Post 5 - a month in Brazil and a new year in Uruguay

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So, my last blog (post 4 via Blogspot) ended with my arrival in Rio .. and this is now post 5 (woefully late to complete I admit, it now being February!) using TravelBlog for the first time (I get to add route maps ..!), to take you through a month in Brazil, and the festive season in Uruguay..



Arriving in Rio on November 24 marked the end of a pretty much non-stop first leg of my year away, and some eight weeks of being continually on the road in one form or another.. this together with dealing with all the trials and tribulations of group travel in both Ecuador and with the Intrepid trip across Bolivia and Brazil, has the inevitable result - I need some serious 'chill' time..!



Being in Rio, and gravitating to the southern beaches of Copacabana and Ipanema, together with the fact that the sun is shining from a blue sky most days, means then a few days to relax on some world renowned beaches. I'm staying for a few days in a pretty nice hostel in Copacabana before moving over to a hotel I booked before leaving London, well situated as it turns out, at the far end of Copacabana beach and just a few minutes walk from much classier Ipanema. This whole southern area of Rio is clearly wealthy, with privately gated appartment buildings everywhere - the street life is quite different though between Copacabana (Copa) and Ipanema (Ipa) - Copa is very busy with constant traffic and people everywhere, and has clearly seen better days, while Ipa is generally much classier.. though considerably more expensive to stay in. Go to the far end of Ipa and into Leblon for a really classy area though .. rather out of my price range but lovely to stroll around for an afternoon. The Ipa beaches are also much nicer than Copa too .. so it is to Ipanama I take my beach towel for my first few free days.



Some of the Intrepid group are still in town and there IS also a new city to explore, so it isn't long before new adventures and challenges are underway .. none more so in fact than one busy day in which we visit the city's largest favela in the morning and then hang glide from a local mountain top down to the beach below.. the things I get talked into doing..!



The favela tour is now a staple part of the Rio tourist scene - the favelas are dotted all around the city - on what must initially have been deemed unbuildable land - the steep rising slopes of the many hills and mountains within the city, on which have grown these built-by-hand communities over the years, now as part of the Rio urban landscape as the acres of high rise appartment buildings on the lower ground beneath them. It not being (at all) advisable to just wander into a favela - they are in essence lawless and ruled by the local drug dealers - tour companies now offer guided tours of the largest, and I suspect, most civilised of the downtown city favelas - Rocinha. We get picked up from our various hostels and hotels and arrive at the base of the favela for a briefing by our guide, and then an army of motorbikes (not a helmet in sight!) ferry us all up the steep crowded hill to the entrance of Rocinha. The main street into the favela itself is guarded by the local drug dealers - with bulging belts containing grenades and guns (NO photos allowed..!) - this main street was once a street apparently, but because of the demand for space here in the favela, the road has been so encroached on both sides that it is now a narrow alley way.. no building regs or planning approvals here ..



Our guide takes us on a two hour walk (it is in fact three because he talks so much!) through the favela itself, which actually appears very calm and orderly (we are there though in the middle of the day), and far from the squalor endured by the inner city slum dwellers of Mumbai for sure, though inevitably still cramped and smelly.. electricity cables are everywhere, and there are even meters .. although apparently most of the supplies are tapped - the local electricity company continues to supply for fear of retribution from the favela gang leaders .. this is the story anyway. Many families living in the favela work in low paid jobs in the city - there are inevitably many young people not working though and some efforts have been made to provide positive influences for them to encourage them away from the drug gangs. One such we visit is an artists studio - the work largely being tourist orientated and quite romanticised views of the favela, though with some taking a darker tone with blood spattered images of the, brutal by all accounts, inevitable local riot police raids which result in raging gun battles through these narrow, almost Dickensian lanes. We also visit a not for profit organisation supported by the companies who arrange the favela tours. This is UMPMRS .. Union of Women for the Betterment of Roupa Suja - the particularily impoverished neihgbourhood within the favela, who's mission is to improve the quality of life for the children and families living here, providing daycare for small children, extra school tutoring for older children and a range of services for local women. With no government funding, this is the second project of my trip to date I would encourage anyone to support. All funds go directly to the project and to supporting the local children and women of the favela who are in dire need .. so tick that New Year's resolution box, visit www.roupasuja.org and make a donation .. please!



Straight from the favela our twindling but altogether very Intrepid group are heading for a nearby mountain top, overlooking the ocean for a very different experience, and very much a new one for me .. hang-gliding..!!



