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Published: September 21st 2009
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View from our room
Life is tough when you have to wake up to this every morning :) Title based on the track ´shake your rump´ by The Beastie Boys A bumpy start to our Buzios adventure
Stepping off the bus after a 4hr journey from Rio to Buzios we were more than ready to find our lodging which we had previously booked online, allegedly situated near a surf beach, grab a shower and get settled in. Flagging down a local van (a more regular and cheaper form of transport than bus) we set out in search of the then unbeknown to us elusive place of lodging.
It turned out the current resident had been left with a mobile number for us to call when we arrived, at this stage we were both getting a little worried as the gentlemen currently residing in the house was apparently paid up for the next month... After speaking with the gentlemen on the other end of the line he let us know he would come and pick us up and take us to another, better, beach house, alarm bells started to sound...
Long story short, we gave the owner a second chance to show us another lodging based on a general good vibe, which turned out to
Mikeys rental long board
Prone to severe rashes but still with plenty of waves left in it be a beautiful semi-renovated beach house. With floor to ceiling windows that every morning would provide an epic sunrise and a 5 minute walk to the local Tucuns surf beach, so our Buzios adventure began...
The Incredible Beaches of Buzios
Buzios is a peninsula surrounded by many beaches and coves of such beauty it is almost indescribable. Ranging from surf beaches to wave-less sheltered coves, that are more favorable to the average tourist looking for a deck chair on the beach, there is something for all travelers in this paradise coastal town. We were very lucky to get the 'non tourist' version of Buzios thanks to Lua (see family heading) who would take us on hikes through dense scrub and up mountains to reach hidden swimming spots that were simply perfection. Buzios in short is a paradise and we strongly recommend that you take the time to visit and likely fall in love with.
Local eats, drinks and lifestyle
After only about a day we found it was extremely easy to slip into the relaxed, Brazilian coastal beach town pace that we had been hoping for. An average day consisted of a long breakfast,
provided by the owners of the house, a stroll down to a local beach to bask in the sun or hit the surf for a few hours, a late lunch and maybe some catching up on a good book often followed by an afternoon beer or Caipirinha, depending on your mood.
As we were in the off season it was pretty much tourist free in the part of Buzios we were frequenting (Tucuns). As such Cata and I became something of a local attraction and were very welcomed wherever we went. It was kind of nice to go to the local hole-in-the-wall store and be recognized as the tourists who lived near the beach, thus being trusted to return our beer bottles without a surcharge and being given as much thick sugary black coffee as we could drink.
Food was generally outstanding, our favorite eats being:
* The standard dish of meat or fish with a side of rice and black bean stew and a basic salad, a simple dish but extremely satisfying. Upon seeing that we enjoyed this dish the local van stop restaurant owner would try and outdo the portion size each time
we returned and would keenly watch to se if we could finish it.
* Our first Argentinian BBQ thanks to our awesome host family; Chorizo, ribs, meat, meat and more meat cooked to perfection.
* Local foods available at most van stops, local store fronts; hot ham and cheese or chicken or meat filled pocket pastries, cheap and extremely satisfying. The delicious Coxinha; a fist sized, tear shaped fried mashed potato filled with a mix of chicken, tomato and capsicum, incredible with hot sauce and deceptively filling...
* The incredible shark cutlet stew with capsicum, tomato, coconut milk and shrimp, prepared by Lua´s friend who offered to cook for us one evening, it was soooo worth the 11:30pm ready to eat time!!
* Fried chicken bits, unidentifiable but extremely delicious, best served with a cold beer.
* Having lunch at a restaurant that charges 'By Kilo' so no matter what you put on your plate you are only charged by the weight! Salad?
* Pan de Queso!!! Little cheesy pastry thingies, awesome
Cachaça
The main ingredient in the Caipirinha, around 40%!a(MISSING)lcohol, sold in a 1 litre bottle costing around 6
Reales (approximately $2.50 AUD), this fire water was deadly but delicious, the difference between being tipsy and toasted often not more than a mouthful or two... Always best drank with a beer chaser or as our native Dutch turned Brazilian friend Jan stated 'your unlikely to make it to the second course... '
The Big Blue Buggy
All over Buzios the preferred form of travel is motorbike or the Buggy. There was no doubt we were going to have to hire one of these bad boys to cruise around in, looking like something from a Gidget movie these VW powered rad-mobiles were seriously fun to hoon around in. With the Buggy it would only take a mater of minutes to chuck the Mal in the back and tour the local surf beaches at first light to see where the best waves were to be had.
Eder The Lifeguard
Waking up to light winds and a beautiful sunrise conditions seemed perfect for a surf at Tucuns. Jumping into our Buggy and heading straight to the beach i was greeted by peeling 4ft offshore waves without a single person in the water for a 2km stretch of beach,
Tourist free dip
Incredible water.... bit cold for Brazil standards yes child... Waxing the board and paddling out in less time than it took to get out of bed i was just about through the breakers when a freak wave dumped me and to my absolute fury my leg rope snapped, maybe not such a big deal with a short board but with my 9ft+ mal potentially lethal!
Cata, patiently reading her book on the sand, was greeted by a dejected, wave free gringo. Thinking my surfing was over for the day i retired to sit on my board and watch the empty waves roll in... Out of the blue Cata came to the rescue, the local lifeguard 'Eder', who had been watching me paddle out and then back in again, had graciously offered that i use his leg rope - champion!
After about an hour or so of quality surf i noticed another guy had paddled out, it turned out to be Eder, without his leg rope... We surfed for a few more hours, Eder showing his skill on a short board acquired from being a full time life guard on a surf beach. Cata and I bought Eder a Coke back on the beach and we
all happily chatted in broken mix of Portuguese, Spanish and English. The selflessness (and partial insanity) of lending me his leg rope will not soon be forgotten.
Interesting things from our chat with Eder:
- Tourist surfers don't have anything to fear from sharks as they feed about 2km out where the warmer shallows meet a shelf that drops away into colder more favorable shark territory.
- There is a break about 30 minutes paddle directly out on this same shelf that has a perfect 4ft - 5ft barrel and is only used by locals, this spot has a lot of sharks but they are apparently very well fed and not interested in the surfers.
The Family
As for mentioned, we were lucky enough to meet an incredible family (Jan were including you in the family because you're kind of like Marcello's Dutch brother from another mother...). These guys were so kind and helpful during our entire stay, we were taken on day trips to areas we would never had access to, given tips about the local culture and enjoyed many an evening chatting about the Brazilian culture and the limitless other interesting topics
that often wen long into the night (fueled by Jan's rocket fuel Caipirinhas...). The jovial and knowledgeable Argentinian Marcello and his beautiful wife Mercedes, their daughters (that we met...) Lua and Simone who took us on incredible trips around Buzios (Special thanks for Lua for being such an incredible guide and renting Mikey your surfboard!!). And finally a huge thanks to Jan, full of such interesting facts and anecdotes we often are caught thinking, ì wander what those guys are up to?!' thanks for making our week (planned 2 days...) so awesome.
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