The seat of this Towne of Toparimaca was very pleasant, standing on a little hill, in an excellent prospect, with goodly gardens a mile compasse round aboute it, and two very faire and large ponds of excellent fish adioyning.
The towne of Arowocay. This towne is called Arowocai: the people are of the nation called Nepoios, and are followers of Carapana. In that place I sawe very aged people, that wee might perceiue all their sinewes and veines without any flesh, and but euen as a case couered onely with skinne.
The great breadth of the riuer Orenoque. The Lord of this place gaue me an old man for Pilot, who was of great experience and traueile, and knew the Riuer most perfectly both by day and night: and it shall bee requisite for any man that passeth it, to haue such a Pilot, for it is foure, fiue, and sixe miles ouer in many places, and twentie miles in other places, with wonderfull eddies, and strong currents, many great ylands, and diuers sholds, and many dangerous rockes, and besides vpon any increase of winde so great a bilowe, as wee were sometimes in great perill of drowning in the galley, for the small boates durst not come from the shoare, but when it was very faire.
They enter the riuer Orenoque, which runneth East and West. The next day we hasted thence, and hauing an Easterly winde to helpe vs, we spared our armes from rowing: for after wee entred Orenoque, the Riuer lieth for the most part East and West, euen from the Sea vnto Quito in Peru. This Riuer is nauigable with barkes, litle lesse then a thousand miles, and from the place where we entred, it may be sailed vp in small pinnesses to many of the best parts of Nueuo reyno de Granada, and of Popayan: and from no place may the cities of these parts of the Indies be so easily taken and inuaded as from hence. All that day wee sailed vp a branch of that Riuer, hauing on the left hand a great yland which they call Assapana which may conteine some fiue and twentie miles in length, and sixe miles in breadth, the great body of the Riuer running on the other side of this yland. Beyond that middle branch there is also another yland in the Riuer called Iwana, which is twise as bigge as the yle of Wight, and beyond it, and betweene it and the maine of Guiana, runneth a thirde branch of Orenoque called Arraroopana: all three are goodly branches, and all nauigable for great ships. I iudge the riuer in this place to be at least thirty miles brode, reckoning the ylands which deuide the
