them to what we would see on the ground when we visited today. Apparently, the buildings built for the film were an exact copy of the real thing. Having seen the real thing, I was engrossed in which buildings were where, and what they were used for. I watched all the way through the credits to get as much info as possible from the film.

We were very excited about getting to Isle Du Salut.  "The Salvation Islands", or Devil's Island is actually three islands, Royal Island, St Josephs Island and Devils Island.  We get to visit Royal Island, which is where the main buildings of the penal colony were built.  Devil's Island and St Joseph's Island are tantalisingly close, but not easily accessible, so we aren't able to set foot on them, but it doesn't matter. Royal Island more than makes up for not seeing the other tow. 

The only worry was the weather. Every time we’ve been here, there’s always been a bit of a swell, and it’s always made it difficult for the crew to get the passengers off and on the tenders. We wanted to get one of the first tenders, and tender tickets were due to be released at 8.30. Thing is, everyone had been queing from 8 o’clock and by the time we got there, the tickets were being issued for tender D - i.e the fourth one to leave the ship, so we were going to have to wait a little while.

Actually, we were going to have to wait a long while, because as before, there was a bit of a swell making it difficult for the crew to tie the tenders up and make it safe for passengers to get on to them. I say “bit of a swell”, there was a LOT of a swell. The wind was gusting, the tenders were smacking against steps leading out of the ship and the whole operation was looking decidedly dodgy. I was worried that they would have to stop.

And they did stop. After the first two lifeboats had gone ashore, they had to stop to adjust the position of the ship, using it to shelter the tender operation. Time ticked on and I was worried that we wouldn’t have very long on the island. The tender loading started again and eventually it was our turn. Finallly! It took about 10 mins to get from the ship to the little pier on Royal Island, and at last, by 11.15, we were there. The wind was blowing a gale, but who cares, we were back on paradise. 

St Joseph's Island from Royal Island.  As I said, it was a bit windy!

We love these island and were keen to see as much as we could in the time that we had, but we knew that the last tender would be 1pm, so we didn’t have much time. We decided to walk anti-clockwise around the outside of the island, to see as much of the wildlife as we might, before heading upwards to the centre of the island where all the prison building were. I had Peter’s good camera as well as my own in hand, in the hope that, if we did get to see some of the wildlife, I might be able to get a few good pictures.

As we set off, the wind began to die down, and the sun came out. There were aguti, or palm rats everywhere, and we got loads of pictures of those.

Aguti, or palm rat - they live mostly on coconuts

Sadly, we didn’t get to see any turtles this time, although the leaf ants were very busy and entertaining. The heat was beginning to get to us, so as we got to the centre of the island we headed for the cafe for a cool drink. We’d managed to collect a whole load of scrap euro change, i.e. 10 and 20 cent pieces, and I’d given it to Peter in the hope that we could get rid of some of it when we were on the island. (Isle de Salut is part of French Guiana, and as such takes the suro). In the cafe, Peter ordered two large bottles of still water and a couple of cans of lemonade. And then, in his own inimitable way, he threw the bag of change on the counter and let the assistant sort it out for himself. Nearly 12 euros in copper! That was one way of getting rid of it.

We didn’t have a lot time and never got to walk around all the old penal colony buildings, but, as we left the cafe, Peter spotted a humming bird right outside. He stopped to start taking pictures, and then, magically, the bird decided to start feeding on the bush right in front of us. It was amazing, this exotic creature flicking from flower to flower not three feet away. Our camera’s were going nuts. Absolutely brilliant.

How lucky were we that this hummingbird decided to dance among the flowers of the bush in front of us.

Black throated mango.  Beautiful

And then it was time to start making our way back. We know there are monkeys on the island that, although not quite tame, are happy to be fed by the tourists, so off we went looking for them. Unfortunately we only came across two little squirrel monkeys which , and never got to see the Brown Capuchins, who were obviously off somewhere hiding, but there are photo’s off them in previous years blog posts.

Squirrel monkey

Finally we were back at the bay, waiting for the tenders. The swell had continued to cause delays, and we sat in the sun until it was our turn. Whilst we were waiting, I managed to see spot royal terns, a spotted sandpiper without his spots, and another blue grey tanager. All this life and colour is so brilliant.

So that was Isle de Salut for another year. We now have a sea day before we get to our first Caribean island, Grenada. I’m looking forward to the beaches and the chance for a swim. Awesome.

Isle De Salut 2012
Isle De Salut 2013 - 1st Post
Isle De Salut 2013 - 2nd Post

Day 23 - Monday 27th January - Santana for Macapa

Marco Zero Monument on the Equator, Macapa in Brazil, 

The sun shines directly through the oval at the top and down the line of the

Equator during the spring and autumn solstices

For the second year in a row, the Brazilian authorities threw a spanner in the works and insisted that the Marco Polo reach Santana according to certain tide times.  This meant that once again, we missed Almeirim, somewhere we've only visited once before, but we liked it.  And it's definitely a better place to visit than Santana?  Sadly though, we've been forced to come to Santana a day early and stop overnight.

