| The
State of the Amazons covers an area of over 1,5 million
sq km and is Brazil's largest state. Approximately
75% of its inhabitants lives in the capital, Manaus.
The city lies 3° South of the equator, on the northern
bank of the river Rio Negro, 10km upstream from the
confluence of the Solimoes and Negro rivers, which
join and form the Amazon River. There is an interesting
phenomenon, the "Encontro das Įguas" (Meeting of waters),
the point where the inky-black waters of the Rio Negro
meet the clay-yellow waters of the Rio Solimoes -
it is a must to see this. Other interesting parts
of Manaus are close to the waterfront: Mercado Municipal,
fish market at night, the customs house and the floating
docks. If you have one day extra in Manaus you could
visit Shopping Cecomiz (Zona Franca) and buy electronic
equipments etc. The opera house is one of the most
impressive reminders of Manaus' past opulence. But
the main reason to visit Manaus for most foreign visitors
are of course the jungle tours. Here, it's possible
to arrange anything from day trips and overnight excursions,
to months of travel in the hinterland. There are several
options of cruisers and hotels in the jungle.
The climate is hot and humid during the whole year,
which is divided in two seasons - summer and winter.
It is considered to be summer between July and November,
when it rains less and it is hotter. During winter
it rains more and the water level in rivers and the
landscape increase. The flooded land reaches the highest
levels between March and April and the lowest between
August and October. The temperature varies between
20° and 30°C in average during the year, and
the relative humidity vary between 80% and 90%. You
can travel to the Amazon (the region of Manaus) during
the whole year with no problem to experience what
the jungle has to provide, but if you can choose period,
you may avoid the period with the most intensive rainfalls,
between December and February (But this is the period
of most tourists. It uses to rain every second day
with some sun between). September & October can
be quite hot and have low water levels, which make
difficulties to travel by boat in some areas. The
best might be between March and June when it rains
less intensive, but the water levels are still high
and facilitate tours by boats in the flooded land.
During summer it comes dryer and it appears non flooded
areas, when you cannot access some areas by boat anymore,
but on the other hand the chance to observe the wildlife
like Alligators and Capybaras increase. |
