Portuguese for SurvivalA few months ago I packed my bags and hitched a ride across the Guyana border into Brazil. I walked into Boa Vista with a sense of accomplishment, having gotten this far without any hiccups. The sky may as well have fallen on my head when I realized that no one spoke any English. This wasn’t what I expected. The locals seemed to be quite content with jabbering in Portuguese. Travelling alone, I was left with little option but to spend my first day in Brazil without speaking a word of English. What ensued in the following weeks was a mad scramble to pick up some basic Portuguese for survival.

History

As always, there’s some good news and there’s some bad news. The good news is Portuguese is a Latin based language and English has a lot of Latin influence too. So many words do overlap. The bad news is that although Portuguese uses the same alphabet as English, the pronunciation is completely different. This could be a challenge.

Pronunciation Basics

A is ah
E is eh
I is ee
O is awe
U is oooh (as in oops)

Rules Designed to Confound and Confuse

An mentioned earlier, pronunciation can be tricky at times. A few examples below.

  • The letter r sounds like the word h if its at the beginning of a word. If its in the middle of a word, its an even stronger h. If its at the end of a word, its silent.
  • S when used at the end of a word becomes a z. For all other practical purposes, it’s still a s
  • The letter h at the beginning of a word is silent. However if it follows an l (lh) or n (nh), it then mysteriously becomes a y. Bet you didn’t see that coming.
  • G takes on a zh sounds when followed with an e or an i. Think Zsa Zsa.

Since most of this isn’t necessary for survival, we diverge. On to the fun stuff.

The Essentials

Obrigado / obrigada – Thank you (depending on whether you’re a male / female)
Desculpa – Sorry
Por favor – Please
Quanto? – How much?
Nao entendi – I didn’t understand
O banheiro, por favor? – The bathroom, please?

How you doin’?

Ola / oi – Hi
Bom dia – Good morning
Bom tarde – Good afternoon
Boa noite – Good evening / night
Chau – Bye
Ate mais – See you
Tudo bem / Tudo bom – How are you? (both equivalent to ‘wassup’)
If someone asks you Tudo bem? say Tudo bom. If it’s Tudo bom? answer back Tudo bem. Don’t waste any time trying to figure out the logic. Move on.

Pronouns

Eu – I
Voce – You
Ele – He / him
Ela – She / her
(Until you master this, bathroom usage will be tricky)

Numbers

1 – um 11 – onze 10 – des
2 – dois 12 – doze 20 – vinci
3 – tres 13 – treze 30 – trente
4 – quarto 14 – quatorze 40 – quarenta
5 – cinco 15 – quinze 50 – cinquenta
6 – seis 16 – dezeseis 60 – sessenta
7 – saiche 17 – dezesete 70 – setenta
8 – oito 18 – dezoito 80 – oitenta
9 – nove 19 – dezenove 90 – noventa
10 – des 20 – vinci 100 – cem

Money

Once you’re down with the numbers, a few more words to your vocab will ensure that bargaining is a breeze. Although the currency is spelt as Real (plural Reais), it is pronounced hey-ah-oh (plural hey-eyez). Another strange aspect is that decimal points don’t exist. Ignoring the far reaching implications of this to high school math, R2,85 would translate to dois reais e oitenta e cinco centavos. Drop the e’s to improve your speed. Once you’re out of cash, ask around for the caixa automatico coz an ATM just doesn’t sound cool enough.

Food

Tons of quilo (kilogram) restaurants are splashed all around town. These places encourage you to gorge yourself on a buffet with a million things on offer. You pay depending on the weight of your plate. In case you’re a vegetarian, you’d better memorize this phrase  – Tem pratos vegetarianos? (do you have vegetarian dishes?) Results though are not guaranteed. Vegetarianism is to the Brazilians as religion is to the birds.

Don’t make the rookie mistake of overeating and not leaving any space for the sobremesa (dessert). Brazilian sobremesas are to die for. Request for a conta (the bill) once you’re done. If you’re at a nicer restaurant, thrown in a por favor for good measure.

