Itacre so far

I felt slightly queasy the first day.  However it soon passed.  We headed down towards Tiririca beach which is 10 mins from town and is the main surf beach.  To be honest conditions did not look great- it was small and there was loads of wind.  However I got in and managed to get a fair few small waves so better than expected. 

We spent most the day at the beach (in the wind) although it was quite sunny.  Maria tried bodyboarding for a bit.  I had a coconut on the beach.  The surf seemed to improve with the tide pushing.  There were a load of local guys who were really good and absolutely tearing it up.

I paddled out for a second session which somehow turned into the best of the trip as I managed to string a load of waves together- before getting out to avoid spending too much time in that sun. 

Later walked around a bit before heading back for an early dinner- which consisted of octopus in a nearby restaurant.  This was followed by an amazing desert at a nearby patisserie.  We passed the rest of the evening in the hostel bar- I had two Caipirhinas which turned out to be strong.

Again this morning I felt slightly queasy but this soon passed.  We hiked up to the beach ‘Praihna’, which is only accessible by trail.  Maria thought it was best to get a local guide, which turned out to be a good idea as there were lots of trails.  The hike was quite interesting, through the jungle, but not too strenuous.  

We ended up on a nice quiet beach.  In the strong wind I gave the messy surf on offer a miss.  Two guys tried and failed to paddle out.  Later some other guys got out the back, but it looked hard work for the very messy waves.  Instead had a kick around with the guy at the bar, including a brief penalty shootout.  Consumed 2 coconuts and enjoyed the beach before the trek back.  I kept thinking of spiders, but fortunately did not have to see them. 

We stopped off in Tiririca on the way back for a late lunch (4:00).  It was still pretty windy.  I decided to give the surf a go, but unlike the locals didn’t really make it out the back, as the current seemed to drag me down the beach every time.  Caught one inside section wave but that was it.  Slightly frustrating really.  Had a wander back in the rain and due to go out for a light dinner.

Back to Rio, Off to Bahia

It has been a while since I last posted.  We headed from Recreio to the National Park.  That day was pretty windy and the weather was not so good.  I went in for a surf at Recreio beach corner which was a bit more sheltered but didn’t really catch any decent waves with the intense crowd.

The national park was very scenic.  I had never been beyond Grumari before so was interested to see the rest.  We grabbed lunch at this restaurant in a fishing village.  The portions were huge and it was cheap.  We drove around a bit before heading back into Rio (Copacabana) to stay around that area for 3 nights.

The next day we dropped off the car. It was a relief in a way to get rid of the car as though as I was a bit fed up of driving in Brazil.  I had an unsuccessful ses at Arpadoar.  Only chose to go in as it was the nearest surf spot.  Never really had a good surf there and don’t think I ever will.

Later headed into the centre, Uruguaiana market, where we picked up some football shirts.  Maria was keen for me to get a Colombia shirt sowe both ended up with Falcao 9.  Ended up having a Feijoida for dinner.  Maria was keen to go to Lapa for the night so we headed out. Walked around the area a bit, had some drinks and ended up in Rio senarium which was a strange place with lots of antiques as well as music. 

Having got in at 3am the next day was a bit of a slow start.  Ended up not doing much.  Instead of going to Santa Teresa, it was nice to walk along the beach in the sun.  There were actually some pretty heavy waves in Copacabana- I was tempted to body surf.  I even saw one surf get a barrel and make it out.  Maria went to see a flat in Ipanema which to be honest was not that nice, but I don’t think it is an area where you get much for your money.  We wandered up to Arpoador to see the beach.  I seemed to get a lot of positive attention in my Colombian shirt, mainly from Colombians who thought I was one of them.  We didn’t do much in the evening except pack the Salvador trip.

This morning we left around 7ish to the airport.  The flight was all fairly hassle free and we arrived to a rainy Salvador.  We got a taxi through to the port, which turned out to be half the price we expected.  I was really happy when I saw the Chelsea result on the way- particularly as I hate Liverpool. 

The ferry port was where our adventure began.  The ferry was fairly old and grotty.  There were many locals and few tourists.  Many tourists were heading to Morro Sao Paulo- which is an Island in the Salvador bay- we were not.  The ferry journey became wet as a rain storm hit.  It was a bit of a mission getting on and off with all our baggage.  When we arrived in Bom Despacho (otherside of bay from Salvador), we had to walk out with all the car. 

Fortunately the bus to Itacare was right there so we got it with no hassle.  However as expected it was a long journey of 5 hours with the bus stopping in many random towns- with people getting in and out everywhere.   Things take a while in Bahia I think.  There were some drunk local women at the front which was the cause of great laughter among the bus.  An hour before Itacare some English people got on.  Turns out they run a hostel in town and were able to give us some tips on restaurants, the area and show us to where we were staing which was quite handy.  After 12 hours of travellung we have arrived.  And despite the time we were lucky overall, as we never got lost, ripped off or had to hang around anywhere.

