Maeti Amazon​—Sapotim Laef Bilong Staka Million

FROM MAN WEA RAET FOR WEKAP! LONG BRAZIL

HEM wanfala maeti river sapos iumi markem witim olketa nara river. Hem ran thru long wanfala tropical rain forest wea big winim evri narawan long earth. Olketa wea duim research sei hem important samting wea helpem earth bilong iumi. Hem ples wea pipol wea studyim plant and animal laekem tumas. Bat for staka million pipol long Brazil, hem nao main wei olketa savve travel. Diswan nao Amazon River, main sapot bilong Amazon area.

Lukluk Gud Long ‘Disfala River Sea’

Amazon river hem start smol long Peruvian Andes wea hem samting olsem 160 kilometer from Pacific Ocean. Taem hem kakam daon hem kamap moa big from olketa nara river join witim hem and hem go ahed for ran for 5,000 meter go kasem Atlantic Ocean. Hem garem planti difren nem bat long area bilong Brazil, olketa kolem hem Solimões. Taem bigfala Negro River klosap long Manaus hem join go long hem, hem kamap datfala maeti Amazon.

Wanfala barava spesol samting wea luk naes tumas hem kamap taem tufala river hia meet. For samting olsem ten kilometer, dark brown kala bilong Negro River hem ran saedem and no mix witim Solimões river, wea kala bilong hem no dark tumas. Disfala samting wea mekem man sapraes hem happen bikos olketa difren samting stap insaed tufala river hia, olsem difren kaen leaf bilong tree and graon, and bikos wanfala river hem moa cold winim narawan.

Difren tingting abaotem olketa main river bilong Amazon and olketa river wea joinim hem, and tu abaotem ples wea olketa stap, mekem hem hard for barava sure wea nao Amazon hem really start and wea nao hem really end. Sapos olketa measurem Amazon from ples wea olketa kolem Pará, pasis wea olketa ship iusim for kam insaed river, full long bilong Amazon hem samting olsem 6,750 kilometer. * Bat, The Guinness Book of Records bilong Brazil talem hao disfala  wei for measurem long bilong hem, “hem depend long bigfala wei long wea nao start bilong hem and wea nao end bilong hem.”

Bat no eniwan fit for daotem wei wea wata insaed Amazon hem staka winim evri nara river. Nomata sapos iumi joinim Mississippi, Nile, and Yangtze river tugeta, bae diswan no kasem haomas wata wea insaed long Amazon river. * Insaed wan second, samting olsem 200,000 cubic meter bilong wata nao kamaot from disfala river. Diswan minim midolwan 15 and 20 percent bilong evri fresh wata wea go insaed long olketa sea bilong world hem kam from Amazon river wea ran go long Atlantic ocean. Insaed 30 second nomoa, wata wea kamaot from disfala river fit for givim inaf wata for evri man long world insaed wanfala day—wan liter wata for each wan long six billion pipol wea stap long earth!

Fresh wata wea kamaot from river hia hem go kasem 200 kilometer insaed long Atlantic Ocean. Iumi no sapraes taem Vicente Yáñez Pinzón, wanfala man from Spain wea savve wei for gogo long sea wea faendem mouth bilong Amazon long June 1500, hem kolem ples hia Mar Dulce (Freshwater Sea).

For olketa wea travel followim disfala river, hem barava luk olsem wanfala sea wea stap midolwan olketa tree. Long samfala part bilong hem, hem barava waed gogo man wea stap long wansaed bilong river no savve lukim narasaed bilong river. Taem hem flood samfala ples long disfala river hem waed go kasem 50 kilometer! Long samfala ples hem deep olsem 50 go kasem 80 meter, bat diswan hem depend long hao waed nao datfala ples. Long Óbidos long Pará State, waed bilong datfala river hem smol winim eni nara ples and hem deep kasem 130 meter.

Long planti ples long Amazon, river hem no steep bikos long evri wan kilometer graon hem 20 millimeter hae. From hem no steep, hae tide bilong sea savve go ap followim disfala river. Hem savve go kasem Óbidos wea stap 800 kilometer from mouth bilong river.

From Amazon hem barava klosap long midol bilong earth,wea olketa kolem equator, weather long there hem hot evritaem. Samfala taem flood savve happen long olketa river wea join from left saed and then narataem, olketa river long raet saed nao bae flood. Taem level bilong olketa river go ap and daon, firstaem long north saed and then long south saed, full Amazon hem pump-pump olsem wanfala big heart. Evri year wata level bilong Amazon hem savve change from 9 go kasem 12 meter hae. Olketa flood hia important for agriculture long disfala area. From river savve karem staka difren mineral and olketa leaf and kaen samting olsem, hem kamap olsem fertilizer long olketa area wea flood kasem.

Hu Nao Faendem, and Hao Nao Pipol Kam Stap Long There?

