Ariau Amazon Towers Hotel in the heart of the Brazil Amazon
Working Crew on Amazon Survivor pt 1-
Flying to the Amazon
After working crew on ‘Survivor Thailand’ from May to August 2002, I was offered a position on the ‘Dream Team’ for Survivor Amazon starting in mid-October in the Brazilian Amazon.
At the time I was vacationing in Bali. Before heading off to Brazil, I had to first return to Bangkok, Thailand to process a Brazilian working visa. That meant I had to leave Bali one week earlier than planned.
enjoying Sanur Beach, Bali
That ‘act of fate’ proved extremely fortuitous for me. I flew out of Bali one week before the infamous ‘Bali Bombing’ terrorist attack on Bali’s nightclubs… where no doubt I would have been out dancing up a storm, as usual.
Talk about narrow brushes with disaster!
Instead, safely installed in Bangkok, I endured a series of nerve-wracking hassles obtaining my Brazilian work visa, due to my ‘soiled and damaged’ US passport. I did finally receive my visa just hours before my scheduled flight and I excitedly set out to the other side of the world to Manaus, Brazil, in the heart of the Amazon!
The journey from Bangkok to Brazil entailed a long 36-hour trip via Frankfurt, Germany (of all places). I took advantage of my Frankfort layover to bleach my hair platinum blonde in the airport ladies room.
From Frankfurt I hopped another long flight to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Rio de Janeriro – Brazil
We arrived at sunrise and were treated to the spectacular sight of the mountainous Brazilian coastline peaking above clouds, accentuated by a fiery orange stripe of horizon. At ground level we were not so fortunate- Rio was completely blanketed in fog. I saw nothing of its famous dramatic setting.
Soon enough, I set off on the last leg of my journey: onto the heart of the Amazon!
In Manaus city I was met at the airport by the Survivor film staff who took me and several other new arrivals to a nearby luxury hotel. I was scheduled to continue upriver 1 1/2 hours to the Survivor Amazon’s on-location jungle hotel, but I was diverted by my film crew friends who were staying at the luxury hotel in Manaus. My pals had convinced our boss to let me stay with them overnight.
The Hotel Tropical Manaus was wonderful. Spanish colonial style architecture featured white stucco walls, dark wood floors, red carpets, long long hallways, dozens of graceful arches , spacious airy rooms and an amazing courtyard featuring a massive azure swimming pool.
Several of my friends had the day off. They were out poolside, drinking and having a grand time. I was quickly swept into the party, re-united with lots of fun, familiar faces and given a cheery welcome. A long, heavy downpour kept us “stuck” at the poolside bar for a couple hours.
some of the cameramen on Survivor
When the rain finally stopped, we all went skipping off to a local festival at a nearby riverside beach. I quickly discovered that a local festival in Manaus consists of platforms filled with almost- dressed girls dancing. Actually, they were bumping, grinding, hip-slamming, wiggling and pumping. Their very sexually-oriented dancing seemed to be the norm, even for afternoon family gatherings. Meanwhile, all the festival-goers were also nearly-dressed, drinking vigorously and dancing about.
Wow, “Hello, Brazil!”
I jumped into the lively festivities, rather wide-eyed but grinning, along with my film pals, and set to dancing up a storm myself.
Unfortunately, after my long flight, I quickly became tired, sweaty, hungry and shower-deprived. I left the steamy Manaus festival much to soon and returned to the hotel for a meal, a hot shower and a long sleep until morning.
My first full day in Brazil was even better. Company policy for new arrivals mandated that we have our first day off, presuming we’d have a long, tiring journey getting there. So I happily lounged in my luxurious hotel room, enjoyed a grand buffet breakfast and lounged some more in the inviting lobbies and regal hallways.
Rio Negro river boats docked in Manaus – Brazil
That afternoon I took the company’s hired double-decker boat upriver 1 1/2 hours to my “real” home for the duration of the production: Ariaus Amazon Tower Hotel. It proved to be an astounding resort set in the jungle on the banks of the Rio Negro. The entire resort complex consists of a series of long elevated wooden walkways meandering through the jungle, connecting various “towers” of rooms, also built entirely of wood.
Ariau Amazon Tower, in the heart of the Amazon, upriver from Manaus – Brazil.
