An overcast day in the cemetery, feeling grateful, fishing with Germans, and simply not much more.

I woke up early, before the sun came up. I went outside to the hammock on the balcony outside our room. I slept there for a while.

It was rainy and overcast all day. I had breakfast of bananas and honey and too much coffee. I took a walk through town and got a little turned around trying to find the cemetery on the island. There is only one main street that is set away from the water with side streets shooting off into the jungle, so I found it eventually with little difficulty.

It was not a very large cemetery. It was tucked within old, white walls, dirty from water worked mud puddles. Some of the graves were mostly washed away. Some of the grave stones had completely eroded, and there were just left overs of what was once there. Some were just cracked and decrepit. It was peaceful there, and being there helped me enjoy the overcast day light. Neighborly peoples were on their porches looking over at me, probably wondering why some tourist was in their backyard cemetery. I was happy and did not leave just because they were curious. After looking at every grave I decided to head out.

I headed back to the hostel and played gammon with Josh until his girlfriend met up with us. Jenny Boyd is her name and she had been trecking from Paraguay. It had taken her a couple days and several or more bus rides and then a final boat ride to the island until she found us. The three of us went for lunch out on the beach. We got some good grub. Can't remember what it was, but it was alright, although pricey.

After Josh and Jenny got a private room in the neighboring hostel, they had some business to attend to, and I went for a walk with Katherine and Tamara down the beach in the other direction. It was less of a beach and more of a path that coasted the water's edge. We found a beach and they did their best to fish with a line and a hook and some sort of bait. It was really funny to watch. We sat on a rickety dock while they gave fishing a shot. We walked a bit farther down the path and they tried fishing some more as we sat on some large rocks. We headed back a little before dusk.

Walked around town with Josh and Jenny. We got food on a side street. We got back to the hostel and played some gammon. Then there were some drinks with some Uruguayan and Argentinians. Sleep.

Off to the Big Island.

So, here I am four(4!) months after I got home from Brazil. Even though it has been so long since I was there I still feel like I should finish up my trip there(and Josh gave me a hard time about it). So here we are....

Had breakfast and chill time till checking out of the hostel. We were on a bus to Angra dos Reis for a while as the jungle faded in and out of my sleepy state. The bus cruised northward along the coast for nearly 2 and a half hours. We found the port which didn't seem like a place for civilians, especially tourists, to be wandering around, but it was the right place. We were headed to Isla Grange( Large Island ).

It didn't take long for us to get there. Once we arrived we sat down at the corner bar and started drinking with backgammon. It was drizzling when we showed up which was one of our reasons for stopping. I believe we were near famished as well. We had prato fretus and ended staying for an entire tournament, if not more. Bummed some cigs from the English couple just on the other side of the window. The were nice and engaged. Wedding plans were on their minds. The rain came to a stop and we headed off to find the hostel at the end of the beach.

The hostel was a Che Legarta, just like the one in Paraty. It was nicer and more established, not to mention right on the water with a nice deck. We got checked in and found our way upstairs to our room. There were two German girls and a Japanese fellow. Katherine and Tamara were the Germans and Daisuke was the Japanese friend. Josh had it out for the Germans right away. It was hilarious. It was almost flirtatious in a first grade kind of way. Daisuke laughed a lot. Most people don't get a chance to have people like Josh in their lives. I consider myself fortunate.

We made our way downstairs, which was loud in a party atmosphere kinda of spring break way. but we had our caporinas over gammon all the same. Smoked cigarettes with other people on the deck until last call. These people were from Great Britain and other South American countries. Being drunk, I wanted to drink more, but the bar was closed, so I drank the empties that were scattered around the hostel, mainly the full caporinas. Once I was done laboring over lost drinks I went to bed on the top bunk that I was assigned.

Who needs a beautiful beach when you can just stay at the bus station all day?

Up and at em again. Josh was onto his paper by the time I got up. I went for the laundry while he stayed academic. It was a nice walk, and it got my strings tuned up for the day. We both went on a walk into the old town. There is a church there that has an unfinished back wall. When I say unfinished I mean that the boulders of rock they used for the corners were never shaved off, but only on the very back of the church. On the sides they were chipped away. I only mention this because I had never seen anything quite like it. It made us scratch our chins for a second.

We took our time. Swung by the hostel to get some things, and then headed over to the bus station. The plans for the day were to go to Laranjelas and hike to Praia do Sono. The bus we were looking to take didn't have the name of the town on the front. All the other buses are labeled for the towns that they go to, so it seemed obvious to us which one to look for, Laranjelas. Not so. When we arrived we were under the assumption that we had just missed our bus so we sat there playing gammon and drinking beer while waiting the hour for our bus. An hour later, all the buses show up and there is still no Laranjelas. It was only then after they had taken off again that Josh asked what the dealio was. He was so pissed off when we realized we had sat at the bus station for two hours when we didn't need to, not to mention we were going to have to wait another hour or less for the next bus. So eventually, we got out of the Paratay bus station.

Laranjelas is close to Trinidade, but it is basically a gated community for extremely wealthy Brazilians. We didn't go there, and instead we were dropped off at the end of the line. I started walking and didn't look back for quite some time. I hadn't realized Josh wasn't there with me until it would probably have been pointless to sit and be a mosquito buffet. So I kept on truckin. There were crew of men in blue jump suits running cable through the jungle. I suppose they were running lines so that the village in Praia do Sono can have electricity. The jungle was very jungley, as Snail would say. The beach snuck up on me, including the sound of the waves. All of a sudden they were just there in a soft roar. "A soft and snuggley place."

Praia do Sono stretches out to the north. There are umbrella trees that line the entire distance of the beach from end to end. The trees behind them are a much darker green and they crawl in a thicket over the mountains that cradle this remote haven. The only way to get to this beach is by footpath, or one can get there by boat from Laranjelas. This beach is also one of the most beautiful beaches I have ever seen!

I got my clothes mostly off and got into the waves as quickly as I could. I floated spread eagle for some time. I made my way out and sat in the sand and waited for Josh. By the time he got there, he thought that we should leave soon since it was getting late. If we hadn't done all that waiting at the bus station we could have had a couple hours there. I got back in for another quick minute. Boats were coming around the cove from Laranjelas. These boats are not commercial boats. They are little 5 to 6 person boats that are privately owned by the families that live there in Sono. We got a ride from one of the two men just arriving home. The boat ride out was picturesque to say the least. The rock faces and foliage framing those faces were paradise. There were some rocks that were unexplainable as to how they had broken and stayed balanced amongst the waves. A volkswagon van took us from the port we were dropped off at to the bus stop on the other side of the gated community. So we got a ride through the ritzy community, and the architecture sucked. There are idiots with too much money all over the world with the same poor taste in buildings. Boo.

We were tired and a bit hungry perhaps, so we had a beer while we waited for the bus. The bus got us back as they usually do. I dosed off for a bit. The scenery is so beautiful all over this country that I feel like an ass when I don't actively soak up as much as I am offered. But when a man has to sleep, that man must sleep, even if he is drooling on strangers...

Shower and out for food. Josh and I walked to the sandwich shop for ol' time sakes. We decided to keep looking and we aimlessly walked the streets on the south side of the main street, near the bus station, until we found something that was the right price and had good atmosphere. We found a nice spot. They caporinhas were good. The food wasn't bad, nor was it the best. The waitress was cute, and Josh The Goofus tried to flirt with her. He was just being sweet but I think he is a big dork. That's right Josh, a big dork. Don't ever change. I think we were in good spirits with laughter and gammon, but what else is new?

We had been drinking all day, and we were kind of sore from it. We needed lots of water so we went back to the hostel and hydrated. We listened to music on my I-pod(with my splitter) until the big J.O. fell asleep. I went downstairs and got on the computer until I could no longer stay awake and sleep was once again my good friend.

