Day 11: Last Day in Brazil :(

Today was Swapna's birthday!!!!

We headed straight out to Copacabana beach, seeking out the perfect spot to settle.  Swaps got a birthday massage and we had lunch at a beach stand including her favorite -  a gigantic plate of shrimp cooked in garlic and olive oil - and some fried sardines topped off with Skol!

Another apparent birthday wish of Swapna's was to try out paddleboarding.

One of the instructors fortunately spoke Spanish so we understood at least most of the explanation of how not to kill ourselves.  Later a dude from Hawaii showed up that was helping them out so we had someone we could ask questions to in English!

We were in a calm cove so away from the waves fortunately.  Both of us survived and decided to celebrate with another acaí.







Before getting on the plane that night, we had a number of errands to run so we went to a couple grocery stores and other spots before packing up all our stuff.   Ilene assembled some things for dinner so we sat with her for the last time and captured some photos of her amazing apartment view.

Afterwards, we got in the cab to the airport, flew to Miami, said goodbye and flew to our separate cities. 

Ciao Rio!! We'll be back!! 

Day 10: Rio

Coming to our last days we had a lot to accomplish!

First we hit up the fruit market right in Copacabana.

We then walked over to the Hippie Fair in Ipanema where we found some cute souvenirs and then took a close look at all the art.  I found a piece similar to one we like in Ilene's house depicting a Carnaval scene. We talked to the artist who was a friend of Ilene's and wanted to be friends with Swapna :) We had been told that the frames were worth buying here because they were so cheap so we each got frames for our paintings.  Swapna's was a nice large wooden frame that was too big to carry on so they had to deconstruct it and wrap it up which was traumatic but ended up working!

We had wanted to get feijoada, a classic Brazilian dish, so we decided to stop at the Casa de Feijoada for lunch.  It was delicious.  Very heavy for a hot day but we managed to pack it in :)  I was exhausted so we grabbed our purchases and headed back to Ilene's for a rest.

Rejuvenated, we got dressed and headed out to have a drink at the famous Copacabana Palace Hotel. Turned out they were closed for a private event but pointed us to another part of the hotel where there was an open party.  The party was more than we were looking to get into at that moment but after watching the hoards of young, beautiful people pour in, we decided to join the crowds! It was called the "Por do Samba".

After realizing that the drink selection was not ideal (red bull, anyone?) and that they only had hot dogs for food, Swapna used her charm once again to convince them to let us out briefly for "food".  We headed to a Samba club that came highly recommended by our new artist friend - the Casa Rosa.  But after taking a long cab ride there, it turned out to be completely closed.  We instead headed back to Centro/Lapa where we knew a bloco had been going on so we would find something to do.  We stopped at a restaurant to get some snacks and whet our whistles with some strong caipirinhas and then headed back to the original party.

We enjoyed listening to the various bands that were playing and cheers'd to Swapna's birthday at midnight!! 

Day 9: Rio

Today Ilene set out a very nice breakfast with good fruit and breads and cheeses and yogurts.  Today was to be our main beach day.  We walked over to Posto 9 in Ipanema Beach and settled on our spectating spot.

We called over the dude to set up our umbrella and chairs (first amazing thing about beaching in Rio).  They also brought us water and beer.

Swapna and her acaí!!

Throughout the few hours that we were there we saw vendors come across selling - wraps, fresh watermelon, empanadas, fried cheese, swimsuits, carnival masks, acaí, jewelry, sunscreen, shrimp and more. We sampled a few and looked out at the waves and the beautiful beachgoers. 

We decided to hit up a pre-Carnival block party or "bloco" and discovered one was coming down the street so we went to explore.  It was called the Simpatia e Quase Amor Bloco.


It was total insanity with the entire street covered with people in costume, with drinks in their hand, throwing confetti, music blaring from the large decorated buses that were carrying the bands.

The people in this town know how party.


