Not only is it my birthday but also the day of the Acai Festival in Iagarpe-Miri. This was my first full day of cycling and the Amazon is HOT!

I left Belem on a small boat (nearly losing my bike in the river while lifting it onto the roof) and for 2 USD I took a 2 hour ride through the twisting channels of a mid river island to reach the other side of the Amazon (sort of) to a town called Bacarena.

From there my distance calculation were way off and I stopped here, in Igarape-Miri beacuse I was about to die. Right before town I stopped at a shack bar for some cokes and saw my first Amazon monkey (chained as a pet and miserable looking).

So far the road has been paved, there´s been a few hills but by and large it´s been flat.

The town I´m in tonight is on a river although my map doesn´t show it. The water front looks like something out of an old western.

Before I left Belem this morning I checked out a herb store where all sorts of remedies from the jungle are sold out of bins, kind of like an apothocary you´d see in China Town. I was looking for Copaiba oil which is very good for all sorts of skin ailments.

Well it´s time for me to drink as much water as possible and sleep. The sun sets early on the equator (6pm) so I will take full advantage of the night to sleep!