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Published: February 27th 2009
Preparation for Carnival
These people could dance for hours in the hot room and I'm sweating just watching them!SAO PAULO
We enjoyed taking a break from the travel grind in the Pantanal but with a tear in our eye, it was time to move on. We headed to a town called Bonito lured by the famed crystal-clear water providing an aquarium-like setting to view abundant fish. We caught a bus outside our Pantanal lodge for what should have been a 6 hour trip. To call the thoroughfare on which we traveled a road would be unduly generous. Within an hour of our pick-up the bus apparently suffered a catastrophic injury on the pothole-pocked road. The wounded bus pulled over in a a small town and a mechanic worked 2 hours before pronouncing the beleaguered vehicle DOA. So we killed the 2 hour wait for a new bus guzzling caipirinhas with a fellow passenger, a Frenchman named Michel. The worst part was, after we got back on the road, poor Kevin had just gotten to sleep on the comically bumpy road when they bus plowed into a pothole the size of a Volkswagen sending Kevin 2 feet in the air and announcing our arrival into Bonito.
We arrived in Bonito around midnight and headed toward the nearest
pousada. We got very familiar with the inside of our room spending 2 days cooped up because of the torrential rainstorm, voyaging out only on short missions to get food. The last day we decided rain or no rain we were going to see some fish. We headed out to a local lake and despite a little drizzle we were able to clearly see the foot long fish swimming in the water. We bought little packets of food and watched the ensuing frenzy as they scrambled to gobble up the pellets we flung into the lake. Swimming with the fish was another matter altogether. The rain had done little to disturb the clarity of the water but its temperature was greatly decreased. We couldn't stand being in the water more than a few minutes before jumping out to warm up. Kevin loved frightening me by throwing fish food next to where I was swimming whipping the fish into a fury and scaring the crap out of me in the process. Kevin also enjoyed smushing the fish food into his leg hair, letting the little minoes pick him clean. Enviably the break in the weather wouldn't last forever and while we
were swimming the skies opened up again. It was time to move on.
We were headed to São Paulo to met some friends. We had met Diogo and Joana in Chile on the tour we took in San Pedro de Atacama. They invited us to visit when we got to Brazil. So after Bonito we headed to São Paulo.
We arrived in the city and after a quick call to Joana we boarded the efficient subway system to make our way to their home. Stemming from an error on my part we arrived at the end of the subway line without a complete address to give to a taxi driver. After a short and jumbled conversation with the taxi driver a young woman walked up and said in perfect English, “Is there anything I can do to help?” She lent us her phonecard so I could call Joana and stayed to tell the taxi driver where we had to go. She was angel just when we needed it and as kind as the friends we were going to meet.
We didn't realize that Sao Paulo is the third biggest city in the world, with 18 million people,
just shy of Tokyo and Mexico City. Although, because it's so spread out it doesn't feel like too crowded. We stayed with Diogo and Joana for a week, met their friends, went to parties, and went with Diogo to a football match. The best was the last night when we got to hear Diogo, an amazing musician, play at a local club. They also had a chocolate lab, named Biru Biru after a famous Brazilian football player, who insisted on licking Kevin's toes. So we finally solved the mystery of why dogs follow Kevin everywhere, apparently my husband tastes like BACON! It's like the old commerical for Beggin' Strips "Kevin, dogs don't know he's not bacon!" We had a wonderful time in São Paulo and we couldn't have asked for better hosts.
RIO DE JANEIRO
Though we would miss our friends it was time to move on. We headed for the world famous Rio de Janeiro. In a world-class beach meca not known for it's bargains, we were lucky enough to find an inexpensive hostel within walking distance of the prime Copacabana and Ipanema beaches. Piratas de Ipanema hostel provided more than just a cheap place to
sleep but also many opportunities to participate in life in Rio. Many hostels we have been to have advertised events but so often we have been disappointed by nonexistent events and bad sales pitches for overpriced tours. This hostel on the other hand delivered. This hostel was run by an American ex-pat and his Brazilian wife who were motivated by a desire to show off their city to travelers from around the world.
One of the first nights we joined in on a caipirinha mixing contest. A caipirinha is the local cocktail here in Brazil traditionally made of a sugarcane alcohol called cacaçha, limes and sugar. In the first round we were allowed to use any kind of fruit. I have made these drinks at home using rum and they were delicious but using cacaçha and a mix of tropical fruits brought the drinks to new heights. I ended up winning the contest, apparently my bartending skills have survived in tact, and I'm excited to use my caipirinha mixing skills to get all our friends drunk when we get home.
