(nonfiction)
Dead Run
Leavenworth Train
A Furnace Afloat
A World on Fire: A Heretic, an Aristocrat, and the Race to Discover
Oxygen
(fiction)
How I Left the Great State of Tennessee and Went on to Better Things
jwjackson@cox.net
www.joejacksonbooks.com
In October 2005, I came to the Amazon to
do research on a book for Viking Press on Henry Wickham, the Victorian
wanderer who stole 70,000 rubber seeds from the Amazon in 1876 to
give the British Empire the world monopoly in natural rubber. This
was a highly specialized trip, calling not only for a wide knowledge
of history, botany, and zoology, but also requiring the services of
a Portuguese-to-English interpreter and local guide.
This is a tall order for any guide, but Gil Serique was up to the
challenge and, it proved, perfect for the job. Starting in Santarem,
we hit Henry Ford's failed rubber plantations in Fordlandia and
Belterra, the site of Wickham's first failed plantation at Piquiatuba,
several villages along the Tapajos River that figured into the story,
and visited examples of primary forest that would have approximated
the conditions in Victorian times. We unearthed tales of riots in
Fordlandia that had never been documented and solved a historical
mystery concerning the origin of the seeds that created the British
Empire's lucrative rubber trade. We stopped at Taperhina, one of
the most famous sites of Victorian-era biological exploration, as
well as at obscure villages along the river in which I stumbled
upon ideas for subsequent books. The gathering of information in
a quick and efficient manner is extremely important for any writer
or journalist working on a deadline: Gil understood this, did his
research ahead of time, and was able to squeeze what turned into
an incredibly rich research journey into a mere six days.
The greatest stumbling block that I anticipated was the language
barrier, but Gil was a natural interpreter, able to anticipate my
questions as or before I asked them. It was as if there was no language
barrier at all. Not only does Gil have wide experience in the logistics
and pitfalls of guided tours, but he is intellectually engaged in
solving the kinds of problems and challenges that writers, researchers,
filmmakers and scientists normally encounter when traveling to a
different country for creative work. Gil is both fun to be with
and extremely smart, and within a day or two of my arrival I knew
that I could depend upon him totally, more as if he were a collaborator
in the work than a paid guide. That seems to be his ethic: he becomes
a collaborator, and wants the project to succeed as much as anyone.
I cannot recommend Gil highly enough for work like this, and I anticipate
collaborating with him again in the future for research on a novel
once this nonfiction manuscript is submitted. I would be happy to
recommend his expertise to anyone.
Alan Dean Foster
Author of Star Trek, Star Wars, Alien....
www.alandeanfoster.com
"As a world traveler who has visited
nearly 60 countries, I can unequivocally say that I never had a
better or more relaxed time traveling anywhere than I did seeing
Brazil with Gil Serique. Mr. Serique brings with him a unique combination
of knowledge of flora and fauna and the local cultures together
with the ability to handle travel arrangements from big city to
back country that would stump the average travel guide. For example,
not only does he know where to find the most beautiful birds and
animals in Brazil, but also the best ice cream. I cannot recommend
him too highly."
Mike, Kim, Sara,
Matt, Jason & Maria
Ohio, USA
onthego6246@yahoo.com
Our family was fortunate to be able to spend a day with Gil Serique
while we were on a very long cruise from Ft. Lauderdale to the Caribbean,
Amazon, Africa, and Mediterranean. We organized a day excursion
with Gil during our ship's call in Santarem. What a wonderful experience
this was! Gil took fantastic care of our entire family (he even
had to rearrange our outings at the last minute due to our ship
changing it's time in port - but this was no problem for Gil). We
were able to see so many things in the beautiful area surrounding
Santarem - sloths, monkeys, iguanas, countless birds and beautiful
plant life. Gil attended to every detail such as a wonderful riverboat;
a friendly skipper of the boat; a fantastic cook; canoes to do our
side trips through flooded jungle in; even a local boy who delighted
in showing us his "backyard," which was truly the most
beautiful place we have ever seen - a lagoon-type area surrounded
by beautiful flowers and filled with giant waterlilies and majestic
birds. We have travelled all over the world, to every continent
with our three teenagers and grade-schooler and our entire family
agrees that we have never had a better experience than we had with
Gil in Santarem. It was truly magical, and Gil is now a dear friend
who has taught us all a very valuable lesson in the thrill of loving
the life we have been given.
