Brilliant Brazil

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We have just sailed out of Brazilian waters having spent a week here. We made three stops, Rio, Salvador and Recife. We had visited Rio twice before but the others were new to us. The saga of visiting Brazil though started before we got to Kenya. We were asked if we had Brazilian Visas and we said no. I had checked the website and none were needed for Australians. However, they had brought in a new rule that Americans, Canadians and Australians all must have one if they arrived after April 10th. We were stopping on the 15th. We had to buy an internet package and tried to follow instructions but gave up. Eventually, we sought the help of the crew and one of the Cruise consultants helped us through it. We had to get photos taken that were a particular size and clear and they all had to be uploaded to the website. It took a day and a half to do it all. Thank goodness Mark could manage it without losing his cool. Finally it cost $US80 each.We were relieved when it was done. Then a week later we found out there had been so many complaints about the short notice that they have postponed it until 2025!!!! We didn't get our money back!!!

It was a hot sunny morning when we reached Rio on the 15th April. We had decided to do our own thing as we had visited most of the main attractions. We disembarked about 10am and tried to find where the train to take us to Copacabana was. However, we discovered that we had to take a tram, then the Metro then walk a fair way to get there. One of the taxi drivers offered to take us there for 100 real, about $30 . He had quoted the lowest, so off we went. He was a great guy as he was showing us the sights on the way there and then offered to come back to pick us up at a designated time for another 100 real. Even though he spoke very little English he used his phone to translate what he was saying from Portuguese. This sounded great and when we got to Copacabana he refused to take any money until we got back to the ship.
We wandered along Copacabana Beach admiring the vast expanse of sand and enjoying some people watching. We stopped at one of the cafes which line the promenade for a cold beer as it was a very hot day. After a while there we wandered further and finally found a restaurant for lunch. We took our time enjoying the food and the Chilean wine which accompanied it.
After lunch we went onto the beach for some photos before wandering to the shops but couldn't find anything we liked. Eventually, we walked back to the Copacabana Palace Hotel where our driver was waiting for us. On the way back to the ship he showed us the Old Town pointing out some interesting landmarks including the Catholic Cathedral and the building where African slaves were sold. He stopped to take a photo of us with the magnificent Sugarloaf in the background. Although we hadn't seen anything new or wandered far we enjoyed our time there.
The next two days were at sea, heading north to our next port. Salvador. Apart from the usual quizzes, where we usually are near the winning score or have won many , we did enjoy a concert played by the two ladies who make up La Mer, a pianist and violinist. We have become very friendly with them, especially the pianist, Ivaniella, who is Bulgarian. We saw her at Copacabana and she stopped for a chat. They were accompanied by the singers from the Ambience entertainment crew who performed Andrew Lloyd Webber songs.
On the 18th we arrived in Salvador. We were told that the Old Town was in easy walking distance. We did the morning quiz, then set out on foot. There was a large police presence everywhere we went, obviously trying to curb petty theft. ( It didn't stop the thieves as one of the passengers had her arm cut as they sliced through her bag strap) We were given directions to the Funicular which took us up the hill to the main square. As we were old it was free!! When we got to the top it was a very short stroll to Jesus Square, a very pretty but run down, area. There were several churches surrounding it and we went into the Basilica. Inside was very ornate with lots of gold and many paintings.
Outside in the square, ladies in colourful costumes paraded and there was a band playing. A large fountain in the middle was ornate with a statue on top. We visited some of the many shops and found quality clothes and souvenirs. We each bought a shirt and of course, Fletcher found another Elephant 🐘!!!. After an hour or so we went to one of the restaurants on the square. Everything was in Portuguese, the menus and the waiters but menus had some photos. We pointed to one which had prawns in a red sauce and then managed to get them to understand vino blanco .The food was amazing, Delicious fresh prawns in a spicy sauce with peppers and other veggies. While we were finishing our second bottle of wine,Deb and Garry arrived and sat down for a drink and a snack. Also Keith and Eva from our quiz team arrived too. A pleasant hour or two was spent there.
After that we went to another church called St Francis. This was recommended by Deb and Garry. Here the Portuguese influence was clear as it had beautiful blue tiles on the walls, as we had seen in Porto in Portugal. We spent a while looking through there exploring the cloisters and various rooms. After that we wandered back to the ship having spent a great day in a new place.
One more day of sailing brought us to the third city in Brazil, Recife. Again we were told that the Old City was in walking distance , however, when we emerged from the terminal the rain was bucketing down. We had a map and some information but no umbrella or raincoat. The taxi rank was close and we negotiated a price of 200 real to take us to the more interesting places. Our driver had no English at all . He first drove us to a building where he dropped us. This turned out to be the old gaol which had been changed into a shopping arcade with the shops in the small cells on each side. There were some great goods on sale but we didn't find anything we really wanted. A band was playing and some of the tour buses from the ship arrived. Eventually, after buying an umbrella we emerged to have the driver waiting for us. We pointed to where we wanted to go on the map and he took us to a square where there was a church and street markets. We took a photo and then we walked along the market stalls. It did not look like a tourist place and our driver followed us and motioned we should not go any further. We mimed wanting somewhere to eat and he led us to another square where there was another church and next to it, a nice looking restaurant. This was called, Sao Pedro, after the church. It was clean and modern and had a young staff who were all friendly. However, none spoke English, but the young waitress translated the down loaded menu on her phone. Again we chose a shrimp dish, and had Belgium beer which was excellent. When the food came it was very tasty and there was plenty of it. Outside the rain increased in intensity, with the roads becoming rivers. Our driver came back and waited for us. By the time we got back in the taxi we looked like drowned rats, so we said back to the ship. The driver drove us through the more interesting area near the water and pointed out some buildings but we were soon in the terminal .We gave him a tip for looking after us and hurried back to change into dry clothes.
We had enjoyed our time in Brazil, but Salvador was the most enjoyable experience.

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