We slowly wandered back to the apartment and Ilene told us she was going to invite us to dinner with a few of her friends.  They came over for drinks and then we went out to a place right by the apartment.  We decided to split from the group and take another pass by the night market where Swapna purchased a nice art piece with bahían dancers.

After we returned to the apartment to drop off the art, we encountered the group again and took cabs to the Salgueiro Samba School practice.  It ended up being to expensive for the locals but we tourists went right in!  It was basically a big room filled with Salgueiro neighborhood residents and supporters ready to cheer on their samba team. The event started off with a great local band and then in started a parade of very flashy costumed dancers.  The Salgueiro band also chimed in with their Carnaval song (each year each of the samba schools develop a new song).  The entire crowd seemed to already know the lyrics and sang them energetically at the top of their lungs.  MAJOR Salgueiro pride!!  At one point, the room got so crowded that we had to take a breather and decided it was time to head back even though we could tell this crew was headed for an all night party! 

Day 8: Salvador - Rio

We got an EARLY cab to the airport and headed back to Rio where we took a cab to the apartment we were staying in - a friend of a friend's mom named Ilene who lived right near Posto 6 on Copacabana Beach.

After we met Ilene and the 3 dogs and admired her nice apartment she took us out to show us where there was a bank, grocery and drug store right nearby.  We cabbed over to Leblon Sushi - a schmancy sushi place that came recommended. Tasty lunch.

We then grabbed a cab back to the JW Marriott where we had previously arranged a jeep tour to see Corcovado and Sugarloaf.  We met up with our guide, a Brazilian who had lived in the US for something like 12 years and had just returned to Brazil a couple months prior.  We were the only ones on the tour! We drove up to Sugarloaf and took the tram up to two different viewing points.

After getting our scenic fill we hopped back in the jeep and headed up to Corcovado to hang with El Cristo. BUCKET LIST - CHECK!!

After we ogled the sights of Rio for a while, we headed back in our jeep and told them to drop us off at Posto 6 - the spot on the beach right near where we were staying.  We had our first taste of delicious frozen acaí and could see why it was a popular beverage in the summer! We topped it off with the local beer Antartica and watched as the sun set on the Sugar Loaf we had visited earlier that day.

We headed back home and Ilene took us on a tour of the night market right by her house.  It had some nice art and plenty of tchotchkes. Afterwards we decided we wanted to try out a true Brazilian churrascaria so took the guide book's suggestion to go to Churrascaria Palace.  After getting WAY over our fill of meat (our favorite was the local cut - picanha) we headed out to a nice hotel bar that was recommended by a friend and previously known for its celebrity pull - Hotel Fasano. We drank a little, danced a little, met a few humorous bar patrons and then headed back home. 

Day 7: Salvador

When we checked into the Pousada, a guest told us they had the best breakfast in the country and he did not lie.  We gorged on a delicious spread of fruits and sweet and savory pastries on a beautiful patio overlooking the water. 

We set off to find some art so checked out some more galleries in the Pelourinho neighborhood. We wandered past the Igreja Nossa Senhora do Rosario dos Pretos where we got suckered into making three wishes with our "wish ribbons" and tying one ribbon onto the church fence.  

We popped into a few more stores and galleries before attempting to go see the Afro-Brazilian Museum which we wanted to see not only because it was a main attraction but it featured murals from a famous Brazilian artist Carybe whose paintings we had liked in a previous gallery sighting. But for some unknown reason it was closed! Grr. 

We then headed into on of the churches off of the Terreiro do Jesus Square - Igreja de Sao Francisco. It was extremely ornate with gold everywhere you could see. Those colonists really know how to decorate! 

We searched for a Brazilian dance class but didn't find one that seemed to be at our level so we headed over to the Mercado Modelo, which is an arts/crafts/crapola market.  To get there we had to take the "Elevador Lacerda, an art deco elevator that connected the Cidade Alta to the Comercio district. The Mercado didn't do too much for us (as we were warned by the Americans we met the night before) so we headed back up the elevador to the Cidade Alta to have lunch. We went to a nice Bahian restaurant called Axego with delicious food and a fan! (It was a warm day). 

