Rio!

---

So we finally arrived in Rio de Janeiro after a 2 hour dely at Manchester and a 9 hour wait in Heathrow! We were able to keep ourselves entertained though, at arriving at terminal 5 in Heathrow we heard music and decided to investigate, all the airline staff were doing kareoke and fundraising for red nose day and we were quickly asked to sing. We were a bit dubious as there were a lot of people around but we thought, why not! we had a long wait ahead of us! So we got up and sang infront of the whole of terminal 5, (not a small terminal) and we chose Barry Manilow Copacabana which seemed apropriate! This was a deciding factor that on our trip we were going to start as we meant to go on, saying yes, giving it our all, and mainly having fun!

Rio de Janeiro

We arrived at Rio international airport at 7.30am to 25 degree heat which even at that hour was a big temperature difference from the 4 degrees we left behind in Manchester! Our hostel was in the Botofogo region of Rio and basic but with a lovely atmosphere! Our dorm was a 6 bed which consisted of 2 bunks 3 beds high, I was in the top bunk and was worried I was either going to suffer from altitude sickness or fall out and break at least one bone! However I survived.
Although we were tired from the 12 hour flight, we decided not to waste any time and threw ourselves in the deep end and got on the metro to Ipenema beach. We quickly found that the language barrier was going to be a problem as neither of us had ever studied spanish yet alone portuguese! We managed to sucessfuly arrive at Ipenema with a lot of repetition and gestures! :s The beach was lovely with all sorts of vendors trying to sell us everything from earrings to ice creams. At first I thought that they were being really rude as they were shouting ¨oi¨ at us but it turns out that it is portuguese for hello! We left when I had turned a quite impressive shade of red and the waves were rolling us back onto the beach!
The following day we took a bus with some people we met at the hostel to see Christ the Redeemer. We were all pretty excited as this had been a focal point of our trip for so long that to finally see it was a big thing! At the top we spent a good 2 hours taking numerous pictures, it was impossible to take a bad one as the views all the way around were stunning! However it soon became too hot so we got the tram back down. On the tram 4 guys got on with instruments and started to play Mas Que Nada which was incredible! The whole tram had huge smiles on their faces which only got bigger when they grabbed 3 girls up to dance in the foot wide ailse, me being one of them! It was not easy considering we were traveling down hill at a 45 degree angle but I gave it my best shot! It was so much fun.
On the way back we realised that pronunciation is everything in Brazil. We were trying to get back to Botafogo by pronouncing it Bota-fo-go, but we just got a blank stare back from the driver, finally by pronouncing it slightly differently with the emphasis on the a he suddenly knew where we wanted to go!
Overall we spent 3 days in Rio before heading to Ilha Grande.

