February 24, 2008 - Belo Horizonte, Brasil
===============================
I had a really early wakeup (2:45 AM). I was ready and checked out by 3:40 AM. I had to wake up the night manager to hand over my room key. We waited on the street for 5-6 minutes before hailing a cab. It cost me R$5 (US$3) to the Rodoviaria which was definitely better than hauling the 3 bags yourself for nearly a Kilometre. Police guards were all around the Rodoviaria. Unless one has a valid ticket, he/she is not allowed to enter the Rodoviaria between Midnight and 6 AM.
Felt quite safe. I headed downstairs to platform H2 for the bus to the airport. There were hardly 5 passengers from the Rodoviaria headed to the airport. When the bus made a stop at Pampulha airport before heading to the Belo Airport, the bus was packed with airport staff and aircraft crew. I spelt a bit during the ride to the Belo Airport.
E-Check in was working and my check-in process was done in about 7 minutes (of which 4 were spent waiting for an agent to check my bag!). I think the flight was headed onward to Rio (after the stop at Sao Paulo) and perhaps out of Brasil. We had to go through the International Check in process and one of my wonderful bottles of Hot Sauce had to be thrown out. However, my small bottle of the actual peppers soaked in Vinegar was allowed to go through!
Randomness as always! In fairness, I was given the option to go back and CHECK-IN my bottle of Hot Sauce to Sao Paulo! Too much hassle and I took the easier option of putting it in Garbage. A gentleman in front of me, had to throw away his quite expensive bottle of after shave. I am not sure these idiotic randomness will cease in my lifetime.
During the first part of the flight, I read my guidebooks and wrote down things to see and do in Sao Paulo. I dozed rather well during the second part of the flight.
February 24, 2008 - Sao Paulo, Brasil
============================
The flight landed 15-minutes late. There was a confusion at the baggage carousel as we were direction to one carousel, while the display indicator said another! The bags took about 30-minutes to arrive. As we had landed at International section of the airport, I had to show my boarding pass at Passport Control. Everyone from the plane (even those folks with 7+ bags for 2 people) were going through the green channel! Customs clearance took another 20 minutes. Inefficiencies just seem to multiply in the bigger cities here!
The girl at the tourist office (at the airport) spoke English and was quite helpful. As I was running out of local currency, I took some money using my ATM card. I wanted to buy add some money to my Brazilian Mobile Number as I need to call my Sao Paulo contacts.
There was a bus to the centre of Sao Paulo from the airport and the cost was R$28 - which was the most expensive thus far. The bus had hardly 10 folks. It was air conditioned and took about 30-35 minutes to reach Praca Republica. My hotel was around the corner - even a taxi driver indicated that I had to walk! I rolled by duffel and reached the hotel shortly. Despite it being just 10 AM, I was allowed to check-in. I was given a very spacious room with Air-conditioning, Mini fridge, TV (very few channels) and a view of the street. I was paying R$76 (US$ 43 approx) per night. Breakfast was included - as always. I think the price appears to be cheaper that what I had written down in my Grand Itinerary - I had it down as R$93 per night!
I spent a few minutes making notes on some of the additional places I wanted to see. Andre (the tourism writer) called and asked if we could meet tomorrow. It was quite fine by me. It was turning out to be quite a dull grey day.
I asked the hotel front desk for additional information on the places I was planning to see before taking a bus to the Butanta Snake Farm. The bus conductor was not very communicative. A few passenger helped me get off at the appropriate stop. I still had a 20-minute walk from here before I reached the Snake farm.
I paid the R$5 entry fee and started going around the farm. They have very good laboratories and exhibits. All of the descriptions were in Portuguese. There was a central hall which contained a large number of live snake specimens. The INDIAN PYTHON was the most magnificent snake - among those present. Lunch was bread and butter!
The money exhibit was closed. I paid a visit to the historical museum at the farm and headed out. This is a very nice place.
I took a bus to the centre of Sao Paulo to visit MASP. I got off 1-stop later than I was supposed to. It started raining heavily. Despite my raincoat, I took shelter for about 25-minutes before walking into MASP (Museo de Arte Sao Paulo). The entry fee was R$15 and all bags had to be checked in at the entrance.
MASP turned out to be a VERY, VERY good museum. Works by almost all major European artists were presented. The unusual one for me was a painting by Toulouse-Lautrec as I had never seen one before in a museum. The Brazilian Artist Candido Portinari had quite a few works on display here. My revelation during this visit came when I visited the Photo Gallery at MASP.
TATSUMI ORIMUTO´s photographs with his mother, chickens, bread, drums etc were fantastic. The creativity that went into creating these pictures were simply brilliant. He is one contemporary Photographer whose works should not be missed.
I have to thank my new friend (Robert, the Architect from Belo Horizonte) without whose recommendation, I would not have visited MASP. Definitely a place worth visiting.
It was still raining as I prepared to leave the museum. I took a bus back to the hotel and spent an hour or so drying and relaxing. There was a Championship match between BOTAFOGO and FLAMENGO. Just as I turned on the TV, FLAMENGO equalized with a Penalty shot. Players on either side were red-carded and both teams were down to 10 players each. Then 1 more player was red-carded from BOTAFOGO. Now there were 9 BOTAFOGO players to 10 from FLAMENGO playing a game that was supposed to have 11 a side! I was enjoying it. FLAMENGO won with a score of 2-1. This is the kind of game one ought to see at MARACANA (where it was being played). The stadium was packed (perhaps 200,000 people?). I can only imagine the passion and drama in the stands. It was pouring in Rio (where Maracana is located) as well. Did not matter as most males were shirtless!
The hotel manager had done some research while I was resting and had found an Indian restaurant for me. I called the restaurant and obtained directions. I took the metro this time. It was an easy ride plus a 15 to 20-minute walk. While the food was OK, the service was indifferent at best as the waiters were more interested in chatting amongst themselves than in serving customers! I will need to explore other restaurants in the next 2 days.
I took a train back to Centro. Quite a few unsavoury figures about. There was a heavy police presence including the occasional helicopter sweeping its powerful beam on the action down below.
The Oscars are on tonight. I am not sure if I will get the live broadcast on the TV in my room (as it has very few channels). The hotel has free internet.
I meet Andre at 9:30 AM tomorrow.
Monday, March 24, 2008
Friday, March 21, 2008
February 20-23, 2008 - Belo Horizonte, Brasil
February 20, 2008 - Belo Horizonte, Brasil
===============================
I did not sleep well last night. Perhaps a new hotel and the fact that it was a bit run down gave me a queasy feeling and kept me from sleeping. I woke up at 7 AM and finished breakfast by 8:15 AM. I saw regular folks (families) etc. at the breakfast table indicating that the hotel was not all that bad despite its appearance and weird insistence on paying before you stay! I paid up for one more night´s stay (R$45 - US$27) and headed to the Rodoviaria 10 minutes away. The place around my hotel was far more livelier now than it was last night.
The 8:30 AM bus to Ouro Preto had just departed and the next bus was at 9:30 AM. As there was no other bus company running a bus to Ouro Preto before 9:30 AM, I booked a ticket on the 9:30 AM bus to Ouro Preto and a return ticket from Ouro Preto to Belo Horizonte on the 6:30 PM bus as my guidebook had warned that return buses get full rather quickly. The round trip cost me R$36 (US$22).
