On our last night in Rio we joined up with the group for our cross-South American tour and so are spending the next 25 days with the same 5 people. They are: our tour guide, Augusto - a 28 year old peruvian - very sweet. Barbara - a 50 year old swiss-german lady (living in London) who has just spent 2 weeks planting trees in a cloud forest in Ecaudor. Peter - a very tall, skinny, funny dutch guy who is Darren's age. Bryan and Jeni - a couple my age from Oxford who are on their honeymoon! So, a real mixed group. I (Angie) am finding it hard work having to be friendly and chatty all the time but I think it's good for me. We will be joined in La Paz by others for the second half of our tour, including two 70 year old woman, which caused much excitement and intrigue!
We continued southwards down the coast to Ilha Grande - a big island (really?!) where there are no cars, 1 small village (which we stayed in) and a couple of hamlets. Apart from that, there are 102 beaches and the rest is uninterrupted rain forest. The island owes it´s relatively pristine state due to the fact that its history has been associated with the forces of evil - it was a pirate´s lair, a leper colony and then a high security prison housing the most deranged criminals Brazil had to offer. Now it is a popular holiday destination for rich Carioca´s and deranged backpackers!
We arrived on the island by ferry in late afternoon and our tour guide asked if anyone wanted to go kayaking in the bay before dinner. I (Darren) decided that I should face the fear and erase the memory of my snorkelling nightmare. Although the water was dead calm I decided to take the option of a (movement restricting) lifejacket, just in case! My kayak was very small, alarmingly unstable and veered to the left and right as I paddled which made it hard (and slightly unnerving) work. We paddled out along the shore to a quiet, secluded bay, where we could hear tropical birds and monkeys, which made it worthwhile. On the way back it started to get dark and the town looked very nice twinkling in the distance. After managing to stay dry for the whole time, my only concern now was how I would get out of the kayak. Needless to say I rolled ungainly out 5 feet from the shore and got soaked from the waist down, oh well you can´t win ´em all!
The next morning our tour guide had the bright idea of taking us on a trek to the highest point of the island (called parrot´s peak because it is a beak-like overhanging rock rising above the forest) very early (6am start) so that we could catch the midday boat to a great beach on the other side of the island, and therefore do 2 activities in one day. Of course by the time we got back to the hotel after the exhaustingly steep 5 hour climb we all collapsed and no-one went to the beach anyway. The best laid plans... However, the trek was pretty good - we climbed through dense jungle where we saw a huge spider whose web we had to duck under the get along the path and heard howler monkeys in the distance which are angry sounding beasts but only about 2 feet high, all mouth and no trousers! When we finally got to the peak at 950m however, rather than the splendid view over the island we had been promised, we had white swirling cloud. It did part briefly to allow us to see down into the forest and to one of the beaches, but it was frustrating that the peak was clear when we started the walk and when we finished it, but not when we were at the top.
On our second day we took a schooner trip with lots of other backpackers to a beach and a snorkelling spot. Although the open sea was pretty choppy we didn´t feel nearly as bad as our previous boat-ride because of the fortunate fact that as many caiprihinas as you wanted were included in the price. Amazing how a few drinks can make being soaked by the spray and thrown around a rickety boat good fun!
After Ilha Grande we took a local bus continuing southwards. The bus trip was meant to take 2 hours but actually took 3 as we were held up in a huge traffic jam by a local protest that blocked the road - it was certainly an effective way to get their message across. We arrived in Paraty, a charming colonial town with lots of churches and very uneven cobbled streets that we´re sure have caused their fair share of twisted ankles. As the weather continues to be very rainy, we choose not to do a trip around the dozens of islands and beaches along the coast here, and borrowed bicycles to visit a local butterfly house type thing (essentially some netting covering a landscaped area with butterflies flapping about, some bigger than your hand) and the old ruined fort.
The accomodation on our organised tour has been lovely so far - we are currently in a hotel with a steam room, swimming pool and free internet access. Don´t think it will continue in this vein all the way though - we have some nights in hammocks coming up during a wildlife tour and rather more overnight buses than we expected! It´s great to not have to worry about which bus to catch and where we will be staying though - and that seems to outweigh any difficulties of having to be part of a group. It´s been pretty flexible so far though and we can choose to eat with the group or not, and to do the optional excursions for that day or not.
I (Angie) should mention that the Brazilians have a LOT of trouble with Darren´s name. Angela is a Brazilian name so I am fine, but Portugese has lots of odd pronounciation: Rs are pronounced as Hs (I don´t think they have double Rs) and Ds are said like Js. Try saying Darren now and you´ll have some idea of the struggles we witness!
We have now left the Brazilian coast (which we have been following for the last 5 weeks) and are headed inland across the continent. We picked up another overnight bus in Sao Paulo (which, did you know, is the 2nd most populous city in the world - 17 millionish) that was the most luxurious yet - normal coach width but only 3 plush chairs in each row, rather than the 4, seperated by the aisle, that you´d usually expect.
We are heading to see the bestest waterfall in the world ever (part 2) - Igaussu Falls - and Angie is having kittens!
Paraty Hotels
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