A church of churches

I had another simple breakfast from the hostel. They serve such a basic breakfast that I get hungry faster than I would if I did not have anything at all. But I eat the food none the less. Bread with butter and honey. Banana in a bowl of cereal. Too much coffee. Josh needed to get some head way on his thesis that he has meaning to get to. I decided to walk aimlessly through Paraty. I winded around till I found the center. I sat on a bench next to the river that leads out to the bay which then leads out to the ocean. It is the kind of bay where pirates would hide. Steep islands pop out of the water, like snouts of Suessian beasts. I actually saw a ship off in the distance that looked like a pirate ship. It slowly angled off and sailed away. Walked around the old town after writing things and watching the water.

When I got back to the hostel Josh and I took off for the town of Trinidade, said like Trin-e-da-ge. But before we split, there was laundry to drop off at the laundry mat near the bus station. We arrived to Trinidade nearly an hour later, and it started to sprinkle, so we ducked into a restaurant for a meal. Beers and gammon. We sat right on the road, where dogs and people some how circled around and around like they were walking a marathon loop of the town. A cat befriended us during our meal because she knew I am a sucker for them feline kind. This cat was blue eyed and had a crossed pair of them. Too fucking cute! She loved fish bones. She ate the spine in under 30 seconds. We had a great fish and shrimp dish, accompanied by the black beans and rice, salad, and powdered mandioca. Not sick of it yet. It does the job.

By the time we were on the road to the beach, the rain was done. We made our way down a narrow alley leading to the ocean. The beach here at Trinidade was the most beautiful beach I have ever seen in my life! Most Beautiful Beach! Seriously. There are huge boulders that are scattered along the water front. Some are large enough to jump to the top, and others are as large as a house. We found a cave and sat there for a smoke. We played more gammon.

The rocks called to us, so we went searching for more places to climb and perch upon. This place is one of the worlds True playgrounds. A church of churches! There was a man fishing on a large rock that kept kissing the waves. He walked up and down the beach, just in front of us all day. There was a rock close by the fisherman where we sat and watched the waves smash against other house sized rocks in the surf. Sometimes the waves would completely cover the rock houses, and the bubbles would stream down in impermanent trickles of eternity. It was breathtaking. We continued on, following in the fisherman's foot steps.

There was a rock hill that lead to a cliff face and we gave it our best, but there came a point where we could not go any farther. The waves were entrancing. We sat close together in conversation, and then we wandered apart in silent meditation. Eventually the two of us found one another and headed back down to the beach. We found another cave and another smoke. The beach is good for it. There is something about the humidity on the ocean that pacifies me. Waiting for the sun to set, the night snuck up on us and the moon was above us. This was a kind of beach where I wouldn't think to be nervous after sun set.

Coming upon the towns corner market, I had water and Josh a juice. We walked down the main road just to look while we waited for the bus. The bus came, and for some reason we both decided that we could find another bus stop down the road. Once realizing this was not the best idea, we headed back into the light of town. The bus picked us up and it sped down the jungle's crazy roller coaster roads and around curve ball corners. It was quite fun!

After hanging with Leo and Lolo, the couple that owns the hostel, we went out for sandwiches. There was a little stand out on the main road that was up and at it, so we ate there. We both got burgers and sat in plastic chairs on the side of the road watching people walk and ride by on their bikes. We had a caporinha each, and the dude cooking made them lip stretching strong. More bite than I was used to, and not enough sugar, but certainly worth the price. Making our way back, I ducked into an internet cafe which was actually some couples garage converted into the neighborhood hang out/computer repair shop/internet spot. Their little daughter was skipping around in her pajamas acting like a tropical bird. No one seemed to notice. There were two young boys playing Grand Theft Auto next to me. An old man had made a place for himself on one of the two sofas that made a 90 degree angle towards the wide screen t.v. This was the place to be if you just needed to get away from it all.

I stayed there getting my Skype on till they closed, and then I was off to sleep.

From the clutches of canine hostility to the coarse, velvateen mud bath beyond the fork in the road where the water just rolls on down.

Woke to a simple breakfast in a large room with too much echo. Josh and I walked around Paraty a bit. We headed through the old town again, this time a bit farther than the night before. We made it to the water's edge and then back towards our hostel. We walked to the bus station, saw that we had time for lunch, and went for lunch. We got out pratu feito on. Good fish dish, over a backgammon game, and then off to the station. We got on our bus and headed towards the mountains just outside of town. There were waterfalls up this way, and we were determined to find the one that is off the beaten path.

It was an overcast day and it had been raining on and off. We got off of the bus just after a bridge we were looking for. This muddy road was to take us into the jungle for a while. We had a smoke. The mud forced its way up between my toes as I walked bare foot on this lonesome road. A drunk man followed us for a while, barely able to walk straight. A couple of times it looked as though he was going to march straight off of the mountain. We came to his road and he invited us to his house so we could get out of the rain and drink with him. We thanked him and traveled on. There was the occasional dog party that wasn't happy to see us. We started walking with stones. My blue flip flops were a good defense from the clutches of rural dog chompers, but stones seemed to make us feel a bit better.

There was a sign for a small pool Josh had heard about, so we took this simple jungle path on our right. We nearly passed it the sign was so small. This path would criss cross over a stream and under wire fences and random pipes through the jungle. We found the pool and it was angelic. We could not get any wetter, so we shed our layers and we went skinny dipping. It was not the warmest pool, especially since the sun was not out. We perched half in the water on rocks near the edge of the pool. The feeling of sitting naked in a jungle pool while the rain comes down on my skin is something to remember. I could look up and see the rain drops coming right for me. The sound of water falls and rain drops is trance-like. It was cold, so we didn't stay in the water for too long. We put our wet clothes back on and headed back to the muddy road. Once there, we headed even farther away from the main road we were let out on.

There were beautiful green fields hugging at the mountain sides. Streams of clouds clung to the tops of these hill sides and mountain tops. The rain would let up and let out, on and off. We took shelter under an abandoned shack to smoke a bit and to play gammon while we dried off. We were just going to get wet again, but there was the prospect of getting warm for a little while. The rain had considerably let up again by the time we were ready to head out into it. We kept walking and questioned how far we were willing to walk before we would head back. Soon after deciding to turn back after 4 or 5 more curves in the road, we came to a fork that went up and down. We chose down and the water falls were one curve farther ahead. It was really nice and peaceful there. The falls were more like a slowly running river with big rocks, opposed to the water falls one will find in North Carolina or Chiapas, Mexico where they are more vertical than horizontal. The mud here was a play ground for my toes. I still walked barefoot, and this was a series of good moments. The mud was coarse yet soft, and how peculiar one might say. "How peculiar!"

We walked around a bit before our party headed back to the base camp. There was no desire to miss the last of the buses thus possibly getting stuck out in the sticks for the night. With stones in hand to battle the fangs of the aggressive song dogs, we passed them by like ships in the night and reached the main road without complications. Freakin' dog smokers.

There was a grocery where we took shelter out front on the steps. Josh bought some beers and a candy or two. Gammon. Then I bought some fixins for ham and cheese sandwiches. Two each and another beer before we got on the bus heading home. Instead of a bus, we took a collectivo to a parking lot off of the main road. We couldn't wait to get back for a shower and a chance to get warm. This we did.

A group of hostel folks made some spaghetti and meat sauce, and I was invited to join. The group was comprised of a German, two Argentinians, a Costa Rican and his German girlfriend, and a Brazilian who worked at the hostel. Beers and food, what a good combination. I spent some time digesting on the computer downstairs, while Josh was up in our room watching a movie on his computer the whole night. Sleep is my friend.

Heading north along the coast

I woke up early again. I felt rather good, and I am glad I was not feeling the pain of such a good time. I was the first hotel guest in for breakfast, and I had a long breakfast reading my book by David Sedaris. I took my coffee out to the pool and read some more. I packed as did we all, and we were off to Maresaias again. We went to Danny and Adolfo's compound. She and some of her family members were up and about. Karin took off soon after because she needed to get back to Sao Paulo earlier than later.