I went to the Post office to buy some stamps for the cards I had to mail. WINDOWS 98 systems were being used and they were constantly freezing up! I finally managed to get the stamps and headed to the tourist office at the Rodoviaria and obtained a decent map of Ouro Preto.
I headed to the platform from where the bus was scheduled to depart. I saw guards all around. Security like this does make one feel safe despite warnings from locals. The bus pulls up to the platform at 9:25 AM. It is an executive style bus, with air-conditioning and reclining seats.
Belo Horizonte sits in a valley. As the bus headed towards Ouro Preto I could see lush green hills all around. We headed south towards RIO. The bus stopped occasionally to pick up folks. Due to the lack of sleep the previous night, I dozed off and woke up as we reached the Ouro Preto Rodoviaria at 11:15 AM (a tad earlier than the projected 2 hours of travel time).
February 20, 2008 - Ouro Preto, Brasil
=============================
I walk out of the bus station and head to Igreja Paula. It is closed. An elderly gentlemen explains the lay of the land and points out the different churches and tells me that Igreja Paula would open at 1:30 PM. I thank him and take the steep cobble stone street to Igreja Rosario. It is closed as well. I take pictures of the exterior.
Ouro Preto is a UNESCO World Heritage site. While there are times where certain specific edifices are declared World heritage Sites by the UNESCO, in the case of Ouro Preto, the entire city has been declared a World heritage site. All streets in Ouro Preto appear to be cobble stoned and the houses are painted in bright colours.
I walk around a bit and after getting some directions from a policeman, I hit a Vegetarian restaurant (ADEGA). I am quite upset with my guidebook when it comes to vegetarian restaurants. Most of these folks think that a restaurant having a salad bar qualifies as an "Excellent" vegetarian restaurant and they recommend it "very highly". This place (ADEGA) had more meat dishes than vegetarian choices! I should become a writer and recommender of Vegetarian restaurants - after all, it takes a committed vegetarian to know what is a "Highly recommended" vegetarian restaurant and what is most definitely NOT! I made what I could of the lunch buffet.
I walked more of the cobble stone streets until I hit the centre of Ouro Preto and Praca Tiradentes. I ask the local tourist office for directions and a better map. I snap a few pictures of the Praca and Museo Inconfidencia. The single greatest artist associated with Ouro Preto and the adjacent town of Congonhas de Campo (which I plan to visit as well) was Antonio Francisco Lisboa - more commonly known as Alejadinho.
I visit Igreja Carmo next. No photography permitted. I accept and honour it. (Not so with many tourists - Left onto me, I would delete the entire memory card - just for disobeying!). Igreja Carmo is a very Impressive church.
I head next to San Francisco de Assis which contained an extraordinary ceiling painting (like the one done at the Sistine Chapel by Michelangelo) that took 10 years of effort and was done by Athaide. The church also contained more of Alejadinho´s work. I headed next to Museo de Alejadinho. It was a long steep walk down and back up again on cobble stoned streets. It was HOT. The museum was not that spectacular.
However all this walking gave me opportunities to view Ouro Preto and appreciate its beauty from different places. Ouro Preto is also situated in a valley. With the exception of the Praca Tiradentes, all the streets either go up or down and all of them are cobblestoned. Quite extraordinary. Gold riches (no doubt plundered from some local tribe or area) has been used extensively to decorate many of these churches. The former name of Ouro Preto was Villa Rica.
I walk a long way to reach Igreja Pilar. I stop at a famous pastry shop (Beijinho doce) to "sample" stuff. Pretty good indeed. The weather has been glorious so far. All of the churches ban Photography outright. Carrying my tripod appears to have been a waste thus far. I reach Igreja Pilar and pay the R$4 entry fee. This is singularly the best Church thus far. However, Igreja San Francisco still has the best ceiling painting. One can belong to another faith or even be an atheist, but workmanship like this needs to be appreciated.
I walk to the train station. The last train to Marianna has left. I take a few pictures of the train station and take a different route to reach Praca Tiradentes. I get more excellent views of Ouro Preto during this walk. I visit the Teatro Municipal and pay the R$2 entry fee. I am finally allowed to take pictures and use my tripod! Teatro Municipal at Ouro Preto is the oldest theatre (1776) still having performances. The sound and lighting systems were being tested during the time I visited the theatre.
After I finished my visit, I headed out. There was a very light drizzle. I reached the governor´s palace at Praca Tiradentes and took a few pictures of the Praca. I walked to the Rodoviaria and am there by 5:50 PM. I am, however, not allowed to board the 6 PM bus as I have a "reservation" for the 6:30 PM bus. Advance booking happens to have put me at a clear disadvantage here!
I managed to kill 25 minutes and board the 6:30 PM bus. I observe that it is a full moon night. With some advance planning, I could have spent the night at Ouro Preto and taken pictures of these wonderful city by the full moon light. Oh well! I doze during the ride back. We reach Belo Horizonte around 8:30 PM.
February 20, 2008 - Belo Horizonte, Brasil
===============================
I head to the hotel, have a wash (they actually changed sheets - I know I am being a bit nasty here. But if you saw the hotel, you would come to the same conclusions and make the same comments as I do) and head our for dinner.
I take a Taxi and ask to be taken to Maharaja restaurant. (yes, this was one of the places recommended as a vegetarian restaurant by the tourism office folks). All I know is that with a name like Maharaja (or the Ubiquitous and Unimaginative 'Taj Mahal') the cuisine definitely has to be Indian. Although my hotel is very close to the bus station and is therefore very helpful for me to travel to other nearby cities, when it comes to restaurants, the downtown area (where my hotel is located) is a complete dump. The 15-minute taxi ride cost me R$10.
Maharaja appears to be a swank restaurant. I am ushered to my table by a Brazilian Hostess who speaks adequate English for us to communicate). I request and am seated in the non-smoking area. I am the SOLE person in this area - that can seat at least 50 people. Most folks are sitting outside listening to some live Sitar music and watching some Bollywood stuff on a 60 inch screen. Way too tacky for such a swank restaurant!
I order food (yes, as I suspected it is an Indian restaurant with ample vegetarian fare) and chat with the hostess, Sara Ananda Gomes. Her father is the Honorary Indian Vice-Consul at Belo Horizonte. The Indian Consulate is in the 2nd floor of this building. The restaurant has been open only for a month. It has an Indian chef poached from a Sao Paulo restaurant. I was introduced to the Sitar (and flute) player who was trained in Varanasi 15 years ago.
Sara is a 2nd year medical student. She needs to do 4 more years of college. She is hostessing until college opens. Being who she is, she does NOT need the Job. Her great grandfather migrated from Goa to Brasil. Her father was born here, practices Hinduism and is a vegetarian. All his children have the middle name - ANANDA - meaning happiness.
Dinner turns out to be quite decent and cost me R$50 (US$28). I would say it is definitely worth it compared to some of the bills I have had for lousy Italian crap.
Sara made sure I met her father - the Honorary Indian Vice-Consul himself. We chatted a bit. We exchanged cards. I may even get to meet the Consul when I visit Sao Paulo as he is one of my own - a South Indian by the name of Swaminathan. Who knows, if I am lucky I may even get some decent Idly and dosa at his place.
