We were up nice and early and quickly packed our day bags with the few things we had been told we would need for the jungle trip and then went out once more to get the remainder of the money we owed the company. This time we succeeded in finding a working machine slightly closer to the hostel and were soon back at the hostel where I went about paying and loading our things in the taxi while Mae went to a little stand up the road to get us some breakfast. She returned shortly with two bread rolls which were stuffed with ham (and maybe even a little cheese) which we wolfed down on the way down to the docks where we changed vehicles and boarded a tour boat for the short ride to our first point of interest. This was n fact the 'meeting of the waters' which is where the Rio Negro (black river) flows into the murky brown Amazon. Due to the difference in both the temperature and velocity of the waters however they actually run side by side without mixing for around 6km making for a fairly spectacular sight. We stopped here for around 10 mins while Mae and I took all the necessary touristy pictures and then swiftly continued onwards to the other side of the rivers where we disembarked amid a small market and immediately caught a colletivo which luckily happened to be going in the right direction. This part of the journey was relatively dull as we travelled along what turns out to be a dead straight road through the jungle, the only interesting part was around halfway there we suddenly slowed down, and our guide pointed out the window into a field where there was a dead Black Cayman, which was huge at over 3m long, we had no idea they got that big!! When we disembarked from the minibus we found ourselves in a small village which is split in 4 quarters cut as it is by both a river and the main road, we went to one of the shops where our guide found the boat we would be continuing our journey on and we put our things down before going into the store, which sold all manner of things from tools to rum to plastic footballs, and waited for the the pilot to finish his shopping. This didn't take long and we were soon all aboard the little craft whizzing along the river (stopping once to deliver someone's shopping) through the bushes and tops of trees, which are now covered with water as it's currently the rainy season. It took about an hour to reach the lodge where we would be spending that night, perched above the water it consists of two buildings, one where everyone sleeps, the guides downstairs in hammocks and the tourists get the rooms upstairs with a nice comfy bed. The other is where all the meals are served, it has three big tables for eating and also contains a pool table although it seems to be locked up at the moment. We explored the area for a while, looking at the various birds, insects and lizards who all scuttled away from us at high speed whenever we approached. It was soon time for lunch, which was served buffet style and consisted of a huge plate of rice, a bowl of beans, chicken burgers, fried fish, bread and salad. We ate as much as we could of course (it's free!) and then went to our room to relax for a couple of hours while our guide sorted out his equipment. At just after 2 we found another boat waiting for us, this time a more traditional long canoe type with a small outboard mounted on the back. We also gathered 4 fishing rods to take with us and were soon on our way. We passed several different types of bird which were pointed out to us along with their names in Portuguese, which of course go in one ear and promptly out the other!! After half an hour we arrived at a large lake area where we suddenly veered off to the side into the undergrowth, at this point the engine was cut and we continued by paddle until we reached an area where the boat would stay still amongst the trees without any efforts being made. The purpose of all this is so we could fish for Piranha using very old (traditional) looking rods which were nothing more than bamboo with a fishing line attached to one end. The bait turned out to be chicken skin and the guide cut it into small pieces using his machete and the oar as a chopping board. After trying 3 different locations for 2 hours or so we had managed to be mildly successful catching a total of 6 fish between the 3 of us, although Mae's were too small and we were only left with 4, but still enough for us to all have one for lunch the next day. Our fishing over it was time to go see the dolphins. There are in fact 2 different species of river dolphin in the Amazon, pink ones who live in pairs and grey ones who live in groups. We were in luck today as we managed to see both types, initially the bigger pink dolphins, who really are pink, the colour of cooked salmon almost and have an unusual shaped dorsal fin than runs most of the length of their back. We spent 30 mins or so watching and trying in vain to get a decent picture of them and as we decided to leave we continued slightly farther along the lake and suddenly found ourselves amongst a group of the much smaller (almost half the size) grey dolphins, who are much more typical, looking exactly like your standard dolphin picture. Once more we were here for about half an hour before it was time to leave, we had about an hour before sunset and we spent it travelling around a small inlet where we were able to observe the many birds who arrive in the area to spend the night. At one point as we were heading back to the lodge we suddenly swerved around and headed straight for a bush, which thankfully parted and allowed us up to the tree behind where Mutante quickly explained this sudden diversion by pointing out a sloth in the tree above our heads. Although we have seen a sloth before whilst in Costa Rica this time it was light enough for us to admire the dappled pattern of their fur and the incredible slowness with which they move. We didn't get a chance to look very long as we it was getting dark and we had no lights with us We eventually arrived back at the lodge in pitch darkness where dinner was soon dished up and we once more ate too much of the delicious food. The day wasn't over yet however as we were told to get changed into longer trouser and cover ourselves in insect repellent in order to go cayman spotting once the moon had risen. Rather excited we both quickly changed and gathered our torches before climbing back into our boat. We didn't go far this time as any engine noise would have instantly killed any change of seeing anything so we paddled around the local area and eventually found a small one behind the local hotel. (which floats in the middle of the river) It was only a baby one and both of us were expecting some kind of net to be produced, however to our surprise Mutante simply leant over the front of the boat and grabbed it out of the water. It was just under 2 feet long from nose to tail and he informed us that it was probably around 2 months old. He also said the when fully grown they can reach 4m in length, and that such a cayman would easily break out little boat. After he had told us about what uses the indigenous people used to have for cayman they managed to catch, he let us both have a go at holding it, at which point we realised just how strong the things are for their size being almost completely made of muscle. He also showed us how they have no tongue as they don't eat their prey in the water to avoid swallowing to much liquid, and also that they have 2 sets of eye lids one of which is transparent and used to see underwater. After this he let it go and we then went in search of a monkfish. Unfortunately while we did find a snake nest full of baby snakes we didn't succeed in finding the fish and we were forced to give up and return just after 10. By this time we were both exhausted and immediately went to bed, climbing under the mosquito net to fall straight to sleep.