Day 10 - A Buffalo Ride in the Jungle & Beach Adventure!

This morning there was a beautiful breakfast set out on the patio next to the pool. We had fresh fruit, chocolate cake, tapioca com manteiga, eggs, and fresh juice! I was in heaven!

The pool at this hotel was so perfect!

I love this old structure with the vulture sitting on the top. The building shows the type of weather and elements this island has endured over the years.

We loaded up our van and headed off to a long adventure. We first stopped at a school and learned about the history of the pottery on the island. It was very fascinating.

These urns were what the dead was buried in. The artwork and carving on the outside all told a little bit about the person who it represented.

This was the first of many dogs that I would see around the island. Most of them were at the restaurants under my feet. My teacher Mel told us not to touch them so I made sure I didn't but they were so super sweet.

We are off to the BEST part of the day!!

We got to visit a family farm and learn more about what they did here.

Okay, the best part was....... we got to ride buffalos through the forest for about a mile!! One of the best things I've ever experienced in my life so far. It was such a unique way to go on our first hike of the day!

My water buffalo's name was Tulura! He was the sweetest.

Part of our hike was on foot and it was so amazing. I still cannot believe I got to experience Brazil this way. It was such an interesting way to learn about the people. I could not have understood any of this by just reading a book or looking on a website. I had to feel it, smell it, and see it for myself.

We walked along a very narrow foot bridge. This was made to help preserve the nature in this area.

It was kind of rickety and we all had to spread out and not walk too close together but that was fine. It was really incredible.

Once we got to the beach it was literally like something you would see on a postcard. It was calm, serene, silent, and all encompassing at the same time. I feel like I could have stayed there forever. Time seemed to stand still and forced me to try to take it all in. I tucked it away in my memory so that I could pull it up later and remember how I felt. I can almost still feel the light river breeze running over my skin and smell the damp air.

The sand was so soft. I don't know if I've ever seen sand as fine as I did while we were here in Brazil.

What a sweet view this was. Those trees are so unique, too. The roots grow down towards the water. A lot of this will be covered up during high tide and the rainy season.

We saw quite a few dead puffer fishes on the sand. Mel said that it was because when the high tide came, the water switched from fresh water to salt water. Some of the fishes don't have time to go with the fresh water and die in the salt water.

Vultures are literally everywhere in Marajó. They are like the seagulls we have here in Utah or the pigeons in other states.

Our guide gave us all fresh coconuts to drink before we got back in our boats to head over to the farm.

This day made me so very happy. I'm so grateful for this once in a lifetime experience.

It was a little muddy and wet on our walk today but I didn't mind. Also, the mosquitos were pretty bad today!

We had one more demonstration before our activities were finished and it was visiting this pottery shop where this kind gentleman showed us how he made the bowls and other items.

I wanted to support all of the people that took the time to share their lives with us. I got a really cute pair of clay earrings at this store.

We went back to the hotel and got ready for dinner. We took Ubers to a local restaurant that

had music and dancing later. There were 5 of us at my table and we really enjoyed our conversations. We also all ordered hot chocolate and it really hit the spot. The meal took about 1 ½ hours to get to us but we didn’t mind. The restaurant reminded me of a Mexican restaurant. I just loved the lighting, music, and the people. Also, it was a family friendly environment and it was good to see kids running around. After dinner we went back to the hotel and had a chill night.