Destination 6: Brazil and the end of the Americas

''FIRST LAPA EXPERIENCE''

Brazil...... Brazil was supposed to be beach beach beach.....but the weather in Brazil had other ideas for us! Torrential rain ravished the south of Brazil killing about a 100 people in December. Florianopolis (the surfer/movie star hangout) of Brazil was supposed to be one of the highlights of our South American leg! Obviously, cause being rockstars ourselves, we would naturally fit in. In the end, due to the weather we decided to go to the Pantanal (Brazilian Wetlands) with the persuasion of a young Canadian lass we met in Iguazu. Sarah Jones teamed up with team Roadtrippin the Sphere and we hit the road from Iguazu to the Pantanal.

The 14 hour bus ride from Iguazu to Campo Grande (the arse end of nowhere excuse my French) was a killer......we had no idea where we were going, had to change bus, we stopped constantly, people told us to get off, then get back on, then get off (all in the most basic form of body language communication as Englsih was not happening)......eventually we stopped and for some reason unknown to us we had to sit in the middle of nowhere waiting for some other bus to arrive and take us to Campo Grande. Not the safest feeling when you waiting around and it is 11 o clock at night and all the English speaking Brazilian's you have met along the way have said', ''be careful, all tourists gets robbed in Brazil''.

We eventually arrived in Campo Grande and booked our trip of the world famous Pantanal! The guy at the agency/hostel was very nice and showed us some amazing pictures of these wetlands (crocodiles, horseback riding in shoulder deep wetlands, swimming and snorkeling etc). We were sold a vast expanse of beautiful untouched wetland. Once we got to the Pantanal we soon discovered it was not the rainy nor the wet season. It was in fact the end of the dry season and to say there was a mass of H20 around would be akin to saying Pol Pot was humanitarian of the year 1979!

Despite our lack of research in the Pantanal it really turned out to be a massive relaxing session for the three adventurers. We had a nice group of people with us.....an eccentric 40 something Swiss dude, 3 crazee Dutchies (one of whom we met on a bus in Argentina), and a few other randoms! The Pantanal, despite being dry was beautiful and very relaxing! We ate well (very well), everyday breakfast lunch and dinner was served buffet style ......loads of meat, loads of veggies and salads....yum yum. When we weren't eating, we lying by the pool soaking up the rays whilst Sara's Ipod kept us entertained! When we weren't eating, sleeping, drinking by the pool we were doing our adventure activities. Adventure activities consisted of kicking an old horse around the farm, fishing for piranhas, cayman spotting and walks around the Pantanal. We caught some beautiful sunsets, had one weird but massive night at the ''campers'' campsite (budget accomodation and budget booze), caught up on some relaxation (movies, pool, swimming, reading etc). The Pantanal was a perfect stop on route to Rio......which we would soon discover was not a place for someone afraid to party! It gave us time to chill out, recoup after the extremities of Argentina and give our livers a half time break because Rio was to be another party session.

First of all we had to get to Rio....small problem of 29 hour bus journey on Brazilian buses (no full cama or ''bed'', no champagne and hot meals, no movies, no random old dude to tuck you in with a blanket.....just sheer bumpy uncomfortableness for 29 hours! But we were definitely ready to endure the pain as the grass was always greener on the other side......Rio was the other side and it promised bikinis, Brazilians, ''Brazilians'', bronzed bodies, booze and a big party! Supermodels, sun and the samba was the dream....but what would be in store for the three entrepid adventurers?

We arrived into Rio tired, dreary individuals and caught a taxi to Mellow Yellow (according to Chris ''Spot''' Wynn the most legend backpackers ever). The taxi was a insightful experience into traveling and the art of being prepared. We stepped of the bus and the taxi drivers offered us a ride to Copacabana, where Mellow Yellow was situated! How much, ''80 Real'' the answer. Luckily we had met a French couple and they simply said they had spoken to a hostel in the area and they said we should not pay more than 40 Real (half the quote). Just goes to show that piss poor performance can be avoided by proper preparation.....thanks the Frenchies!