Drinks

Chope – Beer
Agua – Water
Café – Coffee
Chá – Tea
Leite – Milk
Açucar – Sugar
Limao – lime
While in Brazil be sure to get your hands on a few Caiperinhas which are delicious cocktails made with limao, açucar and cachaça (sugarcane rum).

Note: 3 caiperinhas are powerful enough to make a priest dance on a barstool.

Directions

Onde fica _______ is your friend. It means ‘where is ________’ and can be used anywhere, for anything and anyone. Too easy..

Phrase of the Day

Que legal (cool)
Divided, these words might be powerless. But together, and with a few exclamation marks thrown in at the end, they can be used to respond to any possible scenario under the sun. Ignore them at your own risk.

Simple Sentences FTW

O meu nome é _______  (My name is _________)
Voce fala inglez? (Do you speak English? Pointless but what the hell!)
Eu falo Inglez – (I speak English, in Portuguese. Very classy)

Before people attempt to strangle you with their bare hands, make a smooth exit.
Por Favor, onde fica o banheiro?

Manaus sits at the mouth of the Amazon, where the Rio Branco (white river) merges with the Rio Negro (black river). Since Manaus is the largest city in this gigantic rainforest, all Amazon exploration starts and ends here. Tourists flock here in hundreds of thousands every year and since the industry is geared towards luxury travel, trips into the forest tend to burn a hole in the wallet. Having spent a day in Manaus earlier in the year, I decided to go back and see what this crazy city was all about. With a limited stash of $$$, there was little choice but to ignore the extravagant tours and get creative.

Swim with river dolphins – USD 50

The Amazon is large enough to sustain a diverse habitat and as a result, it’s the only river that plays home to river dolphins. The pink-bellied river dolphins are a curious species with funny customs. Courtship involves males diving to the bottom of the river and picking up rocks in their jaws. Size does matter and the dolphin that picks up the largest rock wins the female’s affections. A one-hour boat ride up the Rio Negro takes you to dolphin land. Humans (with fish treats) are treated as friends. The dolphins playfully swam around us and occasionally, much to my discomfort, nibbled harmlessly at my knees. Creepy.

Take a waterfall tour – USD 50

With most tourists going gaga over the prospect of trekking through the Amazon, the waterfall tour is a hidden gem. Over 85 waterfalls are splashed around Manaus.  Many locals frequent these waterfalls over the weekend so if you head over on a weekday, you’re practically guaranteed a private audience with one of nature’s most destructive forces. If you work up the courage (I couldn’t), you could join the local lifeguards and try body surfing (no lifejackets, no body boards) down one of the more popular, relatively milder rapids.

Explore the local market – Free

Walking through the local market, you’ll notice that fruits and vegetables take on an alien look in Brazil. From watermelons bigger than footballs to a yellow fruit that tastes like a nut, Manaus has it all. Come Sunday, the centre of town gets cordoned off for a large Sunday street market; a great place to let loose the hidden shopper within.

Get some culture at the Teatro Amazonas – Free

Built in 1896, at the height of the rubber boom, the Teatro Amazonas is modeled on the Opera house in Paris and is a sight to behold. Magnificent from the outside, the theatre is massive on the inside with intricate carvings and painting on the walls and ceilings. Beauty and rubber extravagance aside, the best part is that most of the concerts at this theatre are free. Easier said than done though, because half the population of Manaus queues up for most shows an hour before the doors open. However, a few passion fruit caiperinjas (available outside the theatre) should ease the discomforts of sitting on the cobblestone street.

Mention Venezuela to a random man and he’ll definitely rave about a Country that has produced the most number of beauty queens. If he’s a BBC planet earth fan, he’ll throw in a few words of praise for the majestic Angel Falls or the inaccessible Mount Roraima. What you’re unlikely to hear about is the beauty of the Grand Savannah. Green fields beneath a dark blue sky dotted with white cotton clouds and mountains decorating the background.