Dense Amazon jungle entirely surrounds the resort: above, to all sides and below the walkways. Tropical birds squawk randomly, insects buzz incessantly, monkeys race about. Personally, I love living so close to nature-surrounded by it. In fact, I’d been living exactly that way for most of the previous four years of solo world travels. I felt right at home. And I soon discovered that sleeping there was equally wonderful: utterly silent except for the engulfing sound of insects.
I contentedly fell asleep my first night in the heart of the Amazon, ready to begin my first week crewing Survivor Amazon.
Catch the next installment of my series Working Crew on Amazon Survivor, when I narrate my first week on the job in the Amazon Jungle
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You might also enjoy:
Working Crew on Amazon Survivor pt 2 – First Week in the Amazon
Working Crew on Survivor TV Show: pt 1- How I Got Picked Up to Crew
Working Crew on Survivor TV Show: pt 3 – Mishaps and Misadventures Behind Scenes
Working Crew on Survivor TV Show: pt 4 – Critical Mass Week and The Great Tent Catastrophe
Hi! I'm Lash, an American nomadic world traveler who's been traveling solo since 1998. I’m passionate about traveling the world nomadically and then sharing it all with you. I hope to inspire you to travel the world, to entertain you with tales from the road, and to help you reach your travel dreams. Welcome! 
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Working Crew on Amazon Survivor pt 2 - First Week in the Amazon » LashWorldTour
2013/02/15 at 8:19 pm (UTC 8) Link to this comment
[…] LashWorldTourTravel Blog offering Cultural Insights, Travel Tips, and Tales of Adventure from 14+ years of world travelsHOMEABOUTAbout LashWorldTourAbout LashContactWhat’s in a name?LashWorldTour Travel MapLash’s Travel Fast FactsMissionsWorld Travels Overview: 1991-2011PressDisclaimerCOUNTRIESASIABALI- INDONESIABalinese CultureDiving in BaliBicycling in BaliAmedSanurBali MiscBANGLADESHBRUNEICAMBODIASHANGHAI- CHINAHONG KONGINDONESIABaliJavaLombokJAPANLAOSMALAYSIAKuala LumpurPenangLangkawiBorneoDiving in MalaysiaMalaysia MiscMYANMARNEPALPHILIPPINESSINGAPORESRI LANKATHAILANDVIETNAMAUSTRALIAEUROPEENGLANDSPAINS AMERICABRAZILUSAAdventuresBicycle TravelCycling in Bali SeriesHikingMotorbike TravelScuba DivingSky DivingSurvivor TV CrewTravel DisastersWWOOFCruisesTravel TalesCulturePhoto GalleriesTravel Tips10 Free Things to do in… SeriesAccommodation TipsFlight TipsLuxury Travel TipsMoney TipsSafety TipsWhy Living Overseas is Better SeriesMisc Travel TipsBeyond GuidebooksTravel ResourcesTRAVEL INTERVIEWSBook ReviewsHotel – Tour – Museum ReviewsLINKSTravel StoreFREE eBookTravel Books StoreLash’s Guidebooks to Bali wp_flash_img_show will display here (config: default)« 10 Free Things to do in Singapore Chinatown Working Crew on Amazon Survivor pt 2 – First Week in the Amazon 2013/02/15 by Lash WorldTourAriau Amazon Tower Hotel on the banks of the Rio Negro, in the heart of the Brazil AmazonWorking Crew on Amazon Survivor pt 2 – First Week in the Amazon Safely installed in Ariaus Amazon Tower Hotel, perched on the banks of the mighty Rio Negro, deep in the heart of the Brazil Amazon, I promptly settled into my first week crewing Amazon Survivor.That entailed getting up at 5:30 am, a painfully early wake up, but at least sunlight was already streaming through the jungle, so I didn’t have to get up in darkness. Shaking off slumber, I would stroll down the hotel’s long meandering elevated walkways to the restaurant, where a big buffet breakfast was awaiting.Fresh Fruit BuffetEvery day we crew were treated to a variety of tropical fruits, a selection of fresh breads, eggs made-to-order and other delicacies. The fresh juice bar was my favorite treat. Every day I selected my fruits of choice then watched the Brazilian girls blend up a nice nutritious smoothie.Myself and the few members of my team on location so far kicked off the week by assisting the art department. We boarded a 7:00 am double-decker Amazon river boat down stream to the art department’s temporary studio, based in an old warehouse in Manaus city. That entailed a 2-hour river commute each morning and evening. I made great use of the travel time by exercising and writing in my journal.our Amazon River Boat cruising on the Rio NegroOur long commute meant very short work hours for film crew: only 9:00 to 4:00. My team were ‘forced’ to finish at 4 pm so we could catch the 