We wandered back through a couple galleries and stopped at one we liked previously that had paintings of Afro-Brazilian dancers with dresses made of lace. Swapna effectively negotiated in Spani-Portuguese and got us a good deal! We headed back to the hotel to drop off our purchases before heading back out to the Museum of Modern Art. 

Once again we were thwarted because the Museum was mostly closed for renovation.  Aaargh. We sat for a moment to take in the sunset and contemplate our next plan and decided to check out the Forte de San Antonio near our hotel as we heard they had capoeira performances.  We wandered in and there was a large group playing the drums - apparently preparing for a Carnival performance.  It was fun to watch them practice.  

After that we decided it was time for a drink and wandered over to a nearby bar to have a beer.  Our plan was to go back to the Forte because we heard capoeira was starting at some point but we ran into our friends Rosa and Dennis from Boipeba so we invited them to join us for a beer and snack. 

Once it was time for dinner (we made an earlier reservation) we walked over the restaurant Maria Mata Mouro, a high-class Bahian restaurant.  We initially sat in the garden which was pretty but it started pouring rain so we moved under cover. The food was tasty and we even enjoyed a bottle of Brazilian wine! As we walked back we passed a huge pre-Carnival party but decided to conserve our energy for Rio and headed back to the hotel. 

Day 6: Boipeba - Salvador

We woke up, grabbed some breakfast and said goodbye to Pousada Santa Clara and our time on the island. We took the same transport back to Salvador.

 

From the ferry building we grabbed a cab to our new Pousada do Boqueirao -- a very quaint little spot off of the Pelourinho neighborhood. After freshening up, we talked to the not-super-friendly owners about where we should go and decided to walk around the Pelourinho.  We walked along the cobblestone streets, popping our heads into art galleries along the way. After stopping for lunch at Mama Bahía (ok) and trying their bolinhos de bacalhau (we aimed to try all types of bolinhos since they were delicious fritters), we walked around the main square.

We checked out a cooking school museum, stopped in some other galleries, walked by the impressive churches and ended up having a drink at Hotel Amarelindo because we read that it had a nice rooftop bar.  We met some other Americans who lived in San Francisco while having a drink and they gave us some useful insights on what to do and not to do in Salvador. 

They told us about a ballet folklorico show they were going to so we went to buy tickets and then sat in the square to have drinks before the show.  The churches in the square were lit up so it was lovely scene. The show was very entertaining - they demonstrated impressive samba, capoeria and other forms of Bahían dance with full costumes. While we weren't hungry for a full dinner, we decided to walk in a hotel we thought looked nice earlier in the day - the Hotel Villa Bahía.  We sat in the window and ordered some impressively large grilled heart of palm and a delicious ceviche.  Before we cabbed back to our hotel we watched an energetic street show with impressive dancers and a band. 

Day 5: Boipeba

Today we slept in, got breakfast at our hotel and decided, again at Charles' recommendation, to walk to a nice beach along the island - Morere. It was about a 2 hour walk along the water and through trees - very nice scenery.

We arrived at our destination and found a guy with a taxi boat named something like "Za" or "Ze" and negotiated a rate for him to take us out to the same pool we had snorkeled yesterday.  He did and we snorkeled, seeing even more cool fish.

At some point we watched the floating caipirinha bar that was sitting there (with our stuff on it) move away but fortunately it was just relocating to another point in the water!  At this point most of the other tourist boats had left so we were pretty much the only ones.  We asked Za if he would take us to the caipirinha bar and he did.  We say all the floating tables were put up but Swaps asked if they could put out one for us.  They happily did - along with custom caipirinhas.

So there we were sitting in the middle of the beautiful ocean, drinking delicious beverages in the sun - not too shabby.  We took advantage some more and ordered clams that came with a cup of their juices and then Za told us he was going to fish and he would be back.