Gil, if you ever need a reference please feel free to give our
email address to anyone! We sincerely feel very fortunate to know
you and hope that other people will get to have the same wonderful
experience we had with you. You are a very special person! Your
"family" in Ohio, Mike, Kim, Sara, Matt, Jason, and Maria
Susan Bedell
Florida, USA
I'm back here in Florida and have been
checking out your website, which is terrific. I've sent the link
on to my adult children in Portland, OR and Seattle, WA. We may
just get back to see you one day!
I want to tell you that you personally affected my life during
that short experience and you are now referred to as "the gold
standard for tour guides". Your enthusiasm, energy, and thoughtfulness
comes back to you tenfold, I hope.
We started early on Saturday for our marathon trip down the Rio
Negro, then to the native Amazon village, rubber tree education,
floating restaurant lunch, nature walk to the giant water lilies,
small boat ride through the floating forest to a small native home
(with a boa constrictor for a pet), then piranha fishing and bird
watching. Next there was dusk and a fun Cayman hunt and back to
the Ecolodge for a great meal and fantastic entertainment with "native"
dancers. Pretty unbelievable how much we did in just one day (and
I'm certain I've skipped something!) but we all survived it and
learned an immense amount about the Amazon region! What an experience!
Because of you ... I decided to live life a little fuller, and
on our last day in Rio I took a hang-gliding adventure with Dehilton.
It was fabulous. I don't know if it was Brazil, meeting people like
you, or if there truly is a special metaphysical happening at "the
converging of the waters on the Amazon where you windsur,f"
but I feel more alive that I have in years. Life is GOOD! I am healthy,
happy, and infused with energy. Thank you, Gil. You may be a "prima
donna" as you put it, but it works for you, and for anyone
who meets you, too. It was my pleasure and gift to have met you!
Stanislaw Stamberg
Paleontologist, Czech Republic
Monika Stamberg
Biologist, Czech Republic
monistam@hotmail.com
Milý Gile,
rádi bychom ti vyjádrili ješte jednou díky
za úžasný týden, který jsme s tebou
a s tvými spolupracovníky strávili v Amazonii
na rece Tapajós a Cupari. Když jsme prijíždeli
do Santarému, ocekávali jsme sice jakéhosi
turistického pruvodce a slušné zacházení,
ale rozhodne jsme nepredpokládali, že nás bude
provázet tak zanícený znalec prírody
a pomeru v Amazonii. Byli jsme nadšeni, že jsme se práve
tvou zásluhou dostali do tesné blízkosti množství
úžasných zvírat a že jsi nás
trpelive ucil rozpoznávat desítky druhu ptáku.
Velké dojmy v nás zanechaly brzké ranní
i nocní výpravy do zatopených pralesu, ale
i setkání s lidmi z komunit obývajících
brehy rek Tapajós a Cupari a alespon cástecné
poznání jejich života.
K úžasné pohode pri našem spolecném
putování Amazonií velkou merou prispela i prostorná
a peclive udržovaná lod Filipa a kucharské dobroty
Seba. Stále se nám vybavuje zrucnost Filipa pri manévrování
s lodí a její otácení na možných
i nemožných místech jen proto, abychom mohli
videt nejaký vzácný klenot z ptací ríše
Amazonie a stále se nám sbíhají sliny
pri pomyšlení na kucharské umení Seba.
Jeho rybí i kurecí speciality proste nemely chybu.
Velice ti dekujeme, že práve tvou zásluhou se
nám splnil dávný sen poznat prírodní
zázraky amazonských pralesu. Pevne doufáme
a veríme, že se nám ješte v budoucnosti
podarí znovu cestovat s tebou a týmem tvých
prátel Filipem a Sebem.