Ilha Grande

Leaving Rio we had to get a bus to the Rodoviaria (bus station) then another to the port of Angra dos Reis. Thankfully on waiting at the bus stop we met a lovely Australian guy who was also ging to Ilha Grande and staying in the same hostel and room as us! He was a god send as he could speak spanish, so we felt a little bit more relaxed traveling as we knew that we could be understood with him there! We were worried that we wouldn´t get to the port on time as we were waiting a while for the bus in the heat with our massive backpacks, it was a nightmare. The ferries from Angra are only 2 a day so missing it was not an option. We got there with time to spare thankfully and got dropped off at the bus station a 20 minute walk from the port. We thought it would be a good chance to finally walk some distance for the first time with our bags to see how we managed.
Within 2 minutes I was mentally unpacking things that I thought I could do without, it didn´t help that it was 1 o´clock in the afternoon, blazing sun, 35 degrees and with 13 kilograms on our backs!! I was embarassingly red by the time we got on the ferry! We took seats next to the windows to enjoy the views and benefit from the breeze, only to be told that our seats were taken and so swiftly moved. I was annoyed to find that our seats were taken and reserved for crates of apples and oranges! I don´t understand why they needed window seats but nevermind! The ferry was like a floating market as all the locals have to access the mainland to get all their provisions. There are no cars on Ilha Grande except ambulances, so the ferry is their main transport. People were selling ice creams, fruit and dvd´s to all that were willing, it was hustle and bustle the whole hour and a half to the island.
Ilha Grande was beautiful. The hostel was once again basic and our 4 bed dorm was basically a cupboard but it was ok. Once again no air conditioning but a fan pushing the hot air around that was better than nothing. The woman who ran the hostel Cristina was lovely and the food she made of an evening was gorgeous! We didn´t do to much on Ilha Grande apart from relax and spend time on the beach and explore. We found a portable bar in the evening selling Caipirinhas (brazilian cocktail consisting of ice, sugar, caçhaca and limes) for only 5 reais (about 2 pound fifty) so this quickly became our local for the next few nights.
We planned to visit one of the many beaches on Ilha Grande that was accessible by a 2 hour trek through the forest, and were all set to stay another night in order to do it so we didn´t have to rush to catch the ferry, only to be told that there was no more room at the hostel and all the cheap hostels were full also, so after 3 days on Ilha Grande we had to leave. I could have stayed there easily for 2 weeks, as it was stunning and relaxing and there were live bands playing every 50metres. Lovely. It was then that we had to say goodbye to our lovely Australian friend/interpreter, and head back to the mainland. This did not go smoothly, we missed the ferry! Literally by about 20 seconds, but thankfully a brazilian lady told us about a small charter boat that could take us to Conceiçao de Jacarei where we then had to take a bus to Angra then a bus to Paraty that was to be our next stopping point. This was quite daunting, but we had spent the previous few days noting down and learning a few key phrases in portuguese that would get us by so we felt prepared for anything! And they did come in handy! It turned out quite to our advantage as Conceiçao de Jacarei was not particulary touristy so we had to use our phrases in the end! I felt very pround speaking portuguese and being understood, but not necessarily understanding what they said back! The coach down to Paraty was 3 hours long, but it was lovely. All the long haul buses in Brazil are air conditioned so it was the first time we came across it since being in Brazil, I felt I was travelling first class!

Paraty

Our hostel in Paraty, which we are still in at the moment, is the nicest so far, in the sense of atmosphere, with nice staff and good food. It is right on the beach front literally 10 meters from the sand. This beach isn´t the nicest in Paraty but there are plenty to choose from. We went on a boat tour 2 days ago costing 30 reais (15 pound approx) that lasted 6 hours and took us to 4 secluded beaches accessible only by boat! it was gorgeous and there was a live band playing onboard throughout! They were all stunning and the water was crystal clear and deliciously warm as we jumped in from the top deck! It was my favourite day so far and it was made all the better as we prepared to leave as a storm hit. We got caught right in the middle of it as torrential rain appeared out of nowhere and thunder and lightening was directly overhead! In my mind the perfect end to a perfect day, it was very exciting!
Since then it has rained off and on but still been very warm, we walked to the supermarket for food to save on money wearing our rather fetching see through ponchos to keep us dry. Yes we did get stared at a lot but hey, we were dry!
Today we traveled to a beach that was recomended to us by a member of staff here called Sao Gonçalo. We got the bus and it dropped us off right in the middle of a road seemingly in the middle of nowhere! The beach was great but the water wasn´t very clear here but still quite warm, and there was plenty of room with only about 10 other people on the beach. It was pretty cloudy but I still managed to get freshly sunburnt!
We have decided to stay here until Monday now as it is becoming increasingly difficult to find cheap hostels as it is so close to carnaval. On monday we are heading to a place called Trindade which looks great, it is apparently very good for surfing so we may give that a go, and also has waterfalls to visit wich have created large natural water slides! Then on wednesday we head back to Rio for a week for carnaval which I am so excited about, it is going to be a week long party basically!
So our first 8/9 days have been amazing so far, it is had to believe that it has only been a week! Only about 55 weeks to go before we are back!
We are all constantly thinking of people back home and missing everybody lots, but if this week is anything to go by, we will be back before we know it!
Beck x

---

Comments

[Rebeck]

By the way photos uploaded as soon as I find a hostel or interet cafe that can handle it x