Manaus and the surrounding region is in the state of Amazonia. One of the most amazing sights to see in Manaus is the confluence or meeting of the rivers that make up the Amazon River. Manaus is mostly located on the Rio Negro (The Black River). The opposite side of the shore (approximately 4 miles distance) is actually on the Rio Solim›es (The Yellow River). These rivers are appropriately named - the Rio Negro is like very black coffee - when the sun was shining directly on it, I could only see maybe to a depth of 2 feet (this river would not be appropriate for diving). The Rio Solim›es is the color of a rich latte or cafŽ com leite - visibility isn«t much better, but makes a striking contrast with the Rio Negro. At the confluence, the rivers come together around a spit of land and flow side by side for a number of miles. Our boat stopped at the division so we could look down at the Amazon River - it was marvelous seeing the distinct rivers flowing side by side as far as the eye could see. Our guide said that eventually the waters of the Negro and Solim›es do mingle, but that didn«t happen for many, many miles down the river.
After leaving the confluence, we headed up the Rio Negro to our Jungle Lodge. We tried very hard to stay awake (and succeded for a number of hours), admiring the vastness of the river (it was so wide, it looked more like a lake than a river), the verdant rain forest on the shores, the birds flying overhead, and constantly looking out for the pink and grey dolphins that inhabit the waters. The boat trip to the lodge was over 5 hours long though and the nights previous weren«t extremely restful, so we did nap quite a bit on the way to the lodge.
Posted by jfer at February 22, 2002 2:10 PM