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| Manaus Vacations and Luxury Travel Packages |
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The capital of the state of Amazonas is located not on the river of the same name but rather on the Rio Negro, 18 kilometers upstream from the confluence of the aforementioned "Black River" with Rio Solimoes, the two rivers flowing parallel to each other for a time and then joining to form the Amazon. This striking spectacle will be clearly visible to any traveler sitting by the window on a flight into Manaus on a cloudless day. Boat excursions to Encontro das Aguas can also be booked in Manaus. The murky waters of the upper reaches of the Amazon (which is how Brazilians refer to Rio Solimoes) flow next to the dark but clear waters of the Rio Negro for many kilometers before they come together. The contrasting coloration of the two rivers is determined by their flow rates, the quantity of suspended matter in the water, and their respective temperatures, the Rio Negro being about two degrees warmer.
Destinations in Manaus
Teatro Amazonas
The Treaty of Tordesillas (see p. 16) granted Spain dominion over the western Amazon basin. But owing to Spain's military and political weakness in the mid-17th century, the Portuguese took control of the entire Amazon region in the name of the Crown, and in 1669 founded Sao Jose da Barra do Rio, which, overshadowed by Belem, remained a rather unimportant city until the end of the 18th century. In 1791, the Viceroy made Manaus the seat of the Capitania do Rio Negro, and in 1848 granted it city status. The town was renamed Manaus in 1856, but economic growth only began in earnest nine years later with the advent of international maritime law on the Amazon.
During the rubber boom (1890-1920), Manaus became one of the most prosperous cities in the world, as well as the first in Brazil to have streetcars and the second to illuminate its streets with electricity. The height of the city's affluencedriven desire for recognition came with construction of the Teatro Amazonas (see p. 198). During the rubber boom, little thought was given to the future, and the rubber barons were not strong believers in investment. Instead, they grew rich by exploiting the labor of the seringueiros (latex gatherers), who were miserably underpaid and many of whom died in the jungle of malaria or other tropical diseases. The 50 percent decline in rubber prices in 1913 owing to competition from cheaper latex produced on Asian plantations was a rude awakening, as one company after another went bankrupt. To a certain degree, the gold prospecting mindset of the past still lingers on today: because production of basic foodstuffs in Manaus and the surrounding area is still not sufficient to feed the population, food staples must be shipped in from 4,000kilometer-distant Sao Paulo, which of course drives up the cost of living.
In 1967, a hundred years after international maritime law went into effect, the military regime declared Manaus a zona franca (duty-free zone), and lured investors to the region with low real estate prices and tax advantages. Since then, over 400 high-tech businesses have come to the area, and in the space of three decades Manaus has again become a prosperous city, with all the contradictions that have accompanied such booms elsewhere in Latin America: on one hand, modern industrial plants, luxury hotels, and shopping centers; and on the other slums called palafitas, which are unstable dwellings built on stilts.
Hotel Tropical Manaus
Guests staying in this 600-room hotel located only flue kilometers from the airport luxuriate in an oasis far from the sound and fury of Manaus. Extending over 450,000 square meters of Rio Negro riverbank and nestled between river and forest, the spacious (but only three-story) hotel buildings blend harmoniously into the surrounding landscape. The rooms have modern furnishings and facilities, and for the fitness-minded there is a swimming pool complete with artificial waves, a tennis court and an exercise room. The science-minded have also been provided for: the hotel's mini-zoo and educational botanical pathways make excursions into the virgin forest seem almost superfluous.
But all this comes at a price, especially since the Hotel Tropical is the only facility of its kind within a radius of a thousand kilometers. An enormous effort is required to keep this complex running smoothly. Because of the damp tropical climate, buildings need to be refurbished on an almost continuous basis. Staffing is another problem faced by hotels throughout the Amazon region, but particularly in a mega-resort like the Tropical. While management positions are held either by Brazilians from the coastal cities or by foreigners, the hundred or so hotel staff who wait on tables, clean the guests' rooms, and staff the kitchens are local caboclos who are much more accustomed to surviving in the rain forest than under the hectic working conditions of a modern luxury hotel. Moreover, the fact that many flights arrive in Manuas at night make employees' work schedules less than ideal. Bearing this in mind, guests are advised to be patient with the staff and to calmly enjoy their stay in this oneof-a-kind resort.