Josh and I hung out and played some back gammon, of course. It was nice to have a chance to just chill out in a still place. It was raining a bit, and we didn't really need to get out into it yet. Danny was so sweet and she made us some spaghetti and meat sauce along with a salad. She was making food for everyone there, but it was great that she included us. What a woman! We got going not too soon after the meal.

We headed to the bus stop to wait for the bus heading north along the coast. We had to take a few buses to make it all the way to Paraty, pronounced Para-Chee. We sat under cover and played gammon and had a beer. We got to Uba Tuba by 8:40 or so. The buses were taking longer than we anticipated. We thought we had missed the last bus to Paraty, but there was another bus company around the corner that was leaving around 10 or so. We bought our tickets and walked down the street for dinner and gammon. The bus got us to Paraty in what seemed like no time, either because I slept or because I had been having an out of body experience. Oh, wait, I think I was asleep.

We stumbled around town until we ran into a hostel. Checked in and were offered a shot of rum by the hostel owner. O.k! Welcome to Paraty! We walked around the street looking for some samba street party. What we found was coming to a close so we walked to the old historic center of town and then back to the hostel. Sleep was eminent.

Wedding bells and dizzy spells...

I woke up still fully clothed with my headphones on. I sent an email and headed out to the beach to get some mental stability. I woke up rather in a panic, and needed some beach medicine. I got out there and was befriended by a couple white boxers. Those dogs were sweet, but I didn't trust them at first. After last night of being distracted by the dog and having my shoes stolen, I thought that maybe these dogs were distracting me from some other gang of hooligans creeping up on me. These dogs were too dumb for that, and they just wanted to a)drool on me b)drool on one another or c)both. Their owner called them back, and I walked down the beach a bit. I was befriended by another dog, and after that one took off for its morning jog I looked at the ocean until I laid down and took a nap. I woke to a lite drizzle of rain, and headed back to where I started my walk. I got my morning coco nut and was very happy with this fine fruit. The dude man who cut it open after I was done with the milk had a meathod I had not seen yet. He cut all the meat out with his knife. Usually they just cut it in half or thirds, and then they slice a little wedge off the side for a spoon. By cutting all the meat out, it was more like a breakfast than a snack. Big points for that guy!

When I got back to the hotel, Karin and Josh were just serving themselves some breakfast and I joined them. After taking our time with coffee and the tasty morsels we were offered, we headed down to the beach. It was a tad overcast and we played gammon amongst crowds of Brazilian wedding goers. We didn't get in the water just yet. Instead we went back in to get some sun screen on and to iron our clothes that had gotten infested with wrinkles. We headed back out and then farther down the beach, away from the crowd. More backgammon and Josh water colored a bit. The sun fully came out for a while and this is when I went in for a dip. I remember how nice it felt, and I floated around until the sun went back behind the clouds.

We booked back to shower and get ready for the wedding. We could hear them testing the p.a. system down at the wedding tent. The wedding was to be right on the beach and we could tell it was getting close to time. We got over there around 5ish. Kaio was there to greet people when we showed up, and he looked very nice, dressed casually in all white. He had his shirt untucked and he might have been bare foot. Josh and I were once again feeling awkward about not being able to squash the language barrier so we kept to ourselves.

As I said, the wedding was right on the beach. It was taking place at an outdoor restaurant / bar. The wedding tent was only a frame covered by translucent plastic, as to keep the rain out and to let the light in. There were wooden pews set out for anyone who wanted to sit. There was no hierarchy as to who could or couldn't sit. People stood behind the pews and even back into where all the tables were set for dinner. The ceremony was very nice. Leslie walked down the isle(of sand) in a simple and beautiful white dress. None of the brides maids wore the same dress. It was very free form. They actually signed their wedding papers there at the alter, or maybe they were vows of sorts. We couldn't understand anything they said, other than love love love love love love love love, etc etc. A couple brides maids and best men said some things during the ceremony, which once again was unorthodox to me. The Gunn's family dog brought the rings down the isle, somehow attached to its neck. Gogiba, that was the dogs's name. I had a chance to hang out with him on my first night in Brazil. As I heard from others, this was not like a typical Brazilian wedding. Leslie and Kaio had paid for the wedding on their own. They didn't want any family members telling them how certain things should or shouldn't be done.

We ran into Karin and Leslie's friends, Vanessa and her girlfriend, who we had had sushi with several weeks before in Sao Paulo. They asked us if we wanted to sit with them. We were looking for them for the same reason. They are really sweet and it was nice to sit with people that we already felt comfortable with. We did not want to have to have awkward translation conversation for a couple hours. From the get go, there was champagne and beer. Food was brought out fairly quickly in small bite sized pieces. The assortment was delicious. Then came the glasses of whiskey on the rocks. More food amongst our conversation and laughter. I really liked these girls because they were easy to joke with and were having a good time, just as we were. More food in small portions. I guess it was good that the food was in small portions, because the drinks were coming out strong. There was a coconut and rum drink which was small and delicious. Then the girls got us all some caporinhas. So at one point I believe I had 5 different types of alcoholic drinks in front of me. Shit! I just can't turn down an assortment of free and delicious drinks. We were passing our caporinhas around the table since we all had an assortment of flavors: kiwi, strawberry, passion fruit, and a mixture beverage. I couldn't put them down. We were done with dinner and we walked around a bit. I should have had an espresso to sober up a bit, but I was drunk and didn't think about this.

Josh was feeling it too. We headed back to the hotel room which was just down the street from the wedding. I can't say I remember the walk home. I do slightly recall walking out of the wedding, but not the walk home. I guess we were headed back to smoke a bit. The next thing I do remember, was a quick flash of Josh trying to get me up off of the bed to go back to the wedding. I wasn't having it. I woke up fully clothed around 5:30am. I completely missed the second band, which I heard was great. Karin came in the room as I was taking my wallet out of my back pocket. She gave me some attitude about sleeping through the party, but I ignored her and said nothing as I got back into bed fully clothed, once again.

...& so what if I wear my headphones in the shower?

We all got up fairly early and walked to the end of the beach towards the south. Josh and I had not been all the way to that end of the beach. I was fairly parched along the way towards the rocks that signaled the end of our walk. We perched around on and around the rocks for a quick minute. Once there was a drink vendor in sight, we knew what we had to do. We had our morning coconuts! And oh how rewarding! Once back at the room, we packed up and headed out, somewhat rushed and with no need to rush. We got some breakfast and coffee before heading out to Toque Toque, where the wedding was to take place. We checked in and I stayed in the room until sunset. I was in a junk mood, still exhausted from the day before.

Josh and Karin spent some time down at the beach, and when they got back we headed back to Maresias for the pre wedding dinner.
It was very informal. Everyone hung out around us, as it was difficult to mingle, so we drank at our table from the buckets of free beer they kept bringing us. The options at the restaurant were pizza or sushi. Josh and I chose sushi. It was super doops. We kept drinking beers. And then we were drunk. We got up and gave the mingle a chance. We bummed cigarettes, being that we were getting quite royal. The Brazilians who spoke good English kept apologizing for their bad English. This became quite obnoxious since it was difficult to have much of a conversation with all the apologies. Why you gotz to apologize so much guys? So we drank some sort of super strong booze from the cap of some small bottle. Josh and Karin and I walked out to the beach. Karin asked me to hold her sandals. I put both of our sandals down so I could pet a dog there on the beach. While I was sitting down just 10 or so feet in front of our shoes, some little hooligan swept out of the darkness in a hundred yard dash and stole our shit! I couldn’t believe it, but there was nothing I could do about it. Bummer dude.

There was really nothing I could do. So I continued to mingle with whoever caught me. Just kidding. I never fell down, nor did I nearly fall down. Karin was once again the stand up designated driver, so I believe. There was going to be a bonfire or sing along or something at the beach, but there was no way I was going to have the energy for any more socializing. Josh and I went back to our room like party poopin' Americans. I had a date on Skype, but I put my headphones on and suddenly fell deep asleep. I awoke at 6am fully clothed with my headphones on. I wear them everywhere...