He returned 5 minutes later with freshly caught fish that they gutted, cleansed and fried up to eat RIGHT THERE.  After gorging ourselves on some of that we headed back to the beach to have a drink and met up with some other people from our pousada who were from Argentina.

Za convinced us to take another ride out to see the mangroves and the sunset.  The mangrove trees grew directly out of the water because they live only where fresh water and salt water meet - they take in both and expel the salt.

We then went back to the caipirinha bar to watch the sunset and then headed back home.  Such a nice day.

After showering we went into town for dinner at Panella de Barra for bahían food which was okay.  Swaps met a stray cat friend.

We headed back home for some Zzzzzs.

Day 4: Boipeba

We woke up and decided to take a bout tour that came highly recommended by Charles. We ate our breakfast, including fruit juice, breads, fruit, a potato pancake and marmalade.

We went to meet someone who we thought was our guide for the day named Gio - he didn't speak English but fortunately understood our Spanish. He walked us over to the boat and we met some of the other passengers.  One was a couple from Sweden - the wife, Rosa, was Brazilian.  They both spoke French but Dennis, the husband, spoke some English so he served as our translator.

We headed on to the boat where we realized that our guide was actually a different dude -  Silvinho - so we said our goodbyes to Gio and we headed off.  The other people on the boat were very nice - mostly Brazilian.  We sat next to a friendly couple from Recife who had been to the US and liked it a lot.

Our first stop was a snorkeling pool or "piscina" off of Moreré beach.  It had a floating caipirinha and oyster bar! The water was nice and warm and there were some pretty fish along the shallow reef -- little nemos, irridescent fish, blue and yellow colorblocked fish, and clear fish with a neon green stripe.

After about 40 minutes we headed out again.  Silvinho did not speak a lick of English so fortunately we had our translating assembly line where Dennis would explain our question to Rosa in French, Rosa would ask Silvinho in Portuguese and then translate his answer back to French so that Dennis could then translate it back to us in English.  Comedy.





The next stop was a beautiful beach - Praia Bainema - it was gorgeous with clear waters, beautiful palm trees and mangroves.  We walked along the beach and saw where sea turtles hatch their eggs before wandering back to the boat.

We then stopped at another snorkeling spot similar to the last.  Along the way they pointed out where a ship had wrecked.  More beautiful fish and clear waters.

Our next stop was an incredible caipifrutas bar in the middle of nowhere.  Just a small island with a dude who laid out all kinds of fruit - mango, passionfruit, pineapple, and then amazonian fruits like birbiri and others I didn't even recognize or know the name of.  We picked out what fruits we wanted and told him whether we wanted cachaca or vodka and he would make it, shake it up, and hand it to you for $10 reai. DELICIOUS.  We hung around that small beach for a while feeling pleased with ourselves.

Finally we went to lunch at a coastal town off the island - the restaurant was called Toca de Onca. They had raw seafood options laid out and you chose what went in your lunch.  Swaps elected some options with some negotiation and language assistance from the couple from Recife. We ended up with a starter of lobster claws along with a plate of small fried fish (like large sardines). They were both delish.  Then for the main we had a moqueca made with fresh fish, lobster, shrimp, and octopus.  Sides included beans, rice, and hot sauce along with the usual tapioca/butter mix.  It was SO MUCH FOOD but SO GOOD. The Recife couple had us try a "cocada" dessert which consisted of coconut chunks in a sugary circle.

We rolled ourselves back on the boat and they took us to a floating oyster bar.  We didn't get much out of it since we were stuffed but we tasted a couple oysters and they were pretty good.

After that we returned to Boipeba.  Gio met us by the boat and convinced us to have drinks at some outdoor tables while we watched the sunset. He helped us with a few words of Portuguese but once he got a little sketchy we headed back to wash up, relax and digest.

Later we decided to go into town.  We played Blokus and ate a light dinner, after which we came home and slept.