After sailing for one hour, we saw a big expanse of yellow water somewhere far away. It was the famous "gathering of the two rivers." Two rivers from different origins came together. Because of the differences in density, temperature and speed of the two rivers, they only met but did not blend together. One was yellow, and the other was black. This special scene lasted for more than 10 kilometers, which could be counted as a wonder. In China, we also have the similar natural wonder. There is a Chinese idiom "泾渭分明" (jing wei fen ming, as different as the waters of the River Jing and the River Wei), which describes a similar scene. The rivers in that idiom are River Jing and River Wei, which are located in Shaanxi Province. I did not check what it was like nowadays.

        中午在印第安人开的浮动餐厅用膳，旁边一辆快艇驶过，整个餐厅都会晃动几下。房屋下面有巨大的树干作为支架，究其原因一是它们可以在雨季随河水的涨幅而起落，二是这些树干极耐腐蚀，在水里泡几十年都不会腐烂。餐厅并不精致，但食物却很地道，一定要提的是在国内被奉为尊贵与财富象征的“金龙鱼”竟然是这里的家常便饭，味道虽一般，但除了这个地方恐怕不可能再有享用它们的机会了。

        吃过午餐，从餐厅借了几根鱼竿，就是简简单单的一条线加一个鱼钩，穿上一块新鲜的牛肉，就在旁边的浮台上钓起食人鱼来。食人鱼对血腥的东西非常敏感，鱼竿刚刚甩下去就有了反应，等到被猛烈地往下一拽时，猛地一抬杆，不肯松口的食人鱼被拉出水面，在空中翻了一个跟头又落了下去。钓钩大，鱼小，掉了几次，牛肉都被吃得干干净净，可是鱼一条都没有钓上来，钓鱼成了喂鱼。看来这食人鱼不仅牙齿厉害，还异常灵敏。旁边的人碰巧拉上来一条，我赶紧跑过去照了几张照片，还特别给那锋利的牙齿来了一张特写。据当地人讲，食人鱼通常成群活动，一头羊如果落入水中，大约五分钟的时间就剩下一堆白骨了。

At noon, we had our lunch in a floating restaurant run by Indians. When a big speedboat passed by, the whole restaurant was shaking. The building had giant branches as support. One of the reasons was that they could rise or fall according to the water in the monsoon. Second, these branches were extremely anticorrosion. It wouldn't get corroded after dozens of years in water. The restaurant was not posh, but the food there was really genuine. One thing worth pointing out was that the yellow croakers which symbolized nobility and wealth in China were just normal fish here. Although the taste was really nothing special, I was afraid that no place but here could people enjoy them as food.



After lunch, we borrowed a few fishing rods from the restaurant. A fishing rod here was made of a line and a fishhook. With a piece of fresh beef, we began to fish piranha. Piranhas were extremelysensitive to bloody stuff. After we threw the rods into the water, there was an immediate reaction in the water. When the fishing line was suddenly pulled into the water, I raised the rob quickly. The piranha did not want to loosen its bite. It turned a somersault and then fell into the water again. The fishhook was big and the fish was small. After a few times, the beef piece was completely gone. It seemed that piranha was not only had sharp teeth, but also extremely agile. A man nearby fished a piranha. I rushed to see and made a few photos. I made a feature of its sharp teeth. Local people told me that piranha often moved about together. If a sheep fell into the water, after a few minutes, there were skeletons left.

        钓鱼无功而返，我们换乘小型快艇，逆流继续往亚马逊丛林上游深处前行。行约十分钟，有若干条小船朝我们快速划来，每条小船上都有一个四五岁的小孩，手里拿着小猕猴、鹦鹉等动物。开船的人放慢了速度，一个印第安小女孩划到我的身边，让我拍照，导游讲，给一巴币（相当于人民币四元）的小费即可。快艇这时又启动，这群小孩子像听到命令一样，马上将小船划离快艇，没有一点乞讨者的纠缠。尽管他们以此为生，每天的时间就是在这小船上度过，希望偶尔经过的游客留下些维持生计的物资，可他们依旧保持天真和纯朴，在亚马逊这片自然的领域里，你能够从他们眼睛里面看到的只是最简单的渴望。

After the effortless fishing, we changed for a small speedboat and went upriver to the Amazon area. After 10 minutes, there were several boats racing towards us. On each boat, there was a four or five years old child holding a small macaque, parrot, or other animals. The man on the boats slowed down. An Indian girl rowed her boat towards me and asked me to take photos of her. The tourist guide told me that I only needed to give her one Brazil dollar which was equal to 4 RMB. Our speedboat started again. The kids seemed to hear an order. They all rowed their boats away, without any pestering. Although they lived on this and they spent every day on the boats and hoped the passing tourists could leave some money, they still kept their innocence and simplicity. In the natural area of Amazon, the things you could see in their eyes were the simplest desire.