Explorer from Spain, Francisco Orellana nao first man from Europe for go followim disfala Amazon, and hem givim hem nem hia long 1542. * Bat why nao hem nemem Amazon? Orellana sei taem hem lukim olketa woman long olketa tribe long there faetem each other, diswan mekem hem tingim olketa woman wea nem bilong olketa Amazon insaed kastom story bilong Greece! Olketa nara pipol tu kam bihaen from Spain, England, Netherlands, and Portugal. Disfala Enciclopédia Mirador Internacional talem hao olketa bilong Portugal “staka taem attak for tekovarem [land] wea stap saed long olketa river bilong Negro, Solimões, and Branco. Olketa duim diswan for king bilong olketa.”

For strongim wei wea Portugal stap long datfala ples, olketa putim olketa missionary long there. Disfala sem encyclopedia talem hao from “olketa wea anda long rul bilong religion” laek for spreadim Catholic teaching and mekem moa big wei for baem and sellim olketa “samting bilong bush” olsem timba, resin, herb, and spice, “olketa savve muv evritaem long olketa difren ples followim datfala river. Staka smol vilij start for kamap from olketa settlement olsem.”

Wei for mumuv wea go ahed long mek-17 and mek-18 century and olketa rubber plantation wea kamap long end bilong mek-19 century mekem pipol wea kam long datfala area startim samfala difren kaen wei bilong living. From olketa river hia nao wanfala wei for travel go long nara ples, pipol stap long saed river and startim olketa smol taon and vilij. Olketa ples wea staka pipol  stap long Amazon distaem kamap from olketa old taon wea stap long planti century bifor.

Wanem Kaen Transport Nao Pipol Iusim?

Full area bilong Amazon hem samting olsem 6 million square kilometer wea winim full area bilong eni nara river. Hem moa big winim full Europe bat no Russia. From hem garem 1,100 river and nara smol stream, Amazon join tugeta long barava spesol wei wea mekem pipol fit for kasem evri ples insaed. Hem olsem blood system bilong body bilong man, wea Amazon nao hem olsem aorta, main artery bilong body. Insaed olketa river and stream hia hem big haf bilong evri fresh wata long earth. Disfala barava spesol wei wea olketa river wea olketa boat savve followim hem join tugeta hem winim 25,000 kilometer, so hem important part long transport and living bilong pipol wea stap long there.

Staka million pipol wea stap long area bilong Amazon iusim olketa river olsem road. Enikaen difren boat savve followim, and tu olketa bigfala steamer wea savve go followim for 1,500 kilometer go kasem Manaus. Olketa smol kago and passenger boat savve go kasem Iquitos, long Peru, wea hem 3,700 kilometer from mouth bilong datfala river. Olketa iusim Amazon for karem go aot olketa kago for export and olketa kago wea kam from nara kantri kam thru long Amazon tu. Datfala Madeira River wea hem 3000 kilometer long, wea hem main big river wea join go long Amazon, staka kago ship savve go followim. Samting olsem tu million tonne bilong kago nao savve go insaed and aot from Amazon evri year. Barava busy sekson bilong datfala river hem from Manaus go long Belém, wea stap long mouth bilong river.

Hao Nao Living Saed Long River?

Living bilong pipol long datfala river showimaot wei wea olketa depend long river for transport and olketa laekem graon wea fitim garden wea stap long flat land. Man wea stap long there, Altomir, sei “pipol wea stap long olketa area saed long river garem olketa smol garden wea main kaikai olketa plantim nao cassava, wea olketa iusim for wakem manioc, and fish. Olketa growim tu watamelon, banana, corn and keepim olketa buluka. Bat taem flood kam, olketa mas kwiktaem tekem olketa buluka long nara area,  samtaem olketa iusim raft for duim datwan.

For deal witim wei wea river change evritaem, olketa buildim olketa haos long saed river antap long haefala post, and olketa garem tu haos wea float long olketa raft wea anka klosap long olketa taon. Olketa pipol hia “kaen tumas and smile long olketa stranger,” hem nao samting wea Belarmino, wanfala man wea go ap and daon evritaem long datfala river hem talem.

Hem normal samting for lukim olketa smol kanu kam klosap long olketa big boat for sellim samting—or for big boat hia pullim olketa go ap followim river. Olketa torowem rope and man insaed kanu taemap long kanu bilong hem. Kaikai wea olketa growim long there, olsem palm kabis, wine palm bilong Brazil, manioc, olketa nut, and fish (freshwata crayfish tu) olketa sellim or exchangem for olketa kaikai long stoa.

River helpem staka thousand pipol bilong Brazil for kasem selen taem olketa provaedem transport for kago and passenger. Olketa iusim tu for transportim timba wea olketa katem long olketa timba mill long bush.