And Santana is not a nice place.  Mostly because it looks disgustingly dirty.  The people seem friendly enough, but there is nothing to see (or smell!), except grubby, muddy, litter strewn streets and houses.  Having been here before, Peter and I knew exactly what to expect.

Peter and I have agreed to act as escorts.  The only tour is "Macapa Sights" although there are a couple of transfer buses running into Macapa to allow people a look round as well.  I should point out that we should be on commission, because every passenger we spoke to we told to find a way to go visit Macapa, and not stay in Santana.  And most of them did it seems.




There were easily 10 bus loads of passengers booked onto "Macapa Sights" tour, and most of the crafters and lecturers had been roped in to act as escorts.  It's not a bad tour, you get to see the Marco Zero monument and photograph yourself with one foot each side of the equator.  Then there's the Sacaca Biodiversity Museum, where you can learn all about the indigenous way of life, their tools, how they make flour, and the medicines they use from the forest and plants around them.  We also got to see the Fort of Sao Jose, and a look round the craft market.  The guide on my bus was pretty good, mostly because he was really keen on indigenous medicine, he himself uses a local medicine for diabetes,  but the thing I remember most was at the fort, in the centre of which is a large hole in the ground that looks like a well.

It's not a well, and it fills up when the tide comes in.  The guide told us that nobody is sure what the hole was used for, however there are stories that it was used to torture slaves and prisoners, who would be left there when the tide came in, with the added risk of caiman, piranha and anaconda's...........  Well, that added a little spice to the tour.  He also told us that the portuguese soldiers didn't wash, because they believed the mosquito's didn't like the sweat or salty skin!  Ugh!

Inside the Fort Sao Jose.  You can see the well/hole in the ground in the middle of the square.

We, on the other hand, are doing plenty  of washing, or sanitizing at least.  There have been a few cases of diarrhea and vomiting, (D&V) on board, and we are all taking extra precautions.  My duties as escort was to squirt every passengers hands with sanitizer every time they got on the coach bus.  Hey Ho, all good fun I suppose.

We have to stop in Santana overnight, and we'll be here until midday tomorrow.  Apart from our tour, Peter and I have no plans to visit the local area.  We've tried that before....

So we'll have a see day after that, and then Isle De Salut, which we love.  I can't wait.

Our previous visits to Santana and Macapa can be seen here:
Santana and Macapa 2012
Santana and Macapa 2013

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.

Day 21 - Saturday 25th January - Parintins

The Boi Bumba Bull from folklore.

Parintins is located on a little island called Tupinambarana (no, I can't pronounce it!) It's a peaceful little town, with a very relaxed atmosphere, until their Boi Bumba festival at the end of June, the second largest festival in Brazil. The Boi Bumba is essentially a dance off between the Caprichoso and Garantido teams, telling an Amazonian folk legend. The winning team is the one with the most elaborate costumes, body paint, expressive dances, loudest music and most enthusiastic supporters.
Sadly, we've arrived in January, not June. However, the town provides a show to passing cruise ships to give a taste of what the festival, and it is absolutely fantastic. I know this because Peter and I have attended it before, unfortunately we didn't get to see it this time.

The main street in Parantins.  Curious how the trees are painted white.

The main forms of transport in Parintins are bicycles, motorbikes and pedicabs.  

Instead, we had a potter around Parantins. The ship was having problems getting us to the town, because the river current was so strong only the bigger tenders could take us across. It slowed things down a little, but we were in no hurry.

Once in town, I experimented a little with Peter's camera, testing out the zoom lens to photograph a few birds. I was absolutely delighted with my pictures.

Blue Grey Tanager in Parantins

Smooth Billed Ani  (How good am I?  Learning the names of all these birds)

Peter needed some new sunglasses, and found a pair he liked the price of (cheap) in a little shop on the main street. Anyone who knows him knows he can be very animated - which translates in any language. Peter's confusion over a small 10 cent coin caused the shop keeper to decide he liked him and giving him a couple of sweets, (like a child?) Anyone who knows him will also know Peter's reaction to sweets! But he behaved himself on this occasion. The sunglasses are cool too.

The Marco Polo anchored in the Amazon

It was a half day in Parintins. We waited at the pier for our tender and were lucky enough to see both gray and pink dolphins in the calm water nearby. Not a bad day then. And it was all finished off with a drink in Scott's Bar and Burns Night celebrations.
Tomorrow is Alter De Chao and a chance for a swim. Yippeeeee.