Salvador to Sao Paulo to Maresias

I woke up with an early internal clock, and Josh was busy packing. The time was 5:40 am and it was already light out. We were upstairs and ready to go early, and we took a cab to the bus stop since it had been recommended not to walk. The junkies are said to be roaming and looking for us till near 7 or 8. It was raining and it was better not to take on the ups and downs of the cobblestones in a time sensitive scenario. I said goodbye to the cat and dog at the hostel, and we were off.

We were two of the first 4 or 5 people on the bus. We passed by some incredible murals as we left the center of Salvador. If I had the chance I would love to catalogue the murals and graffiti here in Brazil, especially in Rio and Salvador. By the time we got to the air port the bus was packed full. I had fallen asleep in my seat, and I woke up trying to eat a caramel, chocolate, peanut fountain. I hope someone saw me eating at the air. We had to practically shove people out of our way to get off the bus in time.

We lingered around and got some coffee. Checked in. Boarded at 9. Took off around 10. I didn’t sleep the whole ride because I had a window seat and the clouds were fantastic. There were so many different shapes and textures and varieties of clouds. We landed before one. To make it easier on Karin, we were told to take a bus to the other airport in Sao Paulo. This bus was too expensive but we took it because it was the only way there. I slept the whole way. We were starving when we got there, and the food there was too expensive and unappetizing. Hence we left the airport with our bags, and took the walk way over the freeway into the neighborhood to look for some sort of food. We had to be back in 30 minutes to meet Karin. We didn’t find any food accept for a guy selling popcorn and peanuts and chips. We both got a bag of peanuts and trudged back to the airport. We were there before Karin arrived.

Karin showed up and we headed off to Maresias, where Josh had met up with us at the beginning of the trip. I was exhausted and could not manage to speak. Along our drive we stopped to get some grub. The name eludes me. It was a crunchy hot pocket affair. There were all sorts of options to fill them with. I was a fan of my tasty morsel or morsels, whatever the name is. It was raining most of the way to the beach and the clouds hung on the mountains. We got in before it got dark. We stayed at Adolpho and Danny’s place. Kaio, Leslie’s fiancé, and some of his buddies showed up for a bit. This was my first time to get to meet him. He was obviously a nice guy right off the bat. They took off. We bought a 12 of beer. Back to the home stead. Had a few. Karin took off to meet up with Kaio and his buddies. Josh and I stayed up having a few more beers in between showers and gammon. We fell asleep while watching Donnie Darko on Josh’s laptop.

Sunsets in Salvador are Sexy!

Of course, I missed breakfast. Josh, Jimmie and I went out into the world rather late to exchange some dollars of mine. This was quick and painless. It was directly next to where Tomaso and I had lunch the day before. We headed out of town on a bus to Barra, a part of Salvador that has nice little beaches and old forts speckled along the coast. After sitting and looking out to the ocean for a few minutes, we walked around one of these forts and then farther south down the board walk until we realized how hungry we were. We saw how much the meals cost on the menu, so the waiter lowered the prices to keep us. We had beers and played Farkle. A damn fine game. I will teach anyone who wants to learn. The prato faetos here were delicious. I think we all got the fish. I was happy.

We walked farther down the beach and found a store where I bought some more flip flops. We thought that we would stay until the sunset, but we were all still tired from the last couple days. Thus we headed home. I needed to exchange the last of my American dollars to pay for the hostel, so I took another walk to the exchange place I had been to earlier.

On my way home, I noticed that the sun was about to go down. I ducked into a little bar that had a patio overlooking the water and the sunset. While everyone else in the bar looked to the soccer game on t.v. I looked in the opposite direction to the water, and the sun, and the sky, and the verdant forests on the hills in the distance. The shimmering dance of light on the waves was entrancing. Then it started raining over the part of the city I was in. The sun still shone, and the sheets of rain were illuminated in a translucent way. These sheets formed chapters, and the chapters formed a book that moved out over the water towards the many ocean liners that were docked at port. The sun went down behind the hills, and the rain continued to move away from the city. The boats nearly disappeared. As I sat and spoke with a drunk Brazilian kid who didn't speak much English I noticed how quickly the day transitioned into night. The lights on the boats and the surrounding hills sparkled all of a sudden. I hadn't even noticed them until the night had snuck up on us. There were also two people from NY who were on the patio with us, and we all spoke together until I knew I should go home. We had made plans to go to a churrascoria.

A churrascoria is an all you can eat meat restaurant, and they are pretty popular down here in South America. I had not been to one yet, and I was pretty excited. Josh had been talking them up for the past couple weeks and tonight was the night. Three Australians, who had just shown up in the afternoon, and the Ozzy Kiwi couple who had been hanging out for several days all went with us. The 8 of us took two cabs across Salvador to a spot that had been recommended by our hostel. We did not even Need to get up once we were there, though we did. Men walked up to us with swords of meat. They would come up and slice off a piece of whichever meat they were toting at that time. It was a little overwhelming at first and we were told to take it easy by our trusty guide, Josh Owens, professional meat eater. There were little circular cards( like coasters ) that were green on one side and red on the other. This obviously told the swordsmen if the individual was ready to keep eating or not. There was also a full salad bar( which I did not even look at ) and there was a sushi selection, which I appreciated greatly. Sashimi baby! The dessert tray had some really great things on it too. I ate some of those things. Those things were yummy.

Once we got home I realized how dehydrated I was. Even though I had to be up early the next morning to get to the airport, I had to stay up drinking water. With every glass of water I had, I got thirstier. Perhaps this was also a tactic to get my out of bed by 6am. I went to sleep later than I had expected.

Sometimes it gets hot in the winter.

The Austrian girls came in and bid us farwell really early before they took off. I knew I would miss breakfast, and indeed I did. I didn't feel like a dog as I had expected. Instead, I felt like having a cat.

Jimmie's Sao Paulo flirt had flown up Salvador to surprise her( Instead of staying in her bed at the hostel, they got a room at a love hotel where you pay by the hour. It turns out it is cheaper that way. This is all besides the point). When she came home in the morning the hostel cat was asleep on her bed amongst all her clothes. I believe I was dead asleep, but I heard her say 'The cat is on my bed.' Out of my deep sleep, I said in a short spoken serious tone, 'Cat? Hand me the cat.' So the cat ended up sleeping with me on the top bunk until I decided to get up several hours later. My saying this has come up randomly in our travels since.

Josh didn't get up till later though, and he felt a bit shabby. I lounged around till Tomaso asked me to go out and get some lunch with him. It was the warmest day I had experienced yet.

We walked around and found a place with some outdoor seating. We both got some delicious guava juice and the same shrimp dish. The dish was probably the worst thing I had ordered the whole time I have been in Brazil. Even then, it wasn't horrible. We had a real nice time sitting and talking about life. It was in this meal that I really felt absorbed by my setting. I had a feeling of ease and relaxation that comes after traveling for some time. I bought a hammock from some guy who approached me. He started with 200 heis and I talked him down to 50! I really wasn't interested in buying a hammock, but I have not had one in a while. It is a really nice hammock for the equivelent of $25. I got a good deal indeedio.

An old man came up to us after we had sat there a little while longer. He had his portfolio with him and it was full of prints of his work. He had a folder of articles that had been written about him along with a bunch of pictures from his life. He said he was 70 something years old, and he spoke Italian to Tomaso and English to me. I believe he had another several languages under his belt. He said he was truly rich, because he leads a happy life. He was glowing as he approached us and I am grateful that he decided to sit and talk with us. Tomaso bought a print from him. I had no money to do so. I would have loved to add his art to my collection, though I will not forget this man's presence any time soon.

