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Monday, June 19, 2006

BRAAAAAAAAAAAAAASIIIIIIIIIIL

A little World Cup fun!

Friday, June 16, 2006

If it Ain't Broke, Don't Fix It

I know that I said that I wouldn't post anything more about Belem, but since there was a comment on my Butterfly post that the butterfly looked suspiciously like a fish climbing a tree, I thought that I should post a picture of some fish that I saw which look surprisingly like the butterflies....

Thursday, June 15, 2006

Twenty-four Hour Banking, Sixteen Hours a Day

I realise that this has been done for security reasons, but it bugs me nonetheless. ATMs in Northeastern Brazil [even ones misleadingly named Banco 24 Horas or Banco 30 Horas] are only open between 6:00 and 10:00pm. Need money early in the morning or late at night? Too bad for you, the lights are out and nobody is home. Bank machines that are found in public locations that cannot be closed [shopping malls which have restaurants and cinemas and airports] are restricted to a cash withdrawal of R$100 [CAN$50] after ten. You'd think that having been caught cashless a few times that I would have learned my lesson. (Un)Surprisingly, this is not the case....

Monday, June 12, 2006

St. John meets the World Cup

If anyone ever tries to tell you that life in Brazil is one big celebration, well, it's probably because they've been to Brazil! Okay, I exaggerate a little, but really, only a little, particularly in the Northeast where popular folk festivals tend to last a month or even two. While February/March is dedicated to Carnaval, the entire month of June is taken over by the Festas Juninas or June Festivals.

The Festas Juninas are a month long celebration tying together three Saint Days [Anthony (June 13th), John (June 24th) and Peter (June 29th) -- John being the "main" saint] and the rural -- particularly corn -- harvest. The Festas entry in Wikipedia is surprising quite accurrate, as the party is characterised by people dressing up in stereotypical country outfits (sunflowers and gingham galour!), eating a lot of corn, and dancing a lot of Forró and Square Dances. Now imagine this month long party, crossed with another month long party ... the World Cup, during which Brazil also grinds to a halt! Hey, the World Cup is serious business here. Businesses close down and people are let off work early to watch the games. It's a funny combination -- St. John and FIFA. Let's just say that most people have written off this June altogether!

Friday, June 09, 2006

I was also in São Luis

Although it is hard to tell from the last week of posts, I also spent some time not in Belem. The second stop on our tour was São Luis, the capital of the state of Maranhão. São Luis was founded by the French in 1612, conquered by the Portuguese in 1615, and briefly controlled by the Dutch between 1641 and 1644 before returning to Portuguese control. The city's main claim to fame is its historic centre which is chock-a-block with colonial architecture and Portuguese tiles.

Until recently, the centre was in a dismal state of repair and was generally an unsavory part of town. However, several years back, the government invested money in restoration and renovation and some vibrancy has since returned (the money trickles slower these days....). It is still a mixture of derelict and renovated, but is an enchanting place to visit. A UNESCO World Heritage Site, São Luis is another example of history being preserved due to a long period of economic stagnation. No money = no hideous 1950s skyscrapers!

Funnily enough, in two weeks I will be back in São Luis, this time on vacation. So more stories will be sure to follow, particularly since we will be there during the time of the Bumba Meu Boi / São João festivities.

Thursday, June 08, 2006

Peek-a-boo!

I promise this will be my last post about Belem, which already seems like a lifetime ago.

On the edge of town we visited the Mangal das Garças or Heron Mangrove, a bird and butterfly sanctuary. The sanctuary, which is only a year and a half old, was well planned and allows for lots of intimate contact with all kinds of flying friends. One of the highlights, aside from all the herons, hummingbirds and other exotic flyers, were these butterflies. With a perfect camouflage and a huge misleading "eye", I thought that they had achieved the perfect design!