Mr. Gomes also acts as a business liaison between India and Brasil. He travels to India frequently. There are apparently 60 Indian families here (in Belo Horizonte). While some of those families are in trade, other families work for ACCOR-MITTAL (the Steel Giant whose office tower is right across the restaurant)
I may re-visit this place on Friday or Saturday.
I take a taxi back to the Hotel. Taxi drivers operate 12-hour shifts here. I write my diary and go to bed.
Ouro Preto is an extraordinary place. I would highly recommend staying overnight.
February 21, 2008 - Belo Horizonte, Brasil
===============================
Try as I might I could not wake up early. I had breakfast at 9 AM and paid the hotel for 2 more nights. I might actually wind up staying all the 5-nights here as originally planned. I get to the Rodoviaria by 9:20 AM. The next bus to Congonhas de Campo is at 10:15 AM. I booked a ticket (R$15) as I did not have an alternative option. After all, I have travelled to Belo Horizonte purely to see Ouro Preto and Congonhas (pronounced CON-GON-YAS). I spent about 15-minutes checking my e-mail at an Internet cafe at the Rodoviaria.
I boarded the bus and dozed off. The bus route would more or less be the same as Ouro Preto. The two towns are 20 kilometres apart and they do not have a direct bus service! I woke up at 11:45 AM as the bus reached Congonhas. I headed to the tourism office nearby as the Tourist office at the Rodoviaria (Belo Horizonte) did not have any information on Congonhas. The tourist office lady spoke only Portuguese and she appeared to be telling me things without understanding the information I was seeking.
February 21, 2008 - Congonhas de Campo, Brasil
=====================================
I finally got the Bus numbers and timings to reach Cathedral Bom Jesus where Alejadinho´s greatest works rest. There was a bus at 12 Noon from the Rodoviaria to Cathedral Bom Jesus. waited and the bus arrived a little after 12. I paid the R$1.70 fare and took a seat. The bus traipsed all over town (really, it would be hard to find out if he missed passing a single street!) before reaching the Cathedral after 25 minutes (The distance - as the crow flies - from the Rodoviaria to the Cathedral is 3 Kilometres or 1.8 miles!) While the cathedral does not permit any Photos, the crowing achievement of Alejadinho are the 12 prophets (carved by him) who straddle the entrance to the cathedral. Magnificent works. I took as many pictures as possible. I did visit the cathedral as well and it had a good ceiling painting as well. Perhaps it was Athaide. I did not follow the Portuguese there.
The Cathedral is situated on a hill and provides excellent views of the town below. I had the SECOND worst lunch ever at a restaurant (Corva do Daniel) recommended by the Guidebook. The Salad I ordered had HUGE slides of carrots, beetroot, potato, Onion and cucumber and peppers. Granted it was a SALAD. I had expected the vegetables to be grated or thinly sliced. Not as big as the actual veggies!
I had "Dulce de Leche" for dessert and hated it. To those of Indian Origin reading this the following comparison might help - it tasted like mushy Jaggery! Coca-Cola was the best part of Lunch!
As I had just missed the bus to Rodoviaria, I spent some more time taking pictures. I had no interest in even looking at souvenirs. I took a bus back to the Rodoviaria around 2:50 Pm. The bus took a grand tour before reaching the Rodoviaria around 3:25 PM or so. The catch here was that I had to wait for the Bus (heading to Belo Horizonte) to pull-in before I could buy tickets! I had an Orange juice and waited. The bus from Sao Joao Del Rei that is headed to wards Belo Horizonte pulls up around 3:50. I buy the ticket (R$15) and board the bus. No Air-conditioning. I open the window and doze all the way.
February 21, 2008 - Belo Horizonte, Brasil
===============================
I reach Belo Horizonte around 5:30 PM. I visit the TIM (Mobile company) office next to the hotel. After a 30 minute wait during which my name, passport number and date of birth were collected, I am approved to make OUTGOING Calls! Yippee! I must say the customer service representative there was a very helpful young kid. I said Muito Obrigado (Thank You very much) many times.
I made a quick stop at the hotel, leaving behind the camera and accessories (in my larger bag and locking it) before heading out. I reach an Internet cafe after 15 minutes. The place is quite lively at 6:45 PM. I stay there for 90 minutes as I need to back up my memory cards to my portable hard drives (had not done it for a few days). I read the news and reply to e-mail messages.
I visit a hotel close by to check on their rates. Front desk tells me to call reservations before 6 PM to get better rates than what the front desk can provide. I spot a lot of young well dressed young girls. It is apparently a graduation party for Biology students. I ogle! They could be studying Astronomy for all I care.
I have dinner at an Italian restaurant located at this hotel. I have a Penne Arabiata along with a Brazilian Miolo Selecao 2006. It turns out to be a good combination. The Miolo is one of the few wines made in Brasil. The Miolo Selecao is a combination of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Pinot Noir. It has a light nose and is light bodied with a short finish. Dinner turns out to be a far better experience than the disgusting lunch.
I write some diary while waiting for the food to arrive. I head back to the hotel after dinner.
As I have seen the two places I had planned on seeing and as I have 2 more days in Belo, I may visit Sao Joao del Rei tomorrow.
February 22, 2008 - Belo Horizonte, Brasil
===============================
I woke up at 4:30 AM and was out of the Hotel by 5:30 AM. I was at the Rodoviaria by 5:40 AM and bought a ticket to Sao Joao del Rei on the 6 AM bus. This was to be a 3-hour bus Journey via Congonhas de Campo. It seems like the pilgrimage trips I did with my folks to various places when I was growing up! There was a thick fog and light rain as we left Belo Horizonte. I dozed on and off. We had a 15-minute break at Congonhas to stretch our legs, use the bathroom, get some food etc. The 1-way trip to Sao Joao Del Rei is quite pricey at R$34 and the bus is not an executive bus!
The Scenery from Congonhas to Sao Joao was unremarkable and I dozed some more to compensate for the 4:30 AM wakeup. We reached Sao Joao del Rei around 9:15 AM or so.
February 22, 2008 - Sao Joao Del Rei, Brasil
=================================
I obtained the directions to city centre and took a local bus to see San Francisco de Assisi Church with a few works by Alejadinho. After spending some time there and taking pictures, I tried to head to the nearest tourist office. It was closed. As there was a pewter factory nearby, I wandered in to see the products. There was an artisan, who was using an old fashioned lathe to churn out all the pewter products on display in the shop. He took time off from his work to explain the process to me (in Portuguese, of course!). I promised to return later in the day (as I did not want to be carrying around these heavy souvenirs all day long)
I had a long (and clueless) walk and finally reached the train station. I reached there at 11:05 AM. Most offices open close at 11 AM and re-open at 1 PM. Man, I want to work in a place that forces a 2-3 hour lunch!
One of the train station employees saw me peering (helplessly) through the window and come up to ask what I wanted. She spoke decent English and directed me to the tourist office. I headed there and obtained good local maps and brochures in English. I headed to Carmelo, Pilar and a few other churches. All were closed for Lunch! I was hungry as well as I left way too early for breakfast! I found a decent food-by-weight (Comida-por-Kilo) place. They had good salads and fruits. I fill up my entire place and it still came up to 1/3 of a Kilo. Food-by-Weight places are quite common in Brasil. These folks will be bankrupted in no time if they opened similar places in the USA! Despite the abundance of food-by-weight places, the folks here are generally slim.
