Bye bye Brasil bonito

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After spending my birthday in Salvador, all of a sudden time seemed to have moved far too quickly and we only had a week left in Brazil. Some friends had tipped us off that Boipeba, an island in the Tinharo archipelago, south of the more touristy Morro de Sau Paulo, was a fantastic place to see. We were told of unspoilt beaches, dense Atlantic Rainforest and clear calm waters. Sounded great, we had to check this out!

Armed with some fantastic directions (thanks Demo!), we got the ferry to Bom Despacho, the bus to Graciosa and arrived with time to have a slap up lunch at the ferry dock before the 2pm boat. We boarded the cute ferry, made friends with some Swiss people and waited for the ferry to leave. The ferry was broken and a part needed to be sent from somewhere else. We were going nowhere. The local people on the boat discussed what they should do with the tourists going to Boipeba. Finally one decided to fill us in on the options. Using our basic Portuguese and the phrasebook we organised with the help of some really nice friendly people to get a speedboat to the island for US$50 between four. Not too bad, considering the journey on the speedboat through the mangroves was extremely pleasant and cut our travelling time from 3 hours on the ferry to 50 minutes on the speedboat.

On arrival the boat man asked us which pousada (guesthouse) we were staying at. Casa de Irene we told him. He reversed the boat back into the sea and took us to another beach a little closer to Irene's place. On the beach a young man insisted on taking our rucksacks to Irene's in his wheelbarrow. There are no cars on the little island of Boipeba. Just a couple of tractors for heavy farming work. Irene's place was a total gem of a pousada. Irene was a fantastically interesting French-Carioca who had built her beautiful house only 6 months previously. She only had three rooms but made one available for the tired and eternally grateful Swiss couple without any fuss. She then got some beers from the fridge and brought us up to the roof terrace to admire the view of the wonderful rainforest below. Irene's place, from the conversation, to the food and the hospitality, was a true taste of heaven. She is a remarkable woman and we were really impressed with her place and thankful we had chosen it .

For the next few days until the lovely Swiss couple, Margarit and Rolf left, we rambled around the island and did some excursions with them. We snorkelled in the most amazingly clear waters and ate Moqueca from a tiny restaurant with the friendliest staff. In fact, everyone on the island was genuinely charming and friendly. The island had hardly any tourists even though it was Easter Week and we couldn't believe our luck in having some of the most beautiful beaches we had seen on our trip to ourselves.

After five nights of pure bliss it was time to say goodbye to Boipeba. Some tears were shed on the warm beach at night gazing into the brightly lit star-filled sky, as this was Last Train to Transcentral's last beach stop on an unforgettable tour. After an early morning goodbye to Irene, along with another great breakfast, we boarded the 6am boat to Graciosa. We met a lovely man on the boat who was also travelling back to Salvador and we talked to him all the way back. He didn't speak much English but with the help of the phrasebook and some miming we managed to have a great conversation with him and he wished us a hearty 'Boa Viagem' at the ferry terminal in Salvador. One thing we have really learned from travelling is that it's often the people you meet that make a place. Boipeba is certainly one of those places and hopefully it will stay that way.

Our last stop in Brazil was a weekend at a snazzy hotel on the outskirts of Salvador. Well, you need to treat yourself sometimes! In our whole year away we had never stayed in a really fancy hotel so the last few nights was our chance! Cocoon hotel is an Italian owned design hotel built to resemble a spaceship. Did you say a spaceship? Yes, really. Pretentious? Yes, totally. It's a nice relaxing place and the pool is wonderfully designed with a sloped section where you can sunbathe in the water. The rooms are minimalist and modern and the staff are friendly. They also have free internet and a pretty good restaurant. And it's safe, next to Jaguaribe beach and near the airport. Since we had already done all of the touristy things in Salvador we just relaxed for the last few days of our trip and got our fix of BBC World.

The time finally came to board the plane to Rio de Janeiro. It felt weird, sad, exciting and in some ways a relief. There was no more figuring out to do and soon we would be home, back to see our friends and family. But not just yet! Before we got there, we planned one final short adventure. A trip to Madrid. Well since British Airways had re-routed our flight through Madrid, put us on an Iberia flight and changed the date without our permission, it would be silly to pass up an opportunity to see the Spanish capital. In the last four months, we had been admiring Spanish-style architecture and hearing about the journeys of early Spanish sailors conquering South America, so it seemed like a great way to tie up the last leg of our trip.

So, it's the end, but not quite the end. Stay tuned for a guest blog from Elina who came up to Madrid to show us around, and ask us some fantastic questions about our year away. And you never know, if there's adequate demand, we might squeeze in a final blog from the Emerald Isle....

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