inhale, exhale

[asakiyume]

I learned so much in the Amazon: one, that the river inhales and exhales: when it has breathed in deeply and its waters extend the farthest, tall trees are underwater and the fish feed on palm fruits. Maximum expansion is March. And then it exhales, shrinks-shrinks-shrinks, and temporary islands appear, and people rush out and take advantage of the 40 cm of rich soil the river has left to grow quick crops that can be harvested before the river rises and swallows the islands back up again. The river is at its lowest point in September--at which time you can walk to the island across from the pier where we got boats when we went out on the water (this is on a tiny tributary--one of our guides called it a creek--but it looked pretty big to us!)

I saw all the types of liminal houses: houses on stilts, floating houses, and house boats. Here is a floating house.



I have more stories to share (of course!) but we caught Covid (despite everything; we were vaxxed and masked to the max), so I'll probably still be a little scarce around here for a bit.

One more thing before I go: I loved how indoors and outdoors blended. Here's a coffee shop and bakery where we stopped on the way back from a bike ride:

Comments

[sovay]

I saw all the types of liminal houses: houses on stilts, floating houses, and house boats.

I am glad you had so much of the liminal. Heal well and completely. I like the tree waiting in line at the coffee shop. It looks like it parked the bike.

[asakiyume]

What a great illustration that would make! A tree on a bike!

Cats and dogs also came and went at will. A very cute Jiji/Autolycus lookalike asked us politely for some of the chicken at one of our dinners:

[sovay]

A very cute Jiji/Autolycus lookalike asked us politely for some of the chicken at one of our dinners

Oh, good cat!

[asakiyume]

He (actually I think it was a she) was Very Good.

[squirrelitude]

Wow! I didn't know the river did that. That cycle must drive so many of the rhythms of life there, both human and everyone else.

The vague delineation between indoors and out in tropical places has fascinated me for a while. A few years back I realized it was to some degree a matter of scale: I'm fairly sure that the ants that walk in under the cruddy weatherstripping on our front door in Somerville don't know they're "indoors". :-) The larger the gaps, the more "friends" you end up with.

[asakiyume]

The larger the gaps, the more "friends" you end up with --I love this way of conceptualizing it! It feels right to me.

[minoanmiss]

*hugs you* when you;'re ready I'm eager to listen.

[asakiyume]

(((hugs back)) (and in a totally noncontagious way!)

Many thanks.

[wayfaringwordhack]

So sorry to hear you got covid. I hope you recover quickly.

I can't wait to hear more about your trip, but the lead in with the "breathing" cycle of the water is fascinating!

[asakiyume]

One of the local peoples--the people who in my story "New Day Dawning" formed the Solimões Sodality, actually--have a story about a creature that's half tapir and half manatee, that represents the connectedness of the water and the land. Every time a tapir dies, a manatee is born, and vice versa. They say that river dolphins and humans have the same relationship.

(And thank you--me too!)

[wayfaringwordhack]

Sounds like you learned so many fascinating things. :D

How are you feeling today? (feel free not to respond or feel pressured to!)

[asakiyume]

Not bad at all--just a cough/sore throat, runny nose, and a bit of a fever. Wakanomori had/has it worse than I do, but even he doesn't have it very bad, it seems. If it doesn't get worse than this, I'll count myself very lucky indeed!

[yamamanama]

That's the advantage of being vaccinated.

[asakiyume]

Absolutely! My heartfelt agreement!

[sartorias]

That is so cool about the river inhaling and exhaling! Yeah, when it's warm all the time, you can have roof supports instead of walls and windows. (Though you often need mosquito netting as a kind of wall around your bed.) Nifty photo!

I look forward to more pix--after you get rid of the plague. Feel better soon!

[asakiyume]

Many thanks--will do!

[anna_wing]

The Irrawaddy does the same! Based on the monsoon, so very similar.

I hope you recover quickly and fully.

[asakiyume]

Ye, I was thinking of that when I learned this about the Amazon--actually, I was thinking of the Mekong, not the Irrawaddy, but same principle! It made me wonder whether this is true of all giant [tropical? Or maybe just all, without "tropical" as a modifier] rivers. Because didn't the ancient Egyptians do similar--plant in the soil left behind by the Nile? And the Yellow River? I wonder about the Congo, too. I wonder about the Mississippi....

Many thanks. I know millions and millions of people have had it already, but it feels very weird, knowing I'm experiencing a virus that is brand new (or only two years old) to humans. Like I'm interacting with an alien. Fortunately for me right now, it just feels like an unpleasant cold, but I've read the stories; I know it can shift and do nasty things. I'm taking it easy.

[heleninwales]

I'm sorry to hear you both caught covid, but at least it was while having an epic adventure and not just visiting a local shop. I hope you get over it quickly.

I didn't know the Amazon expanded and contracted like that. I'm familiar with river levels rising and falling with the seasons and the rainfall, but not to that extent.

[asakiyume]

It's amazing! It's the rhythm of life there. There were stilt houses on dry land, that, when the river rises completely, will be surrounded by water.

And yes, I agree: better on an adventure than just running errands in town.

[mallorys_camera]

You caught COVID? While you were in Columbia? Or when you got back?

Glad it was a great trip. Best wishes for a speedy recovery.

[asakiyume]

Seems likely we caught it over there, yeah--hard to tell b/c of incubation periods, etc. (We only got back yesterday--and only did the tests yesterday.)

It was a great trip though! I loved it.

[osprey_archer]

So sorry to hear you got Covid, but so glad you had a great trip! The breathing river is fascinating, and the open-air coffee shop looks like such a nice place to sit and relax.

[asakiyume]

Thank you--yes, and all the places we ate were like that; it was wonderful. (There are indoor restaurants, but we didn't visit them--in part to avoid covid, LOL! But also because I wanted to spend every minute possible feeling the air of the place.)

[amaebi]

How very Mermaid's Hands.

[asakiyume]

Right?? That's what I thought! I had thought I'd be getting more details for other stories relating to the Solimões Sodality, but I was so happy that I *also* got to see the reality of what living in Mermaids Hands would be like.

[cmcmck]

Hope you get over the lurgi easily.

I still think people overrate the protection given by masks- they protect others from you (a bit at least) not you from others.

[asakiyume]

Many thanks!

[http://lotuslandfineart.com/velvetrope/]

That sounds like a magical trip, COVID notwithstanding. Heal quickly and take all of the time you need to completely recover.

[asakiyume]

Thank you so much--I will do that 💛💛💛