Tomaso and I walked to a near by church called Igreja da Ordem. It was a very nice space to walk around. There were many tile murals in an old Portuguese style, where the tiles are blue and white. I have never been to Portugal but Tomaso let me know of a few history lessons as we walked around the grounds. There was one room that was very strange! It was full of life sized figures representing all sorts of saints, and not to forget the ol' J.C. too. The breeze would come in through the open windows and some of the clothing on the figures would move. Out of the corner of my eye I would see this and want to run away, far away. The hair that some of them had was not synthetic hair, but real human hair. Creepy. Honestly though, this is the kind of creepy that I really do enjoy. It was not the kind of thing that I would seek out, but I was grateful to see such a sacred space, and with such strange ambiance.

As we came around the corner to our hostel we ran smack into Josh heading out for his first time of the day, off to get dinner. He was obviously still recovering from the night before. It was a long night. He came back to the hostel with us, and then he and I went out soon after. We rambled over to the square adjacent to where Tomaso and I had eaten lunch. Being that I can always conjure up an appetite, I was ready to eat dinner with Josh. We payed 5 heis for a nice variety of meat and a big salad. It was a great meal that we ate over beers and backgammon. There was a capoiera group playing close by. The night was alive with tourists and beggars. A stage close by was being occupied by a band of kids playing in a traditional Brazilian ensemble. We headed back towards home in a round about way.

There was a free concert going on at the same steps where we were almost mugged a couple nights before. The band was named after the lead singer and trombonist, Geronimo. He had a big band and the stairwell was packed. There were more joints being smoked in this crowd than I had ever seen being smoked in a lighted, public space. The music was a really good mix between reggae and Brazilian genres I have heard around.

After a while, we retreated back to the hostel to scoop up Jimmie and her flirt, Alberto, and Tomaso. Tomaso said he would meet us there, but we didn't see him. Alberto has strange social issues and didn't stay for more than a song. Jimmie, Josh and I hung out for a while. The crowd was great. Everyone seemed to be having a real good time. The only reason we left is because our feet had had enough.

We got back to the hostel to play farkle with my crew of peeps and an Israeli fellow straying there. Alberto and Josh nearly got into a fight talking about politics and such. Alberto was at the top of anyone's list that night. He has strange social issues.

Josh and I befriended some other travelers and shared a hooka with them over several beers. I got onto Skype with Jalie and was up too too late. I came across a picture of my grandfather online, and I cried like a baby. I didn't make a scene. Everyone else had gone to sleep. It was nice to see these pictures of Cecil and our family. I went to sleep, once again knowing that I would miss breakfast.

No more drinks, but one more round, please.

Happy birthday Jimmie! Quarter of a century! Good job with the whole life thing. It is working out for you.

We woke with time for breakfast, which was good. We were off to the turtle refuge about an hour out of town. The name of the place is Arembepe. We were able to convice our three Austrian friends and our Italian friend to come with us. Our group turned to seven for the day, and it was good to have a new group of faces. There was Johanna, Finka, and Philipp from Austira, and Tomaso from Italy( but living in Berlin now). The bus ride took around an hour.

When we arrived, it was easy to find the road to head down. On about a 10 to 15 minute walk down a dirt road till we found the turtle spot. It coast a little and then we were in. There were about 5 different kinds of adult sea turtles, and two types of baby turtles. The adults didn't seem to have enough space, considering that they are meant to be in the oceans. They were interested in our presence, and they showed this interest by swimming from the bottom and up to the surface. They would take a look and swim around their spaces. All the adults looked to have vision problems or scars, and I believe they were being held for these reasons. It was a bit sad to see them kept up like this, but it made me happier just to see them again. I absolutely love their kind and their essence. They are just the most peaceful animals I have ever had the chance to come in contact with.

We watched them eat shards of fish and sea fruits, and we got hungry as well. There is word that Janis Joplin and Mic Jagger had hung out at the hippie village down the way, back in the 60´s. We headed there because there was also word that there was a restaurant with great mucacha, an African influenced Brazilian dish. There were no roads past the turtle project. We made our way around a lake to find this village, and village it was. We could see grass thatched huts and cabanas between the palm trees in the distance and we made our way there in search of food. There was a sign that said Janis Joplin camp. Apparently they are still riding her wake. the only restaurant there said they had the mucacha we were looking for.

They did not serve beer but we were told that they did around back. Josh and I left our friends there in the patio and we headed out for libations. There was a compound up on top of the dunes and that is where we thought we would find this beer we were looking for. There was a rasta and a couple others surrounded by lazy cats. They invited us in and offered us some really good company right off the bat. There was some cheap booze they insisted we drink with them and there was meat just out of the skillet that we ate with them. One man was so excited (and drunk) to talk to me (in Portuguese) that he began crying when talking about his heritage. From what I could tell, some of his blood lines go back to Switzerland, but he is pure Bahian. He started chanting with joy in his voice and tears in his eyes, ´BAHIA! BAHIA! BAHIA!´ I didn´t know what else to do but chime in with him! He was getting really emotional all of a sudden and it looked like he needed someone to get excited with. There was a little drunk hippie woman who was also really excited about my vest of heirlooms and we traded a relic for relic. This made us both very happy. The rasta showed us around his unfinished cabana, and I did my best to memorize the construction meathod.

Josh found the beers and brought them to the table. Soon after the food was there. We had ordered two meals, one of shrimp and the other of fish and shrimp. There were two salads, two plates of rice and beans, and two bowls of powdered mandioca. I do not believe I have written about this powdered mandioca yet. It is from the mandioca root, and it is pulverized into a powder that can be sprinkled all over the beans and rice and meat. It makes any dish tastier and more solidified. It had been served with just about every frato pretu (fresh plate) of the trip. It is a big deal in these parts of the world.

After a lengthy meal we headed over to the beach. Jimmie and the Austrians laid down for a small siesta, Tomaso walked down the beach, and Josh and I had it out with the Gammon board. He beat me enough to where I had to walk down the beach. I found incredible spiral shells, for worms maybe. Sea worms? Dunno? I collected enough for everyone in the group to have one. I handed them out and walked the other way down the beach. It was such a beautiful day. The clouds were massivly quilted with different textures upon one another. The sky was the largest I had seen it in a while, looming over the water as it was. The ocean was loud and turbulent as it crashed against the rocks within the waves near the shore. As we walked down the beach towards town, the sun was setting away from the ocean. The pink sky changed slowly behind the sillouttes of the palm trees. I felt like I was in a dream. This setting is what post cards can only dream of capturing. But post cards don´t have dreams, silly human.

Our bus ride back was longer since we got stuck in some rush hour traffic. A little girl puked into her lap and onto the floor. She was sitting with her father, and in front of them was a German girl we had seen in the hippie village. She came and sat next to me, and we talked for the ride home. She was a nice girl and her name was Jessica. Her trip was to head into Salvador to make money selling some jewelry and such.

We got back to the hostel for beers and showers. I thought we would stay here all night to celebrate Jimmie´s birthday. I busted out all my pens and pencils and drew the group sitting down in what the hostel called their sacred space, no shoes allowed with cusions and a small table ideal for the hooka.

I was pulled off of Skype so we could walk to a local bar. Everything seemed closed. Just when we were about to give up and head back to the hostel some cops told us where to go just down the street. The large mass of tourists pulled tables and chairs out into the cobblestone street and had a large ration of beer. There were people from many different countries and I got the chance to talk with Phillip and Brice. They were both next to me and easy to hear. Dean, from New Zealand, talked with me from across the tables. This was a good exercise to really use my ears and cut out all the white noise and chatter around me.

Being that it was still sort of Jimmie´s birthday and the Austrians last night, we continued to celebrate once back to the hostel( Jimmie had retired hours before, but we had to keep celebrating in her name). The girls ordered tequila shots and vodka drinks. Dean opened too many beers. We ended up passing my book around and all drawing together which was a lot of fun. Apparently, everyone really needed some art time.

Johanna was able to wake me up as the sky was getting brighter. Josh couldn´t budge me, as all I would say was ´sleepin`and ´nope! sleepin´really quickly. Johanna put her hands on my throat and cheeks and said my name very softly. I opened my eyes wide and woke right up. The power of a woman is much greater than the power of a man. And because of this I slept in my own bed rather than the hostels sacred space. Z z z z z z

Welcome to Salvador, now get down and dance!