The next night we went to a nearby samba school to see a rehearsal for Carnaval. It was
amazing! Imagine in the US an entire neighborhood showing up for anything. Here over 1000 people from a single neighberhood showed up twice a week, dancing for 2 hours each time, in order to practice for their neighborhood's performance in Carnaval. It was incredible to witness so many people who have the energy to dance that long, nonstop, in 100° F heat, at all much less with the passion and the pride they exhibited. They showed us what being a community was all about.
Ammi really wanted to stay, enter a Samba school, and dance in Carnival but it was next month. ''Add it to your life's goals. We'll do it some day.'' Carnival represents the beginning of Lent, and thus, the end of partying for a few months. Hospitals report, suprisingly, an alarming number of births exactly nine months later. The locals call them 'Carnival Babies.' HMMM. We don't plan join the trend.
During our time in Rio we also did some of the typical things we went to Copacabana and Ipanema beaches on the weekend along with the rest of Rio. The beaches are actually so packed that every square inch of sand has an umbrella
on it. It would be a miracle if anyone actually got down to the water! The beach itself is the main attraction, for posing and playing volleyball, the ocean is merely a secondary consideration. The bad thing about a beach culture like this is that people from Rio tend to be very vain, and image conscious. I would liken it to South Beach Florida. It's a little sad to see rich people walk around and ignore the Favela kids begging for coins.
We had a chance to go on a Favela tour, but people told us you have to go in an armored van and look at people like it's a zoo. We've heard rumors of kids with machine guns and machetes walking around. See the movie 'City of God' to see how fun Favelas can be.
Another thing about Rio is the hilly setting. The view from Sugarloaf, or Pão de Azaçar as it is known locally is world famous. It is actually two hills one shorter than the other with tow corresponding cable cars connecting them. Kevin went with a Chilean guide to climb the taller of the peaks. The amazing assent made more so by
Pão de Açucar
Sugar Loaf Mountain, Rio the coming storm blowing in. He along with a couple of other girls from the hostel had to scramble their way up the mountain before the torrent of rain poured down the hill. Yet the view of the lightening storm rolling in over the valley was spectacular.
We also had some other unfinished business to accomplish in Rio. As previously mentioned we had opted to get our Brazilian visa in Puerto Igauzu, Argentina instead of dealing with the hassle that others had experienced in major South American capitals. The downside was that we only received a 30 day visa instead of the normal 90 day version, so in Rio we decided with only 10 days left that it was time to get them extended. Sadly we now had to produce the all important onward ticket that we went to Puerto Iguazu to avoid having to come up with it in the first place. I forged a couple of nice looking plane tickets, they REALLY DON”T CARE, just give them what they are looking for so they can make a check mark on their list. All things considered it turned out to be more hassle going through Puerto Igauzu in
the long run. True we avoided dealing with the red tape of getting our visas in the first place but we ending up making two trips to the airport taking an hour and a half each way as well as waiting in line for hours to get our extension. All this and we ended up paying so much more. Instead of the original $135 each for the 90 day stay we paid $145 each at Igauzu for our 30 day visas as well as another $30 each for only a 30 day extension. Not to mention the $3 we paid for each way to the airport. It turns out that sometimes shortcuts cost you, Sometimes it is cheaper and easier to do things right the first time. Live and learn.
The night before we left was Superbowl Sunday. The American guy, being a native Pennsylvanian, threw a big BBQ to celebrate Steelers making it to the Superbowl. The BBQ itself was a great success, how could all you could eat meat and all you could drink beer go wrong really? However trying to explain the rules and justify the importance of American football to soccer-loving Europeans and South Americans
was a complete bust. By halftime it was Brian, the hostel owner, and me—the lone Americans—watching what turned out to be an incredibly exciting game. It turns out to be immeasurably exciting to watch notable American events from abroad. For the election we sat with the rest of the world and watched and waited, for the inauguration we cried as Barak Obama made history and in Rio I cheered with one other American as the Steelers won, coming from behind in the final seconds of the game. I don't even like the Steelers. Travel gives you a whole different perspective on your world.
On to spice things up in Bahia staring with Salvador.
***TRAVELERS' TIPS***
- Piratas of Ipanema (in Rio) is a cheap hostel in a prime location. Stay 7 nights to get one free. Lots of activities. A little dirty though.
-Climbing Sugar Loaf is awesome, only about 20 feet of actual vertical climbing. The rest is hiking. The tram is free on the way down if you say you climbed.
-Don't go into a favela unless you've seen 'City of God.' Actually don't go at all unless on a tour.
- Ask at your Uh Oh! There's a storm moving in.
If Kevin doesn't make it to the top FAST these trails will become waterfalls! hostel what taxis should cost, then haggle down to that price.
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Sydney
non-member comment
ahhh...gross!!!
Okay, I have to say it...the bit about Kevin smooshing fish food into his leg hair to let the wee beasties nibble it off almost made me yak. The pictures are awesome, though.