South/Cental America #7 - Brazil

Photos: Brazil

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1. Rio de Janeiro
2. Cabo Frio - Arraial de Cabo
3. Buzios
4. Porto Seguro
5. Trancoso
6. Ilheus
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All,

Sorry that I have not written sooner but I have been having too much fun.

Rio was somewhat disappointing at first but the place really grew on me, it truely is the worlds prettiest city (location wise), one of my favourite things to do was swim out the back of the surf and just look back at the Sugarloaf, Christ and Copabana...still quite surreal. But with Matt still in tow we hit the streets and saw alot of the sights...though somewhat covered in cloud. Travelling alot of time with some guys from the hostel we checked out the museam on a rainy day, off to the worlds largest stadium for a soccer match.

It is hear also that I had to say farewell to Matt, he was a great travelling companion and I could not have asked for a better travelling companion, no fights, no problems at all in fact. As long as you do not mind having Lomo completo 24hrs a day then if you get a chance grab Matt on one of his adventures. Love you dude.

So now a new adventure has started and I ran around Rio for a few more days with the English connection, went hanggliding off one of the mountains and landed on the beach, up Sugarloaf for a second time...this time at dusk. A great time and I hope that one day I can return as it an amazing place.

With regret I left and headed to Cabo Frio..stayed 20 minutes and then headed to Arraial de Cabo about 10 km away. Loved it, I hired a kayak and paddledoverto some islands, lay on pristine beaches, got thrown off an island by naval officers, saw 30 sea turtles, then lay in the sun in a perfect beach with lovely water and strangely enough cactusｴs all up the hills.

Next up off to Buzios, a place that was ｴdiscoveredｴ 30 years ago and is now an expensive resort town. Great place wit colourful fishing boats filling the harbour, boardwalks that hang over the calm aqua water and a great vibe that just makes you relax. I set off and explored the great beaches that are nesseled amoungst rocky bays, each with a barof course and settled into some good days at the beach,

Wellup the coast some more and I arrived in Porto Seguro, a total tourist town that has about 1000 locals always trying to get some money off you. But the town is beautiful, a small colonial town set on a river mouth, small colourful buildings and unfortunately heaps of mud...it flooded 3 days before I arrived. I met Fredericko (Holland) on the bus and we moved to the same hostel and have since then been travelling together. We took off to some beach cabanas on the palm lined beaches, complete with dancing girls and deck chairs the beach was not quite what I was used too but I was also not complaining.

Well a couple exploring there and then off to Trancoso an alternative village about 30km south. A very tranquile place that let us relax in the sun...I am about 15 degrees south at the moment so 30 days are quite regular.....went off to a beach party that played some interesting music and had a bit of a laugh at the locals and their hippie ways.

I am now in Ilheus, a town that does not have too much to offer. Went out to an eco reserve today and saw some monkeys and some very lush dense rainforest.

Well the past 100 days have been great, I have no complaints besides the thoughts that I wish I had more time and money to stay longer. I have travelled 40 degrees in latitude from the first city south to just below the equator, trekked on glaciers, walkedup mountains, across deserts, lay on deseretd tropical islands and travelled by all modes of transport. But that being said the listof things to see and do only gets longer.....so I may be going for a while yet.

Roland