Se srdecným pozdravem Stan a Monika
ENGLISH TRANSLATION
Dear Gil,
We would like to express once again our thanks to you for a
wonderful week, which we spent with you and your team in Amazonia
on the Tapajós and Cupari rivers. Before we came to Santarém,
we assumed some usual tourist guide and reasonable manner, but we
certainly didn´t expect such a passionate and excellent expert
on nature and circumstances in Amazonia as you are. We have been
enthusiastic, thanks to you, that we reached such close vicinity
of a large amount of amazing animals, and you did teach us to distinguish
ten species of birds. We have great impressions from our early morning
and late evening expeditions into the flooded virgin forest and
also from the meetings with the people from communities living in
outlying forest. We had the opportunity to become acquainted with
the beauties of the Amazonia´s nature as well as the lives
of her people.
Felipes´ commodious boat was in an excellent state of
repair and contributed greatly to our glorious peace of mind as
well as the culinary dainties of Saba. We still remember the skill
of Felipe´s navigation and turning in the possible and impossible
places just to make it possible for us to observe some rare animal
or bird. Our mouths are watering at the mere thought of Saba's cooking.
His fish and chicken specialities were absolutely great.
We are much obliged to you, Gil, for the realization of our
long standing dream that we could penetrate to outlying forests
and live in Amazonia. We can of course recommend your guide abilities
to other people interested in the nature of Amazonia, but we stoutly
believe we will come in future once again and travel with you and
the team of your friends.
Best wishes Stan & Monika
Jobst Christoff
Eggert
Musician
jobstofmind@hotmail.com
www.ihatepeaceofmind.com
www.highscorepunx.com
"Mehr oder weniger zufaellig bin ich an Gil
geraten und habe mit ihm einen wundervollen, aufregenden und lustigen
Tag im Regenwald erlebt. Gil kennt jeden Winkel um seinen alten
Heimatort Santarem und alles über die lokalen Tiere und Früchte.
Aber nicht nur als Guide war Gil unschlagbar. In den folgenden Tagen
haben wir nette Abende in der alternativen Szene Santarems verbracht.
Zudem hat er ein Radiointerview meiner Band in der Rock-Radio-Show
eines Freundes organisiert! Gil ist nicht nur ein einzigartiger
Guide, sondern auch ein intelligenter, mondaener Mensch mit dem
man ueber vieles reden kann. Danke, Gil!"
ENGLISH TRANSLATION:
Getting in contact with Gil was more or less coincidental,
but I experienced a wonderful, exciting and funny day with him in
the Amazonian rainforest. Gil knows every corner around his old
hometown Santarem and also everything about local animals and fruits.
Apart from that we spent amazing evenings in Santarem's Alternative
Scene. He even organized an radio interview for my band on his friend's
local rock radio show! Gil is not only an excellent guide, but also
an intelligent, sophisticated human and you can talk about so many
things with him. Thank you, Gil.
J.C. and Jennifer
Carlton
Owners of a national security company that specializes in providing
security to Fortune 500 companies.
jc1333@juno.com
"This last March my wife and I had the opportunity
to take a trip into the Amazon. Since we had never been to this
part of the world before, we chose our guide services over the internet.
Because of the way our trip was set up, we would be visiting two
different parts of the Amazon; we therefore booked with two different
guide services. The tours were as different as night and day! Everything
that was promised by the other guide service was not delivered,
while the exact opposite was true with Gil. We felt that we were
totally taken advantage of by the first guide service out of Manaus
and that we got much more than we bargained for with Gil. He was
only concerned with giving us a great trip and it was totally driven
by our interest. He not only impressed us with his knowledge of
the wildlife and plants, but also his genuine enthusiasm at being
able to share them. He is the kind of person that you would want
to be friends with whether he was your guide or not. All of the
facilities that were provided where of excellent quality, the people
that worked with him on the boat and in the jungle were equally
friendly and knowledgeable about their jobs. When you know that
a trip like this is a once-in-a-lifetime chance to experience a
place of such magnificence, you want to have a person like Gil Serique
to guide you through it! I guess the highest recommendation we could
possibly give for Gil is to say that he would be welcome in our
home any time. Feel free to email me about any questions you might
have about his services that we received."
Alex Bellos
Author of Futebol: The Brazilian Way of Life
"In January 2003 I rented a boat with
five friends to travel from Manaus up the Rio Negro to Barcelos. Gil
Serique was our guide -- but really he was much more than that. From
day 1 he was one of the gang. He was our friend and confidante. Funny,
clever, engaging, eternally fascinated by the forest, imaginative,
sensitive and tireless -- Gil made sure we had one of the best holidays
we've ever had. If I go to the Amazon again, he's the first person
I'd call. "
Pete Mayer
Chicago, Illinois
"I HAVE TRAVELED ALL OVER THE WORLD.