Wednesday, June 07, 2006

Walk Like a Palm Tree

One of the most amazing things in the Amazon are these "stilt" or "walking" palm trees. In fact, I think that they are even called Stilt or Walking Palms. Where's my Tree Book when I need it? Since light is at a premium in the forest and annual flood patterns mean that the actual trunk of the tree would be submerged in water for part of the year, the trunks of these palms trees start growing several metres off the ground. If the tree feels that light is arriving at its base via a different angle, it will "sprout" a new root and move towards the light, subtly changing the position of the tree over time. Neat 'eh?

Stay Away!

This tree, on the other hand, pretty much screams Stay Away!

Tuesday, June 06, 2006

Uxi ● Taperebá ● Araçá ● Cupuaçú ● Blueberry

One of these things is not like the others,
One of these things just doesn't belong,
Can you tell which thing is not like the others
By the time I finish my song?

What do all these things have in common? Well they are all fruits or nuts and except for the blueberry, which has never even been heard of here, they are all Amazonian products which are usually not even found in the rest of Brazil. These guys don't even have translations so it is hard to attempt to even explain what they are or what they taste like. All I can say is that they are yummy! Here I am trying an uxi ice cream. Needless to say, needing to sample all the different flavours is a pretty good excuse to eat ice cream everyday. For pictures of an uxi and several other Amazonian fruit, click here.

Monday, June 05, 2006

Sunrise over the Amazon

'nuff said.

Birds of Paradise

Usually I only get up at 4:00am to do things like catch planes, or as we have more recently seen, be interviewed for the morning news programme. While in Belem, I added yet another reason to get up hours before the sun -- to visit Ilha dos Papagaios or Parrot Island to witness the spectacle of three to four thousand parrots waking up and starting their day. The scene was incredible!

We arrived at the Island, which is a twenty to thirty minute boat ride from Belem, at 5:30 and started to wait. We didn't have to wait long as the Alarm Clock Parrot [I am sure that a more technical name than "Alarm Clock Parrot" exists, but I do not know what it is, so Alarm Clock Parrot it will have to be] let out his wake-up screech fifteen minutes after we arrived. Immediately following the screech, all the sleeping parrots -- literally thousands of them -- get up and start flying around and around in circles, squawking as they fly. As the group continues to circle the island, couple by couple, the parrots fly off to whereever it is that they will spend their day. The circling is a mechanism used to confuse any would-be attackers and protect each couples as they fly off [they really do leave with their one mate!].

The entire thing last about an hour and by seven o'clock, all the birds are safely dispersed to their daytime homes. They will return again when night begins to fall and will sleep on the island until dawn, until the wake-up screech signals the start of a new day.

This first video is of the birds starting to fly around in complete darkness...

... while the second is as the sky begins to lighten.

Well worth the drowsiness that followed!

Sunday, June 04, 2006

Home Sweet Home

Am finally back at home after nine days of travel to Belem, Sao Luis, Teresina, and Fortaleza thrown in for good measure on the way home. Where to start? There were so many new sights, sounds, and smells, that a blog post or two don't seem adequate to convey the swirling in my mind! Here goes ....

Find a Boyfriend, Keep a Girlfriend, Find a Job, Win the Lottery, Have a Baby, Discover Happiness

One of Belem's main attractions is the Ver o Peso [Watch the Weight] market which sells everything from human-sized fish, obscure jungle fruit, and imitiation Marajóian pottery to Amazonian potions and elixirs which will cure whatever it is that ails you -- money problems, family troubles, aches & pains, romantic issues -- the cure is here!

Amazonian Colours

So perfectly arranged, you'd think the vendor set up his wares like this on purpose!

Brazil Nuts ... From Brazil!

While we don't call them Brazil Nuts here in Brazil, preferring to call them Castanhas do Pará or Pará Nuts (Pará being the Amazonian state of which Belem is the capital, it's pretty neat to get as close to the source as possible. Needless to say, I consumed a lot of Castanha do Pará this past week!

Lots 'o Pottery