Post lunch, I headed back to the Pewter factory and purchased some souvenirs. I took a long and leisurely walk back to the train station. It was a gorgeous, picture perfect day. On reaching the train station, I purchased a round trip to the nearby town of TIRADENTES (10 Kilometres - 6 Miles away) along with a visit to the Train Museum at Sao Joao del Rei for $25 (US$13). This turned out to be a very good museum with a number of old coaches and locomotives. Folks in those times, did travel well.
The train departed Sao Joao del Rei at 3 PM and we reached TIRADENTES at 3:45 PM. I head to the centre of town - 10 minute walk away. There is a short downpour and I take shelter in a souvenir shop for 15 minutes. I bought candies and cookies to eat! I headed back to the train station and took the train back to Sao Joao del Rei at 5 PM. I had the entire last coach to myself. So was able to move from seat to seat to take different pictures :)
On reaching Sao Joao del Rei station, we came across a group of musicians performing on the station platform. I took pictures. As some of the pictures had come out well, I approached the station employee (who had helped me earlier this morning) to ask if I could get some contact Information about these musicians, so that I could send them the pictures I had taken of them. She talked to the group´s direction and got me her e-mail address. Will need to send the pictures once I am done with all my travelling.
I took a taxi to the Rodoviaria at Sao Joao del Rei. I had 45-minutes to kill before my bus to Belo Horizonte arrived. I had toasted bread and butter along with a cup of coffee for dinner! The bus departed at 7 PM. The seat next to me was taken up by an elderly gentleman who turned out to be an architect. Since he spoke some English, we had a decent conversation. He even bought me a can of juice at Congonhas de Campo (where the bus stopped for 15 minutes before heading to Belo Horizonte). He advised me to visit the early works by the famed Brazilian architect Oscar Niemeyer in the Pampulha neighbourhood of Belo Horizonte. He also strongly advised me to visit the MASP (Museo de Arte Sao Paulo) when I visited Sao Paulo. We exchanged e-mails and promised to stay in touch.
February 22, 2008 - Belo Horizonte, Brasil
===============================
I reached the Hotel by 10:40 PM. I wrote my diary, completed some Post cards and went to bed. As I have a free day tomorrow, I may visit Pampulha tomorrow.
February 23, 2008 - Belo Horizonte, Brasil
===============================
I had a leisurely wakeup (compared to yesterday). After breakfast, I paid up for my final night of stay at the hotel. I met Vivianne (who was quite personable) with whom I had communicated numerous times, during the booking process through the internet. Most folks have used an online Portuguese-English dictionary to reply to my e-mail messages just as I had used similar online translation services to convert my queries from English to Portuguese before e-mail it to the hotel. So when we finally meet, the truth some out. I cannot speak a lot of Portuguese and they cannot speak English. We mime :)
I requested a Taxi at 3:45 AM tomorrow morning as I did not want to be dragging my bags to the bus station at that hour. I visited the post office next, to ensure that I had the correct postage on all my postcards (I had).
I took a bus to the Pamulpha neighbourhood (Located North east of the city). On reaching the area, I had a bit of a walk (15 minutes) before reaching the lake and the Museo de Arte. The entry to the Museo was free and there were some decent works. I needed to take a bus next to Casa Bailar (House of Dance) - which was another of Niemeyer´s works. I had to wait almost 20 minutes for what turned out to be a 7 minute ride :) There was nothing noteworthy here. I walked next to the Church. Although all these buildings (Museo, Casa Bailar and the Church) can be seen from each other, they lie across the lake from each other. The lake, despite appearances, is quite a long one and hence the long walks of 3-4 Kilometres (2-2.5 miles).
I was completely underwhelmed by all of Niemeyer´s works here at Pampulha. They seemed quite tame. One can see the Brilliance of IM Pei´s Pyramid at Louvre or Santiago Calatrava´s design of the Olympic stadium for the 2004 games at Athens. I can understand that the works at Pampulha were Niemeyer´s first works, but there is nothing noteworthy raving about (as most local guide books do) his works at Pampulha.
I head next to the MINERAO Soccer stadium which happens to have the second largest capacity (70K people) in Brasil after MARACANA. There were no games today. I paid the R$2 entry fee and visited the home team area and the upper tiers of the stadium. Pretty Impressive. There was the dank odour of the toilet as I walked down the stairs to head out. Hopefully they will get their civic sense together before they play hosts to the 2014 soccer world cup.
I took a bus back to the centre. I got off at Plaza Libertad and took pictures of the Plaza as well as Palacio Libertad. I found JOY RAMA - A vegetarian place - for lunch. After a 5-minute wait for a table, I had a decent plate of food comprising rice, curry, salad, and a falafel like fried dumpling and soup. The Soup was quite high on Cumin or turmeric or both! The Lassi was OK. I chatted with the owner - Ana Paula - a Brazilian who had lived in Texas for some time.
Post lunch, I stumbled across a mall and movie house. After confirming multiple times that "Sweeney Todd" was showing with ENGLISH Dialogues, I purchased a ticket for R$13 (US$8). It was in English (with Portuguese Subtitles). I loved it, especially the art direction, acting and Tim Burton´s directing. The production design was pretty good too.
The movie was over by 5:45 PM. I wandered close to 45 minutes thinking I will head to Maharaja Indian restaurant for a good meal. The restaurant was not scheduled to open until 7 PM! I walked back to the centre of town and spent an hour at an Internet cafe. It was close to 8 PM now and I did not feel like taking a taxi all the way to the Indian restaurant now. I headed instead, to the nearby Othon palace (where I had my first dinner at Belo Horizonte) and had a Brownie with Ice Cream for dinner!
I got back to the Hotel and spent time writing my diary and requested the night manager to ensure that I get a taxi by 3:45 AM as I needed to take a bus from the Rodoviaria to the Airport at 4:15 AM for a 6:15 AM flight to Sao Paulo. I am scheduled to reach Sao Paulo around 8 AM and will be up all day as I am scheduled to meet the travel writer (whom I had met on my flight to Rio - 3 weeks ago) who has promised to show me around.
Despite my misgivings, the hotel has been OK. However, if I visit Belo another time, I will stay in the SAVASSI Neighbourhood as there are far more restaurant and entertainment options in that area, and being a residential neighbourhood, it is also a lot safer at night.
Ouro Preto, Congonhas, Sao Joao Del Rei and Tiradentes have been excellent. Unsurprisingly, I did not see a single American either during my Stay in Belo Horizonte or during my travels to the nearby places.
===============================
I did not sleep well last night. Perhaps a new hotel and the fact that it was a bit run down gave me a queasy feeling and kept me from sleeping. I woke up at 7 AM and finished breakfast by 8:15 AM. I saw regular folks (families) etc. at the breakfast table indicating that the hotel was not all that bad despite its appearance and weird insistence on paying before you stay! I paid up for one more night´s stay (R$45 - US$27) and headed to the Rodoviaria 10 minutes away. The place around my hotel was far more livelier now than it was last night.
