Salvador

---

Sorry to say but I have no photos to add as I´ve left the CD in Rio. I´m now in Salvador and it´s a completely different vibe to Rio. We´ve only been here a day so we´ll see how things go and I´ll save judgement for another time although I´m missing Rio.

However, it´s a nice place - cobbled streets, brightly painted buildings and women in traditional dress - but very touristy. We have people following us everywhere trying to sell us a load of tourist tat. I´m managing to avoid eye contact by wearing my shades but as Jo broke hers she is getting the majority of the pestering - which is quite funny.

Anyway, a quick update of my last few weeks in Rio...................

The last week of teaching went quite smoothly. My afternoon class had trips the two afternoons I teach them and the morning lot I only had once - however, that turned into the usual scrum as we were making valentine´s cards.

We eventually made it to the theatre at the weekend. It was a musical so although I couldn´t really understand everything that was being said it was the usual boy meets girl story and they all ived happily ever after. The kids really enjoyed it.

As Brazil were playing on Sunday my leaving party with the kids has been postponed until I get back from Salvador!!

I´ve had one or two interesting nights out since my last report. The first being a favela party. Some guys that we´ve been out with a couple of times took us. It took ages to get there on the bus which was like no other bus journey we´ve ever had. It was packed - standing room only and as the mental bus driver hurtled to some random place that none of us can remember the name of we had to hang on for our life on the hand loops on the ceiling.

A samba night at the university turned into a farce. The guys we went with were completely stoned by the time we met them and thought that a good night out was to sit in a dark room on beer crates rapping to each other. It was hysterical but by then they had lost any cred that they had so we made our excuses and left to go to a street funk party in Rocinha (the biggest and most notorious favela in Sth America). However, by the time we met up with the people that were taking us there it had finished! So we ended up playing pool in some bar in the middle of Rocinha until some ungodly hour. We also got a motorbike ride up to the top of the hill to check out the view of Rio - there were blokes wandering around with guns bigger than they were. However, it was quite safe as they´re not there to shoot the tourists only the police and rival gangs!

A few more drunken nights followed. However, going to cheesy clubs and being pestered by sleazy old men is more than we can stomach on a regular basis.

The football matches have been quite something. We watched the first game in the street on a normal sized TV balanced on 8 crates of Skol accompanied by a drum band, samba dancers and fireworks. They are certainly very passionate about it even if they have been playing rubbish. The street parties go on all night. Can´t wait to see how more mental they can get when the actually play well and the games become a little more serious. The next game is Thursday so we´re looking forward to that.

Anyway, as for now, I´m off to the beach.....................

---