Had a local dinner of crab stew, rice and other accompanying foods.  Washed down with 1 litre of Bohemian beer.  Ended up chatting to the table next to us as well as buying some locsal Bahia chocolate.

Last few days- Buzios, Saquarema, Recreio

We stayed in Buzios.  During the day we hired a sea kayak and paddled around with sea turtles.  I was less convinced of the idea of paddling one of these things at sea so we did not stray too far.  The turtles were quite cool, although only saw them from the boat.  Later on had a quick surf but the waves were kind of small and weak, with a few short rights and a left

Headed out into the town and I bought some boardshorts- was short of non-salty ones.  We finished off with drinks by the port near the hotel.  Maria said ‘really romantic’. J

The next morning I awoke and wandered down to the nearest beach.  Sadly the waves were smaller than expected- again got a few short ones but nothing too special.  I also couldn’t remember where I put my Brasileiro Haviannas which I bought last time so had to walk back in bare feet which was not great.  We headed back to the same beach surfed the previous day, but by now the wind was on it and it was still small.

So headed towards Saquarema- the drive was not too bad as well- along the highway this time.  At Saqua we grabbed a cheap lunch at a local place.  The woman at the bar was quite interested in us and the colour of my eyes- not many people visit Saqua.  She also told me I should not get a Neymar haircut. 

We found a nice Posada nearby after cruising the town a bit.  I was able to catch 15 mins of the first half of Atletico Chelsea on the TV. It seemed a tight match as expected so headed to surf.  The conditions were not too bad considering the wind was on it.  However I ended up getting quite smashed and catching no waves which was a bit s***. L

On the way back we passed a bar which had been playing the game- I chatted a bit to this bloke who said he (lets call him Junior) was backing Chelsea- with the standard ‘Oscar, Luiz, Ramires, Willian’ talk.  We grabbed a snack dinner and played some pool.

The next morning’s breakfast at the Posada was great.  Headed down to the beach around 9.  Conditions were really good and clean- although there were a few out already.  Again didn’t have the best surf but got a few- the best one ended with a local dropping in on me.  Also got a few wipeouts.  There was a really nice right over towards the Church but was a bit packed with Brazilian rippers so gave it a miss.  Nice wave though. 

Whilst we were about to go I saw this 6 yr oldish kid come out the water- he had a bodyboard, but sadly only one arm.  We had a great deal of respect for this guy who was in pretty solid waves at a young age.  Really inspiring to see.

We left Saqua to head to Recreio which is where I spent a brief period after my last Saqua trip.  The journey was alright expect for some of the Brazilian driving which is frankly dreadful.  We stopped for a quick lunch in a shopping centre that turned out to be a lot more of a journey from the motorway than signposted.  Finally got into Rio- I glad I don’t have to cross that bridge again- long and scary.  Actually the journey here was quite easy in the end.

Sadly I didn’t have a chance to surf.  Staying in a different place- it’s not so great, but we are only here one night.  For dinner we headed to this all you can eat buffet which was actually good- it included nice sushi too.  The walk back was okay although Maria found it a bit dodgy and we were careful after this guy seemed to be following us briefly.   Unfortunately it confirmed Maria’s fears about this area being a bit dodge.  Tomorrow we are going to explore the nearby National park and coast- making use of our last hire car day.

One good day and one not so good day

We picked up the hire car around 11.  Maria somehow managed to negotiate an upgrade to 2 cars above our class which was pretty cool.  Our saloon seems to take the board fairly comfortably in the back.  We headed towards exiting Rio, however we were held up because the hire car company had given us the wrong documentation- so ended up waiting in a filling station in Flamengo for a guy to turn up and give us the correct paperwork.  Exiting Rio was not too bad except for the missing Niteroi bridge the first time and heading towards the airport.

Actually it was the drive beyond that proved difficult.  Brazilian drivers are not the best, so for me it was quite stressful.  Maria was surprised as Brazilian driving is probably better than in Colombia.  It seemed to take forever.  We stopped in a kilo restaurant, which was good because I could pike on the meat.

 

The drive beyond was not so fun.  We ended up skipping Saquarema due to time and headed towards Cabo Frio.  The drive was not that special- in fact the area was kind of weird and flat- a bit like a Brazilian fenland.  Eventually we got to Cabo Frio stopped at the beach for a bit.  The town was a bit of a dump and we got stuck in our first traffic jam.

By the time we got to Bouzios there was another traffic jam and we were stuck again until we got to our Posada up the hill.  Clearly this was a high season time and all the Brazilians like to drive.  We headed out for dinner that night and it took a while to find a parking space after getting stuck in mandatory traffic.  The town was really packed.

