I´m really excited as we sit on the ferry at the port Angra dos Reis, waiting to meet our friends. Jason and Nathalie are over for a 2 week holiday, Sharif and Emelie are right at the start of their year´s adventure. It´s surreal to watch them walk across the port towards the boat...after almost 3 months away it´s strange and wonderful to see their familiar faces. We´re headed for Ilha Grande, an island just south of Rio. It´s got a strange history as a 16th Century pirates´ lair, then a leper colony and most recently, til the 90´s, a prison for Brazil´s most dangerous criminals. Sounds inviting! But the upshot of this unhappy past is that the island remains undeveloped, boasting virgin rainforest and countless pristine beaches, including Lopes Mendes which is rated as one
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