La Gran Sabana

The Grand Savannah

If you’ve got 30 bucks (USD) to spare, you could get a cab to drive you around this natural paradise for a day.  What’s even better is the entire savannah is filled with numerous waterfalls; some as large as Kaietaeur, yet unconsciously ignored since waterfalls are numerous enough to not be considered anything out of the ordinary.

Jasper

By far the most remarkable of the lot, Jasper is a tiny waterfall that flows over red jasper rock. For the uninitiated, Jasper is an opaque hard impure variety of silica that is used as a gemstone. How do you like that? This waterfall flows right over a semi precious rock!

Saro Wapo

Great waterfall if you’re looking to repeatedly jump off the edge into the cool water below. Once you’ve belly flopped a few times, look for a shady spot under a tree and take a nap. It doesn’t get any better than this. The pictures speak for themselves.

Kawa

Long river with a series of waterfalls. Rather than the waterfalls, the highlight here was an elusive iguana.

Kapi

Sad to say that no one seems to pay too much attention to this gigantic waterfall located at the side of the highway.

Pacheco

Another waterfall (yawn). However, this one stands out because of the numerous vultures that nest in the forest right beside the waterfall. Before you reach for your shotgun, remember that these creepy birds are more terrified of you than you of them. And rightly so!

Angel falls was named after the pilot who discovered these falls hidden away among the many tepuis of Venezuela. The journey to the falls is a long one but, as you shall see, completely worth your time and money. Speaking of which, this trip is very cheap by international standards. Despite Hot Chocolate Fudge’s (Hugo Chavez Frias – too risky to mention his name in Venezuela) best efforts at controlling the currency, black market trading ensures that you get decent conversion rates for the dollar. As a result of this, a 3-day 2-night epic journey to the falls costs only USD 300 including transport, accommodation and food.

#1 Ciudad de Bolivar

Your journey’s launch pad is at the centre of the Country; a place called Ciudad de Bolivar (City of Bolivar). Simon Bolivar was the liberator of Peru, Argentina, Venezuela and Colombia from the Spanish and the founder of Bolivia. This feat earned him a God-like status in this part of the World. Ciudad de Bolivar is tiny and quite charming with old Chevys crawling through its narrow streets. No time to waste here though, a 1.5-hour 6-seater flight to Canaima awaits you.

#2 Canaima

If not for having to live in the shadow of Angel falls, the waterfalls at Canaima would’ve been world famous. Named after a mythical Amerindian hunter / murderer, Canaima is a feast for the eyes from the sky. 4 waterfalls, each as powerful as the next, pour ceaselessly into a large basin. The main attraction though is a tiny ledge that runs directly below one of these gigantic waterfalls allowing you to walk right under the waterfall. A waterfall hurling at over 500,000 litres per second a few feet over your head is a memory that you will carry to your grave. The flowing water is so powerful that the wind generated under the fall could easily knock you over if you’re not careful. Mind blowing at the very least.

#3 Angel Falls

If you’re able to drag yourself away from this, a 4-hour boat ride from Canaima will take you to Angel Falls; assuming you survive the numerous rapids along the way. Fortunately, the boatmen do this day in and day out and make an impossible task seem easy. If the weather God permits, a beautiful view of the falls is to be had from the river camp. Even from this distance you can see that the falls are so high that the water gets blown to a mist way before it reaches the bottom. An hour’s hike gets you to the pool at the bottom of the falls. And this is where you get the money shot.

Angel Falls

Backpacker Hostels in ParamariboParamaribo is the Capital of Suriname (yes, that’s a Country) and is widely referred to as the Europe of South America. While cheap hostels are a dime a dozen, once you add safety to the equation, possibly only 3 hostels remain. Add to this the fact that the Country speaks Dutch, quotes prices in Euros and is in South America and you’ve got a whole new set of problems on your hand.

Having spent some time at all of these (don’t ask why); here’s what they’re all about.

#1. Twenty24

This is by far the friendliest backpacker place of all. At 15 Euro per night, it’s far from cheap, but this seems to be a more systemic problem with all safe hostels in Paramaribo. You can expect clean spacious room, clean bathroom and friendly staff. The highlight of this place is its open balcony, which allows you to meet the other guests over a beer. Twenty24 is walking distance from the historic centre and 100m away from the Cathedral.

