Buzios

We rented a car an drove 2 hours east of Rio to a peninsula called Buzios, which has dozens of beautiful beaches and crystal clear water.

Most of the drive was through favelas (squatters housing that has taken over much of Rio and the surrounding areas), so interesting but not so scenic. Drivers are crazy in Rio, so it was a bit stressful for Garth. Once we got to Buzios, we were pleasantly surprised by how quaint it was - a small fishing village with cobble stoned streets and boutiques.

Took a short trail to Ossos beach, which was a nice secluded cove. Luckily, there were few tourists. There were lots of food vendors. Their favorites were fresh oysters (which Garth had and lived to tell about it) and freshly steamed corn on the cob. This beach was gorgeous and the water warm.

Our hotel was a 10 minute drive from Buzios at Brava Beach (Brava Club). We noticed that everyone drives little buggies called "babies" because there are so many dirt roads.

The hotel overlooked the beach, and there was a grassy area in front where you could order drinks from the local surfer bar, lay on the chaises and watch the sunset.

The hotel was beautiful, but the food wasn’t so nice. The front desk man was also our waiter. We ordered french fries and got stale tater tots fried in fish oil.

The next morning, we took a trail over the hill from Brava to a small secluded cove, which apparently is a nude beach, but luckily, there was no one there yet. It's is also a good beach for fishing, so we passed a few fisherman carrying their coolers of fish back to Brava.

Mid-morning, we went to Fernando Beach - more of a family/party beach with outdoor restaurants lining the length of the sand.

We ate a nice seafood meal on the beach and enjoyed the scenery.

Drive back to Rio - another white-knuckled drive. Drivers go really fast, tailgate and cut you off. Motorcyclists don’t wear helmets. And you don’t want to get lost and end up asking directions at a favela.

Once back at our hotel in Rio on Leblon beach, we sat at the beach for a while to watch the sunset, then went to the roof of our hotel to go to the steam room and have a dip in the pool (Brazilians love their steam rooms - most of our hotels had one).

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