It’s quite a strange place, very clean and very rich.  Clearly wealthy Brazilians come on holiday here.  The centre is almost American in that it has new shops and almost a fake feel to it (though not necessarily in a bad way).  There were Brazilians of all ages out on the streets.  We went to a seafood restaurant that was recommended.  It was pretty good and not too expensive, as in Bouzios generally things are really pricey.  The journey back also involved getting stuck in a lot of traffic.

The next day was better.  We woke up to breakfast at the Posada which was really good. Selection of fruits and eggs with the view we have across the peninsula.  The Posada is English run and though not cheap the breakfast and the view are great. 

The surf was not forecast so great, with a small short period swell.  We headed to a beach on the edge of the Peninsula called Tucuns which is also one of the surf beaches.  Actually it was better than I expected.  Although small and quite a few close outs I got some fun little waves and it is always nice to surf in boardshorts.  There were plenty of good surfers however the beach was not overly crowded which was a bonus.  Maria had an umbrella on the beach and the vibe was pleasant.  She was able to shoot the below sequence (of me!).

Later we headed back via the supermarket.  The afternoon consisted of walking to a nearby beach, where they have snorkelling as Maria wanted to check out the possibility of this.  We were able to watch sunset on the terrace and stayed in so I could drink some beer (can’t drink anything and drive in Brazil). 

 

 

 

The plan is now to stay in Bouzios- although somewhere walkable to the centre and slightly cheaper.  Now most of the Brazilians are heading back after Easter but before everything was full.  Personally I wanted to head to Saqua for Tuesday’s swell but Maria seems to like it here.

Back to Rio

Headed in taxi to Heathrow and checked in the board without any hassle at all.  No queue at Bag drop.  Then headed through security really fast.  Terminal 5 was okay but not mind blowing good.  In fact it is weird how departures is split over two floor and you have to get a metro thing to the plane.

Fortunately on the plane I was blessed with my own row of seats which was good considering the seat pitches on BA are not amazing.  On the way we flew over Quiberon- I looked out the window and it seemed flat.

 The flight was very long at 11 hours.  Although we were fed quickly and well watered throughout the flight- the meals were at the start and right at the end so was feeling pretty hungry in the middle.  Managed to watch two films- Wolf on Wall Street and Mandela which was worthwhile.

Touched down in Rio and picked up bags really fast- only to find Maria was not there.   I was feeling a tad pissed off however she arrived in a bit explaining about the traffic and 3 hours it took her to get to the airport.

We grabbed a taxi to Leblon.  Maria had put a few Bohemia beers in the fridge which was a welcome treat.  Later on headed out for a quick dinner at Frontera, one of these Brazilian kilo restaurants.  They had sushi as well as the usual beans and chicken.  It was late on so the food was not so amazing but alright and filled a hole.  Also a Bolivian football team called the ‘Strongest’ were playing on TV- I was interested because I am always if football is on and also that my mother had bought me one of their shirts when I was younger.  They lived up to their name winning 2 nil with the second goal a great strike. 

We woke up this morning early, because as Maria is learning winds are better in the morning for surf in Brazil.  We left just after 7 getting a bus down to Barra, bit closer to Rio than where I surfed before and the site of CT comp in May.  Actually started off by having a really crap session- could not find a wave that did not close and having not surfed in a while found it a bit fast.  There were some locals scoring as you can see from the pics.  Got dragged down the beach by the current.

However I went back in and scored a few nice lefts with victory fist-pump on the first one for good measure. We sat for a while on the beach, enjoyed the vibe, had a coconut.  It was really sunny and hot.  Maria got tanned crazy fast.  Bonus of surfing in boardshorts- been a while.

We headed back by bus to Leblon.  At the beach I decided to have another quick surf and jumped in and scored a nice little right followed by a shower (there were no showers at Barra).  Following this grabbed a snack lunch with massive Acai at one of the places I used to eat a lot when I last stayed in Leblon.  Was a nice afternoon.

Following was sightseeing.  We were both keen to see Parque Lage- which neither of us in our times in Rio had got too.  Basically it is an old mansion built in the 1920’s, by a rich shipping merchant.  Nice pool at the top.  We went downstairs to a prison- really weird as underneath the mansion was a full on jail with a solitary confinement cell that had a door like a safe.  Turn’s out this was actually where the slaves lived- pretty shocking really as this was less than 100 years ago.  It was like a dungeon down there.

The gardens of the house were really nice, probably better than the Botanic gardens.  You could swing fro the tree ropes semi Tarzan style. 

Around there was various follies like a tower and lake hut.  There was even a waterfall coming from the Corcovado which supplied the house with water, with a cave to the side.  All of this under the watchful eye of the ‘Christo’.The last thing was the stables- the house now houses an art school and the y had some crazy lighting exhibitions going on which were fun for photos.  

Slept the rest of the afternoon as so tired and headed out for sushi and drinks.