Marina and Philip Thompson moved to South America in 2008, leaving behind their London jobs and home in search of adventure.
After three children, twelve years in Brazil, and their latest hospitality project, Casa Tropicalia, the family had yet to fully explore this continental scale country. Philip shares with us a glimpse of their recent adventure to the North of Brazil.
My family and I decided that 2024 would be the year we broadened our Brazilian Horizons. We set our sights on the North, Brazil’s vast and least accessible region.
Our first flight touched down in Santarém, the Amazon’s third largest city. We went directly to what we had heard was its best restaurant. Piracema is just a block from the water where the dark torrents of the Tapajos meet the muddy brown of the Amazon.
The food is a magnificent and colourful showcase of all the ingredients that are only found in the Amazon; Grilled Pirarucu (huge Amazonian fish), Tucupi (spicy fermented mandioca condiment), roast Jaraqui (river fish) with Jambu leaves to name just a few.
We spent the following days in the village of Alter do Chão. Situated on the banks of the Tapajos river, this is probably the easiest place from which to explore the Amazon, with few mosquitoes and heavenly beaches. We passed our time swimming through magical semi submerged woodlands called Igapos, and hiking through the forest to learn about the practical and medicinal use of plants.
My favourite experience was finding isolated igarapes (Amazonian fresh water streams) where we bathed beneath the canopy in crystal clear water. We stayed in wonderful homes, wooden with wicker roofs and part open to the forest, enjoying visiting monkeys and curious brightly coloured Bodo birds.
The pinnacle of this visit was four days aboard a traditional wooden Amazonian houseboat. The welcoming crew took us to riverside communities where we visited a turtle breeding program, giant lily pads, isolated beaches and the Flona, a vast forest reserve the size of Devon. We hiked through dense jungle to see the Amazon’s largest tree, a cathedral like samaúma, and rested to eat wholesome food prepared by locals. The scale and purity of the nature was humbling. We were emotional leaving the boat, four days had felt like a short lifetime.
Our next stop was Belem, the capital of Pará and the food capital of the Amazon where we made a whistle stop epicurean city tour. We tried out delicious savoury açai dishes, a world away from the sweet ice cream style açai popular in most of Brazil followed by fantastic street fare at the huge riverside market and finishing with a banquet of innovative Amazonian cooking at the Casa do Saulo.
Bidding farewell to Pará, we flew east to the state of Maranhão and its legendary Lençóis Maranhenses. A national park of sand dunes that runs inland from the coast, it’s probably the most famous natural wonder you’ve never heard of. Despite being in an arid region, its location close to the Amazon means that it gets some of their annual rains, creating an other worldly environment of desert and crystal blue fresh water lakes dotted amongst the dunes.
Instead of the classic 4×4 excursion, we decided to avoid the crowds and walk across it. We left with our guide at 4am and began our trek with the sun gently revealing an undulating palette of pale pink hues. We discovered the joy of barefoot hiking which we continued for the next three days. As our feet marked out meandering trails in the sand it felt like we gradually became a part of the landscape and were mesmerised by its alien beauty.
The Niemeyer-esque lines of the dunes playing with light and shadow, the contrast of Caribbean blue with white mountains of silica and the grand finale of sunset that slowly turns everything from orange to pink to purple before the moon rises and turns the spectrum on its head. We slept in oases where local families are permitted to continue their traditional herding activities. Meals were rice, beans, free range chicken and a cold beer. Bed was a hammock strung up under a simple palm roof. I’ve rarely enjoyed my food and rest so well.
After three days we bid farewell to the desert, boarded 4 kayaks and meandered down river past carnauba palms and cashew trees to our waiting taxi. An overnight stop in Barra Grande, Piauí, allowed us to indulge in the delights of Michelin Star chef Herve Witmeur at his restaurant and guesthouse La Cozinha.
Our final stop was Tatajuba, a tiny fishing village rapidly turning into a hot spot for kitesurfing in a region considered world class. The boys cracked it within two days and were shooting up and down the coast, showing off their new favourite sport. We stayed in a guest house on the beachfront where I kicked back and let the wind and salt air blow away the nostalgia I already felt for this immersion in Brazil’s hidden wonders.
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