Overnight we moved from the brown estuarine waters of the Amazon to the emerald-green waters of the tropical Atlantic as we followed a course due east to the archipelago of Fernando de Noronha, some three days sailing distance from Belèm. One immediately noticeable difference between the river and the ocean was increased motion, the predictable consequence of sailing into the Northeast trade winds and the Equatorial Current, features of ocean circulation in the equatorial regions that were explained in an afternoon presentation from oceanographer Jim Kelley.
To begin the day, our onboard ornithologist Richard White introduced us to the marine world of the tropics, including some superb images of flying fish that, before the dawn of digital photography, would have been rare to obtain even for professional photographers. On deck during the day the flying fish displays were extraordinary with whole shoals of fish taking to the air as National Geographic Explorer advanced through the waves. One solitary fishing boat at anchor served to remind us that we were still in the relatively shallow waters of the continental shelf.
Photography is a major element in the onboard program these days and at evening Recap photo instructor David Cothran showed a series of images he had taken during the day on the theme of “Reflections.” Portuguese cultural specialist Mark Curran entertained us with an introduction to the Brazilians and their way of life while Tom Lovejoy gave another fascinating presentation entitled “The Miracle of Life on Earth.”
Afternoon tea was both busy and cheerful with a special serving of some of the exotic flavors of Brazilian ice cream—the country prides itself on having more flavors of ice cream than Italy. Finally to round off the day, we were treated to a screening of David Wright’s video production “Untamed Americas,” for which he had been awarded an Emmy earlier in the week. If he was disappointed not to be able to attend the awards ceremony he had been gracious enough not to show it. For all of us on board that Emmy symbolized the privilege it has been to travel in such stellar company on this voyage…and we are not yet half way through…
