Parintins, Brazil

March 1, 2008


After spending two rather nice days far up the Amazon River, we sailed south to make our way back to the Atlantic. On the way we stopped in Parintins for a most enjoyable day.

As the Daily Program summarized....”The city of Parintins is located east of Manaus, on the island of Tupinambarana. It hosts the annual party in the Amazonas known as the Boi-Bumba Festival. The festival, held each June, is a traditional folkloric festival that combines African and European traditions. During the three-day festival a mixture of theatre, drums, dancing, music, and circus all combine to thrill audiences and the city is packed with people each year to celebrate. The festival enacts the kidnapping, death and resurrection of an ox, which is a metaphor for their agricultural cycles. Over the years the festival has developed into a competition with the Boi teams – one red and one blue—comprising several thousand members each. The rivalry between the two teams grew out of a friendly feud between to families. During the festival, tens of thousands of people watch the parades in a 35,000 person capacity stadium built just for the occasion. The parades incorporate elements of Amazonian tales and legends and the displays have become increasingly more professional over the years. The competing teams are judged on their music, dancing performance and costumes. Every citizen supports either the red team or the blue team and the spectacle is said to be so glamorous and over the top that it rivals Rio’s Carnival.”

This RED and BLUE rivalry is serious. Apparently, one side of this small island is “red” and the other is “blue” We were told that Coca-Cola sponsors the event each year and that....believe it or not....Coke changes it’s colors from the traditional red and white to BLUE and white in that section of town. I really could not believe it...but I saw it with my own eyes. We went to the Blue section to see an hour and a half fantastic show...and sure enough, the walls were covered with the Coca-Cola logo...but painted in brilliant blue and white. I am told that during the festival itself, that cans of Coke are produced in Blue and white as well. I did see a small white van painted with the Coke Logo....Coca was written in Blue and Cola was written in Red....what we don’t do for marketing!

The performance we saw was unbelievable. So many feathers....so many incredible and creative costumes...huge floats with moving parts and smoky nostrils....scantily clad young men and women who danced non-stop at a feverish pace for the entire show...all to the beat of a most energetic band. The whole spectacular show was unbelievable. Luckily, since it was raining....we were in the rain forest, after all!... we were seated in a covered arena and other than enduring the high humidity had a very pleasant moring.

It was indeed a grand way to end our two week stay in Brazil.....and I will always have the memory of a smiling young Boy Scout....Sea Scout, really!....who, along with his Troup mates had been recruited to serve as “meeters and greeters” along the way. We will soon be back on the open seas headed for Devil’s Island.