#2. Albergo Alberga

A Beautiful, old Dutch house converted into a hostel, this is located bang in the middle of the historic city centre. This is reflected in the rent. At 18 Euros, the cheapest room here is slightly more expensive than the neighboring two hostels. Other features include a tiny swimming pool. However, due to dangerously high chlorine levels, I’d suggest donning protective gear first. The biggest drawback here is that the hostel gives out a very boring and slightly unfriendly vibe. The guests tend to be older, relatively well behaved and usually prefer to keep to themselves.

#3. Zus and Zo

If you’re looking for a hostel online, this is the place you’ll find splashed around most sites. The hostel is opposite the palm garden and is walking distance from the waterfront and historic city centre. A nice restaurant at the bottom gives this hostel a relaxed atmosphere. All the potential it shows on the outside disappears once you get inside. Tiny crammed rooms and dingy bathrooms is all you’ll get for your 16 Euro.

Sir Author Conan Doyle was not talking through his hat when he wrote about a Lost World. He was talking about a mountain located at the triple border of Venezuela, Guyana and Brazil. The South American and Caribbean tectonic plates colliding with one another formed Mount Roraima. As a result of this, Mount Roraima was lifted above the surrounding land and has remained this way for centuries. With no natural predators (or humans) on the top of this mountain, evolution has had a free reign to take a few liberties. 30% of all plant and animal species found on Mount Roraima are endemic to the mountain. In English, it means that these species can be found only on the mountain and nowhere else in the world.

Arriba Arriba (Up, Up)

Hiking to the top of Mount Roraima to explore this lost World is easier said than done. Tackling the savannah is the first priority and takes up the first two days. Streams at regular intervals give you a reprieve from walking under the unforgiving sun. 13.5km and 11km are swallowed on the first two days. Day 3 might seem mild at 3.5km but is the toughest day of all since you pretty much climb the mountain in 4-5 hours. Lugging your weight and backpacks up around 2000m (elevation gain) is quite a workout.

The Lost World

A few minutes on the top and it’s all clear why this is the lost world. An alien stone studded landscape greets you. Fragments of clouds splashed all across the mountain add to the surreal view. This table mountain is far from flat.

Entertainment at the Top

#1 Skinny dip in a natural Jacuzzi

Jacuzzi

#2 Crawl 60m through a cave running into the mountain

Underground cave on Mount Roraima

#3 Pet a Mount Roraima frog

Frog endemic to Roraima

Frog endemic to Roraima

#4 Visit the window in the skies

Window in the skies

#5 Sample the endemic cucumber like snack

Cucumber snack

#6 Get a glimpse of the plant eat animal world

Carnivorous plant

#7 Meditate at the top

Meditate

#8 Catch the sunset

Sunset from Roraima

#9 Indulge in a cave hotel dinner

Hotel San Francisco

#10 Sift through crystal and quartz in search of the perfect diamond

Diamonds?

Picture this: backpack overflowing with hiking gear, bucket of food to last a week, hammock slung over your shoulder, heading into the World’s largest rainforest. Alone.

This isn’t a fantasy. It’s real and doable. And I’ve saved the best for the last – it would cost you less than USD 20 per day once you get to Brownsberg National Park, Suriname.

The trickiest bit of this trip is booking accommodation at the camp. The local STINASU office in Paramaribo allows you to book a shed where you can hang your own hammock for USD 10 per night. The shed also features a gas stove and a few multipurpose utensils allowing you to cook your own meals. For the lazy and more affluent campers, a restaurant (nothing fancy) serves meals near the park headquarters.