Bigfala part bilong protein wea olketa kaikaim long there hem kam from datfala river. Buk bilong Portuguel Vida Selvagem nos Rios (Wildlife Habitat) hem sei: “Olketa kaontem samting olsem 2,000 difren kaen fish long Amazon, wea winim eni nara river long earth.” Bihaen hem gogo long Amazon area, savveman Jacques-Yves Cousteau sei hao ‘moa fish hem stap insaed long Amazon winim insaed long Atlantic Ocean.’

Wanfala animal wea insaed long datfala wata hem manatee (wea olsem dugong) wea savve kaikaim grass, and wea distaem klosap evriwan dae finis. Pipol laek tumas for kasholem diswan, bikos wanfala big manatee hem garem winim 100 litre bilong oil. Disfala animal hem samting olsem 2.5 meter long and hevi bilong hem samting olsem 350 kilogram. Nara animal tu hem pirarucu, wanfala barava bigfala fish wea olketa kolem Brazilian cod. Staka long olketa winim 2 meter long and hevi bilong olketa hem samting olsem 70 kilogram. Samtaem olketa man lukim bouto and tucuxi, wea hem tufala kaen dolphin wea stap long Amazon river.

 Spesol Wei for Travel Long Boat

For longtaem nao olketa boat barava important part bilong living long Amazon area. Olketa nao helpem staka thousand pipol for mek selen taem olketa sellim samting long there and diswan mekem olketa vilij wea stap farawe savve kasem samting from stoa. Olketa boat provaedem tu transport wea no expensive long olketa taon and vilij wea road no kasem. Staka passenger iusim olketa hammock for leidaon nomata no staka spes stap. Diswan nao reason why evriwan ran go long boat from olketa laekem gud ples for hangem olketa hammock. Olketa wea travel long daon mas stap nao witim olketa difren kaen kago. From olketa hia pipol wea feel free for story, hem isi for fren witim olketa, and olketa garem staka taem for duim diswan from planti taem olketa mas travel for tu-thri day.

Klosap long Manaus, staka boat iusim datfala river bikos hem nao barava important port long datfala Amazon area. Hem nao ples for kolektem olketa samting for export from olketa bigfala area olsem Peru, Bolivia, and Colombia. Ecotourism hem kamap big long there tu, and pipol from South America and staka nara kantri long world kam for visit long there.

Visit wea Man No Savve Forgetim

Maet iu bae garem chance for visitim disfala area wea pipol interest tumas long hem bat wea pipol no savve staka samting abaotem. Taem man go for visitim Amazon area, bae hem lukim rain forest wea luk naes tumas and tu bae barava garem bigfala respect for Creator bilong evri samting—wea wanfala nao hem disfala maeti river.—Psalm 24:1, 2.

[Olketa footnote]

[Box/Piksa long page 17]

LUKIM DATFALA SPESOL POROROCA

Long mouth bilong Amazon, wei wea wata bilong Amazon hem ran go meetim sea hem mekem kamap wanfala barava spesol samting wea mekem bigfala noise and garem paoa for distroe. From river hia hem ran strong, diswan pushim bak sea wata wea kam followim tide. Level bilong sea hia go ahed for hipap aotsaed long mouth bilong river go kasem taem wea river no savve pushim aot nao. Then, datwan kamap wanfala barava bigfala wave wea go ap followim river, and diswan hem mekem river ran long opposite wei wea aotem graon long saed river and olketa tree tu. Olketa bigfala wave wea kamaot from tufala current hia savve hae kasem 4 meter, and pipol wea stap barava farawe savve herem noise bilong hem. Hem saond bilong pororoca, wea hem nem bilong datfala tidal wave.

[Map long page 13]

(Lukim pablikeson for olketa nara information)

ANDES

Start bilong Amazon

Machu Picchu, Peru

AMAZON AREA

Iquitos, Peru

Amazon (Solimões)

MANAUS

Negro

Madeira

Óbidos

Amazon

Pará

BELÉM

[Credit Line]

Globe: Mountain High Maps® Copyright © 1997 Digital Wisdom, Inc.

[Olketa piksa long page 15]

1. Wanfala girl long vilij

2. Olketa haos saed river antap haefala post

3. Olketa dark brown wata bilong Negro meetim kala wea no dark tumas bilong Solimões klosap long Manaus

4. Negro River hem go insaed long Amazon

[Credit Line]

Photos 1 and 2: Ricardo Beliel / SocialPhotos; photos 3 and 4: Lidio Parente / SocialPhotos

[Olketa piksa long page 16, 17]

1. Port bilong Manaus

2. Olketa passenger insaed hammock

3. Iusim kanu for fishing

[Credit Line]

Photo 1: Lidio Parente / SocialPhotos; photos 2 and 3: Ricardo Beliel / SocialPhotos

[Credit Line long page 17]

Sunset: Ricardo Beliel / SocialPhotos; surfer: AP Photo/Paulo Santos