5 pm boat back up river. With the regularly scheduled morning and afternoon breaks plus lunch we were cruising. During our brief stint in the art workshop I helped make several props and age-d things (make them look older with a paint´wash´).Just when I was getting into the river trip / art workshop routine, we were switched up and sent off to work in the jungle. My team along with two leaders and a local guide set out to clear jungle for Survivor Amazon’s first challenge game.our safety crew and forest guides on Amazon SurvivorNow before I go on, and for anyone who’s not too thrilled with the idea of clearing Amazon jungle for a TV show, let me say a few words to clarify. First off, the area we cleared was very very small. It was just a little patch of land beside a river tributary which would grow back quickly after we left.Secondly, that particular patch of land was completely submerged under water for several months each year during monsoon season. It was perpetually starting itself over every year, with or without us. We were by no means clearing virgin rain forest!Personally, I absolutely loved the work. We wielding machetes and whacked down small trees and bushes. Arghhhhh!! Jungle LASH!! We got all sweaty and scratched and sore. It was great fun! And eventful, too…One day we ran full steam ahead into a patch of fire-stinging ants…OUCH! Another day we watched a large 3-4 ft. snake (identified tentatively as a viper. highly poisonous) fall out of a tree nearby. Our guide caught a big black scorpion. One scout spied a 3 M python on the river’s edge. Our safety man watched a crocodile swimming in the river. In short, we had a real adventure in the Amazon!python on the banks of the Rio Negro tributaryMy biggest adventure was a solo walk along a jungle trail. Very unlike me, I went off-trail to check out a massive tree. After circling the gorgeous rain forest tree, admiring it’s beauty, I had great difficulty locating the trail again. I was nearly lost in the Amazon! Yikes!I’m sure I would’ve found my way back to the river due to our boat engines… but I decided I’d better stick with the group from then on. My decision was reinforced when the scout told me that leopards regularly prowled the area. Gulp.Our team cleared the challenge area for three days… and suddenly that was the end of our first week! We’d spend two days making props in the art department and three days in the jungle.clearing for a challenge set in the AmazonThe following day was our regularly scheduled next day off. Since we hadn’t been terribly busy the last day, I was able to catch the 5:00 pm boat down river to the luxury hotel in Manaus where some crew were staying. I had big plans to join up with the art department boys to go out clubbing.Sure enough, several art guys were going out that night. I joined them…Wow! Brazilian nights! That’s all I’m going to say… lots of hot dancing going on!My art department pals and I returned to the hotel, still in one piece and mostly unmolested. Since I hadn’t booked my own room ($100) one of the guys kindly let me stay in his room. (I was counting on someone taking me in, truth be told…)selection of breads at the Breakfast BuffetThat worked out beautifully. The following day the art department had to relocate their workshop from the old warehouse onto a big river barge. My pal had to get up early to go work his A** off…while I luxuriated in his room all day. It was pouring down rain and quite chilly, so I felt exceedingly lucky, indeed, to lounge in such a luxurious hotel room.Only the buffet breakfast enticed me out of the room that day. After feasting, I enjoyed a leisurely hot bath, a cat nap and an old Gene Kelly flick. In the evening I caught the 5 pm boat back upriver to our jungle hotel.That was a fantastic ending to a surprisingly easy, adventurous first week topped off by an exciting weekend submerged in Brazil’s wild nightlife.Catch more of my adventures crewing Survivor Amazon. Coming up next:Crewing Amazon Survivor pt 3 – Week Two in the AmazonMeanwhile, read about my flight from halfway around the world and arrival in the Brazil Amazon.————————————————————————————————————————— /* /* Leave a Reply Cancel replyYour email address will not be published.Name:Email:Website:Message:You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong> […]
Survivor behind the scenes » LashWorldTour
2013/08/13 at 10:47 am (UTC 8) Link to this comment
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