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Published: April 2nd 2007
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Paraty - 2nd to 6th April We finally managed to catch our flight from the Pantanal to Sao Paulo (after we´d been up for hours unsuccessfully trying to get tickets for Glastonbury!). When we arrived at Sao Paulo we had to get a taxi to the bus station as we were hoping to catch the overnight bus to Paraty. No such luck as it was fully booked so we booked a ticket for the next morning. We then frantically had to phone around to find accommodation for the night. Luckily we found somewhere central and even managed to go out for good sushi as Sao Paulo is famous for its large Japanese community;
We left Sao Paulo the next day on a long distance bus to Paraty. We had to catch the underground in the rush hour to get to the bus station in Sao Paulo. As you can imagine people were not best pleased with us carrying our big back pack but I was pleasantly surprised to see that my tube instincts are still intact and beat people to a seat even with my big rucksack on!
We arrived a Paraty and got a taxi to
our Pousada - only being slightly ripped off by the fare but that is always the way here in Brazil! The Pousada was lovely with a nice pool and several hammocks. We spent the afternoon chilling by the pool. In the evening we went into Paraty to a nice restaurant. Unfortunately we were the only people there so were fussed over a lot by the waiters! We had a wander around the old cobbled streets of Paraty and took in the atmosphere!
Paraty is an old colonial town on the sea. Its been declared a UNESCO site for its buildings and there are plenty of fine examples of pretty buildings in a good condition. The region surrounding the city adds much to Paraty's quiet beauty. The hills are still mostly covered in lush green coastal rainforest, and the waters around Paraty, dotted with 65 islands, are tropical turquoise, warm and crystal clear, perfect for snorkeling and swimming. In fact the next day we went out and explored. We caught bus to Trindade where there are 3 beautiful beaches back by tropical rainforest. There are as lo a few simple bars and the beaches are deserted. To date this is
my favourite beach in Brazil and we had great fun frolicking in the waves and sunbathing and watching the surfers catch some waves. We also had a few beers whilst the sun went down and finally caught a bus back to Paraty.
The next day we went out on a schooner boat. It was great fun and there weren´t many people on the boat so we could relax and lie on the comfy cushions! We went to a few different areas for snorkelling and saw a few unusual things as well as vibrant fish! We saw a few sea snakes and a couple of squid and a scary looking fish with wings and claws. It was very strange as it crawled its way along the bottom of the sea! We also visited a couple of beaches. It was a fine day and was great to sea the coastline and the pretty islands dotting the coast.
For dinner we went to a classy hamburger joint! Which was actually great fun as they had a Where´s Wally¨ placement and we spent all evening trying to find people and things on the place mat. Oh the excitement it too much eh!
The next day we spent the morning chilling around the pool at the pousada but at lunch we had to transfer to a different hotel. We decided to stay an extra day in Paraty as it was so nice. However our hotel was fully booked as it was the Easter weekend but they managed to find us an alternative. It was good to be somewhere else as it was much closer to the actual town. In the afternoon we went back to Trindade beach but as soon as we arrived it started to rain! It didn´t stop so we had to sit in a bar and have a few beers, not that I minded!
In the evening we went to a lovely restaurant called Porto. We had some great steak (I´d been craving it since Argentina). In fact Kate thinks it is the best steak she has had in South America but I don´t. The stuff in Buenos Aires is better!
Ilha Grande - 7th to 10th April The next day we caught a rickety old bus to a town called Angra do Reis. Here we caught a schooner to Ilha Grande - a 2 hour
boat ride. Lots of people had recommended Ilha Grande as a beautiful island with great beaches. Its a small island with one main village and no cars and only dirt streets. You have to get boats to other destinations on the island. We´d had difficulty getting accommodation and had secured the last place on the island I think (at a reasonable rate) but when we got there the woman said her Internet was down and had no records for a booking. Luckily she had room, not sure we would have found anywhere else as everyone seemed to have come from Rio for the Easter weekend!
Anyway its not the nicest place we have stayed and in hindsight we should´ve moved after a few days. The place wasn´t very clean and smelt of dog poo! We only used it to sleep there and stayed out most of the time. In fact we had to erect a mosquito net to keep the blighters away!
The first full day on the island we caught a boat to Lopez Mendes beach. The village was heaving and all the boats were so busy, it wasn´t the idyllic retreat we´d imagined it would be!
However, once on the beach things improved as indeed it was a lovely beach with palm trees and white sand. We found a nice spot and relaxed. The waves were pretty big here and at one point Kate and I got stuck in a rip tide, it was pretty scary stuff but eventually we managed to swim across it to safety. We were extra careful after this!
The next day was slightly less manic as a lot of people left to go home, thank God! It was much pleasanter. We went back to Lopez Mendez beach again, it was so much quieter. This time we hired boogie boards and spent most of the day trying to catch good waves on them. The current was less strong today but it still sucked one man out and he had to be rescued, they need some warnings on this beach as it could be really dangerous. On the boat on the way back we got caught in a tropical storm. There was no escaping the torrential downpour of rain but it was great watching the lightning. In fact we had a power cut on the island as it was so bad. The
rain also brought out the largest snails we´ve ever seen and they seemed to have an orgy as they´d always be about 6 together mating!
The next day we went on a boat trip around the island. It was so much nicer as most people had left so the boats were quieter - before they had been packed like sardines and it wouldn´t have been much fun going out on one. We cruised along the coast in our schooner and stopped in a few places for some good snorkelling. The views of the island were great and we had a relaxing day.
We´d also found a couple of nice bars on the sea front so we manged to avoid our hideous hostel by eating great squid and having a few Pina Colada´s!
The next day we were ready to leave the island and the horrible hostel (called Modus Vivendi in case anyone else ever has to avoid it!!). We´d booked a fast connection boat and bus journey and were excited to be going to Rio!
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Mum & Dad Aburrow
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Easter Break
Hi Girls, so even out there they still have the mad escape for the Easter break, what a shame it was so busy on the island and spoilt your solitude !!!!! Your accommodation sounded like it left a lot to be desired!!!!