Humaita-Manaus, BR-319, Day 5

13.09.2013,
Day 938
103 970 km since the beginning of tfe journey
Journey of the Day - 0 km, ie, just the day off.
Tupana Igapó-Açu


After breakfast the day is going quite smoothly over to a car - free day, because the place is perfectly ok, you can swim in the river, and behind the house one can have a shower.

And you can get cold drinks from the counter of the bar. In the shadow there are hammocks. And an opportunity to get acquainted with how the everyday life of the village is going.



Generally- this is the way it is going….






There are a number of stickers on the walls and on the post in the middle of the bar. Mostly they begin with the words Expedicia and Transamazonika and BR -319, and so on.


But here one can meet quite a different company with completely different type of vehicles.


Meanwhile, from the direction of Manaus, a little white VW bus with passengers arrives.


On the roof of the bus there is a strong frame, and it "accomodates" five canisters of fuel, a spare tire, and a great number of passengers` bags.


Then the barge returns to the other side and brings along two more white buses and even more people.


The bar-restaurant is suddenly full of people. Some passengers use the opportunity to swim in the river.


The destination was said to be Labrea, ie, the bus route runs 640 km along THIS road, and then another 200 km to the west. The drivers said that this trip takes place once a week. In the morning they take off from Manaus and the destination - Lábrea is reached by the evening of the next day.

At first I think that some facts have gotten lost again in translation again, but no. Because they drive not only in the daytime but also at night. Almost without stopping. I think of these countless bridges and try to imagine crossing the bridge in total darkness, but the imagination does not want to know about it. And then those muddier places.. In the dark. In the mud.

But so the life goes on here, it is clear that while crossing a bridge the peole get off the bus, and while stuck in the mud there are 30 pairs of hands - pushing, lifting, helping. And the bus, after all, has two headlighs as well. And if you still drive every week a kind of overview of the existing road has been experienced


The tire selection. There is no long issue, a tire is a tire, as long as it keeps the air and the weekly driver just goes and drives and the whole story.

And then comes back and in a few days starts again, one route - of the 800 km. The scheduled service anyway. I had previously read that once a week a mini-van drives here, but it is quite another issuse to see them with my own eyes.

Anyway, respect !


On one side of the bus there is a big sticker of the BR -319 and in fact there are really some smoother and asphalt sections on the road.


For a change I ride my bicycle for some time on the abandoned airfield.


An unfinished construction by the road.


But when driving further someone seems to be sitting on the road.The engine noise would have emptied the road a long time ago, but the bike is quieter. "The Somebody " is the size of medium dog and at first glance it is not clear how high in the food chain „this“ could stand and I have no desire to go closer to investigate. The question as to who eats who will initially remain unknown.


Back at the river having shown the picture of the animal to the locals - they point to the mouth, so really somebody eats somebody and the animal is called „kutsia“ or something similar. And it 's edible and tastes good, and is hunted with a bow and arrows. In case I understood correctly, of course, the Portuguese sign language.

And the fact – that no swimming in this river in the darkness becomes clear as well, because here again, someone was supposed to eat someone. So yeah, no dullness. But mosquitoes and other flying creatures are attacking in much less numbers than for example in Pantanal 
(see http://tarmo-rtw.blogspot.com/2012/12/pantanal-and-transpantaneira.html)

Before sunset the Brazilian motorcyclists arrive. http://diariodemotocicleta.com.br/ http://diariodemotocicleta.com.br/




According to the information the further road should be ok,,, ie - the first 50 km unpaved road, and then already quite decent road up to Manaus. So it was said.

Only at night it will begin to rain again.

Continued..