Feb 27, 2013 - Belem, Brazil

Today it is hot and humid – very hot and very humid. We know we are approaching the Amazon, but this is “Amazon light.” We are actually in the Pará River, one of several “Amazon” rivers that empty into the Amazon delta. Because of the constant silting of the rivers and because of our relatively high draft (about 24’) we cannot sail all the way up to Belem (about 50 miles from the mouth), so we are anchored offshore at a small suburb of Belem called Icoaraçy (ee-kor- a-RA-sey) and be bussed into the city. The tender ride in is uneventful –...

Feb 22, 2013 - Rain

Despite the rain today we still found plenty to do on board. We learned a bit about the French Guiana islands including the notorious Devil’s Island, a former French prison. The story of one man’s experiences there are told in the book and film Papillon. We learned to Salsa so Philip will be able to dance it with his Mum! We also enjoyed the beautifully set out buffet in the main dining room, not to mention the evening show, a comedian this time who was hilarious though with a particularly British humour so there were some straight faces...

Feb 21, 2013 - Crossing the line

We crossed the equator at exactly 10.00a.m. this morning and watched a “crossing the line” ceremony introduced by the cruise director. King Neptune and his queen accompanied by two “mermaids” and two “pirates” punished passengers who had displeased them. First the passenger had to kiss the fish, then they were covered in “flotsam and jetsum”, before being tossed in the pool. Even the ship’s captain was subjected to it though he was not thrown in the pool. Eventually there was a bit of a free for all among the “cast “ with all of them ending...

Feb 20, 2013 - Belem

The ship docked off shore at Icoracy (Belem) and we were tendered in. One hours drive to Belem city(founded in 1616 by the Portuguese). We had decided to take a boat tour up the Amazon and have a guided walk through the rain forest. From the boat we could see the modern skyscrapers of Belem as we sailed up the Amazon to a complete contrast of the small fairly primitive settlements beside the river. We docked at a small village, walked past the tiny church and the school (like no church or school we have ever experienced ) and into the...

Feb 1, 2013 - Belem, Brazil

Not really too much to say about Belem. It’s a big city, a bit run down and I think the main reason for the visit was for those people not going back up to the Amazon, to get an excursion in to see the Amazon. There was a major delay getting a tender off the ship – we didn’t leave the ship until 10.30, then a 20 minutes tender ride and then a 40 minute bus ride into town. They have a lovely new docking area near the town centre but for some reason we couldn’t use it. Also we had to use there tenders and they didn’t send enough or the right...

Oct 15, 2012 - Belém

Nous voilà maintenant à Belém où nous avons été accueillis par Rodrigo notre couchsurfeur. Nous étions 5 couchsurfeurs en même temps chez lui dans son petit appartement: Robin un allemand et un couple brésilien-belge Alana et Karim. Nous avons tous dormi dans la même chambre sur un lit superposé et autre lit à côté. C'était très sympa, il y avait une super ambiance. Rodrigo nous a emmenés à la plage mais cette fois, c'est fini les plages d'eau salée. C'est des plages de rivière mais c'était tout autant magnifique, l'eau était chaude et peu...

Jan 13, 2012 - Belem, Brazil

We crossed the equator very early in the morning and then anchored off Icoaracy Village. It is warm (low 80s) and very humid here. We tendered ashore via a 200 passenger ferry and climbed aboard a tour bus for the 45-min ride into the city of Belem. Belem means “Bethlehem” and is a large city of 1.6 million people. We are on an all-day excursion called, “A Taste of the Amazon”. We are not on the Amazon River but in a region known as Amazonia. It is up river from where the Amazon River flows into the Atlantic Ocean. The water is a chocolate...

Jan 12, 2012 - At Sea

Life at sea can be at leisure or extremely busy. One can bask in the sun or attend classes every hour during the day and an entertainment show or a movie in the evening. Courtney typically sleeps in to late morning then goes to the fitness center and later relaxes in the sun or studies (she is taking on-line classes in management and greenhouse management). Deb walks the teak deck in early morning and then attends 2-3 classes during the day (things to see at the next port, Qi Gong, Bible study, ocean exploration, cooking demos, flower...

Nov 17, 2011 - Belem

Hi again! On Saturday morning Espita and I caught the bus to Santarem with the intention of catching the evening boat to Belem. At the bus stop in AC we met a group of Brazilian guys who are at the start of a 2-3 year trip cycling round the world and had come to Alter do Chao for a few hours while their boat from Belem to Manaus was in the port. This turned out to be a stroke of luck for us girls as they then refused to let us carry our bags for the 15 minute walk from the bus stop to the port. However on getting to the port we discovered...

Jan 18, 2010 - Belem

Ok, so as it can well be imagined, we were ecstatic to be done with the ferry boat down the Amazon trip. The first thing we did was get ripped off by the nearest taxi driver, in order to arrive at Belém´s very own hostel international, which was recommended by our trusty Lonely Planet guide book. What a disappointment! We thought it could only get better with a rise in price, however this was not the case. You got a bedroom with no bathroom with two beds in it covered with a sheet and that was about it. It did have air conditioning though,...

Feb 23, 2008 - Belem, Brazil

2/23 – 2/24 After another day of sailing we reached the city of Belem, Brazil. Belem is not located on the Atlantic Ocean, instead it is on the Rio Tocatins (a river) that empties into the Amazon basin. We actually docked at a small fishing village called Icoaracy. The ship provided a bus to take us into Belem (about an hour trip) but we decided to just walk around the village and then spend the rest of the day relaxing on board our ship.

Nov 24, 2007 - Belem, which we wanted to leave sooner!!

Belem is not a pretty city! But, since we had to stay the weekend while we waited for our boat, we visited the city's three forest parks, which were lovely (apart from the big cats in cages). We especially loved seeing the (very slowly!) free-roaming sloths in the trees, and the many varieties of birds, hummingbirds and butterflies.