http://www.travelblog.org/Bloggers/lonestar/ Travel adventures in journals and photos from lonestar en-us Tue, 10 Nov 2009 19:47:44 +0000 Tue, 10 Nov 2009 19:47:44 +0000 On Saturday the 23rd I left Salvador and got a bus to Lenis a 6.5 hour drive west of the city. The drive to Lenis was a bit different I had never seen scenery like this in Brazil. It was during the blazing heat of midday that we passed through other towns in this agriculture interior that seemed desolate poor and ugly. The vegetation around wasn't very green just scrub and cacti with th http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Brazil/Bahia/Len--is/blog-250695.html Hey everyoneI headed up to the NorthEast by myself on my first solo leg in Brazil. Salvador capital of Bahia and previous capital of Brazil was where my plane landed. The city has a different culture from the south much more influenced by African culture as this was the first stop for the slave ships. It also has a lot of colonial architecture since it also where the Portuguese first landed. O http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Brazil/Bahia/Salvador/blog-250681.html Both Australia and Waitangi Day were celebrated in So Paulo with pavlova lamingtons and ANZAC biscuits. They were a hit with the Brazilians. Emma flew out on Wednesday night so it is just me now and it is quite an odd feeling. Vanessa also starts back at work soon so we will see what I get up to in the next few days.PS. Brazil 1 Irlanda 0 in the soccer good effort Ireland http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Brazil/Sao-Paulo/S-o-Paulo/blog-244488.html Spent the next weekend in Sampa before heading to Angra Dos Reis on the coast of Rio De Janeiro state. Junior a friend who I also met in Dublin had joined us by this point and the six of us squished into the car for the 6 hr drive. We were staying in a house that was literally on the beach. The lush green mountains nearby meet the ocean here and we spent our languid days swimming eating and rea http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Brazil/Rio-de-Janeiro/Rio-de-Janeiro/Tijuca/blog-244482.html Flew back to So Paulo for a few days. Marcio had been the wedding planner for a couple who were holding it at one of the fanciest buildings in the city and Vanessa was also working at it so Emma and I tagged along to the reception with the bridersquos permission of course. Had a wonderful 3 course dinner and watched some traditional Portuguese dancers that were there as entertainment. The 5 http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Brazil/Minas-Gerais/Tiradentes/blog-244478.html Emma and I left Vanessa in Floripa and headed on another bus to Porto Alegre which is 7 hrs south of Santa Catarina. We spent only one day in the city which had only a few nice parts to look around in. The night we spent there was funny now we look back on it. Extremely cheap accommodation that was right above a bus port and was extremely noisy. We couldnrsquot close the window it was bro http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Brazil/Rio-Grande-do-Sul/Gramado/blog-244474.html The day we got back from Foz we got cheap flights to Florianopolis and we booked it about 4 hrs before it actually boarded so packed in a hurry. Mairon and Marcio were joining us three girls this time. Flight was delayed got a bit of a Brazilian history lesson from Mairon flight was delayed again dozed in our chairs and the flight was then cancelled at about midnight. We blame Vanessa and ano http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Brazil/Santa-Catarina/Florian-polis/blog-244470.html A few days later Vanessa Emma and I took a bus to Foz do Iguau the closest Brazilian town to the famous waterfalls. It was an overnight trip that was meant to last 16 hrs however it broke down and we spent about 45 hrs on the side of the road waiting for a new one so we arrived quite late the next day. When we arrived we took another 2 local buses to reach the actual waterfalls. What I will http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Brazil/Paran-/Foz-do-Igua-u/Igua-u-National-Park/blog-244468.html Emma and I arrived in So Paulo late on the 3rd of Jan before we had actually left New Zealand since we crossed the International Date Line. Aerolineas Argentinas is the worst airline ever and we were sick of travelling but I forgot all about my discomfort when I saw Vanessa at the arrivals. It has been 13 months since we last saw each other I still remember saying goodbye outside our apartme http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Brazil/Sao-Paulo/blog-244159.html Wow I havenrsquot written in about 1 and a half months but I will now update you on what I have been doing. After my last entry I spent a bit of time in Wellington met a Canadian who was living there and climbed Mt Vic with him. Then I hopped on a bus to Taupo. I had previously visited but I was going to spend some more time there with my friend Emma and her family. I sat next to a nice Aussie http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/New-Zealand/North-Island/blog-244156.html Hi everyoneIt is my last day in Wellington before heading back north. The last time I wrote I was in Rotorua I believe. Well since then I have travelled south quite a bit.Mark and I headed down to Taupo and the rain just didn't stop. We stopped by Huka falls and the crater of the moon site another eerie geothermal site. Finally sick of the rain we made it to Taupo. I met up with Emma Holdgate http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/New-Zealand/North-Island/Wellington/blog-226645.html Hi everyoneWell I have been here for about 5 days now and it is time to blog now I have found a wireless connection.Flew into Auckland on the Saturday morning and spent the day just wandering round and getting to know it. Auckland is surrounded by water and is understandably named the 'City of Sails' and is the biggest city in NZ with about 1.3 million people. Kiwis are quite political it seems http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/New-Zealand/North-Island/Rotorua/blog-225256.html