Where are we now?


View Where are we now? in a larger map Jo, Annie, Miles and I are living in Northport, Alabama and working at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa. We've been glad to be in one place for a bit after what appeared to be semi-permanently traveling (in actuality for a period of 2.5 years).We started this blog to catalogue some of the adventures when Jo and I were sequentially conducting our dissertation research in India and Brazil. While we've fallen off the blogging bandwagon somewhat during recent trips to Brazil, we're trying to pick it up again now that we're back in India!


Sunday, October 7, 2012

Bonito, so bonito.


One thing that Bonito is famous for, actually the thing that probably put it on the map, is its' crystal clear rivers and diverse aquatic life. The place has been described as if someone let you go swimming in an aquarium. While the fish are not tropical ocean colorful, I think they're pretty amazing, as was the whole experience of snorkelling in the crystal clear water. Below is a video I put together with some music from "The Life Aquatic". Enjoy. o
p.s. this video was shot underwater with the Kodak equivalent of the flip video camera. I was incredibly impressed with the results, and then the next day it stopped working. Big surprise.


And because we've been getting some feedback that the blog is not carrying enough photos of Annie, well, here are a few gratuitous pics to keep those critics at bay. You know who you are!








 
Doing my dance


                                                            To the moooooon!

Monday, October 1, 2012

Bonito: Part 1


Bonito, one of Brazil's most popular ecotourism destinations, is known for its rivers, lakes, caves, and many species of fish and birds. The high concentration of calcium in the water causes everything else to precipitate out, creating waters so clear that one can see the bottom of its many bodies of water. We are in the midst of a five-day trip with the Weavers to this fantastic place.


The first day, we went to a municipal beach located on the banks of a narrow river. A natural rock bridge made a nice viewpoint for watching hundreds of big carp swimming around. You wouldn't know it from these shots, but families were picnicking, playing beach volleyball, and swimming all over the place.



Surprisingly, given their density, the fish didn't bother us when we were swimming.


On the second day, we went to the Lagoa Azul Grotto, a wide-mouthed cave with spectacular stalactites, stalagmites, and a lake of an incredible blue at the bottom. This is Bonito's most-visited site.


It was quite hike down into the depths of the earth, but the Weavers were troopers.





This picture isn't altered in any way; it's really that blue.

 

Jo translated the guide's descriptions of the cave's geology for the Weavers while Dave took pictures. Her Portuguese is amazing, especially considering that she has never formally studied it.


Annie stayed behind with a babysitter on this trip, but allegedly she had a wonderful time blowing kisses to the hotel staff and didn't cry once!