Ok so my last post about the temp in the Uk obviously backfired on me because from the moment we left the hostel to goto Ilha Grande (www.ilhagrande.com.br - check it out its beautiful) it pee'd down. A camper van turned up with drives who looked and spoke like a cast member from Dusk til Dawn and after working out that the stopping distance of this van was probably about 1 mile in the rain, we were really quite scared. Andy and I were riding up front and to be honest i dont think ive emphasized quite how bad the driving is over here yet. There is no lane discipline at all. If there are 3 lanes then there will be 5 rows of traffic - fact. No-one really indicates and they just pull out in front of each other constantly, all while small motorcycles come down in between the cars beeping to let them know they are there! Terry has lived here for four years and doesn't even drive - i seriously dont blame him! Anyway when drives blazed up a Joint next to us, Andy and I just looked at each other and tried to sleep the rest of the road trip - oh my god could it get any more scary. We got there about 3 hours later and got on a speed boat (with no top on it) The rain was so heavy by this point that it felt like hail stones. At speed this was one of the most painful experiences of my life. Rain coming at you horizontally in a boat doing about 30 knots. Needless to say no-one had worn clothes for the occasion either. So 20 minutes later and very very wet we got to the Island and could see just how beautiful it was with a jetty coming out from the hostel itself into the sea.
Didn't do much that night because of the weather but got up to explore the small town the next day which was reached by walking along an idyllic beach. We checked out some prison ruins, an aqueduct and a waterfall before splitting up with Roy and Jane to have a mammoth TC meeting about the future of the site in a bar by the beach drinking Brahma. Why would you not have a TC meeting on a paradise island??? Ha ha.
The island has more dogs than inhabitants - maybe a wild tout but it certainly seemed that way!!!! That coupled with all the Irish people on the island, it was like a scene out of Snatch!!!
Went to a sweet BBQ last night with the hostel next door and today headed back using a Gullet ferry to a place we had no idea of the name of. Luckily for us a lady who spoke perfect English was going back to Copacabanna and helped us with the local buses and then a coach right back to RIO - We would have been so screwed without her, as no-one we tried spoke any English at all!!!!
So we're back in Mellow Yellow now and planning the night ahead....maybe one last post in me before we get back to blighty...we'll have to see...
Brazil
Bookmark this page with: