If you are anything like me, you must be dying to go to the Amazon forest. You either had the privilege to already go, like I had last year for my birthday (I actually got to swim with botos, the local freshwater pink dolphins that only exist in the Amazon on the day of my birthday, it was magical, keep reading to know how it went!), and live this unforgettable experience, or it is on your bucket list and you can’t wait to make your dreams come true. Either way, I am about to tell you how was my experience, and suggest to you the next time you go, do it the same way! You won’t regret it! Why? You are about to understand why! This is the best way to travel to the Amazon.
So basically travelling to the actual forest is an expedition. You can’t simply book a hotel in Manaus for example, and plan to do a tour of the forest. The right way would be to actually stay at a hotel inside the forest. That is what I discovered when planning for this trip. When I put my mind to it and started researching, I came across Caboclos House Ecolodge, the perfect inn run by a local ribeirinha (a person born in the riverside) woman (shout out to Nilde!) inside the forest, just by the Rio Negro. It was everything I wanted, and more! After you read the whole experience, you will want nothing more than to experience it with yourself. So come with me, and I will detail everything about this magical experience to you! This…. is Amazen!
Amazen is the name given to the organization that makes the whole itinerary happen. Amazen is a vivência (a Portuguese word that has no official translation, but means something like live or experience) of ancestral rescue, riverside immersion, and ecological connection in the largest tropical forest in the world. Their mission is to enable you to experience the magical realism of the Amazon Rainforest, and from there connect with others, with your ancestry, with the natural elements, and with your inner nature.
What I love the most is that the whole vivência is led by women. And to me, these incredible and strong women do Mother Nature justice when leading us to the forest. I had even more pleasure in doing a vivência of Female Leadership, a women-only trip, where the focus was to redeem the women leader in us, by learning from the ribeirinhas female entrepreneurs themselves, which was even more special.
The way the whole vivências works is that is not like any hotel where you pick your check-in and check-out dates. Here they have closed dates, that you sign up for and you are led by their structured itinerary. The vivência has a duration of 4 to 6 days (3 to 5 nights). The itinerary may change order or activities, according to the weather or logistics, but it is more or less the following:
Day 1:
The meeting point is in a hotel in Manaus, where they will schedule a time and date to leave for the forest. So you can arrive whenever you want, but make sure you are in Manaus at the scheduled time to catch the shuttle that takes to the river that takes to the hotel. While you are in Manaus you can visit the Amazonas Theater and the Municipal Market. After breakfast, the group meets and starts the journey to Caboclos.
The whole route takes about 2-3 hours. And let me tell you, you will be wonderstruck when you climb into the boat and make your way to the inn. It’s indescribable. The landscape. And the feeling.
The Inn is located in Acajatuba Lake, one of Rio Negro’s affluent. It is a region that is home to several riverside communities, in addition to being gifted by nature with river beaches, pink dolphins, streams, igapós, and a beautiful sunset.
After arriving, getting mesmerized by the beauty and attention to detail of all, and settling down, it’s time for navigation through the igapós, the Flooded Forest. One of the most cinematic experiences you will ever have. You will learn about the potency that is the Flooded Forest, and understand the importance of preserving our natural beauty.
Coming back from the Flooded Forest, after some free time, at sunset hour, it is time to be blessed by the dark waters of Rio Negro, the largest affluent on the left side of the Amazon River, in the Amazon, in South America. It is the seventh largest river in the world in terms of water volume and has its origins between the Orinoco and Amazon river basins. It originates in Colombia and flows into Manaus, where it joins the Solimões River to give rise to the great Amazon River.
After one of the tastiest dinners you will ever have, a true traditional Amazonian meal, made by Amazonian people and with a lot of vegan options, you will have the pleasure to contemplate the night sky, in a canoe in the middle of the Rio Negro. A great time to spot some south-hemisphere constellations, and enjoy the silence of the great forest.
Day 2
It starts with perhaps the most wanted experience of the whole vivência. Visiting the Tatuyos indigenous village! What a trip! You get to meet true Brazilian indigenous people, have your body painted by them if you want, shop their local hand-made accessories and utensils, dance with them, and receive your own indigenous name. The Tatuyo dances and songs of the Kapiwaya, Pohé, Yapurutu, and Káriço rituals highlight the history of the creation of their ethnicity. With a ritual dance, they worship the indigenous God and tell where they come from and where they are going – an allegory between life and death – creation and disappearance.
In the afternoon, you’ll experience a Medicinal plants workshop by Gi, a mother of 4, a masseuse with fairy hands, and an expert in natural medicine. There you’ll be presented to her whole herbs garden and understand the healing powers of the plants.