Excursions in the Amazon Region
Trips to Encontro das Aguas can be booked at the Hotel Tropical or any travel agency. Lago Salvador, a lake featuring Victoria regia (royal water lily), caimans and monkeys, is 35 minutes away by boat from the Hotel Tropical. Tours with cruise ships lying at anchor in the harbor should be avoided, as such outings are usually limited to marching down the paths in single file. Four hours away by boat is the 500-island river archipelago Estagao Ecol6gica Anavilhanas, for which a visitor's permit is required. During the high-water period from November through April, most of the islands are submerged. This nature preserve lies northwest on the Rio Negro, and provides local fauna with a safe haven. The area can also be toured in a large or small boat, or by helicopter. |
| Teatro Amazonas |
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The theater's opulent curtain with its Encontro das Aguas (Meeting of the Waters) motif went up for the first time on a production of "La Gioconda" in 1896, following 12 years of construction. In its heyday, despite tropical temperatures, culture-hungry Amazonenses attended opera performances in tuxedos and plush gowns. The designers of the building went to great expense to prove to the world that a city situated in the middle of the jungle was the equal of any European metropolis. Everything but the tropical wood was imported: Murano glass chandeliers, Alsatian tiles, Carrara marble, furnishings from Paris, and seats with red velvet upholstery. Caruso and Sarah Bernhardt were invited, but Teary of the climate and mosquitoes, demurred. The last opera performance, The Jewess, took place in 1907.
The jungle humidity subsequently caused severe damage to the interior of the building, which, in order to avoid the worst, was restored in 1929 and again in 1962; an unreliable air-conditioning system was also installed in 1974. But it was only at the end of the 1980s that a longoverdue top-to-bottom renovation of the structure was undertaken at a cost of US $15 million. The seats were found to be infested with termite larvae, and all the interior woodwork had to be sealed against possible reinfestation. The gala reopening was celebrated on March 17, 1990, with a performance of Georges Bizet's Carmen. A regular opera season now takes place, although tourists with cash to spare are lured in to fill seats that would otherwise go begging: the average price per ticket of US $100 is simply too high for most citizens of Manaus. In April 1997, the city's first opera festival was held in the Teatro, of which no visitor to Manaus should miss an opportunity to take a guided tour.
The theater plaza, Praga Sao Sebastian, is covered in black and white paving stones in a wave pattern that symbolizes the confluence of the Rio Solimoes and Rio Negro. Over the plaza presides a sizeable monument with four ships representing the four corners of the earth, i.e., Africa, the Americas, Asia, and Europe (Australia was a still colony back then). It was designed by Domenico de Angelis to commemorate September 7, 1867, the day international maritime law went into effect. Visitors who enjoy walking tours can comfortably reach the city's remaining sights from here on foot. The first stop, five blocks towards the river down Avenida Eduardo Ribeiro, is Praia da Matriz, where both the cathedral and main post office are located.
After crossing Rua Marques de Santa Cruz, look to your left for the customs building, Alfandega, an ochre structure that was brought from England brick by brick in 1906. Just in front of Alfandega bobs the floating harbor, Porto Flutuante, a masterful achievement of turnof-the-century British engineering. In order to compensate for the up to 14meter difference between water levels during the rainy and dry seasons in a given year, twin 150-meter-long quays were built that float on air tanks and are linked to the bank with movable bridges. The high-water mark is recorded every year on a wall in front of the bridge. The harbor is not always accessible to visitors, however: sometimes there is an entry fee, and at other times only passengers with tickets are allowed access.
Just 500 meters further to the southeast and a short distance from the riverbank stands the market hall, Mercado Municipal, an iron structure that was designed by Gustave Eiffel and whose components were shipped in from Paris. The marketplace is in Rampa, the most effervescent neighborhood in Manaus. From the market, meander several blocks north to expansive Avenida Sete de Setembro, where a right turn takes you across a wide bridge to Igarape dos Educandos, a broad canal over which stand, on stilts, numerous picturesque but extremely poor dwellings known as palafiras.
A spit of land in the middle of the canal is the site of the unfailingly freshly painted Governor's Palace, Palacio Rio Negro, which originally belonged to a German rubber merchant. The third street on the left after the bridge is Av. Duque de Caxias, where the Museu do Indio furnishes visitors with food for crosscultural thought. The museum, which is run by the Salesian mission, provides an overview of the ways of life of the various indigenous groups that inhabit the upper reaches of the Rio Negro.
Visitors in the mood for the beach should catch the bus from here to Praia da Ponta Negra. Located 18 kilometers north of downtown, right next door to the well-known luxury resort, Hotel Tropical, it is the most popular riverside beach in Manaus. |
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