So we got a catamaran across to Ilha Grande at 4pm, and then some guys met us at the end of the pier and loaded our backpacks on to what can only be described as a plank of wood with wheels on it, strung a bit of rope around the bags, and wheeled our bags up to the hostel. We were relieved as it turned out to be a fair walk to the hostel we were staying in, as as previously mentined they weight a tonne each. Although Im pleased to say that ours are not the biggest bags in our tour group. Not by a long shot. Actually we were glad that our hostel was a bit further inland, as less noise means more sleep.
For those that are wondering our gap tour gap consists of a group of 12 people, of varying ages, and the majority are from England, although 1 pair are from Washington DC and another couple are from Victoria in Oz.
So we checked in to the hostel and met up with the group for a bit of dinner. We went to a sort of buffet restaurant that charges you for food by the 100 grams - not good for those with eyes greedier than their bellies, but great at encouraging you to finish all the food on your plate, as youve already paid for it. Anyway had some pretty tasty food, whilst getting eaten by mozzies. It was at this point that I realised I should have put some of the Peaceful Sleep stick on to my ankles as we were sitting at a table outside eating, and so were those little b*stards! Did I mention there are a LOT of mozzies in Brazil?!
Next day we had brekky at the hostel (fresh fruit like sliced mango and melon yum, and cakes - they like their cakes from brekky here) and then went for a 2.5 hour trek around the island to get to Lopez Mendes which is a beautiful beach. Pretty untouched and thankfully no kikoy vendors, or vendors of any other sort. By the way 2.5 hours of trekking was enough to make me wonder how Im ever going to walk the Inca Trail for 4 days, but thats another story. The very same day Brazil happened to be playing in the footie world cup, so the boys were very torn between staying in town and watching the game or coming on the hike. The hike won, which is a good thing considering that Brazil went on to loose their game. PS the Brazilians Love their football its practically a religion here and the locals were clearly gutted at the loss...however not for long...
That night we were fortunate enough to land in the middle of the Islands July Festiva, where they string streamers (green and yellow of course) up over the street and set up loads of food and drink stalls. They also had a live band, which people were salsa dancing to, so we tried out or best salsa moves on the locals.
One interesting note about the dessert on the island...there are these large see through plastic boxes on wheels (like a cart) with cakes in it, and people stop in the street and get their dessert from that. I had some yummy rocky road, despite its weird origins.
Day 2 on the island and we decided to take a boat trip to do a bit of snorkelling. That boat trip has now become known as the BFH (or Boat From Hell)...We set off at 11h00 and were meant to stop at 3 different beaches for some snorkelling and also a restaurant for lunch (ie 4 stops). After 2.5 hours on the boat (it was a VERY slow boat...put...putt...putt) we still hadnt made the first stop yet, so our tour leader convinced them to stop at the nearest beach for a while to give us a break from the boat. Then the engine stopped and we drifted around at sea for 15 mins while they fixed it. Then we eventually stopped at a lovely little beach and did a bit of snorkelling for 45 mins. Then the driver honked the horn and we all clambered back on board the rickety boat to head to the next stop...putt putt putt...
When we arrived at the next stop, the driver of the boat suddenly announced that we had to pay an extra 5 RS each to go down in to the cave, to see the sight they had earlier shown in a photo when describing the tour, which we werent very happy with, since they didnt make it clear up front, so I didnt go down the hole and see the second site.
Then we set off back towards Barroa, and the boat broke down again, so we were drifting around for 30 mins listening to wrenches clanging while they tried to fix it. Weve never been so happy to hear an engine start up. Then it was another 3 hour boat trip back to hostel. There was no time for the promised last 2 stops, as it was already getting dark, besides the fact that we hadnt stopped for lunch and all were starving by that point, and desperate for a baneiro! Anyway we learned a good lesson...always check out the boat before handing over any money! Our tour leader managed to get some money back, so not too bad, just a shame we didnt spend much time snorkelling on the day. We did get back to Barroa to find the July festival in full swing and saw some traditional dancing in full costume, so ended the day on a good note. Although when I got in to bed, the room was still swaying gently beneath me, and I hadnt been drinking. 6 hours on a boat will do that to you!
Despite the BFH, Ilha Grande is a beautiful island and we are glad that we were lucky enough to see it, and had some great weather here. Now slightly sunburnt despite the factor 50.
Today we got up early and got the 9am catamaran back to the mainland. Then we got a bus 1.5 hours to Paraty which is a charming old town with cobbled streets. But more on that later. So many mozzies to kill and so little time!
Hope everyone is well at home.
Kirst x
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