Our first Friday in Rio was a goodie....we bought or should I say invested in a pair of authentic Brazilian beach bats, hit the beach and then returned to the hostel to get ready for our first real Brazilian experience......the Lapa Street party. The party was great, literally an area full of street revellers and street vendors going off to the sound of Brazilian dancing and drums! The vendors sold everything from beer, to Churros, to meat on a stick and everyone was really into the party! We had a big group of us (Dom 'Cedric' Chennells, Peta, Ester, Sarah, Jules and myself) and the night was a good one! Guy, in a drunken state had 100 reals stolen out of his hand by a big Brazilian dude. The thief skillfully managed to offload the 100 reals to a mate so when he confronted the pickpocket he had nothing in his hand! Rio 1 Guy 0 ,or should I say Rio 100 Guy 0!

''WHAT A VIEW''

Saturday there was excitement in the air for Jules as Sexy Simmy was arriving. Sim arrived and the party was gotten started by going to the Maracana stadium to watch a Brazilian footie game. Footie game was amazing despite it being a mid table affair. The stadium was absolutely immense and despite a slow first half the game really heated up when the opposition and underdogs scored a cracking goal. This made for a real interesting second half.....lots of dancing, shouting, singing, dancing under the big flags etc etc. We also met a few peeps from the hostel....team Faroe Islands (where is that, yes, we asked the same question), Team Drinking England (Rich and Chris, shortly to be joined by Ed).....some of the people we were going to p-a-r-taaayyyy with over the next week or so! Football was a real experience, the drinks before hand, the hot as hell meat on a stick, the song singing in the street etc etc. This really got us in the mood for the ever famous Favela Funk 'shake your ass like a local'' street party! The street party was a riot! We danced like we hadn't danced before.......just being in that environment was a real eye opener! To make it in the Favela you have to have a fast bike, be 6'3'' with huge muscles, be able to dance like a backup to Madonna and wear a massive silver chain over an intimidating scar and tattoo covered body! That is if you a boy, if you a girl you need to wear a short short skirt and be able to shake your ass side to side at the approximate rate of a humming bird whilst still being able to shift your hips up and down.....pretty near impossible if you ever try it! It takes the co-ordination that truly only a Brazilian is born with. The favela parties take place in massive warehouses...

Tulio, the Mellow Yellow bouncer (a mountain of a man) escourts you into the club and you are whisked upstairs to the ''gringo'' section. The gringo section (also the VIP section) is upstairs and overlooks the sea of sweaty humanity below. This section is still very busy but less intimidating then the cattle market below. We have seen some meat markets in our time but nothing really compares to this.....just ask Simone. She was walking through the dance floor, holding Julian's hand, when some huge man grabbed her face, pulled her in and licked the length of her cheek from jaw to temple. Charming chat up line, should really put that one in the memory bank and use it!

Besides being a piece of meat these parties rock and we had a great time there.....danced like Brazilians (or should I say we tried to) through he night and had a really fab time. Most of all I will remember DJ Creo and his thumping tune that went something like, ''baba ba baba ba baaaa.......baba ba baba ba baaaa , creo creo creo!'' Our first week in Rio was spent soaking up some rays, seeing the sights like the Christ Statue, going out to a few nice restaurants and taking in some drinks. Brazil is known for its Churrascaria Restaurants. These restaurants are all you can eat buffets where they bring round all sorts of meats and cuts on massive skewers. There is also massive buffet with everything from Sushi to Lasagne to the most amazing salads etc! They are the best restaurants ever......all you can eat sushi and chicken hearts for 20 real...can you ask for more? Brazil is also known for its beaches and you can see why......they are long and full of interesting things to see. The guys are the best athletes I have ever seen.....they play beach volleyball with their bodies (shoulders, chestm head and feet).....some of the most amazing displays of talent! There is always something interesting to see. Things to suite anyone's taste.....fit bodies, lady boys in thongs, speedos, guys doing gymnastics on the beach, guys kicking footballs around like they are Maradonna, amazing beach sculptures, surfers, etc etc. A day at the beach is never dull and you see some amazing skills.....it is no wonder they are have dominated football for so long!

