Demarcation Diaries
1 September 2001
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We're near Carauari. We had to get a local guide to pilot
the ship, because the level of the river is low, and it is
necessary to have someone who knows this place well to avoid
hitting the bottom of the river. |
Last night I went with Ribamar to the house of "ribeirinhos",
people who live at the riverside. In fact there were no walls,
just suspended floor, stilts and a roof. There were lots of mosquitoes,
and the nets were just sheets. The mother of the children in the
house died days after delivery, and the grandfather and grandmother
take care of them. The nearest school is two hours by boat. One
of the children was taken to a town nearby with malaria.
As you can see, it is a hard life. But simple things could make
the situation much better, like providing public transportation
to the school, decent mosquito nets and assistance to build better
houses. But, we live on planet Earth, where politicians "decide"
what is "best for us", so it's really difficult for
things to get better.
Humanity already has technology and resources to provide
a better life for all of us. But as long as money and power
is the goal for the few who manage to get it, things will
stay just as they are. It would be great to live in a world
with peace, love and anarchy! |
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But there are beautiful things, like the couple of red araras
at the "ribeirinhos" house, or the many alligators that
we saw along the way, with their bright eyes as the light of our
lanterns was reflected on them.
Today I tested the microscope and dyes, and everything's fine.
Each day I come more and more to the conclusion that there are
a lot of crazy guys here! Yesterday I was talking to Kontau, the
Chinese volunteer, a really nice guy. We both showed photos of
our girlfriends, and talked about lots of things, like Chinese
movies. We had both seen and liked a lot of movies from Taiwan
(if I'm not wrong) including one called something like "Simple
Things of
Life" (this was the Portuguese name for it in Brazil). Just
a suggestion for you.
The funny thing was when it began to rain. The floor was wet
and slippery, so Samuel had that idea of skiing with bare feet.
Kontau tried to follow him, but wasn't lucky. He fell and hit
his head on the floor! But he didn't hurt himself, and we kept
laughing like children!
And thiss morning Jan, the volunteer from Germany, adopted a
bug. What a beautiful scene! But when it flew away, what a deception!
So, we'll talk tomorrow (a goodbye listening to Algaravia, Brazilian
progressive rock - another suggestion).
Márcio
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