Yes, it is more than a month now since we are back home. Difficult to believe it but time flies by. I don’t know what we were expecting but when coming home we felt like we had been on a long week end trip. The house was still there, everything in place, it is a bit like when you change your clothes, you just put them on and you are ready to go again with the flow! Still the first week or so we were asking ourselves where next? Oh we just stay here... Robson managed to visit most of his friends in a few weeks. I was so brave that I accepted with enthusiasm to accompany him for dinner with Maria and Denise his two Brazilian friends. Here I was having dinner with three Portuguese ... read more

Curitiba is about 90 Km from the port of Paranaguá, on the Atlantic Ocean. This is the second biggest port in Brazil, it is very active in shipping grains. Between Curitiba which was built on a plateau and the ocean, we have the Serra do Mar (mountain range of the sea). Originally this 1,500 Km long mountain range runs parallel to the sea from Espirito Santo in the North to Santa Catarina in the South and separates the littoral from the planalto (plateau) of the hinterland. The Serra do Mar supports in fact a tropical rain forest, a very rich diversified ecosystem. Most of it is unfortunately gone by now, due to the colonisation and urbanisation. Some of it is however preserved between Curitiba and Paranaguá. In 1855 a railway crossing the Serra was built between ... read more

Participating in the parade of this unique carnival was one of our ambitions. On the Saturday we briefly joined the bloco of the Banda de Ipanema as we were close by. It was fun to join others and follow the group dancing on the samba rhythm as played by the band. We really enjoyed this, being part of this hugely popular feast. I started understanding what Carnival means for Brazilians. After a while though, given the heat, we went to the beach in search of some fresh air. Once back to our hotel,we got very excited when our 'fantasias' (costumes) were delivered and quickly realised we had to forget about going to the Sambódromo by metro and order a taxi given the volume of our costumes (see pictures). We could not join the Sambódromo dressed in ... read more

São Luís is the capital of the state of Maranhão. Although the city is considered one of the best examples of Portuguese architecture, it was founded by the French who arrived there from Saint-Malo and Cancale in 1612 under the leadership of Daniel de La Touche, lord of La Ravardiére. They built a fort on the island of Upaon-Açu and gave it the name of Saint-Louis. This was not appreciated by the Portuguese who, thee years later, sent Jerônimo de Albuquerque who took control of the fort. I could add, for those who want to know more, that the city came under Dutch rule from 1641 to 1644 when the city was finally settled under Portuguese rule. My apologies for this extensive course of history, but I find it fascinating to see how the European powers ... read more

Belém was founded in 1616 by the Portuguese to guard the mouth of the Amazon river from other European powers, mainly French and Dutch. Today it is the capital of the state of Pará, it has about two million inhabitants. We arrived on Monday with a flight from Manaus. What a difference between these two cities. Belem is an attractive city, an important port in Northern Brazil, a city with many colonial and republican architecture jewels. We stayed at 'le Massilia' hotel. When you will be remembered that Massilia is Latin for Marseilles, you will understand we were in French hands and French company. The owner is indeed from Marseilles and having dinner in his restaurant is being in France. French food is served and one is in company of French peolpe, mainly French expats from ... read more