Today is a bit of a rest day, since it's Saturday; on the weekends we can all do as we please. Mike and Danielle decided to be hard-core; they have headed off on a four-hour boat trip down the Amazon, where they will then camp deep in primary rainforest and explore the flora with a guide. I'm taking it easier; I washed some of my clothes in the sink this morning and hung them up to dry, then went to a supermarket to buy essentials like beer, as well as miscellaneous Brazilian curiosities (palm hearts, local hot sauce) for presents for folks back home. The local brand of toilet paper is called "Snob", which is rather amusing. I think I'll go back to the supermarket again before I leave, now that I know where it is, and get some Brazilian candy and fruit juice and such, and see what I can bring back into the U.S. There are many kinds of fruit juice available here that one could, of course, never find in the U.S.
In a little while, I'll be heading downtown with Dr. Ouverney and Dr. Myatt and perhaps others, to change money (which is surprisingly hard to do here!) and to perhaps do some shopping and have lunch. Right now Dr. Ouverney is arranging a side trip to an expensive eco-lodge for some of the other group members (Bob and Victoria), so I'm using the time to catch up on my blogging, which I've fallen behind on. I realized I hadn't taken a photo of the hotel yet, so here one is. It's not at all a bad place, especially considering how cheap it is; Dr. Ouverney did some good bargain-hunting when he planned this trip!