#869 The Shore
Jeff talks about what life is like on the banks of the Amazon.

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Todd: When you were going down the Amazon did you see any wildlife? Lots of animals?

Jeff: None! We didn't see any. We didn't see an alligator. We didn't see a monkey. We didn't see a snake.

Todd: You didn't see one snake?

Jeff: Nope. The villagers... I think they hunt animals for food, for their food, so I think the animals know and they stay away from the side of the river. They stay away from the villages, so if you want to see animals, you have to go further into the jungle, but it's very dangerous and it's difficult, so we didn't go far from the river's edge.

Todd: Oh, so you never ventured in the jungle.

Jeff: You can't. You really can't. It's too thick. You need a machete to hack your way through. You need someone who knows where they're going. A guide with you. It's not... you just can't go on a nice walk in this kind of Amazon jungle. It's dangerous, it's difficult.

Todd: So, how many days did it take you to get down the river?

Jeff: I think it took us, say, fifteen days.

Todd: The distance wasn't so far. I was only I say 300 kilometers but the canoes go straight down. There wasn't any public transport. These canoes were just transporting good from one village to the next, so we had to wait until a transport canoe came along, and then we just hitched a ride to the next village. Wait there for a day or two and then hitch a ride to the next village so a very unorthodox kind of travel. No tour buses. No trains. No taxis. So..

Todd: Well, that sounds like a pretty amazing trip.

Jeff: mm, it was lots of fun, but I wouldn't recommend it to everyone.