YOU ARE THE BEST GUIDE THAT I HAVE EVER HAD. YOU ARE FUN, KNOWLEDGEBLE,
HONEST AND WACKY! YOU TOLD SOME GREAT STORIES AND TOOK US TO SOME
INCREDIBLE PLACES. THANKS FOR THE ENJOYABLE TIME TOGETHER AND THE
FRISBEE PLAYING!!"
Dave McNeely
Biology professor
dlmcneely@lunet.edu
"My wife and I spent five days with
Gil Serique on the MV Cassiquiari with a dozen other biologists from
the U.S. and Australia. Everything about the trip was superb. Gil
was knowledgable, helpful, fun to be with, and definitely enjoyed
showing us the rivers, islands, igapo forest, varzea, wildlife, people
and culture of the region. Though it was not our primary objective,
but only a part of what we did, we saw nearly a hundred bird species.
We also snorkled in the black water of the Rio Negro, were able to
observe local fish species, find caimans at night. Three species of
macaws was enough to make me happy. Probably most important for us
was that he used his expertise and knowledge to guide us to experiences
that we chose, based on what we wanted to get from our trip to Brazil,
in addition to leading us to things we would not have known to ask
for. Even the herpetologist who was bitten by a (non-venomous) snake
was happy (and not seriously injured - it just added to the excitement).
Great trip! Make sure that you get to enjoy a cream dessert made from
cupu acu!!"
Ruth Shurman
London, England
ruthcshurman@yahoo.co.uk
"Travelling for 11 days on the Rio
Negro was one of the most amazing experiences of my life. The landscape
was beautiful and varied, the animal and birdlife was stunning, and
the riverside communities were fascinating, but above all it was our
fantastic guide, Gil Serique, who made the trip so special. Gil's
knowledge of every aspect of Amazonia is encyclopaedic, his enthusiasm
is infectious, and his good humour and energy made every day a new
adventure. He is a brilliant and inspiring teacher, and his concern
and respect for the Amazon environment is reflected in the way he
encourages others to value their surroundings too by using locals
to guide us round their patch. Hours of hiking, piranha-fishing, frisbee-throwing,
and caiprinha-mixing cannot tire him, and I'm confident he would be
happy to tailor an expedition to suit any group of travellers as perfectly
as ours suited us."
Mark L. Stafford
Los Angeles, California
info@parrotsinternational.org
www.parrotsinternational.org
"I have had the opportunity to travel
with Gil to several Brazilian sites. Each time I was impressed with
Gil's abilities as an eco-guide. Gil has the desire and abilities
to put together a great custom itinerary. Gil has an immense knowledge
of Brazilian wildlife. His grasp of photography, camera angles and
lighting helped me take home many trophy still shots and video. Thanks
Gil, it was a pleasure. Hope to take another trip with you soon. I
really want to see the Golden Conures in a future trip."
Donald and Priscilla
Old
Michigan, USA
"Wir durften mit Gil drei unvergessliche
Tage auf dem Tapajos River verbringen. Besonders beeindruckt hat uns
dabei die Faehigkeit von Gil, Tiere zu sehen die uns immer verborgen
geblieben waeren. Sein aufgeschlossenes Wesen und seine grosse Kenntnis
von Land und Leuten machten das Reisen mit ihm zum Vergnuegen. Dies
um so mehr, als es keine Sprachbarrieren gab. Die Verstaendigung auf
Englisch war perfekt. Als Guide kann ich Gil nur empfehlen, man kann
nicht enttaeuscht werden."
ENGLISH TRANSLATION:
We spent three unforgettable days with Gil on the Tapajos River
. What especially impressed us was Gil's ability to show us animals
that would have remained concealed if he hadn't pointed them out
to us. His open personality and great knowledge of the land and
people made traveling with him a pleasure. There were no language
barriers; Gil's knowledge of English was perfect. I highly recommend
Gil as a guide; one won't be disappointed.
