Blogs from Bahia, Brazil, South America - page 10

Brazilian beaches tour With plans to be in Salvador, Bahia for Carnival, my friend Mary and I needed to decide on a mode of transport. We wanted to relax and have everything taken care of for us, so when we came across the poster for ‘CruztheCoast’ in our hostel in Rio, our decision made itself. The tour offered is an 11 day tour of the coast of Brazil, beginning in Rio and finishing in Salvador. We quickly got in contact with the company and after paying a bargained R$1100 (including accommodation), myself, Mary and our new German travelling companion Till boarded the bus two days later. The rest of the travelling contingent was all native English speakers and with our Irish tour guide, Anne, we knew we could relax without translation concerns. First port of call ... read more

Our introduction to the hostel was pretty nonchalant. A girl named Deb from England greeted us, asked our names, and showed us our room. Never did she ask for or write down our passport and basic info like every other hostel had done. The room was pretty standard; a lofty 4 bed dorm with rickity bunk beds, loose lockers, and a powerful fan. The ensuite bathroom was hilarious, it was so small that you could do everything at once - sht, shower, shave...Again, should have taken a photo. The owners, Peter and Deb (the same as who welcomed us), were the most friendly and relaxed people ever. They were only 30 and had moved to Itacare from England to find a more easy going lifestyle. The hostel had only been open for a year yet they ... read more

Hmm I’m not going to write much but you should be aware that this country is slightly overrated. First, the drop dead gorgeous people you are expecting to see probably don’t exist. Don’t get me wrong, you will find gorgeous folks in Brazil but the beauty is comparable to that of the US or Colombia. I walked off the plane assuming 99% of Brazilians are drop dead gorgeous and it took me a week to get over this shock. One thing though is that the Portuguese language is charming (yes more charming than Spanish). I only visited Rio de Janeiro and Salvador (Bahia). Both places are awesome however Salvador is richer in culture. The only crazy thing I did on this trip is to take a 31 hours bus ride from Rio to Salvador. I’ll never ... read more

Since, I have been in Brazil I have been annoyed at my lack of portuguese and my habit of speaking Japanese to the locals. So in an effort to rectify this and enhance my ability to mix with the Brazilians. Thus I decided to come up to Bahia where it is cheaper and spend the next two weeks studying portuguese. I study at the Escola Idioma. To my amazement the classes have been so fun and really the highlight of my days. I find it interesting to be a student and feel just what my students in Japan felt as I put them through their paces. It isn´t easy being in class where the instruction in a second language. However, portuguese is easier than japanese and I am doing better than I thought. The only downside ... read more

Hello again!!! Another update from Porto Seguro, Bahia! I haven´t posted in a while because, to be honest, I haven´t gotten up to all that much in the last two weeks. After Lençois I took a bus back to Salvador, where I changed hostel location to the Rio Vermelho (Red River) area. My Brazilian buddy Fabio was there and I decided to chill with him there. That night I also met up with Anna, my Australian friend, and her couchsurf host Lorena. We had a good party and the next day we went to the beach for a swim. The next day Anna and I were going to go to Itacare, a few hours down from Salvador, but it was getting a bit late and Anna and Lorena convinced me to crash there for the night ... read more