The Trails

Leo Val

Val in Dutch translates to waterfall in English. Not being the sharpest tool in the shed, it took a hike to Leo Val for me to figure this out. Leo Val is the most easily accessible waterfall. Although it’s reduced to a tiny trickle during summer, the view’s still worth the trek. More interesting though is the tiny cave right next to the falls. A few decades ago pork knockers, testing their luck, dug this cave. This would be gold mine was abandoned as soon as the forest was converted to a National Park and now plays home to a noisy bat population. Being no Bruce Wayne, I couldn’t work up the courage to walk into the bat cave but had to settle for a few pictures from the outside.

Mazaroni Top

Seated at the top of a tiny hill, this is one of the highest points in the park. A painless 15 mins walk will get you to this sunset spot. A shelter at the top makes this a good picnic spot. Depending on the number of people at the camp, you might have to share this spot with other happy campers.

Witti Creek

By far the most rewarding trail of the lot and also the most arduous trek of all. The creek at the end of the trail is a reward that makes the 2.5 hour struggle worthwhile. Flowing through this hidden creek is the best tasting water I’ve ever drunk. This is truly a tropical paradise hidden away in the middle of the forest. And if you get this far, you’ll have it all to yourself.

Kumbu Val

One of the hardest trails to follow, the path disappears once you get to a creek. No sign of any waterfall. After a mini ramble through the woods, I gave up on falls after getting lost.

Mazaroni Val

A 2 hour walk gets you to this cascading waterfall. Part of the trail uses a well-traveled road and is quite easy to follow. The going gets tough once you get off the road. As you approach the waterfall, the eerie forest silence gives way to the sound of flowing water. The beauty of this trail lies not in the magnificence of the waterfall but in how remote and inaccessible it is. One glimpse of the waterfall and you know that you’re one of the few people who have gotten this far.

Warning

  • Trails are often partially wiped out by a huge tree falling across them and it is likely that you’ll stumble around for a while until you find the real trail. While this is a bit scary at times, it adds to the experience. Just be sensible and let the park rangers know which trail you plan to tackle each day.
  • Attacks from Boa Constrictors and Anacondas are not uncommon. Carry a penknife in your pocket when you’re out on the trails. Despite my greatest efforts, neither of these celebrities made an appearance during my foray into the wild.

 

Street Music in Brazil

Music’s always in the air in Brazil…regardless of the time or the place..

Dutch House - ParamariboParamaribo is the Capital of Suriname. Suriname, with a population of lesser than 500,000, isn’t a dominating presence on the World map. In other words, not many people know where Suriname is. To refresh your memory, it’s a tiny little country to the north of Brazil. Only 5% of this country is inhabited while a huge monster, commonly known as the Amazon, envelops the rest of it. Another strange fact about Surinam is that it’s one of the few Countries having more Surinamese people out of the Country (predominantly in Holland) than in the Country.

When you’re in South America, ordering nasi goreng (fried rice) from an Indonesian vendor, who (doesn’t speak a word of Bahasa and) replies in Dutch, you get a feeling that something went drastically wrong.

To understand Paramaribo, you’ll need to understand its history. Before you nod off at the mere mention of history, I’ll summarize in 4 sentences.

  1. The Dutch showed up and built fancy buildings
  2. They imported indentured laborers / slaves to cook (Indonesia), clean (Africa), and farm (India).
  3. The Dutch were then kicked out (we can’t be certain why)
  4. Somewhere along the line, the Chinese showed up and started selling Japanese cars and Chowmein. Bet you didn’t see that one coming.

The best way to explore this city would be to rent a bicycle and drift through the old streets of Paramaribo. The historical centre is beautiful and walking / cycling through it on a Sunday afternoon is a treat.

A few things you should check out are

The Cathedral

Reconstructed in the late 19th Century, it is an engineering marvel built entirely from wood. The immensity of this Cathedral doesn’t register until you walk in and you won’t be able to help but gape at the beautiful wooden paneling. That it has been standing for over a hundred years is a mystery.

Palm Garden

Supposedly part of the palace gardens at some stage, this beautiful garden consists of over a thousand palm trees planted on a 4 hectare piece of land in the middle of the city. Obviously popular with muggers and drug dealers come nightfall.

Water Front

Overlooking the water as the name suggests; the building dotting this street are the oldest in Paramaribo.

