River Days

Thursday, November 10th - Friday, November 11th

Thursday, November 10th
Amazing Amazon
Day 17
M/S Regatta
Cruising the Amazon River
Sunny
Air Temperature: 88 Degrees
River Temperature: 86 Degrees

Friday, November 11th
Remembrance Day
Amazing Amazon
Day 18
M/S Regatta
Cruising the Amazon River
Air Temperature: 89 Degrees
River Temperature: 87 Degrees

Early this morning, Regatta emerged from the mouth of the Amazon back into the Atlantic ocean. We are no longer within the river's banks, but still sailing Amazon water, riding the plume out to sea.

We have had two days on board ship to recover from, and reflect upon, our time on the Amazon. There have been grumblings of disappointment among our fellow travelers, but we did our research. Lonely Planet set the tone, and our expectations:

"Every traveler has fantasized about a trip to the Amazon. Just the name alone evokes images of dense rain forest, indigenous tribes, and abundant wildlife...Yet many travelers leave the Amazon underwhelmed, having come expecting a Discovery Channel-like encounter with jaguars, anacondas, and spear-toting tribes. That simply doesn't happen...The Amazon's quintessential experiences are more sublime than they are superlative...It's only in the halogen glare of unrealistic expectations...that a trip to the Amazon will feel disappointing."

Romantic notions of a wild jungle towering over a raging river are the stuff of fairy tales. If they exist at all, they are to be found far, far up the river from Manaus, and far beyond our reach.

Still, we floated 1,000 miles up a storied river. We fished for piranha and hunted caimans. We witnessed wealth and poverty, separated by 100 years. We experienced culture, indigenous and imported. We sat in a gilded opera house in the capital of nowhere. We survived a trek through the jungle.

We got what we came here for, the Amazing Amazon.