Learning the lingo..??

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We didn´t have a great experience in Sao Paulo, the city is huge, 3rd most populated in the world I think with 17 million people, and we also got ill, we don´t know how, maybe it was the food but we were cooking for ourselves using the kitchen of the hostal. Rachael was far worse than me, I managed to keep my food down! so it meant that I had time to catch up on all the things I´ve been meaning to do, like my TravelBlog!

We did manage a day out and walked around this huge city, we went up to the top of a tall building that looks similar to the Empire State building and we had great views of the whole city, it was clear now how 17 million people can live here!! there were tower blocks everywhere we looked. We were in a hurry to leave!

Our next stop was a few hours up the coast towards Rio de Janeiro to a place called Paraty pronounced Parachi, it´s a relaxed place with a beautiful port with lots of boats ready to take you on a tour to see some of the many islands that surround this place, they say theres an island for every day of the year! We agreed to a tour of some 4 islands with the chance to snorkell.

The day started with clear blue skies, our first island had lovely coral which we were able to snorkell and see, but as we made our way to the next island the skies turned grey and it began to rain. It continued to rain, we were soon wrapping ourselves up with blankets to keep us warm from the heavy wind and rain, we were glad to get ashore and warm up.

We left Paraty and went to another more famous island still on the way to Rio, called Ilha Grande with apparently one of the best beaches in Brasil, how could we miss this. The boat took an hour and 30 mins to get us there, we then found a pousada, more of a chalet style accomodation set in beautiful rainforests, we even got to see a monkey in the trees as we walked there. We instantly felt relaxed and pleased that we had made the choice to come here, sitting on the veranda we watched as humming-birds buzzed around us at lightening speeds feeding of the sugary water put out for them and in the evening we watched as bats drank from the same feeders.

The next day we had to go and see this famous beach (but I can´t remember it´s name), we could have taken a boat but we wanted to walk through the vegetation and get to see more of the island, and we did! 2hours and 30 mins later we had reached the beach after climbing up and down through the forests in hot, humid temperatures, it was hard work but the end result was worth it. The beach was long and wide, plenty of room for everybody, the sun was shining and the sea looked inviting - just what we needed.

We were now feeling relaxed and into the Brasilian spirit as we headed for Rio, we had both been looking forward to Rio, so many people we had spoken too love this city, we were excited. We thought we would spend a week in Rio and therefore it would be nice to stay in our own apartment, we found an agency, looked at some places and agreed to a 12th floor apartment in Copacabana. First thing we saw was Copacabana and Ipanema beaches, it was a Saturday so they were packed full of people, lots of people playing volleyball, football, swimming in the sea, jogging along the promenada, cycling, it was a hot day and we were melting away.

We did the usual things that all tourists do in Rio, we saw Christ the Redeemer and Sugar loaf mountain, both were impressive and had great views of the city. We also went to see a samba show which as it turned out was a very well known singer with his friends on stage, everyone in the crowd knew his songs and were singing along energetically, except us of course who didn´t even understand what he was saying, but it was a really great night and a great introduction to Samba music, I even bought his CD! We were both enjoying this city much more than Sao Paulo but soon it was time to move on.

After Air Madrid had gone bankrupt we were left to find our own flights home although thankfully for me (but not Rachael) I had paid 2 pounds for airline failure insurance which meant that my flight was paid for by them, Rachael however who booked her ticket through Travelocity were washing there hands and not helping her in any way ,so she had to pay the full amount herself!

So we now have our flights home from a place called Natal on the northeast coast of Brasil, which meant we now had 2 weeks to get from Rio to Natal and it also means that our last 2 weeks will be spent relaxing on beaches before we return!! We booked a flight from Rio to Salvador as it cost 25 pounds more than taking a bus which would take 25 hours!

We arrived in Salvador a few days ago and have enjoyed this city, 3rd largest in Brasil, it has a strong African influence and feel to the place which is one reason for going further north in Brasil. We visited a marine turtle conservation place (The Tamar project) yesterday and we were able to see the 5 different types of turtle that live and breed on the beeches of Brasil, it was very nice to see and well worth a visit.

Today we leave for Recife, the next city on the way to Natal, we don´t intend to stay there, instead we will go just a few kilometres north of Recife to a place called Olinda which is meant to be very nice, before our last stop Natal.

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Photos

17 million people
Sao Paulo

Humming-Bird
Ilha Grande

a Bat
Ilha Grande

A flower... I think?
Botanical Gardens, Rio de Janeiro