cavingliz non-cave albums: Icoaraci & Belem, Amazon, Brazil

Saturday, March 7, 2020

Icoaraci & Belem, Amazon, Brazil

After leaving Alter do Chao, we had one day sailing back to the north Amazon delta, then one day at sea, before going to the Para River entrance to Amazon Delta. We presumably went to sea to do a discharge and to take on water. Our route is the yellow loop -

The mouth of the Amazon is more than 250 km wide -

Back in the Amazon again -

100 km upriver is Belem, Brazil's main lower Amazon River port and the capital of Para state. Icoaraci is the tender port.

Belem is Belem is the Portuguese word for Bethlehem. It is one of the first settlements along the
Amazon. It was the first European colony on the Amazon, founded in 1616 by Portugal, and only became part of Brazil in 1775. It became a playground for the rich. Then grew during the rubber boom at the start of the 19th century until the crash by 1910. Belem continued as a port and tourism hub. The new part of the city has skyscrapers and condominiums.

Welcoming dance and vultures at Icoaraci jetty

I joined some friends who had got some Real and we got the local bus to Belem. This cost less than US$1. You pay a conductor then go through a turnstile.

In Belem I expected a lot of grand colonial buildings, as there were in Manaus, but there didn't seem to be any abandoned ones.

Nice building, with and without the wires and cables! -

Church of Our Lady of Mercy (Igreja de Nossa Senhora das Mercês). The tower can be seen 4 photos above. It is an historic church that is sadly deteriorating on the outside.

Old Portuguese building, Paris N'America, one of the oldest textile stores in Belem (photo from Google maps). The building was constructed 1906-1910. Steel for the structure was imported from Glasgow in Scotland. The clock on the tower is German.

It still has the grand staircase to the upper gallery, as well as the original floor and lighting. The designed ceramic floor came from Berlin. The stairs, chandeliers, mirrors and glassware are of French design. See more on this blog including an old sketch of the building.

Nice clean looking butchers -

Theatre Paz, with ornate drainpipe and patterned floor of the entrance hall

We then walked along an avenue with some nice buildings and big trees, to get to Nazareth church. The Basilica of Our Lady of Nazareth of Exile (Portuguese : Basílica Nossa Senhora de Nazaré do Desterro) or the Basilica of Belém is a popular tourist destination.

I don't speak Portuguese so was intrigued by this sign. I later googled it, Mon to Fri from 7 to 20 hrs.

I only saw Brazil nuts for sale twice in the whole week we were there. Maybe they are not in season.

I didn't know anything about Brazil nuts except that I like to eat them at Christmas. So I did some research and learnt that "Brazil nut fruits fall mostly in January and February, during the rainy season. Under natural conditions, the seeds take 12 to 18 months to germinate".

"Between December and March, the fruits start to fall from the trees. Amazon nut gatherers (known as castañeros) move to the middle of the Amazon forest, where they build their camps and roam vast areas of jungle in search of Amazon nuts. Subsequently, they open them with a machete, and place the seeds in sacks and take them to the processing plants in nearby cities." (From nowfoods)

And I didn't realise that Brazil nuts grow in round coconut-like shells, averaging 10 to 15 cm in diameter. This hard woody shell usually has 18 to 20 nuts inside. These can be seen in the photo above and below. 5 BRL is 80 p.

Martin behind the turnstile in the bus back to Icoaraci. This was a newer bus, where you pay the driver or use the card machine, there is no conductor -

Back in Icoaraci I had a quick look round before going for a beer to spend the last of the Real.

I'm not sure if this lorry is collecting left over meat from the market, or delivering it. Dogs were allowed to help themselves. When I was having a beer I saw one dog running into the bar with a large joint of meat in its mouth.