I haven't prepared for this what-so-ever, just been talked into doing it at the last minute - really the only way or the nerves would have taken hold and it wouldn't be happening at all .. It was in fact a totally exhilarating experience - a brief introduction, then driven to the top of the mountain with my pro gliding partner (you don't get to do your first jump solo..!) - further do's and don'ts - do run, don't jump etc etc then before you know it, I'm strapped to him and to the flimsy structure of metal poles and canvas - basically a big kite and running down a wooden board, literally off the edge of the mountain .. the thermals soar us back up and it's a few moments then of oooing and aaaaing and posing for the camera at the end of the wing until the all too soon descent on to the beach so far below.. and then its all over and the adrenalin is pumping and I want to go again .. though by now the clouds have descended and our little group of four (with Lisa, Billy and Josh behind me) are the last to fly that day .. We enjoy a post jump beer which has never tasted so good.. The CD of photos taken from the wing to prove I really did it will have to wait until my return ..



Another Rio highlight, and my last outing with the last of the Intrepid group, Lisa and Rene, is to Lapa - an area of downtown Rio just to the north of Copa which hosts a famous street party every Friday .. Brazilians love a party of course, and this is NO exception .. the streets are packed with drinking and sambaring locals, and lots of tourists too, and three very large caiparihinias later we are in a merry state for sure.. mindful that the girls are on a morning flight to Buenos Aires though, I prise them from their male admirers and pour us all into a taxi for the ride back south .. a fun evening had by all ..



With the girls safely on their plane (somehow!) I am all alone in the big city for the first time in quite a while - soon back in my solo traveller stride though with a further week of beaches, shopping and sights and the occasional trip out of the city - including a day trip to Buzios - a lovely beach resort to the north of the city, the playground of the rich and famous in fact and brought to fame by no less than Brigitte Bardot, a statue and various boutiques (!) in the little town bearing her image ..



Much of this time is also spent planning, organising and confirming my onward travel plans - I'm not due in Buenos Aires until early January and am leaving Rio in early December so there is some time to fill, before my planned Christmas week on the beach in Uruguay. With the distances in Brazil being so huge I decide to take a circular trip around the country by plane, though starting from Sao Paolo as flights from there are cheaper, and decide to sample Salvador - much further up the coast of Brazil to the north, then Brasilia - the built from nothing in the 1960's capital of the country and inland, and then south from there to Florianopolis - a beach resort in the far south of the country, from where it is but a short hop down to Uruguay .. perhaps I have a new career as an international tour guide.. I seem to be getting quite good at this ..



So the first leg of this around Brasil solo tour is Sao Paolo - I take the overnight bus from Rio - quite an experience, just in finding the right bus in a country where everyone travels by bus and the big city bus stations are the equivalent of our Liverpool Street, Victoria and Grand Central Station all rolled in to one, but with endless streams of coaches rather than trains.. Safely aboard my luxury coach I manage a few hours of sleep and awake in the sprawling mass of the largest city in South America - home to some 16 million souls..! I've booked a room in a cheap and cheerful central hotel - Formula 1 - and have a long weekend ahead of me to explore this huge city where it seems to rain very heavily for at least part of most days.. I take in the main avenues anyway, parks and shopping areas all dressed for Christmas and sample Sao Paolo night life in the form of one very large club night - The Week - which was lots of fun..



Tuesday morning and I'm booked on a 10.30 flight to Salvador - that just leave the journey to the airport .. I'm told to estimate the the time needed to get to the airport here (oh, and no train or metro - a bus service, but in the SP traffic, the only effective way is in a taxi) then double the time and then twice again - this seems crazy so I just triple the time, hopping into a cab at 8am sharp, for what would be a 30 minute journey with no traffic, so I'm allowing 90 minutes to be there an hour before the fight .. What I hadn't factored though was that the torrential rain which had been pouring for all of the night before and hadn't stopped had in fact made the horrendous traffic of this mega city even worse than usual, so by 9.30 and 90 minutes of sitting in a cab, I am absolutely nowhere near the airport .. Quite how I do not know, but a few U turns later and some seriously dangerous driving to boot, and the taxi gets me to departures at 10.20 .. I've given up hope by now of getting my flight, though when I find the check-in desk with enormous queues I'm just ushered to the front and get to check my bags and make the plane which leaves around 30 minutes late with further delayed passengers behind me - all in the course of a normal Sao Paolo day it seems..!



So I leave the rain behind and head north to a completely different Brazil - to a sultry, tropical Salvador - home to a majority black Brazilian population, and a huge holiday get away destination for Brazilians - especially in the lead up to Christmas. I've been recommend the Grand Hotel de Barra, right on the beach in a busy bay just outside the city centre as the coolest place to stay and the airport shuttle bus drops me right outside .. the beach here is absolutely packed to bursting - its only later that I realise that today is a public holiday. The hotel is in a great location and I have a large room overlooking the pool for my four nights here. There are some cultural adjustments to make here - especially with the beach life which is very different to Rio. Here in Salvador everything is happening on the beach - buying and selling, cooking and eating, playing and posing, football and volleyball + plenty of shouting and screaming to boot. This is not a beach for relaxing, but it is great fun and soon becomes the norm for me .. even if I'm not partaking in many of the activities mentioned..!