This bus ride was much more comfortable. I sat in the front row behind the driver. The drivers in the buses down here are completely closed off from all the passengers. There is a door that they close and curtains are drawn too. The curtains are drawn all around the bus so that when the sun comes up it is that much easier to sleep in. I slept better this time around.

Salvador was a good place to be. There was a mural there in the station right if front of where our bus pulled up. That was a wonderful welcome. We took a cab to a hostel in the old part of town called Carmo. It was early and we sat in the hostel and played Farkle, ate breakfast, and more Farkle. Farkle is a great dice game that you play with 6 dice. Very addictive.

We got out into the streets after drinking too much coffee, but taking the moments we needed to rest. This part of town was very up and down from street to street, and mainly all cobblestones. The person at the hostel gave us a map with 'X's down many of the streets so we would know which streets to keep from. There was really only one way out into the city as far as our host would have us go. We heeded her warnings. We made our way around the city from square to square until we came upon a scenic view of the water and the marina. There is so much color in Salvador, from the buildings to the clothing to the sea and the boats. Salvador is said to be the birth place of Brazil. This city has the most African influence in the entirety of Brazil. Some women wear clothing that reminds me of the fabrics I saw in Ghana. They wrap their heads and have matching dresses that cover their petticoats. These women are there as a tourist flavor to the city, selling tradiotional appetizers on the street or trinkets and the like. Their style is quite classy.

We took an elevator down to the lower level of the city. There was an elevator there in the 1800's that was run by slave labor. We found the market infront of us, first an out door market and then an indoor one. We wandered through both. Coconuts outside and then dry goods inside. On the back side of the building was a capoiera group doing some flexible body language that I can't say I have seen before, with real fast upside down-horizontal-back bend-hold-repeat-flip-reverse, etc. You know what I mean, Tom?

We headed back another way, which was definetly the wrong was for most people. We wandered up a street that had been abandoned by most out of towners for some time. There was some nice rusty metal there in the street. I thought of some of my friends. We were not sure if where we were heading would be better or worse and there was really no turn off. Suddenly, I got so hungry that my arms were shaking. I was running on fumes, and it was a matter of the first place being the best place to eat. We played pinball for a while in this neighborhood. It was Sunday and it looked like a ghost town. No one was out, accept for the few guys in the square. Even some of them were not really there. One puked on his feet just as we were about to pass him by. We took a left instead.

The first tent we saw where people were sitting with plates of what looked like food, we sat and asked for beers and a menu to look at. Hurray! We prefer to eat where the locals get down. Local flavor off the beaten path offers the unannounced gem for us to find on our own. And so we did. We got our Farkle on and commenced to drink beers. We had to reward ourselves for not falling into the gutters, right? Right. There was a strange place that shady characters kept funneling from. I thought that it could have been a whore house. Two semi-casual cops came out with their automatic weapons on. Crooked? Eh? Turns out the establishment was for gambling, so our waiter told us.

Our food was delicious! A couple orders of fries, a plate of fish, beef, chicken? I really can not remember. Salads came with them too, I believe. There were beans and rice, right? I know that all the food was gone by the time we thougth to lick our plates. The girl who checked us into the hostel came walking by and we called her over. She sat with us while we had beer for dessert. Her name was..... and she was from Australia. She was nice to talk with. She got us headed home in the right direction, a way which we might have not known to take since we were completely turned around and getting Royal. The sun was going to go down soon, and we headed home.

Once home, we relaxed for a while and showered. There was a quirky Japanese guy there at the hostel who I had spoken with earlier in the day. He made me a little nervous since he couldn't understand me well nor could I fully understand him, but continued to talk to me like we both knew what one another was saying. These anthropolgical studies never cease to amaze me. He meant well and for this I enjoyed our interaction, but what a quack. His phrase of 'domestic peoples' was amuzing to me. He came home perhaps a bit tipsy, as well. He was able to kill the conversation we were having with the Austrians very quickly. It was like when someone lets some demons out in an elevator and everyone can't wait to get off at the next open door.

Josh and Jimmie and I hit the streets to go and find some live music. We headed down one of the two streets that were less than dangerous. At the bend in the road we came to a place that was bumpin with live music. It almost sounded too good to be true it sounded so good. There was a door man who was in his 80's or so. Josh paid for all of us by passing some money through a little mail sized slot in the wall. Before we could get in, a man who had come out to smoke turned right back around and excitedly brought us inside. He was flirting with Josh and I right off the bat, but no matter. It was nice to have a friend right off the bat. As we came around the corner I was convinced that we had come into a gay bar. There were only men dancing with men with a couple transvestites at the bar. Everyone was watching us as we walked in. This made me feel slightly awkward, but what do you do when people make you feel awkward!?! Drink! And drink we did! Josh made up some story to our first friend about how I was her wife, and he told him this so that Jimmie wouldn't get hit on by.... all the gay guys there. I think he was trying to keep all the guys to himself by telling them that I was married to Gina. Isn't that right Josh? Keepin all the Brazilian studs to yourself. You son of a bitch....

Turns out it was not a gay bar at all. Still for a while though I thought that it was a neighborhood pimp shin dig. It was like a David Lynch film with the lighting, the atmosphere, the fantastic paintings on the walls, the odd woman guarding the toilet paper, the tranies, the several children amongst all this, the women skowling on the sides of the room, the groups of men dancing, the old man dressed from head to toe in continuous shiny fabric. This was the pimp of the year, by the way. He was obviously a man high up in the chain of pimps. Men and women would come up to him as he was dancing and/or sitting and offer praises to him. Josh and I also gave him praises as we danced by. Oh yeah. It didn't take us long to get dancing. After 3 or so beers we didn't seem to care that everyone would have a good ol' time watching the tourists get down right sweaty. And this we did. We got down right into the trance.

The band was comprised of several people playing gord shakers, several people playing hand drums of variable proportions, and a couple singers. The singers were loud enough in the mix that the PA system was kind of bursting. This made it sound like there was a choir of people singing. This effect I liked. The songs would go on and on for so long! This was the music of the Candomble!!!!

This was a wonderful wonderful church! I must say that it was the most wonderful church I have ever been to. There was a true sense of spirituality amongst everyone there. We were there for close to three hours, so it would seem. It is difficult to know what time it is when all you have to do is get down and dance.

Eventually, we decided to take off, so Josh said good bye to our first friend that escorted us into the venue. He insisted to walk us home. At first it seemed unnessesary, and when he insisted it seemed strange. When we all started walking it got quiet. This made Jimmie and I nervous. There was another guy following the four of us, and he was not all too far behind. I was ready to get robbed. There were prostitues looking down at us from their first floor windows with the knowing that we were in for it. They looked like they had seen this before. They looked bored.

There was a well lit stairwell leading down on the right from the church on our left so I ducked into the light. Jimmie and Josh stepped into the light and explained to our guide that we would rather go this way. The guy from behind us caught up to them at the top of the stairs. Turns out that he and our guide were not in on it together. Our guide really was looking out for us. Our friend told the other person that he wasn't going to let him rob us. There was even another guy who had popped out of the shadows to rob us too, but we were down at the bottom of the stairs by this point. Jimmie and I still didn't know what was going on. Josh had been picking up their intentions through the busted translator in the Spanish part of his brain. We waited at the bottom of the stairs for our friend, and we continued up the street. This street lead to the same intersection that the first street lead to. We were not sure if the theives were going to try and cut us off at the top of the hill, so we were all still pretty nervous until we got into our hostel around the corner. We all gave our saviour hugs and kisses and we thanked him for his help before we headed in to our safety zone.

Once inside, we opened some beers to relax on. We relayed our perspectives of the events in the street and the wonder of the past several hours in the Candomble ceremony. We were up when our fellow travelers got home. They had shown up to the Candomble just after we had left. Sleep came soon after, as we were exhausted.