The 8:30 AM bus to Ouro Preto had just departed and the next bus was at 9:30 AM. As there was no other bus company running a bus to Ouro Preto before 9:30 AM, I booked a ticket on the 9:30 AM bus to Ouro Preto and a return ticket from Ouro Preto to Belo Horizonte on the 6:30 PM bus as my guidebook had warned that return buses get full rather quickly. The round trip cost me R$36 (US$22).
I went to the Post office to buy some stamps for the cards I had to mail. WINDOWS 98 systems were being used and they were constantly freezing up! I finally managed to get the stamps and headed to the tourist office at the Rodoviaria and obtained a decent map of Ouro Preto.
I headed to the platform from where the bus was scheduled to depart. I saw guards all around. Security like this does make one feel safe despite warnings from locals. The bus pulls up to the platform at 9:25 AM. It is an executive style bus, with air-conditioning and reclining seats.
Belo Horizonte sits in a valley. As the bus headed towards Ouro Preto I could see lush green hills all around. We headed south towards RIO. The bus stopped occasionally to pick up folks. Due to the lack of sleep the previous night, I dozed off and woke up as we reached the Ouro Preto Rodoviaria at 11:15 AM (a tad earlier than the projected 2 hours of travel time).
February 20, 2008 - Ouro Preto, Brasil
=============================
I walk out of the bus station and head to Igreja Paula. It is closed. An elderly gentlemen explains the lay of the land and points out the different churches and tells me that Igreja Paula would open at 1:30 PM. I thank him and take the steep cobble stone street to Igreja Rosario. It is closed as well. I take pictures of the exterior.
Ouro Preto is a UNESCO World Heritage site. While there are times where certain specific edifices are declared World heritage Sites by the UNESCO, in the case of Ouro Preto, the entire city has been declared a World heritage site. All streets in Ouro Preto appear to be cobble stoned and the houses are painted in bright colours.
I walk around a bit and after getting some directions from a policeman, I hit a Vegetarian restaurant (ADEGA). I am quite upset with my guidebook when it comes to vegetarian restaurants. Most of these folks think that a restaurant having a salad bar qualifies as an "Excellent" vegetarian restaurant and they recommend it "very highly". This place (ADEGA) had more meat dishes than vegetarian choices! I should become a writer and recommender of Vegetarian restaurants - after all, it takes a committed vegetarian to know what is a "Highly recommended" vegetarian restaurant and what is most definitely NOT! I made what I could of the lunch buffet.
I walked more of the cobble stone streets until I hit the centre of Ouro Preto and Praca Tiradentes. I ask the local tourist office for directions and a better map. I snap a few pictures of the Praca and Museo Inconfidencia. The single greatest artist associated with Ouro Preto and the adjacent town of Congonhas de Campo (which I plan to visit as well) was Antonio Francisco Lisboa - more commonly known as Alejadinho.
I visit Igreja Carmo next. No photography permitted. I accept and honour it. (Not so with many tourists - Left onto me, I would delete the entire memory card - just for disobeying!). Igreja Carmo is a very Impressive church.
I head next to San Francisco de Assis which contained an extraordinary ceiling painting (like the one done at the Sistine Chapel by Michelangelo) that took 10 years of effort and was done by Athaide. The church also contained more of Alejadinho´s work. I headed next to Museo de Alejadinho. It was a long steep walk down and back up again on cobble stoned streets. It was HOT. The museum was not that spectacular.
However all this walking gave me opportunities to view Ouro Preto and appreciate its beauty from different places. Ouro Preto is also situated in a valley. With the exception of the Praca Tiradentes, all the streets either go up or down and all of them are cobblestoned. Quite extraordinary. Gold riches (no doubt plundered from some local tribe or area) has been used extensively to decorate many of these churches. The former name of Ouro Preto was Villa Rica.
I walk a long way to reach Igreja Pilar. I stop at a famous pastry shop (Beijinho doce) to "sample" stuff. Pretty good indeed. The weather has been glorious so far. All of the churches ban Photography outright. Carrying my tripod appears to have been a waste thus far. I reach Igreja Pilar and pay the R$4 entry fee. This is singularly the best Church thus far. However, Igreja San Francisco still has the best ceiling painting. One can belong to another faith or even be an atheist, but workmanship like this needs to be appreciated.
I walk to the train station. The last train to Marianna has left. I take a few pictures of the train station and take a different route to reach Praca Tiradentes. I get more excellent views of Ouro Preto during this walk. I visit the Teatro Municipal and pay the R$2 entry fee. I am finally allowed to take pictures and use my tripod! Teatro Municipal at Ouro Preto is the oldest theatre (1776) still having performances. The sound and lighting systems were being tested during the time I visited the theatre.
After I finished my visit, I headed out. There was a very light drizzle. I reached the governor´s palace at Praca Tiradentes and took a few pictures of the Praca. I walked to the Rodoviaria and am there by 5:50 PM. I am, however, not allowed to board the 6 PM bus as I have a "reservation" for the 6:30 PM bus. Advance booking happens to have put me at a clear disadvantage here!
I managed to kill 25 minutes and board the 6:30 PM bus. I observe that it is a full moon night. With some advance planning, I could have spent the night at Ouro Preto and taken pictures of these wonderful city by the full moon light. Oh well! I doze during the ride back. We reach Belo Horizonte around 8:30 PM.
February 20, 2008 - Belo Horizonte, Brasil
===============================
I head to the hotel, have a wash (they actually changed sheets - I know I am being a bit nasty here. But if you saw the hotel, you would come to the same conclusions and make the same comments as I do) and head our for dinner.
I take a Taxi and ask to be taken to Maharaja restaurant. (yes, this was one of the places recommended as a vegetarian restaurant by the tourism office folks). All I know is that with a name like Maharaja (or the Ubiquitous and Unimaginative 'Taj Mahal') the cuisine definitely has to be Indian. Although my hotel is very close to the bus station and is therefore very helpful for me to travel to other nearby cities, when it comes to restaurants, the downtown area (where my hotel is located) is a complete dump. The 15-minute taxi ride cost me R$10.
Maharaja appears to be a swank restaurant. I am ushered to my table by a Brazilian Hostess who speaks adequate English for us to communicate). I request and am seated in the non-smoking area. I am the SOLE person in this area - that can seat at least 50 people. Most folks are sitting outside listening to some live Sitar music and watching some Bollywood stuff on a 60 inch screen. Way too tacky for such a swank restaurant!
I order food (yes, as I suspected it is an Indian restaurant with ample vegetarian fare) and chat with the hostess, Sara Ananda Gomes. Her father is the Honorary Indian Vice-Consul at Belo Horizonte. The Indian Consulate is in the 2nd floor of this building. The restaurant has been open only for a month. It has an Indian chef poached from a Sao Paulo restaurant. I was introduced to the Sitar (and flute) player who was trained in Varanasi 15 years ago.
Sara is a 2nd year medical student. She needs to do 4 more years of college. She is hostessing until college opens. Being who she is, she does NOT need the Job. Her great grandfather migrated from Goa to Brasil. Her father was born here, practices Hinduism and is a vegetarian. All his children have the middle name - ANANDA - meaning happiness.
Dinner turns out to be quite decent and cost me R$50 (US$28). I would say it is definitely worth it compared to some of the bills I have had for lousy Italian crap.
