Awarradam Ararradam Duration 4 - 5 days Transport Bus, Korjaal Pax 3 - 15 Price p.p Euro € 535 Day program Awarradam - 3 nights (Friday – Monday) Day 1 You depart from local airport Zorg & Hoop in Paramaribo to airstrip Kajana, approximately 60 minutes southwards by airplane from Paramaribo. Upon arrival a hearty welcome from the Maroons who will guide you to the dug-out canoe for a trip on the Gran Rio river (30 minutes) to your destination. Awarradam jungle lodge located on a small island lies at the foot of the Awarradam rapids. After your check-in and meeting with the jungle lodge personnel, you will enjoy lunch followed by the opportunity, in the afternoon, to explore the resort and relax in the rapids. You will soon recognize the eco-tourism starting points of our resort: the personnel are all friendly Maroons from the Saramaccan tribe and your jungle lodge is built in traditional style. The cool evenings make air-conditioning or a fan unnecessary but you do enjoy the comfort of a mosquito net. The evenings are spent in an atmospheric ambiance with solar energy lighted lamps and the meals are prepared with primarily local ingredients. On your first night the guide will provide information about the Saramaccan culture. Day 2 After breakfast, we take you on an informative and adventurous ‘jungle walk’. While you enjoy the environment of the pristine tropical rainforest, the guide provides information about the various trees and plants and how you can recognize animals by their sounds and footmarks. After lunch, you visit Peti rapids where you can swim, paddle in a dug-out canoe, explore the vicinity or relax in a hammock while you enjoy the beautiful view on the rapid. Late afternoon, you depart by dug-out canoe to the living area of the Saramaccans. Here you make an extensive walk through various villages. On the way, you learn more about the culture and lifestyle of the Maroons. After dinner, you will be treated to a cultural performance of singing and dancing in one of the villages. The guide explains the text of the songs and the dancers invite you to try out their dance style yourself. Under a tropical starry sky, our boatmen carry you back to the jungle lodge. You will be amazed at their boating skills at night! Day 3 A full day for an adventurous trip on the river and to learn more about the local culture. You visit the largest rapid in the area, the Grandam rapid. During the boat trip, 75 minutes downstream, you experience life on the river, the life line of the indigenous people. A stop is made on the way, local people are greeted and goods are handed over. You will see the locals busy at washing clothes or dishes and fishing. In between the stop at the villages you can enjoy nature and if you are lucky you will even spot a crocodile dozing on or near a sandbank. You get off at Grandam rapids. Here you have the opportunity to relax in the impressive, seething rapids, enjoy a walk in the area or relax in a hammock. Lunch is served on location, the perfect closing of the trip. On your way back to the lodge you make a stop at one of the villages.The local people are happy to offer you their handmade souvenirs for purchase. You may recognize one of the dancers, singers or spectators of the cultural evening the night before. They will certainly do! Day 4 The morning is kept free for an opportunity to peddle in a dug-out canoe, swim or take a short walk in the forest or just relax and enjoy the peaceful sounds of the rainforest. The personnel at Awarradam will say goodbye to you in their traditional manner after which the dug-out canoe will take you back to Kajana for your return flight to Paramaribo. For those who choose the 4-night program (Monday – Friday): Day 4 Full day at leisure with opportunity for your own activities. If you take an early morning walk in the forest, before breakfast, you have most chance to encounter apes, birds and tropical frogs. You may wish to visit an agricultural plot to see how local cultivation is done or join the guide for a further chat about the medicinal use of plants in the tropical forest. Or you can explore the surroundings in a dug-out canoe, relax in a hammock with a book or just enjoy the peacefulness and beauty of the pristine rainforest around you.   Day 5 Traditional goodbye from the jungle lodge personnel who you now probably regard as friends. You will depart with the dug-out canoe to Kajana for your return flight to Paramaribo.