Rivers are arteries and feeder streams capillaries. It's the same water-based pattern repeated over and over again on the surface of this and other planets where water once flowed. Whether it's the thigh of a human leg, or the Andean borne, blood-red, silt-laden waters of the Rio Paraguay flowing across the Pampas of South America, water is the animal!Water is the Animal contains seven years of Cheeveresque journal entries recording the peripatetic existence of a diplomatic courier. From meditations on the cultural and historical legacy of Homo sapiens around the globe, to the present day geopolitical and ecological challenges of over 150 countries, Water is the Animal reveals a perspective of the planet few are given. From the archaeology of Costa Rica, to the genocidal horrors of Rwanda, to the ancient temples and congested cities of South Asia, Water is the Animal reflects on the state of the Earth at the dawn of the new millennium.