Sara made sure I met her father - the Honorary Indian Vice-Consul himself. We chatted a bit. We exchanged cards. I may even get to meet the Consul when I visit Sao Paulo as he is one of my own - a South Indian by the name of Swaminathan. Who knows, if I am lucky I may even get some decent Idly and dosa at his place.
Mr. Gomes also acts as a business liaison between India and Brasil. He travels to India frequently. There are apparently 60 Indian families here (in Belo Horizonte). While some of those families are in trade, other families work for ACCOR-MITTAL (the Steel Giant whose office tower is right across the restaurant)
I may re-visit this place on Friday or Saturday.
I take a taxi back to the Hotel. Taxi drivers operate 12-hour shifts here. I write my diary and go to bed.
Ouro Preto is an extraordinary place. I would highly recommend staying overnight.
February 21, 2008 - Belo Horizonte, Brasil
===============================
Try as I might I could not wake up early. I had breakfast at 9 AM and paid the hotel for 2 more nights. I might actually wind up staying all the 5-nights here as originally planned. I get to the Rodoviaria by 9:20 AM. The next bus to Congonhas de Campo is at 10:15 AM. I booked a ticket (R$15) as I did not have an alternative option. After all, I have travelled to Belo Horizonte purely to see Ouro Preto and Congonhas (pronounced CON-GON-YAS). I spent about 15-minutes checking my e-mail at an Internet cafe at the Rodoviaria.
I boarded the bus and dozed off. The bus route would more or less be the same as Ouro Preto. The two towns are 20 kilometres apart and they do not have a direct bus service! I woke up at 11:45 AM as the bus reached Congonhas. I headed to the tourism office nearby as the Tourist office at the Rodoviaria (Belo Horizonte) did not have any information on Congonhas. The tourist office lady spoke only Portuguese and she appeared to be telling me things without understanding the information I was seeking.
February 21, 2008 - Congonhas de Campo, Brasil
=====================================
I finally got the Bus numbers and timings to reach Cathedral Bom Jesus where Alejadinho´s greatest works rest. There was a bus at 12 Noon from the Rodoviaria to Cathedral Bom Jesus. waited and the bus arrived a little after 12. I paid the R$1.70 fare and took a seat. The bus traipsed all over town (really, it would be hard to find out if he missed passing a single street!) before reaching the Cathedral after 25 minutes (The distance - as the crow flies - from the Rodoviaria to the Cathedral is 3 Kilometres or 1.8 miles!) While the cathedral does not permit any Photos, the crowing achievement of Alejadinho are the 12 prophets (carved by him) who straddle the entrance to the cathedral. Magnificent works. I took as many pictures as possible. I did visit the cathedral as well and it had a good ceiling painting as well. Perhaps it was Athaide. I did not follow the Portuguese there.
The Cathedral is situated on a hill and provides excellent views of the town below. I had the SECOND worst lunch ever at a restaurant (Corva do Daniel) recommended by the Guidebook. The Salad I ordered had HUGE slides of carrots, beetroot, potato, Onion and cucumber and peppers. Granted it was a SALAD. I had expected the vegetables to be grated or thinly sliced. Not as big as the actual veggies!
I had "Dulce de Leche" for dessert and hated it. To those of Indian Origin reading this the following comparison might help - it tasted like mushy Jaggery! Coca-Cola was the best part of Lunch!
As I had just missed the bus to Rodoviaria, I spent some more time taking pictures. I had no interest in even looking at souvenirs. I took a bus back to the Rodoviaria around 2:50 Pm. The bus took a grand tour before reaching the Rodoviaria around 3:25 PM or so. The catch here was that I had to wait for the Bus (heading to Belo Horizonte) to pull-in before I could buy tickets! I had an Orange juice and waited. The bus from Sao Joao Del Rei that is headed to wards Belo Horizonte pulls up around 3:50. I buy the ticket (R$15) and board the bus. No Air-conditioning. I open the window and doze all the way.
February 21, 2008 - Belo Horizonte, Brasil
===============================
I reach Belo Horizonte around 5:30 PM. I visit the TIM (Mobile company) office next to the hotel. After a 30 minute wait during which my name, passport number and date of birth were collected, I am approved to make OUTGOING Calls! Yippee! I must say the customer service representative there was a very helpful young kid. I said Muito Obrigado (Thank You very much) many times.
I made a quick stop at the hotel, leaving behind the camera and accessories (in my larger bag and locking it) before heading out. I reach an Internet cafe after 15 minutes. The place is quite lively at 6:45 PM. I stay there for 90 minutes as I need to back up my memory cards to my portable hard drives (had not done it for a few days). I read the news and reply to e-mail messages.
I visit a hotel close by to check on their rates. Front desk tells me to call reservations before 6 PM to get better rates than what the front desk can provide. I spot a lot of young well dressed young girls. It is apparently a graduation party for Biology students. I ogle! They could be studying Astronomy for all I care.
I have dinner at an Italian restaurant located at this hotel. I have a Penne Arabiata along with a Brazilian Miolo Selecao 2006. It turns out to be a good combination. The Miolo is one of the few wines made in Brasil. The Miolo Selecao is a combination of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Pinot Noir. It has a light nose and is light bodied with a short finish. Dinner turns out to be a far better experience than the disgusting lunch.
I write some diary while waiting for the food to arrive. I head back to the hotel after dinner.
As I have seen the two places I had planned on seeing and as I have 2 more days in Belo, I may visit Sao Joao del Rei tomorrow.
February 22, 2008 - Belo Horizonte, Brasil
===============================
I woke up at 4:30 AM and was out of the Hotel by 5:30 AM. I was at the Rodoviaria by 5:40 AM and bought a ticket to Sao Joao del Rei on the 6 AM bus. This was to be a 3-hour bus Journey via Congonhas de Campo. It seems like the pilgrimage trips I did with my folks to various places when I was growing up! There was a thick fog and light rain as we left Belo Horizonte. I dozed on and off. We had a 15-minute break at Congonhas to stretch our legs, use the bathroom, get some food etc. The 1-way trip to Sao Joao Del Rei is quite pricey at R$34 and the bus is not an executive bus!
The Scenery from Congonhas to Sao Joao was unremarkable and I dozed some more to compensate for the 4:30 AM wakeup. We reached Sao Joao del Rei around 9:15 AM or so.
February 22, 2008 - Sao Joao Del Rei, Brasil
=================================
I obtained the directions to city centre and took a local bus to see San Francisco de Assisi Church with a few works by Alejadinho. After spending some time there and taking pictures, I tried to head to the nearest tourist office. It was closed. As there was a pewter factory nearby, I wandered in to see the products. There was an artisan, who was using an old fashioned lathe to churn out all the pewter products on display in the shop. He took time off from his work to explain the process to me (in Portuguese, of course!). I promised to return later in the day (as I did not want to be carrying around these heavy souvenirs all day long)
I had a long (and clueless) walk and finally reached the train station. I reached there at 11:05 AM. Most offices open close at 11 AM and re-open at 1 PM. Man, I want to work in a place that forces a 2-3 hour lunch!
