DAY 19. WHO THE HELL NEEDS YOU OUT THERE?

I woke to the sounds of a large animal bustling in the bushes nearby. I got out of the boat to check it out (yes, just like in horror films, I just must explore when there is an unexplained sound), but I found nothing. These might have been some monkeys… or a jaguar, I guess.

The sunrises here are incomparable. I could admire them forever, but I should not forget to scoop water out of the boat in the morning. There was not much water to scoop out today. Apparently, it only rises to a certain level where there is some hole, and then it rises no more.

My next destination is Britannia. That is the name of a small village in the middle of the jungle. That is interesting, isn’t it? Hopefully I will find some construction materials there, as the Great Amazon is just days away. It is vital that I make the boat more reliable.

As I was approaching the village pier, I found an abundance of dolphins and some sort of factory in the distance. I can see electric lines and some fuel tanks. Do they extract natural gas here? I heard there is plenty of it in this area. Civilisation is right at the corner.

As I was leading the boat towards the pier, I spotted a big ship that looked like a hotel. Some tourists were boarding three big black tender boats. It is funny to watch them carefully spray themselves with various mosquito repellents and wrap themselves in jackets. Heh, they are guests on the river. For me, the river has practically become my home during these three weeks. I am used to it.

I docked at the pier and was greeted by surprised residents. I asked around about construction materials. One of the taxi drivers assured me that he knew a carpenter who would help me, and a girl selling ice-cream on the beach would look after the boat in the meantime. I did not have much money left, but they said the village was far from the harbour, so I agreed to go for a ride with the taxi driver Victor. He offered me a good bargain: if I found a carpenter and the building materials I needed, I would pay him as much as I wanted, and if not, I would not have to pay at all. That is a clever guy! He knew I would not pay an unfairly low price anyway.

The village was not that far away. We travelled along a concrete path, sometimes covered with puddles, all the way to the carpenter’s house. He said that he did not have the materials I needed at hand, but he could produce them in a few hours. I decided to order a dozen bars, 3×3.5 centimetres wide and 2.5 metres long. That should be enough for a complete reconstruction of the tent.

I paid Victor generously, primarily since he had volunteered to help me with so much determination. I went back to the boat, having bought some sandpaper and a new marker. On the pier (in fact, it was just a bank where a few boats are tied up) a few gawkers had already gathered around my canoe. All of them were curious about who I was and where I came from. Eventually they also helped me pull the boat right onto the bank. People’s curiosity is always my best hope and help.

I inspected the boat thoroughly. Everything was in perfect condition. The craftsmen had not lied when they said this timber was light, but suitable for my idea. New gawkers came to the village beach instead of those who had already satisfied their curiosity, and meanwhile, under the scorching sun, I got to work. The boards were to be ready in about three hours, but now I needed to dismantle everything I had constructed. And it was over 30 degrees in the shade. It was a hot day.

Oh, what sort of questions I was asked by the locals! One girl even asked if I had a free place for her in the boat. No, I am sorry, sweetheart, there is not any. If anything happens to me, I want to be responsible for myself only. That is a fair thing to do.

I took the tent structure apart within half an hour and compared to how much time I had spent building it… Oh. I felt like I had lost my home again. I did not have a roof over my head anymore. However, the people were very nice, as they always are. Not only idle gawkers quickly gathered around me, but also those actively willing to help – and of all ages! I picked up the boards from the carpenter and there were so many helping hands that my main duty was to supervise the construction process rather than do all of it myself. Some people sawed (they had borrowed a good saw from a man who lives nearby), others sanded the boards with sandpaper so that there were no splinters. This collective work went on for the rest of the day. People were changing one another, and I was busy all the time. I had to finish the tent today in case it started raining or I would indeed be homeless.

By 7 pm, when it was almost dark, the tent was finished. The people left me to my own devices. I had a chance to quietly enjoy what we had accomplished.

The frame of the tent was made of both new boards and those that the locals had torn from some pallets. The latter made perfect crossbars – light, but strong. On them lay the tent and a new piece of plastic, which was given to me as a present. It will now become some kind of tradition – a piece of plastic as a gift.

Now the tent is about 30 centimetres lower. The poles are at the right angles, so there is more space inside the cabin. Besides, now you can hang equipment inside and make some shelves. The structure has become strong and stable. Now it is a full-fledged house, and I am sure of its reliability.

I am exhausted. I spent the whole day in the sun – and more than 10 hours of it I was working without breaks. I have a headache, probably from fatigue. I was already planning to go to sleep when suddenly one of the residents, Nelson, invited me for a family dinner! I left the canoe and followed him.

The dwelling looked quite curious – four poles with a roof, several hammocks and mosquito nets under it. The hostess Susanna cooked chicken and eggs for me while they ate fish. Maybe they thought I could catch enough of it myself. I do not know about that, but the food was fantastic. More importantly, the atmosphere was so domestic and friendly. I felt better and more energised to do new things.

I went to bed again in the boat, but this time on dry land. It was an unusual experience. I watched huge bats flying above the water surface for a while. They were perfectly visible from behind the factory I mentioned earlier. The locals confirmed that it was indeed a gas extraction plant and the people working there were from Iquitos, the capital of the Amazon.

The thing is, the plant is not that simple, it is Canadian. It is heavily guarded. Its workers have conflicts with the locals on the grounds of oppression of the indigenous population and seizure of their land. How many times have I seen that? The one case I remember most vividly is my encounter with the Mapuche, the indigenous people of Chile. It was a sad story.

There is nothing more pleasant than to be convinced once again that a whole layer of social stereotypes is really nothing. It is a bucket of crabs, nothing more. People back home told me – who the hell needs you there? – but each of us is needed where we can be of help and interest to the people around us.

3 May, ~13 (721) km covered.