Hotel Pousada Bonsai Bonito

... 8211; 258 km or 3h by car or bus

There are 2 ways of going to Bonito: you can either go on your own, book hotel and tours and find transportation, or buy a package that includes it all. It should be cheaper to go on your own, and it’s definitely more flexible, since in a package you might get stuck with a huge group of Brazilians (which can be quite an interesting experience).

Travel agencies where you can buy a package ...

... turned up loud... *Snorkelling 2km up a Brazilian river surrounded by hundreds of fish, some over 2m long, with capuchin monkeys playing in the trees above, sightings of a cayman and hundreds of birds and butteflies all around. The water was incredibly warm - 26 degrees, as there are natural hot springs which we swum over - amazing to see the sand bubbling up with the water. *Spending time with a great group of people on the truck - there ...

... I wasn't aware we be hiking in our shortie wetsuits for over a mile in mosquito-infested woods before reaching the river. In any case they ask for us not to apply any sort of creams/lotions in order to keep the waters as clean and clear as possible. So after donating some more blood to nature, as well as spotting several larger birds like ducks/pheasants) and small mammals, we arrive at the start of our lazy float down. My camera ...

... of stalagtites above us on the ceiling of the cave which looked yellow in the dim light. We finally reached the bottom of the cave at the edge of the lake where we got amazing pictures of the glowing lake. After about 10 mins at the bottom, we clambered back up and out of the mouth of the cave. In the afternoon we went shopping around the Bonito town and then relaxed in the pool for the rest of the afternoon.
Bonito, State of Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil jimandnat

... we had, who didn’t speak any English but tried to convey to us that it was illegal to use tripods in Brazil – which were necessary to take photos given the lighting in the cave. Of course it transpired that he wanted us to buy his photographs from the shop and then denied ever enforcing this ‘law’ in the first place. So the whole experience was a bit frustrating but an experience none the less.

We’ve ...

... speech on snake conservation in the area (with a chance to pose with a giant boa-constrictor afterward) I somehow managed to work up my appetite again. We stopped by the casual "Vício da Gula" (The vice of gluttony) which was participating in a regional gastronomical festival with a featured plate: Grilled Alligator sandwich. I decided to go for it, heartily encouraged from my companions, and was well rewarded. The meat had a texture between a fish fillet and a chicken ...

... Brazil is phenomenal, and this farm (like a playground for the rich!) was one example of it. In Brzail 97% of the land is owned by 3%of the people - a common south-american scenario. Like a peaceful part of paradise it had gree, green grass, gushing waterfalls, a zip line to jump into the clear waters and most of all it was practically desserted and gave me some zen time to recover from the stresses of banks and phones which should really be far from your mind when you're in heaven.

... as big as Belgium, Holland, Portugal and Switzerland combined) where wildlife abound. The Pantanal is located mostly in Brazil but some parts are also in Paraguay and Bolivia and the whole area is now protected as a Unesco Natural Heritage site.

This year´s rainy season has been shorter than normal and instead of rain we got some extreme heat (about 42 degrees) which combined with the high level of humidity made our ...

... one at all...), the floats are even more spectactular, and the whole night is full of music (unfortunately the same music.. for each Samba school (7 in total) and for the full length of their parade.. so not much variety!) It was one of the best experiences I´ve ever had though. I was one of the few that made it through the night. It starts at 10pm and goes right through until the morning. I was dog tired though! There wasn´t enough coke in the world to keep me vibrant :) As soon ...

... our first excursion, to a crystal clear river where Katie would do some snorkling and I would watch on jealously. We´d then transfer to a larger river in the afternoon, to do some rafting (don´t panic Mum & Dad ...