Where the wild things are

Flying to Manaus in the Amazon was flawless. After my trip to Salvador I pretty much had no faith in the airline system in Brazil. Their lack of punctuality seems to coincide with Brazilians attitude towards life; I'll get there when I get there. (But not the way they drive that's for sure.)
I met some very nice people on the bus from the airport to the town center and after a bit of misinformation from some locals about the actual location of my hostel, I made it safe and sound.
The next morning it was up early to catch our ride to our jungle lodge. 3 hours of a boat/car combo and there we were, in the middle of Juma lake in the Amazon rainforest.
As I am bringing my backpack to our room, I notice that there is a parrot on our roof. I immediately whip out my camera and start to think about how cool it is to be in the Amazon. Next thing I know the parrot is flying around my head. I let out the loudest scream of terror and freak out because I am now bent at a 90 degree angle with a parrot perched on my back. I try to stand up straight but it just digs its claws into my back to try and get a foothold. I whine to get it off me and as the staff at the lodge is laughing hysterically at, other parrot appear out of no where and start imitating the laughter. I must admit it was pretty funny, but at the time I just really wanted to parrot off my shoulder. After Jocelyn snapped a couple of phots, the bird is taken off my back by a staff member. I now have scratch marks that run the length of one of my shoulder blades. hot.
After settling into our room (yes, i opted for the more plush ways to visit the amazon, in a hut in the water with a bed and mattress) we were off on our first tour to a locals' house. When we arrived I was literally in shock, what did I sign up for? Not only did the family sell jewelry in their kitchen, they had a TV and about 5 different pets that they brought out to show the tourists. I became to regret my decision with the plush option. I was not pleased with the live petting zoo that was taking place in front of me and decided to walk around out back and see if I could see something more authentic. Once everyone was done inside with the monkey, parrot, turtle, caymen, and some petite anteater looking thing, they joined me out back and the owner of the house, who also happened to be the local protestant pastor, started to talk about the different plants in his 'backyard'.
Turns out his backyard stretches straight into the jungle. He talked of natural remedies for pretty much everything you could think of. It was fascinating that all of this was steps away from their house and that everyone was so educated on all the different plant life and their medicinal uses. He passed around a plant that was supposed to be a natural bug repellant. All you have to do is rub it on your skin, sounds easy enough so I gave it a whirl. No more than five minutes later I had broken out in a rash and start to get frightened that it might get worse. Thankfully as quickly as it came, it disappeared.
The next day was packed with tours of the waters, piranha fishing (of which I caught none) and caymen spotting (of which I got to hold one!) The caymen spotting was really great because we went out late at night in the complete darkness. The jungle is really creepy, and I was glad to have the protection of the boat. I probably would have stroked out if we had been on foot. The caymen the guide caught was only about 2 feet and we were all able to hold it and touch the skin. Apparently caymens are now protected in the amazon, so they are increasing in population because not as many people are hunting them to make into handbags.
Our last full day we went on a jungle walk which was pretty disappointing. I think it all depends on luck, what you see in the jungle. We weren't able to see many animals besides a hoard of monkeys in the trees. I have decided that if I should ever come back to the Amazon I am taking a river boat deep into the Amazon, so I can see all those animals that only exist in the Amazon.
Speaking of animals that only exist in the amazon, I was able to spot both the gray and pink freshwater dolphins. The pink dolphins are total fattys and I am frankly surprised they can get their enormous body out of the water. buoyancy, eh.
I attempted to probe our guide at dinner time about the expansion of the Amazon highway and his thoughts on its impact. He would only go as far to say that yes the highway was bad, but the Amazon was fine. It will still be here for the next generations. It made me wonder if he is not as privy to the information I get from my national geographic subscription, or if his inside knowledge of a life spent entirely in the rainforest, allowed him to look past the politics.
While I am disappointed I wasn't able to see more, the trip was far more rewarding to my other senses then I ever could have imagined. Being in such isolation makes you remember that one or two other times that you were far from civilization. Those times that when they occurred you thought you would never forget, but have somehow been filed in the way back, behind the hustle of day to day life. I'm hoping I won't forget this one.