Ouro Preto - Colonial Gold Town

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Nicky: It is great to be back on the road again, it is the first time we have experienced buses in Brazil! And it is brilliant to be able to see a different side to Brazil, as we have found out over the last few days there is some fantastic history and architecture and culture.
Our first bus ride in Brazil was overnight from Rio to the mountain town of Ouro Preto. The bus didn´t leave until 11.30pm so we were V tired before we got on the bus, but we didn´t sleep particularly well as the roads were so bumpy and windy. At times I was tensing my body so I didn´t fall out of my seat the bus felt like it was leaning so much!! When we finally arrived in OP at 6.30am we found our hostel and went straight to bed for a few hours!!
When we had finally had enough sleep to get us through the day we hit the centre of the town to have a look around. OP is an old mining town built in the hills, so the streets are narrow, cobbled and very, very steep. We have had a really good work out trapessing around here for the last few days. It is also the home of a famous artists who was called the ´little cripple´because he suffered from a disease when he was little and lost all his fingers, toes and the use of his legs. This didn´t stop him sculpting most of the art work in the 23 churches in OP though. It is difficult to believe he managed to sculpt massive doorframes from soap stone with a hammer and chisel attached to his arms!!!

Neil:

I was looking forward to getting out of the big city of Rio and sampling one of Brazil´s many colonial towns whose growth was spurred by the gold rush of the 1700s. Its really impressive and a must see for anyone. Many of the churches are full of gold plated interiors and beautiful paintings and sculptures. Our hostel in Ouro Preto is a real find (O Sorriso do Lagarto, Rua Consheiro Quintilano) with a central location and a kitchen that we´ve been able to cook in - unlike most hostels kitchens. On our first day we must have walked for about 4 or 5 hours so we were very tired at the end and being the dutiful fiance that i am - cooked steak and mash.

Nicky has also sampled another Caipirinha (Brazillian cocktail) and i watched the barman make it with 4 heaped dessert spoons of sugar!! No wonder she likes it.

On our second day, we took an old 1950s steam train from Ouro Preto to another colonial gold town called Mariana. The area around both towns is very mountainous, so the track had some stunning views across the valleys and mountains. It was very enjoyable chugging along in an old wooden carriage with the smells and sounds of the old train. The town of Mariana itself was a bit shabby in comparison to Ouro Preto, but it had plenty of old fasioned streets and colonial buildings alongside the usual array of Roman Catholic churches.

Today is our final day here - were heading out on another overnight bus destined for Ilha Grande on the south coast. Before we leave, the guy who runs the hostel has invited us back this evening (even though we have checked out) for some traditional home cooked Brazillian food.

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Photos

A 1949 Skoda Engine!
I didn't know Skoda did trains.