The centre of Salvador itself is built on steep cliffs overlooking a huge Atlantic ocean bay, and there is a very large and pretty colonial old town to explore, as well as the signature piece of town architecture - the rather stunning 1930's Lacerda elevator which connects the low port area with the much higher main town.



My first journey down town is my first evening there and the public holiday mood is in full swing with a major street party underway in the streets at the foot of the elevator - the doors of a huge church immediately adjacent to the street party are wide open and an exuburent congregation are competing happily with the noise from outside in their singing and celebrating ..enjoyment in one form or another for everyone - only in Brazil...!



My four days here are gone in a blink and all too soon I am back at the airport for the flight to Brasilia. I can't find anyone in Brasil with a kind word to say about their own capital city and only general consternation as to why I would bother visiting it at all. I have always been intrigued to see the place though to see for myself how a planned city, built in the middle of nowhere from nothing, designed and built in a modernist style in the 1950-60's actually works - the harsh reality is that it doesn't..



From a European perspective the main problem with the city is that it was designed entirely around the convenience of the motor car - hugely wide free flowing avenues of traffic criss cross the city centre making walking an absolute nightmare. Right at the heart of this capital city - so the Leicester Square, the Times Square, Le Place de la Concorde is an intersection of staggering size, matched only by ugliness ... Sixteen lanes on traffic running north south cross sixteen lanes of traffic running east west (with various under and over passes to ensure the precious cars don't actually have to stop). Crowning this mess is the ugliest and dirtiest municipal bus station this side of Mumbai, and thrown in for good measure are several rectangular blobs of tawdry shoppng centres which make London's Elephant and Castle look like Versailles - this is just crass and totally hideous.. so beware all those moaners and complainers about the London congestion charge - this is the utimate result of letting the car have its own way ..



There are modernist gems of architecture in Brasilia - almost all designed by Oscar Niemeyer - my problem with them though is that they are for the main part the most inaccessable and elitist buildings in the city. The exceptions I guess are the parliament buildlings which the public are positively encouraged to visit and take guided tours of both chambers, very elegant modernist foyer areas and even the President's office..
The architecture is impressive and kept intact, so the original 1960's leather chairs for example, rugs and arrangements of furniture are all spot on. The ministries adjacent to the Parliament building are modernist masterpieces - especially the Foreign Office - my nose is pressed against the inaccessible glass frontage for quite some time, gazing with wonder at the huge open expanse of minimal concrete foyer and the most stunning minimalist spiral staircase rising to the upper floors, with various paintings and sculptures and interior floodlit gardens. The presidential official residence, some km's distance and on the shore of a very large lake is another Niemeyer triumph - a series of long low beautiful white arches, with blue glass windows framed on an immaculate green lawn with a deep carp filled trench at the front to prevent intruders while not obscuring in any way the clean modernist lines - inspirational ... now just how do I get invited to the President's house for tea..?! The houses of the diplomats and the wealthy are on the other side of the lake and are impressive too.



However, the city that the armies of politicians, civil servants and the minions who cater to their every needs actually inhabits does not in any way mirror this modernist dream.. more of a nightmare really. Endless sectors of drab appartment buildings, drab shopping centres and the endless car filled streets, with polluting old buses being the only form of public transport ... Come on Brasil, you can do better than this - show some vision and at least install a modern tram system or some other high tech mass public transit system .. and become a city that people are proud of instead of one they just endure as is the case now.. OK - rant over - I'm only here for a couple of days.. including one where I hired a car just to see if that makes the city look any better - and no it doesn't..!



So onward to my final Brasilian destination, in the south and back on the coast - to Florianopolis. My initial attraction to Florianopolis was the name - sounding quite exotic somehow.. it certainly enjoys a unique natural environment - the city itself divided between the mainland and the large island of Santa Catarina by a rather splendid new British designed suspension bridge. The island itself boasts some 42 beaches and I have been recommended to stay at one of them - Praia Mole. The beaches in this part of the island are particulaily stunning - with rough Atlantic waves crashing to shore, making it a mecca for surfing - and how do Brazilian boys like to surf - hundreds of them descend daily from all the surrounding areas to ride the waves..