Sunday Flea Market

Some smartass decided that the best way to convert a regular market into the hottest event in town would be to add a “flea” to the name. Works like a charm. Tons of tourists show up to a display of fruits, vegetables, hardware, etc. Save your energy. Sit at home and drink Parbo Bier. Burrrp.

Fort Zeelandia

Once a symbol of the Dutch dominance over Surinam, this is now a restaurant that charges you 10 SRD to enter the fort, if you don’t eat there. Best way to subvert this tourist tax is to enter, check out the fort, glance at the menu and then make like a banana and split (or make like a tree and leave). I must concede that the view of the river is amazing and the prices are reasonable.

Imperial Palace

The Imperial Palace is lit up at night and stands as an imposing landmark bang in the middle of the historical centre of the city.

Once you’re done with this, give yourself a pat on the back (I did) and treat yourself to some wine and cheese to make your European-South American experience complete.

Wine and Cheese

A direct flight from Georgetown to Paramaribo would get you across the border in an hour’s time. However, if

a)   You’d like to save some money
b)   You’ve got some time to kill
c)   You’re looking for adventure
d)   You need to get from Guyana to Suriname
e)   All of the above

Then this is just what the doctor ordered.

In a nutshell, the trip involves a bus from Georgetown to Corriverton on the Guyana-Suriname border, a ferry across the river into Suriname and a bus from Nieuw Nickerie to Paramaribo.

 

Overland Trip

Flight

Bus to Corriverton – USD 7.5
Accomodation – USD 12.5
Dinner – USD 3
Ferry – USD 10
Bus to Paramaribo – USD 20
Lunch – USD 5

Total – USD 58

Ticket to Paramaribo – USD 125
Departure tax – USD 25
Cab to airport – USD 5

Total – USD 155

 

This seemed straightforward at first glance. In retrospect, it might’ve been slightly more complicated than that. The journey begins at Starbroek with 5 people trying to grab your bags and physically throwing you into their minibus. A loud yell usually shows them that you mean business and are not a pushover. You’ve got 2 options at this stage. Option one involves forking out GYD 2500 for a seat on a cab going to Corriverton (yes – drivers usually pimp out their cabs and get 4 or more passengers to share a cab). But the cab’s for sissies. The real deal is riding the mini-bus to the border for GYD 1500. It’s cheap, entertaining and quick. The quickness might come at the expense of safety.

The ferry leaves for Suriname twice a day – 9am and 1pm. With a little reverse engineering you’ll realize that you need to take a bus to the border the night before if you intend to catch the 9am ferry and get to Paramaribo at a reasonable hour. Accommodation at Corriverton (border town in Guyana) is easily available with prices ranging from GYD 2500 to 6000. No need to book in advance. The cheap rooms are really minimal to the extent that toilet doors do not exist. The more luxurious rooms have air conditioners and cable TV!

The ferry timings are only indicative and the ferry will definitely not leave on time. Expect a 1-hour delay. The journey costs 2000 GYD for a 1 way ride and GYD 3000 for a return journey.

Ferry at the Guyana-Suriname BorderWhen the ferry docks on either side, you’ll notice that around 10 people make a dash for the immigration line. I was content to scurry along and be the 11th person in the queue. However, the rest of the ferry took their time and much to my frustration, proceeded to push past me claiming to be with one of the 10 people in front of me. Having picked a fight with a few queue breakers (8 years in Singapore did that to me), I had the last laugh when I found out that they had to wait in the sweltering heat for all passengers to clear immigration before the buses departed for Paramaribo.

Welcome in the SurinameOnce you get to Suriname, don’t expect a drastic change in the people or place. There’s a bit of Dutch and some iffy English splashed around on signboards but the English sounds the same as the Creolese in Guyana (although it should be called Rasta English in my opinion).

Look closely at the pictures below and its hard to tell which one’s Guyana and which one’s Suriname (one of them has a road – hint hint).

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Paramaribo however, is a different story and couldn’t be more different from Guyana and the rest of South America. But I’ll save that story for another time