''XMAS WITH A TOUCH OF SAFFA AND BRAZIL''

We also went on a favela tour during the day. After seeing the acclaimed film ''City of God'' we had always wanted to see this place in real life. During the day it is quite an experience. The slums are controlled by drug lords who keep the peace. The police (that aren't corrupt) steer clear of these favelas and let them be. As do the Brazilian government who let these slums swell to the massive sizes they are today. The Rochina Favela is huge and it is maze of houses built on top of steep hill. The favela is haphazard, dirty and dangerous but it has certain positiveness about it you cant deny. People are normal, just living there and seem quite content! Rochina is estimated to have around 200 000 residents. The land is government owned but if the government now tried to displace the inhabitants there would be mass uprising. Where would they be taken to etc etc. As mentioned earlier this favela is controlled by 2 or 3 gangs who control drugs and money flowing in and out of the favela. The success of a druglord is based on how their ability to control the peace in the favela as the average inhabitant is simply a normal working class Brazilian wanting to live close to work but cant afford the rent in a more normal area of Rio!

As we became the old hands of Rio and Mellow Yellow we made some good friends. In addition to Team Faroe we picked up James, Team Watford (Ama, Emila and Tif) and of course our old Radelaide mates, Leigh ''Jam Marmalade'' Rebbeck and Alex ''I cant win a drinking competition to save my life'' Overall. With this core group of COOL people we had a great time. In fact we were having so much of a good time we wanted to change our flight from Rio to Caracas, Venezuela to a couple of days later. As I mentioned we were having such a blast we completely forgot to check our dates so when we phoned up Jemma (our trusty Manchester round the world specialist) to change our flight she was a bit confused.........

Reasoning........

Jules: Hi Jemma, pleasantries, blah did blah. Please can we change our flight from from Rio to Caracas.

Jemma: Hmmmm, what time is it there?
Jules: 10 in the morning
Jemma: your flight just took off, too bad so sad!

Well done Jules and Guy....again proving your worth as the worlds best backpackers!
So, we were forced to stay in Rio another few days.....but we weren't really that fussed. We were having fun and felt like rockstars in Rio! Speaking of Rockstars we went to go see Madonna in the Maracana Stadium! Real good hoot!

As the days flew by slowly but surely the inevitable had to happen. the dream had to come to an end......Team Faroe departed, then Ama departed, the Tif and Emilia departed and so the list goes on. As the familiar friendly faces were replaced by fresh new ones we were ''ready to blow this rice paddy''.....but not before seeing Sugar Loaf, the most spectacular view in South America. Pity we timed it so well that when we got to the top we could hardly see 2 meters in front of us......Besides this sad ending we can well and truly say we had a blast in Rio! Thanks to everyone we mention above for making our short time in Rio so memorable!

The end of the Americas : (

Before we got to Oz Team Roadtrippinthesphere had some traveling to do. As you will remember, we were stranded in Rio due to a team communication error! Anyways, Jemma, a real life rockstar organised a change of date flight to Caracas at the additional cost of 100 quid. At one stage we were staring down the barrell of buying another 400 quid flight to Caracas, which, would not have been ideal! Jemma = lifesaver! So we left Rio, flew to Caracas Venezvuela for a night. We wont count it as a destination on our trip even though we did get the passport stamp. We simply crashed and got ready to return to destination 1, the US of A.

This time we had a couple days on the West Coast over Xmas. LA and San Diego were the destinations!

Had a cool couple of days there cruising around in a big convertable we rented! These few days quickly came to an end and then it was West West West all the way to East...... to Australia!