One of the train station employees saw me peering (helplessly) through the window and come up to ask what I wanted. She spoke decent English and directed me to the tourist office. I headed there and obtained good local maps and brochures in English. I headed to Carmelo, Pilar and a few other churches. All were closed for Lunch! I was hungry as well as I left way too early for breakfast! I found a decent food-by-weight (Comida-por-Kilo) place. They had good salads and fruits. I fill up my entire place and it still came up to 1/3 of a Kilo. Food-by-Weight places are quite common in Brasil. These folks will be bankrupted in no time if they opened similar places in the USA! Despite the abundance of food-by-weight places, the folks here are generally slim.
Post lunch, I headed back to the Pewter factory and purchased some souvenirs. I took a long and leisurely walk back to the train station. It was a gorgeous, picture perfect day. On reaching the train station, I purchased a round trip to the nearby town of TIRADENTES (10 Kilometres - 6 Miles away) along with a visit to the Train Museum at Sao Joao del Rei for $25 (US$13). This turned out to be a very good museum with a number of old coaches and locomotives. Folks in those times, did travel well.
The train departed Sao Joao del Rei at 3 PM and we reached TIRADENTES at 3:45 PM. I head to the centre of town - 10 minute walk away. There is a short downpour and I take shelter in a souvenir shop for 15 minutes. I bought candies and cookies to eat! I headed back to the train station and took the train back to Sao Joao del Rei at 5 PM. I had the entire last coach to myself. So was able to move from seat to seat to take different pictures :)
On reaching Sao Joao del Rei station, we came across a group of musicians performing on the station platform. I took pictures. As some of the pictures had come out well, I approached the station employee (who had helped me earlier this morning) to ask if I could get some contact Information about these musicians, so that I could send them the pictures I had taken of them. She talked to the group´s direction and got me her e-mail address. Will need to send the pictures once I am done with all my travelling.
I took a taxi to the Rodoviaria at Sao Joao del Rei. I had 45-minutes to kill before my bus to Belo Horizonte arrived. I had toasted bread and butter along with a cup of coffee for dinner! The bus departed at 7 PM. The seat next to me was taken up by an elderly gentleman who turned out to be an architect. Since he spoke some English, we had a decent conversation. He even bought me a can of juice at Congonhas de Campo (where the bus stopped for 15 minutes before heading to Belo Horizonte). He advised me to visit the early works by the famed Brazilian architect Oscar Niemeyer in the Pampulha neighbourhood of Belo Horizonte. He also strongly advised me to visit the MASP (Museo de Arte Sao Paulo) when I visited Sao Paulo. We exchanged e-mails and promised to stay in touch.
February 22, 2008 - Belo Horizonte, Brasil
===============================
I reached the Hotel by 10:40 PM. I wrote my diary, completed some Post cards and went to bed. As I have a free day tomorrow, I may visit Pampulha tomorrow.
February 23, 2008 - Belo Horizonte, Brasil
===============================
I had a leisurely wakeup (compared to yesterday). After breakfast, I paid up for my final night of stay at the hotel. I met Vivianne (who was quite personable) with whom I had communicated numerous times, during the booking process through the internet. Most folks have used an online Portuguese-English dictionary to reply to my e-mail messages just as I had used similar online translation services to convert my queries from English to Portuguese before e-mail it to the hotel. So when we finally meet, the truth some out. I cannot speak a lot of Portuguese and they cannot speak English. We mime :)
I requested a Taxi at 3:45 AM tomorrow morning as I did not want to be dragging my bags to the bus station at that hour. I visited the post office next, to ensure that I had the correct postage on all my postcards (I had).
I took a bus to the Pamulpha neighbourhood (Located North east of the city). On reaching the area, I had a bit of a walk (15 minutes) before reaching the lake and the Museo de Arte. The entry to the Museo was free and there were some decent works. I needed to take a bus next to Casa Bailar (House of Dance) - which was another of Niemeyer´s works. I had to wait almost 20 minutes for what turned out to be a 7 minute ride :) There was nothing noteworthy here. I walked next to the Church. Although all these buildings (Museo, Casa Bailar and the Church) can be seen from each other, they lie across the lake from each other. The lake, despite appearances, is quite a long one and hence the long walks of 3-4 Kilometres (2-2.5 miles).
I was completely underwhelmed by all of Niemeyer´s works here at Pampulha. They seemed quite tame. One can see the Brilliance of IM Pei´s Pyramid at Louvre or Santiago Calatrava´s design of the Olympic stadium for the 2004 games at Athens. I can understand that the works at Pampulha were Niemeyer´s first works, but there is nothing noteworthy raving about (as most local guide books do) his works at Pampulha.
I head next to the MINERAO Soccer stadium which happens to have the second largest capacity (70K people) in Brasil after MARACANA. There were no games today. I paid the R$2 entry fee and visited the home team area and the upper tiers of the stadium. Pretty Impressive. There was the dank odour of the toilet as I walked down the stairs to head out. Hopefully they will get their civic sense together before they play hosts to the 2014 soccer world cup.
I took a bus back to the centre. I got off at Plaza Libertad and took pictures of the Plaza as well as Palacio Libertad. I found JOY RAMA - A vegetarian place - for lunch. After a 5-minute wait for a table, I had a decent plate of food comprising rice, curry, salad, and a falafel like fried dumpling and soup. The Soup was quite high on Cumin or turmeric or both! The Lassi was OK. I chatted with the owner - Ana Paula - a Brazilian who had lived in Texas for some time.
Post lunch, I stumbled across a mall and movie house. After confirming multiple times that "Sweeney Todd" was showing with ENGLISH Dialogues, I purchased a ticket for R$13 (US$8). It was in English (with Portuguese Subtitles). I loved it, especially the art direction, acting and Tim Burton´s directing. The production design was pretty good too.
The movie was over by 5:45 PM. I wandered close to 45 minutes thinking I will head to Maharaja Indian restaurant for a good meal. The restaurant was not scheduled to open until 7 PM! I walked back to the centre of town and spent an hour at an Internet cafe. It was close to 8 PM now and I did not feel like taking a taxi all the way to the Indian restaurant now. I headed instead, to the nearby Othon palace (where I had my first dinner at Belo Horizonte) and had a Brownie with Ice Cream for dinner!
I got back to the Hotel and spent time writing my diary and requested the night manager to ensure that I get a taxi by 3:45 AM as I needed to take a bus from the Rodoviaria to the Airport at 4:15 AM for a 6:15 AM flight to Sao Paulo. I am scheduled to reach Sao Paulo around 8 AM and will be up all day as I am scheduled to meet the travel writer (whom I had met on my flight to Rio - 3 weeks ago) who has promised to show me around.
Despite my misgivings, the hotel has been OK. However, if I visit Belo another time, I will stay in the SAVASSI Neighbourhood as there are far more restaurant and entertainment options in that area, and being a residential neighbourhood, it is also a lot safer at night.
Ouro Preto, Congonhas, Sao Joao Del Rei and Tiradentes have been excellent. Unsurprisingly, I did not see a single American either during my Stay in Belo Horizonte or during my travels to the nearby places.
February 19, 2008 - Salvador & Belo Horizonte, Brasil
February 19, 2008 - Salvador, Brasil
===========================
I wake up late and finish breakfast. I browse through Jean-Paul and Zeline´s CD collection at the Pousada. Zeline allows me to use Jean-Paul main computer to rip the CDs I like to my Portable hard drive. I read about my close buddy Fidel´s resignation :) I pay Zeline R$400 in cash for my 4-day stay at their pousada. I have been the sole occupant of their Pousada for the past 3 nights. They have 5 rooms to rent.