Not all is paradise however - I was recommended the Praia Mole Spa Hotel as the place to stay and so duly researched this online back in Rio. It being just before Christmas and so busy I booked ahead, though strangely this was through an agency called Dilos Holiday World, based in Greece. All seemed ok though with my email enquiries responsed to promptly, and with the rather steep daily rate paid fully in advance - worth it I thought for a few days of luxury spa surroundings - I was looking forward to a bit of pampering, soft white towels etc etc. Bit surprised therefore when the taxi from the airport took me a hotel by a different namd - the Praia Mole Eco Village - I had seen this online and dismissed it as being rather naff and very family orientated, which indeed it was.. On arrival I am assured that the hotel is the same as the Spa I have already booked and paid for, it has just changed its name.. hhmmmm... I'm allocated a room which supposedly has a tropical view - ground floor, view of a wall. Back to reception - not happy - manage to secure an upgrade to a huge room with various beds and lots of windows so placated.. still no sign of luxury spa.. back to reception - Oh, yes sir, the spa complex is now seperate to the hotel, in the same grounds but you have at pay to use the facilities ... not happy at all ...!! What then follows are numerous debates with the hotel staff, with the seperate team running the spa who are totally used to disgruntled guests like me expecting access to the spa as part of their paid for deal and not getting it, and increasingly fraught emails with a certain Mary Solidakis of Dilos Holiday World in Greece - who continues to this day as far as I am aware to misrepresent hotels and gain commission on the back of some very dodgy dealing, as I have made very plain to her in my official letter of complaint..so do yourselves a favour and make sure you never book anything through her, or her agency. No apology was ever received anyway, and while I did get use of the spa facilities in the end, the whole experience was just a bore - made worse by the fact that the whole resort got taken over by a huge party of over excited Brazilian kids who were given leave to stage their own raucous pool party complete with DJ's on Sunday morning ... just as well the beach was close to hand.



My next destination took me south from Brazil, through Porto Alegre, and into Uruguay, to spend Christmas week in the resort of Punta del Este. Again I have a recommendation to stay here, not in the town itself, but a few miles south, on a beautiful beach surrounded by dunes and lagoons, Chihuahua.



Uruguay is a total contrast to her brash, loud, always party-time-girl and way bigger sister, Brasil. In contrast Uruguay is quiet, neat and tidy and very very civilised.. arriving in Punta del Este from the overnight bus from in the south of Brazil, and I think must still be dreaming, either that or I slept so soundly on the bus that I've been transported back to the south coast of England, and to a curious mix of Bournemouth, Eastbourne and Bognor Regis but with all the bungalows replaced with tall appartment complexes and casinos. I have a quick stroll along the deserted 'high street' with its quaint boutiques and tea shops before catching a local early morning bus further along the coast to Chihuahua beach and to my basic posada here.. La Chihuahua, home for the week of Christmas. Somewhat suprised at the sparseness of the accomodation here - again, prebooked and paid in advance - $90 US gets you a decent corporate style hotel room in a good location in Rio - in Uruguay it seems it gets you the most basic single room in the most basic of guest houses - but hey, it's Christmas and my host Adriana is as friendly as can be, as is her little dog Lola, and it all feels very homely, and the surroundings are lovely - all pine forests and sandy lanes stretching down to the beach itself which is a treat - pure white sand stretching as far as the eye can see.



This whole area is being slowly developed with all the land being divided into individual plots for sale and development as individual houses. One such completed development is owned by a couple from the UK who I've been introduced to by an Argentinian I met back in Barcelona, so I pop round to see Michael and Malcolm. A nicer couple you could not hope to meet, and their home, just a few metres from the beach itself is a delight. It's so nice too to be able to natter away in english, have cups of tea with classic fm on in the background... AHH the simple pleasures of life!



So I settle into a very comfortable routine of posada, beach, occasional meals and drinks with the boys and trips into town, and hire a scooter for a few days (cars being all fully booked and exhorbitantly expensive) to explore the wider coastline a little. Adriana is fuly booked for New Year so I'm welcomed to stay with the boys for two nights and see the new year in with them on the beach with fireworks going off in all directions.



After a lovely home cooked New Year's Day lunch, I'm back on the road again - on the local bus further south down the coast to the capital of Uruguay, Montevideo. Just two nights here (quite enough, especially as the city is pretty much closed up for the extended New Year summer holiday). The city has a quaint charm to it, with many tree lined streets and weekend markets though all somehow looking a little dejected and run down.



A further bus journey from here brings me to the little colonial town of Colonia, on the shore of the enormously wide Rio Plata - on the other side of which is my next major country and destination - Argentina and Buenos Aires. I've gone for another attempt at luxury here in Colonia, with two nights at the Kempinski spa hotel (this time with all facilities included). The quaint old town of Colonia with its cobbled streets and small houses is a short cycle ride (complimentary hire - no locks required) from the hotel, and I spend a pleasant day ambling around and gaining my first sighting of the distant towers of Buenos Aires from atop the lighthouse in the centre of the town.



The following morning, January 5, and I am booked on the morning ferry which takes me across the river in an hour, and so finally to Argentina... my stay in Bunoes Aires throughout January and my travels around Patagonia through February, so bringing my South American adventure, and the first leg (of 3) of my round the world year to a close (already..?!?!) .. but more of that in the next posting ..



Over and out for now..



LOL



Simon XX

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