Beach = Medicine

Early wake up thanks to Josh. He is more forward with his mornings, as he would leave the light on and make as much noise as he cared to. More asai for breakfast and then to the beach again. We headed down a different way, through the ritzy street in town. Once we got back to the umbrella tree I kept walking. I headed around the cove. The hill side of jungle shook the hand of a gorgeous white and red sediment. It looked like interlocking fingers, and I was very glad to have seen it. I didn't get into the water, but sat and paid attention to the waves for a while.

By the time I got back, it was about time to get back to the homestead to check out. I jumped in quick and we headed back to check out. We dropped our bags off at the station, and walked to the historic, old town of Porto Seguro. It was alright. Kind of a tourist trap set away from any homes. We made our way around it and headed back to the port at the other end of Porto Seguro. We had seen a sushi restaurant and were determined to head there for grub.

I didn't feel like getting sushi here because the bay smelled too much like old fish. Our meals were alright and too expensive. We hit up an internet stop before heading back to the bus stop. I was determined to talk with J on the phone, but there was no luck. I bought phone cards that didn't work there.

We were headed out on a night bus to Salvador on the coast of Bahia. On to the bus with a headache. This bus was much more comfortable. The first time I woke up on our trip my headache was gone and all was well. We were on our way to some of the best flavor in Brazil!

Another day in paradise.

Woke up before the sun came up, took a shower so I could be a good influence on my fellow travelers. I ate some yogurt and fruit, read a bit, got into one of the hammocks, and was out for a good while. Wa wa wa.

We all headed out to get asai for breakfast. It came beneath a mound of granola and bananas. Delicious. Down to the beach for us. We were there, in and out of the water for several hours with intervals of backgammon under an umbrella tree, which was really the only good shade along the whole beach. We headed up to get dinner. There was supposedly a Thai restaurant in town. This excited us so we set out to find it. There was a whole other street in town that is full of uppity spots to shop and eat. It was all super slow even though it was Friday night. Being that it is the winter there just are not many tourists out. Being on this road we realized how much money there really was in this town. The Thai place must have gone out of business and we headed back to the real part of town.

We ate at the same place we had gotten lunch the day before. Ice cream to follow. Headed to the internet cafe for a short stint. Back to the casa for some more backgammon. We all drew in the kitchen and it was good to get creative together. I guess we fell asleep some where after this. I just don't remember. It was a great day.

From one beach to the other.

The breakfast was good, and we had plenty. We changed and hit the beach just down the road from our hotel. It was good times indeed. We showered and checked out by noon. Got on the bus and headed to the spot where the boats carry people and cars over to Arrial d' Ajuda. It is a town along the beach that is only accessible by these boats from Porto Seguro. There are some people over in Arrial d' Ajuda with some money, but obviously not every one is well to do. We took the bus up the hill and found a spot for 15 heis a night, which is around $7. It was a really good deal and it was a nice spot to be calling home. The view from our corner overlooked the ocean. This corner had a church there which was built in 1549. It was still in great condition. We all liked this town much more than Porto Seguro. Twas super tranquilo. The town was very colorful and had a great rhythm to it. Cobblestone streets lead us to and fro.

We scored a great meal at a good restaurant, then followed up our meal by going to get groceries at the market. Dropped of our bounty and headed for the beach. Walked down an intense stair case that led us around a bend and into the beach from a neighborhood straight away. The ocean was visible as we got closer and there were 10 or so colorful boats that I wish I had taken the time to draw. It was very picturesque. We hung out just for a bit since the sun was gone, and it tends to be a good idea not to hang out on the beach when it is dark.

Dinner at home, caporinas, and backgammon. Our hotel was run by a nice couple with a couple young kids. They didn't show themselves at night but we could hear them close by. The kitchen was bare bones and practically open to the outdoors. We had a good meal that Josh made. He is a great cook. There were two other girls staying there who had traveled from Scotland to play capoiera. One was Scandinavian and the other was Spanish. They were really nice to talk with while we cleaned our dishes and they got their dinner ready to go. Josh and Gina hit the sack and I stayed up and spoke with our neighbors while they had their dinner. I went to bed before they finished and I was out quick. Long day.

Hello Porto Seguro, Bahia!

The bus ride was tough! There were some total geeks in the back with us. We deemed the three across the isle from us as 'the retards.' They must have been inbred or who knows what. They spoke so loudly, burped like Homer Simpson, and did not care to cover their noses when they sneezed. Total bumpkins. A couple others were 'interesting' Brazilian specimens as well. Every time someone opened the bathroom door a gust of urine would poor out into our laps. It was like sitting next to the bathroom at a dive bar, but worse because we really could not go any where else, for 19 HOURS! The retards talked loudly on and off through the night. If they were awake one might find them staring, mouths a jar, in our general direction. I woke to the plump one rattling on about nothing, loudly. By this point, I believe we had stopped smelling the stench. My finger was still numb. This brought me down a bit. But who has time for self pity while in Brazil? Not me! Porto Seguro was around the corner.

We got into Porto Seguro around 3 or 4, and had a meal and a beer while deciding in which establishment to call home. There was a travel hombre that suggested a hotel along the beach that was in the cheap list. It was not a dump. It was lacking character in the sense that it was like a dull condo. We hoped into the pool and lounged around while the sun set. We fell asleep a bit and showered and watched the soccer game and slept the rest of the night. We were beat.
Z z z z z z z z z z z

p.s.
Porto Seguro is said to be the first place Portugal ships landed in Brazil. It is said to be the first town in Brazil.

Bunk fingers and city centers

I woke up with my pinky and ring finger on my left hand numb, like asleep but not. I didn't wake up on top of them so I don't know why the sensitivity was so strange. Because of this, my head was in a strange space. My pinky finger came back eventually, but my ring finger did not come back to full swing for another 4 or 5 days. Fucking weird man!

Gina, Josh's peace corps friend who we had eaten with in Sao Paulo, had arrived early in the morning. After a while we headed to the Centro on a quest for a camera store. Josh's camera had taken a harsh dive and had shattered the filter over the lense. I am glad we had this errand to do, other wise we wouldn't have thought to go down there. From a distance it just seemed like any other down town with tall buildings and busy streets. There was a nice out door market with plenty of things we didn't need. We stopped into an instrument store to see how much a four string Brazilian banjo would cost me. The answer, Too Much.

We hopped onto the tram from where it starts and took it up past our hostel into Santa Teressa for lunch. There was a great place Josh had read about for lunch. There was a table near the entrance that allowed us to catch a good breeze and a nice view of the street. The restaurant had some great paintings and posters. The food was incredible! The main dish was a dried, shredded meat, with a side of greens, and a side of mashed pumpkin! If we go back to Rio, I plan on going to eat that dish again. I might have to go just for this meal and to see if the kittens have arrived.

Took the tram back down and got off to walk around Lapa. We found the top of the beautiful stairs that have been decorated with a wide array of colorful tiles by a Chilean artist named Celeron. He was there on the steps talking with people. So I met him and was led into his studio by a friend of his who helps him sell his art there. I bought one to add to my art collection, because his art is great. It was exciting to buy an original piece from a man who has contributed to the flavor of such a tasty city. His mustache is inspiring to say the least.

It was getting late and we headed up to the hostel to check. Took a taxi to the bus station and played backgammon until it was time to board our bus which we would be on for another 19+ hours. This would teach us never to book seats at the back of the bus. It is not good to be any where near the bathroom on a bus... And so we were on our way to Porto Seguro and Arrial d' Ajuda. Bahia here we come!

Rio recap: My favorite things

The sidewalks: they are all mosaics of white and black stones. The designs were made by Burle Marx back in the day. All around the city the mosaics change depending on the neighborhood.

Graffiti! The graffiti here is delicious. I wish we had taken pictures of it every where we saw it. The art is all over the board from flashy, urban text tags to funky, colorful characters to wheat pastes to stencils. There are a lot of shitty tags all over many of the buildings, which I never care for. I was happy to see that the people without talent do not muck up the beautiful tags. It is nice to know there is an element of respect for those with vision from those without.