        快艇又前行了约五分钟，在一片河滩靠了岸，岸上就是茂密的丛林，河滩不远处还有一个印第安人的家。所谓的家，就是河边一间浮在水面上的房子。大部分印第安人还是群居在丛林深处，从来不与外界来往，也“不知有汉”。这家人大致是1对父母，5个小孩；在河边支了个篷子，卖一些自己做的手工艺品，什么金龙鱼鱼鳞的面具，鳄鱼牙齿做的手链，羽毛装点的头饰，木条编制的弓箭……小孩子手里有的抱着鳄鱼，有的背着蟒蛇，有的捧着树懒。太恐怖和庞大的动物我总觉得不那么友好，就只选树懒留了合影。这家伙动作极为缓慢，听说一天有20个小时都在睡觉，而且还聋，在它耳边打一枪都不会醒过来，也只有在原始丛林中才有亲手抱到它的机会。

        踏着被踩出来的小路向原始森林深处前行，旁边不时可以见到在树丛中跳跃的长尾猕猴，迎光闪耀的蜘蛛网，和树干上巨大的蚂蚁窝。树藤与树干相互缠绕，树根则牢牢地扎到土里，头顶的树叶将阳光完全阻隔，煞是凉快，脚下是厚厚的沉积了一年又一年的落叶，走上去像踩着软软的地毯，这里的空气与氧气瓶的相差无几，再加上满眼的绿色，让人神清气爽。不知不觉行进中见到一棵参天的大树横在路中央，树干有几人合抱那么粗，便再也找不到前行的道路了。据当地人讲，若再往深处探险，则毒蛇、毒虫遍布，随处可见足能致命的蝎子和蜘蛛，甚至连树木都为了保护自身而带有毒性，而且没有任何参照物可用来识别方向，一般人是无法进入的。

        当快艇离河滩渐行渐远，一种无法抑制的感慨又涌上心头：这片富饶的土地，保持着几个世纪以来的原始状态，这里还有着无穷无尽未被科学家发现和记载的动物和植物，太多的幻想，让我们相信这里是人类的最后一片净土，太多的传奇色彩，让我们以为这里永远不可能被了解。

After five minutes, we landed on a shoal. There were thick forests on the shoal. Not far from the shoal was an Indian’s home. The so-called home was a house floating on the river. Most Indians still lived in tribes in the deep forests and did not contact with the world outside. They did not know what the outside world was like. As to this family, there were the parents and five kids. They set a tent in the riverside to sell handcrafts made by themselves, such as facial masks made of yellow croakers' scale, bracelets made of crocodile teeth, head accessories with feather, wooden arrows, and etc. The kids were either holding a crocodile in their arms, or had a boa on their backs or holding a sloth in their hands. Animals which were too big or too scary made me feel uncomfortable. So I chose to take a photo with a sloth. The sloth moved really slowly. It was said that it slept more than 20 hours per day. Besides, it was deaf. Even the sound of the gunshot would not wake it up. Only in a primitive forest, you might have a chance of holding it in your own hands.



We walked forward to the depth of the primitive forest on the treaded road. We could see long-tailed macaques jumping in the bushes, shining spider nets and giant ant nests in the branches. Vines and branches tangled together with their roots deep in the earth. The leaves above our head completely blocked the sun lights and gave a nice cool shade. Under our feet, layers of leaves falling from the trees year after year felt like a soft carpet. The air here was like the air in an oxygen bottle. With the green color all over, you would feel so refreshed. We soon came across a giant tree in the middle of the road. It was so thick and tall that it took several people hand in hand to encircle it. We could no longer find any road ahead. The local people told us that if we would walk any further, there would be a lot of poisonous snakes and worms, fatal scorpions and spiders. Even some trees were poisonous for self-protection. Besides, there would be no reference objects to help us identify the directions. A normal person would not be able to survive there.



When our speedboat left the place, I could not help thinking: This rich place still kept the primitive state for several centuries. There were endless undiscovered and unrecorded animals and plants waiting to be explored by scientists. Too many fantasies led me to believe that it was the last pure land for mankind. Too many legends let us believe that we would never understand it.

    本文转载自Scotty的个人空间，要阅读更多作者文章，请移步作者个人空间 http://i.myechinese.com/index.php?s=/space/1251 。

downstairs [,daun´steəz]   ad.在楼下 a.楼下的   (初中英语单词)

holiday [´hɔlidi]   n.假日，假期，节日   (初中英语单词)

delicious [di´liʃəs]   a.美味的，可口的   (初中英语单词)

flavor [´fleivə]   n.滋味 vt.给….调味   (初中英语单词)

actually [´æktʃuəli]   ad.事实上；实际上   (初中英语单词)

normal [´nɔ:məl]   a.正规的 n.正常状态   (初中英语单词)

flight [flait]   n.逃走；飞行；班机   (初中英语单词)

extremely [ik´stri:mli]   ad.极端地；非常地   (初中英语单词)

customer [´kʌstəmə]   n.顾客，买主，主顾   (初中英语单词)

confirm [kən´fə:m]   vt.证实；认可；加强   (初中英语单词)

primitive [´primitiv]   a.原始的 n.原始人   (初中英语单词)

remote [ri´məut]   a.遥远的；偏僻的   (初中英语单词)