To finish the day, there are activities with clay and free time.
Day 3
The day starts with a sensory and meditative hike through the Amazon Forest. Perhaps the other most wanted moment of the trip is when you’ll literally step into the forest and absorb all the magnitude and nobleness that is the Amazon.
In the afternoon it’s time to meet Sueula, a ribeirinha entrepreneur, who will introduce you to her own business of natural cosmetics, Cheiro na Floresta, where they make incredible natural products with extracts from the forest. A true example of Floresta em Pé (standing forest), working with what the forest has to offer, without causing any harm. You’ll want to take the whole store with you!
At sunset, we visit the local community, where we meet Dona Marlene a unique presence, and symbol of a strong woman, who founded the community at the age of 16. There, you’ll have the opportunity to hear her story, be inspired and shop at the local handmade and crafts store at Casa Japiim.
At night, Any and Karla, Nilde's daughters, give a carimbó class! A traditional Amazonian dance danced with long colorful skirts. One of the most fun experiences!
Day 4
On the last day, we have the pleasure of having the magical experience of swimming with pink dolphins (boto-cor-de-rosa). The species are distributed in the Amazon and Solimões river basins, in the Bolivian sub-basin, and in the Araguaia river basin. It is the largest freshwater dolphin. Adults have a pink color, more prominent in males. The boto-cor-de-rosa is also a part of Brazilian folklore, the legend says that the boto transforms into a beautiful and seductive man. In human form, the boto seduces women to impregnate them. These women are abandoned by the entity, who returns to the river in his animal form.
After this amazing experience, it is time to say goodbye! The whole group will get back to Manaus, we give farewell to the group that will only do the Amazen experience and the ones who will continue the itinerary, upon arriving in Manaus we have a quick snack and meet the guide, who will lead the Rota das Águas!
Rota das Águas Itinerary
The itinerary starts with the amazing experience that is the Encontro das Águas, (the meeting of the waters), a boat trip along two rivers with different densities, temperatures, tones, and speeds. The meeting of waters is a natural phenomenon easily seen in many rivers in the Amazon. The factors for this to occur in the region vary from geological, climatic, and thermal issues or even the size or acidity of the rivers. The most famous meeting of the waters is located in front of the city of Manaus, between the Negro and Solimões rivers, being one of the main tourist attractions in the capital of Amazonas.
The next stop is a Guided tour of MUSA (Amazon Museum), where you will climb to the incredible observation tower of the Forest. The museum was created in January 2009, it occupies 100 hectares of the Adolpho Ducke Forest Reserve, of the National Institute for Amazonian Research – INPA, in Manaus. It is not your average museum, Musa is an area of native, upland forest that has been studied for over 60 years. The results of this research, gathered in catalogs on topics such as plants, birds, and frogs, tell what Musa wants to show the visitor.
We find at Musa: exhibitions, orchid and bromeliad nurseries, a lake, aquariums, and experimental laboratories for snakes, butterflies, and fungi. A 42-meter tower allows you to enjoy a magnificent view of the forest's tree canopy, unforgettable when seen at six in the morning. Trails in the forest provide visitors with pleasant walks and surprising discoveries. At Musa, research is carried out in the dissemination and popularization of science and scientific and cultural education.
At the end of the afternoon, the group returns to the hotel to check-in, in and are free for the night.
Day 5
After an early breakfast, the group embarks on a two-hour journey to Presidente Figueiredo, the land of the waterfalls. On the tour, you’ll get to experience and bathe in crystal clear waters and waterfalls, and hike to Caverna da Maroaga and Gruta da Judeia. The natural complex is located within an environmental protection area, 6km from the center of Presidente Figueiredo. The place has a daily limit of 60 visitors and can only be visited by a tour guide. At the entrance, you’ll be able to rent some boots, advisable, as the hike is really muddy.
The whole experience is so absurdly beautiful, there is no other place on earth like it. Definitely a once in a lifetime voyage.
Day 6
Breakfast, check out of the hotel, and end of Rota das Águas.
There you go, this is the way you are supposed to experience the Amazon! Do you understand why community-based tourism is different from the mass tourism people usually do? Community-based tourism is a more sustainable, authentic, and responsible tourism. Where we are led by local hosts, who value Amazonian culture and boost its economy, they welcome conscious tourists, who travel to leave the place better than when they arrived.
As they say, don’t kill anything but time, don’t take anything but photos, and don’t leave anything but footprints.
Click here to know when is the next expedition and sign yourself up! What are you waiting for to live this magical vivência?
This is Brazil. This is Amazônia.
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