The markets: Full of color and variety! Flowers, fruits and vegetables, meats and fish, spices, herbs, etc. It is such a pleasure to take a leisurely stroll through a small neighborhood market even when I have no desire to buy anything. And in the market there is good people watching as always.

Plumerias(and lush plants everywhere)! Mom, you would love this city just for all the plants here, especially the plumeria trees! They are in full bloom and it is winter here. They are spotting the city from parks to front yards all over the place. It warms my heart to see them here. There are also a wide variety of bromeliads everywhere. You would love it mom!

Art Deco & Art Nouveau: there are little touches of both these architectural styles through out this city. Some of the houses here have made Josh and I marvel with our mouths open. There have been great stained glass windows in some of the residences too.

Tunnels and rock faces: It has been enjoyable to see a wonderful rock wall, enter it through a tunnel, and come out on another side of the city looking out at a scenic marina or a new flavor of another neighborhood.

Josh has concluded that Brazil must make great chairs for their women to sit in. He says this is why most women have such shape with which they sit upon. So, because of Josh's observations, I like the chairs here too. Good job on the breeding, Brazil.

Juice: I have really enjoyed having a variety of juices to choose from. I have often just gone for strawberry, but from time to time will give other juices a shot too. I got a coconut sort of shake that was super tasty! There are other juices which fruits I don't even know. Can't really go wrong with juice.

People watching! As I said, free entertainment. Watching people people watch is a great past time to take part in.

Back down the hill and to the beach, BOY!

There was not much sleep since we got up with David to have breakfast. He didn't get to sit and finish his breakfast because his cab showed up earlier than he expected it to. We had our rushed good bye and off he went( he threw up his breakfast later because his flight was rough. Sorry David! We missed having you around.) We had a laid back breakfast and I laid around with the soft, pregnant cat that lives there at the hostel. If we go back to Rio I might have to go there just to see if she popped our her kittens. The view from the balcony outside our room was so wonderful. I was at peace watching the ships leave from port. My imagination wandered with them.

We moved back down the hill to the other hostel even though it didn't really make sense. It cost a bit more, the breakfast was not as good, it smelled worse, the view was not as glorious. Honestly though, the vibe was better at the Rio Hostel, and that is why we came back. Karla was happy to see us return and we made up a song for her as we ascended those long steps up to the door. It was a steep climb that never seemed to get any easier, especially with all of our bags. We got our laundry going and took off for the beach. It was time to get into the water, and we went back to Ipanema beach. There were so many nearly naked bodies! It was ridiculous how many people there were all the way up and down the beach, right up to where the tide came in. There were groups of men and boys kicking the soccer ball back and forth in colliding circles. It was difficult to walk the shore without interfering with a talley. We hopped in and out in turn so one of us could watch our things. There was shade from a beer tent on the beach, so like pale little gringos we took it and played backgammon for a while.

We took another dip and then hit the road. The road was reserved for pedestrians and there were plenty to watch. Rio certainly is a great people watching city, hence free entertainment! We came upon a street party, aka parade. It reminded me of a March Forth party with a man on stilts and a big band of horns and drums in the center of the crowd. They even laid into a song that March Forth plays from time to time. We were hungry and headed back to the nice corner cafe we had eaten at the day before.

More delicious food with beer and backgammon! I once again realized how happy I am and told Josh of this realization. I have been laughing so much on this trip. Josh just brings it out in me, and for this I thank you, my friend.

We made our way back to shower and relax. And that is what we did. This night we really did take it easy. I walked back up the hill to the house we had hung out at the night before. They had invited me to come back so I could play an electric bass with some of them on drums. I was excited about this, but I didn't make it over till close to eleven. The lights were out, and I guess I kind of expected this being that it was a Monday night and the end of the holiday weekend. I dropped some Paper Bird c.d.s through the gate and made my way back home. Stayed up way too late on the computer typing in this silly blog and chatting with Jalie. zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Slap him so his gums bleed! / Kumbaya my lord!

Wake and breakfast of an egg, juice, and sandwich fixins. Too much coffee. Josh and I walked down to the Gloria neighborhood market. We took a new way down the hill, and came out of the steep streets and walked right by the Sexy Corner Cafe and into the market. It was truly colorful and was pungent all across the board from goodness gracious to the other end of the spectrum.

We hoped onto a bus that took us to Ipanema. By the time we got there, a storm was brewing. We had a coconut and walked down the boardwalk. An ear of corn between the two of us in the shelter of a drink stand to keep out of the rain. Watching the surfers out in the rain was calming. We headed back into the neighborhood, away from the beach. Found an outdoor cafe where we took shelter from the rain for a wonderful diner. We shared a meat platter and a large stein of beer. We realized how grateful we are for our lives and our families and friends. We played several games of backgammon over our sitting and people watching.

We were tired and went back to our new hostel to rest. So rest we did. There were samba bands out in the neighborhood so we stayed up in Santa Teressa for the night. We planned on taking it super easy since we had played out in the streets pretty hard the night before, but.... We made our way out and there was sure enough a band out on the street just outside our hostel. The crowd was big enough to where we couldn't even see the band. People cascaded into the streets talking with one another, drinking and eating. We had a drink and walked down the street into the heart of Santa Teressa looking for the next party. The view from this road is the best view of Rio that I found. You can see the center of town, the water, several bridges criss crossing the bay, and all the lights in the night. At times like this I am reminded of San Francisco and I have a similar fondness for how urban planning is dictated by the landscape.

The next party was unavoidable as it was in the middle of the street one again. The graffiti caught our attention and we had a few more drinks while meandering the party. Another walk to the first party. It was dying down as the band had ended, so we had another beer and decided to talk yet another walk to the second street party again. On our walk over we heard some great music coming from a house party on the hill. We could see them on their patio from across the way, and we were determined to find them. So we did! We were just going to sit and listen from the street, but one of the guys noticed us immediately and had us in. We came up the steps and hung back listening to them all sing to whatever song they wanted to play. The song they were playing when we came in was a song by Sergio Mendes. Josh and I had been singing this song earlier today, and I got a kick out of hearing it right when we showed up. There was one man playing guitar and leading the songs, but everyone there was singing along from time to time. There were three or four others playing drums and I eventually got to playing one too. There were about 15 or 16 people hanging out and they offered us meat off the grill, beer, and plenty of smiles. They played music for a while before starting a conversation. I really liked that they kept played songs rather than verbally trying to communicate with us. But when we got to talking we had good laughs trying to talk from Portuguese to Spanish to English and so on.

Ironically, when we started singing 'Don't worry about a thing, because every little thing is gonna be alright,' a fight broke out down in the street between some of our hosts and some people in the street. There were some pretty heavy throws to the face and kicks to the head, one of the kids from the party started crying, there was screaming from the men and women, neighbors started watching from their windows, and all Josh and I could do was watch from the patio with furrowed brows! We were not gonna split out onto the street with all that mayhem going on. Cops showed up almost immediately, as there was a cop shop just around the corner. When machine guns show up on the scene, fights tend to come to an end. There was a lot of yelling still, from both groups trying to explain the fight. I still am not sure how or why it started. Our hosts came in and there was more yelling and instant replays and explanations to one another. Then more beer. Then laughing and hugs between us all. They gave me a c.d. of their band and some stickers and then we took off for home.

When we got back to our hostel, David and some others were up drinking vodka. So of course we joined them. And we said we were gonna take it easy! Ha! I was on the balcony talking with my new Chilean friend, and Josh managed to get royally drunk in no time. I came back in the room to Josh asking about David's sister, so I said that David should never introduce Josh to his sister. Before I could realize, Josh slapped me! I was pouring a drink so all I could do was try not to spill my beverage. So he slapped me again on the other cheek! What a drunk bitch! The first chance I got I slapped him back, thus allowing his gums to bleed a bit. This slap was vengeful, and also to wake him up a bit. Good times! We stayed up late enough and hit the sack before the sun came up. We had told David to wake us up for breakfast so we could say good bye before he flew out.