Beth Foster
Denver, Colorado
beth.foster@rrcc.edu
"The week my son and I spent with
Gil Serique and his crew was a wonderful, unforgettable experience.
Every day was filled with adventure, discovery and fun; every detail
of the trip seemed planned with our delight in mind. (It's not always
easy to delight a teenager, but mine came home with a whole new outlook
on life!) The boat was clean, roomy and comfortable; the food was
plentiful and excellent; Gil himself was incredibly knowledgeable
about the scientific and cultural facets of the Amazonian world. I
particularly enjoyed meeting residents of the areas we visited; Gil
seemed to have friends everywhere who found it as exciting to meet
us as we did to meet them. Every aspect of our trip far surpassed
my expectations. I would recommend this trip to anyone who wants a
genuine (as opposed to "touristy") Amazon experience, and
I'd be glad to talk to anyone who's considering retaining Gil Serique's
services as a guide."
David Richardson
Director, Center for the Preservation of
Indigenous Art, Culture and Sciences
Gil Serique has been an extremely active
volunteer here at the Center for the Preservation of Indigenous Art,
Culture and Sciences -1492- 1992, almost from the commencement of
the project . We have also followed his career as a professional guide
and ecological activist here in the Amazon for approximately the last
ten years.
We here at the Center consider him a close friend and will forever
be indebted to him for his selflessness in sharing his extensive
knowledge of our environment and assisting us in unifying and clarifying
the indigenous influences on the forest for the better understanding
of our regional and overall Brazilian society.
Various projects ideas that are now being carried on here at the
Center our due to his personal efforts and creativity. His honesty
and sincerity in his work as an ecologist and as indigenista are
exemplatory.
His reputation as a naturalist/lecturer speaks for itself. He is
always in great demand due to his expansive knowledge on so many
different subjects that pertain to our environment and his ability
and ease to transfer that information to a common level. To attain
that level of understanding that he has obtained, demonstrates his
passion for the forest and the Amazon. It has taken Mr. Serique
years and years of self study (without the benefit of a structured
educational system) to acquire the understanding of the rainforest
that he has. It has all been through personal determination , discipline,
and dedication that Mr. Serique has involved himself so deeply to
gain the field knowledge he has of this region.
Op zoek naar een fantastische gids in het
Amazonegebied?!!
Dan moet je zeker even verder lezen (andere lokaties in Zuid-Amerika
zijn ook mogelijk).
Wij hebben een SUPER weekend gehad toen we met Gil de jungle ingingen.
Gil is een hyperactieve local met passie voor natuur en medemens.
Zijn bijzonder goede kennis van flora en fauna (heel veel vogels)
gecombineerd met zijn onuitputtelijke energie en goed engels maakte
onze trip tot een fascinerende en zeer enerverende gebeurtenis.
Hij weet je echt bij de junletour te betrekken mede door het inschakelen
van nog lokalere gidsen per lokatie (pikken deze toch ook een graantje
mee!). Hierdoor zijn wij op plaatsen gekomen waar nog weinig toeristen
zijn geweest.
Kortom de combinatie van een supermooire flora en fauna en dito
uitleg in erg enthousiast engels met natuurlijk de nodige cerveja
en caipirinha en een tikje altruisme is onweerstaanbaar en mag je
dan ook niet missen.
Met Gil weet je zeker dat je een onvergetelijke trip zal maken!!
ENGLISH TRANSLATION:
In search of a fantastic guide in the Amazon area?!!
Then you certainly must read on (other locations in South America
are also possible).
We had a SUPER weekend when Gil took us into the jungle. Gil
is an enthusiastic local with a passion for nature and people. His
extraordinary knowledge of flora and fauna (lots of birds), combined
with his amazing energy and knowledge of the English language, made
our trip into a fascinating and very exciting event. He really knows
how to get you involved in the jungle tour by using local guides
for each location (so they can benefit from this as well!). Because
of this we were able to see places where not many tourists have
been before.
In short, the combination of the most beautiful flora and fauna
and the explanation in very enthusiastic English with, of course,
the necessary cerveja and caipirinha and a just a bit of altruism,
is something you should not miss out on.
With Gil you know you will make an unforgettable trip!!