therefore [´ðeəfɔ:]   ad.&conj.因此；所以   (初中英语单词)

indian [´indiən]   a.印度的 n.印度人   (初中英语单词)

blessing [´blesiŋ]   n.祝福   (初中英语单词)

administration [əd,minis´treiʃən]   n.管理(事务等)；经营   (初中英语单词)

oxygen [´ɔksidʒən]   n.氧，氧气   (初中英语单词)

climate [´klaimit]   n.气候；特殊气候地带   (初中英语单词)

proudly [´praudli]   ad.骄傲地；傲慢地   (初中英语单词)

province [´prɔvins]   n.省；领域；范围   (初中英语单词)

restaurant [´restərɔnt]   n.饭店，菜馆   (初中英语单词)

wealth [welθ]   n.财富，财产   (初中英语单词)

bloody [´blʌdi]   a.(流)血的；血腥的   (初中英语单词)

reaction [ri´ækʃən]   n.反应(力)   (初中英语单词)

contact [´kɔntækt]   n.接触；联系 v.联络   (初中英语单词)

feather [´feðə]   n.羽毛   (初中英语单词)

wooden [´wudn]   a.木制的；呆板的   (初中英语单词)

spider [´spaidə]   n.蜘蛛；三角架   (初中英语单词)

carpet [´kɑ:pit]   n.地毯 vt.铺地毯   (初中英语单词)

reference [´refərəns]   n.参考；参照；出处   (初中英语单词)

identify [ai´dentifai]   vt.认出；鉴定；验明   (初中英语单词)

survive [sə´vaiv]   vt.幸存；残存   (初中英语单词)

waiting [´weitiŋ]   n.等候；伺候   (初中英语单词)

pineapple [´painæpəl]   n.菠萝   (高中英语单词)

brazil [brə´zil]   n.巴西   (高中英语单词)

barrier [´bæriə]   n.栅栏；屏障；障碍   (高中英语单词)

tropical [´trɔpikəl]   a.热带地区的   (高中英语单词)

location [ləu´keiʃən]   n.定位；位置；地方   (高中英语单词)

originally [ə´ridʒənəli]   ad.本来；独创地   (高中英语单词)

environment [in´vaiərənmənt]   n.郊区；周围；条件   (高中英语单词)

explore [ik´splɔ:]   v.勘探；探索；探查   (高中英语单词)

budget [´bʌdʒit]   n.&vi.(做)预算；安排   (高中英语单词)

strict [strikt]   a.严厉的；精确的   (高中英语单词)

genuine [´dʒenjuin]   a.真正的；真诚的   (高中英语单词)

nobility [nəu´biliti, nə-]   n.高贵；贵金属性   (高中英语单词)

sensitive [´sensitiv]   a.敏感的；感光的   (高中英语单词)

loosen [´lu:sən]   v.放松；松弛   (高中英语单词)

tourist [´tuərist]   n.游客，观光者   (高中英语单词)

innocence [´inəsəns]   n.无罪；天真   (高中英语单词)

simplicity [sim´plisiti]   n.简单；朴素   (高中英语单词)

so-called [´sou ´kɔ:ld]   a.所谓的，号称的   (高中英语单词)

uncomfortable [ʌn´kʌmftəbəl]   a.不舒服的，不自在的   (高中英语单词)

midsummer [´mid,sʌmə]   n.仲夏；夏至   (英语四级单词)

waiter [´weitə]   n.侍者，服务员   (英语四级单词)

geographical [dʒi:ə´græfik(ə)l]   a.地理(学)的   (英语四级单词)

amazon [´æməzən]   n.女战士   (英语四级单词)

unlimited [ʌn´limitid]   a.无限的；过渡的   (英语四级单词)

fishing [´fiʃiŋ]   n.钓鱼；捕鱼；渔业   (英语四级单词)

staple [´steipəl]   n.&vt.(用)钉书钉   (英语四级单词)

composed [kəm´pəuzd]   a.镇静自若的   (英语四级单词)

parrot [´pærət]   n.鹦鹉；应声虫   (英语四级单词)

encircle [in´sə:kl]   vt.环绕；包围   (英语四级单词)

poisonous [´pɔizənəs]   a.有毒的；讨厌的   (英语四级单词)

sumptuous [´sʌmptʃuəs]   a.奢侈的；豪华的   (英语六级单词)

normally [´nɔ:məli]   ad.正常情况下；通常   (英语六级单词)

taking [´teikiŋ]   a.迷人的 n.捕获物   (英语六级单词)

tolerant [´tɔlərənt]   a.宽容的，宽大的   (英语六级单词)

riverside [´rivəsaid]   n.河岸 a.河岸上的   (英语六级单词)

expanse [ik´spæns]   n.广阔；宽阔的区域   (英语六级单词)

density [´densiti]   n.浓(稠)密；密度   (英语六级单词)

holding [´həuldiŋ]   n.保持，固定，存储   (英语六级单词)

facial [´feiʃəl]   a.面部的，脸部的   (英语六级单词)

crocodile [´krɔkədail]   n.鳄鱼；假慈悲的人   (英语六级单词)