I left the Hotel at 11 AM. The Pelourinho area has been cleared of all paraphernalia related to the Carnaval. I head up to Jorge Amado´s house again and take some decent, uncluttered pictures of the Pelounrinho. I tried to do some Souvenir shopping. I am gradually losing interest in Souvenir shopping whether for myself or for someone else. I have lunch at the restaurant from 2 nights ago. I have rice, green peas, pureed manioc and mixed salad. This should see me through the evening. I visit the Carmo Hotel on the way back. It used to be a convent and has now been converted to a fancy hotel. Only Hotel guests are allowed to go beyond a certain point! I take a few pictures from wherever I am allowed and head to hotel.
As I am leaving today for Belo Horizonte, the weather is fantastic. Clear Blue Sky and Sunny!
I am back at the Pousada by 1:45 PM and I request Zeline to call for a taxi. I thank Zeline and take the taxi to the Bus terminal at Praca da Se. After a 20-minute wait, I get a bus to the Airport. As I mentioned before, I paid more for the 10-minute Taxi ride (R$8) to the bus terminal than the 1-hour Air-conditioned bus ride (R$4) to the airport. I dozed most of the way. One of the unique features near the airport is a bamboo canopy for about 2-3 kilometres from the main road all the way to the airport.
I do an electronic check-in. TAM airline folks are still quite SLOW. I check-in my duffel bag, prepare list of things to see and do while at Belo Horizonte. I doze during the 90-minute flight to Belo Horizonte.
February 19, 2008 - Belo Horizonte, Brasil
===============================
On reaching Belo Horizonte and collecting my bag, I head to the tourism office at the airport. I am provided with a lot of Brochures in English. One of the better developed airports I have seen during my travels so far. There is a minibus to the centre of town every 20 minutes or so. The cost was R$6.75. We get a full-sized bus. After departing from the airport, the bus stops at the local (city) airport before heading into the town of Belo Horizonte. It drops me off at the main bus station. From here it is a 10-minute walk to my Hotel.
I am given a Tiny room with a full-bed and am asked to pay for my stay in advance. Even though I had booked to stay here for 5 nights, I just pay for 1 night. I would like to try out tonight and if I am comfortable, then I can perhaps pay for other nights. I head out in search of dinner. I walk to Othon Palace and am quoted a price of R$170 per night (4 times what I am paying)! I head to the restaurant on the 25th floor of Othon Palace an have a salad and top it off with a Brownie and Ice cream.
I may head to Ouro Preto tomorrow.
===========================
I wake up late and finish breakfast. I browse through Jean-Paul and Zeline´s CD collection at the Pousada. Zeline allows me to use Jean-Paul main computer to rip the CDs I like to my Portable hard drive. I read about my close buddy Fidel´s resignation :) I pay Zeline R$400 in cash for my 4-day stay at their pousada. I have been the sole occupant of their Pousada for the past 3 nights. They have 5 rooms to rent.
I left the Hotel at 11 AM. The Pelourinho area has been cleared of all paraphernalia related to the Carnaval. I head up to Jorge Amado´s house again and take some decent, uncluttered pictures of the Pelounrinho. I tried to do some Souvenir shopping. I am gradually losing interest in Souvenir shopping whether for myself or for someone else. I have lunch at the restaurant from 2 nights ago. I have rice, green peas, pureed manioc and mixed salad. This should see me through the evening. I visit the Carmo Hotel on the way back. It used to be a convent and has now been converted to a fancy hotel. Only Hotel guests are allowed to go beyond a certain point! I take a few pictures from wherever I am allowed and head to hotel.
As I am leaving today for Belo Horizonte, the weather is fantastic. Clear Blue Sky and Sunny!
I am back at the Pousada by 1:45 PM and I request Zeline to call for a taxi. I thank Zeline and take the taxi to the Bus terminal at Praca da Se. After a 20-minute wait, I get a bus to the Airport. As I mentioned before, I paid more for the 10-minute Taxi ride (R$8) to the bus terminal than the 1-hour Air-conditioned bus ride (R$4) to the airport. I dozed most of the way. One of the unique features near the airport is a bamboo canopy for about 2-3 kilometres from the main road all the way to the airport.
I do an electronic check-in. TAM airline folks are still quite SLOW. I check-in my duffel bag, prepare list of things to see and do while at Belo Horizonte. I doze during the 90-minute flight to Belo Horizonte.
February 19, 2008 - Belo Horizonte, Brasil
===============================
On reaching Belo Horizonte and collecting my bag, I head to the tourism office at the airport. I am provided with a lot of Brochures in English. One of the better developed airports I have seen during my travels so far. There is a minibus to the centre of town every 20 minutes or so. The cost was R$6.75. We get a full-sized bus. After departing from the airport, the bus stops at the local (city) airport before heading into the town of Belo Horizonte. It drops me off at the main bus station. From here it is a 10-minute walk to my Hotel.
I am given a Tiny room with a full-bed and am asked to pay for my stay in advance. Even though I had booked to stay here for 5 nights, I just pay for 1 night. I would like to try out tonight and if I am comfortable, then I can perhaps pay for other nights. I head out in search of dinner. I walk to Othon Palace and am quoted a price of R$170 per night (4 times what I am paying)! I head to the restaurant on the 25th floor of Othon Palace an have a salad and top it off with a Brownie and Ice cream.
I may head to Ouro Preto tomorrow.
February 16-18, 2008 - Salvador, Brasil
February 16, 2008 - Salvador, Brasil
============================
I woke up at 8 AM and turned out to be the sole person at the breakfast table. Sumptuous breakfast. Fresh fruits, fruit juices, bread, butter, marmelade, fried bananas, different types of cakes, bruschettas with tomato and coffee! I could not eat everything on offer. If you are a meat eater, I am sure you have other options that can fill your belly for an entire day!
It poured during the entire time I was having breakfast. Once it tapered a bit, I headed to the nearest Laundromat and gave them my clothes. They charged a flat rate of R$20 for up to 5 Kilos of load. They were to deliver my clothes in about 3 hours. They are not open Sunday, but I could always pick up my clothes on Monday.
I got back to my Hotel. Jean-Paul warned me to be careful about my camera in the Old city area as there have been reports of Camera snatchers. As the old city has way too many alleyways, it is rather difficult even for the police to chase after these folks to recover your goods!
The rain had stopped completely by the time I returned to the hotel and the sun was out. I headed out with my Camera and tripod. I reached the San Francisco Church in Pelourinho after a 20-minute walk. The church has its charm but the convent´s altar was OTT (Over the top). Gold coverings everywhere! No Photography was permitted and I did not attempt any. I had a coconut after I finished my visit and headed to the tourist office nearby where I obtained additional information and maps.
I headed back to the Laundromat at 1:30 and my clothes were ready. I took the bundle back to the hotel and rested a bit. As TIM (Brasilian Cell Phone company) does not provide free incoming calls, I recharged my Phone card.
I plan to visit a nearby Island (by taking a ferry) on Sunday. The local natural food store (that serves vegetarian food) was closed on Saturdays! I had a bruschetta and soda for lunch at a nearby cafe that had a good view of the Harbour and the sea.
It was getting quite hit and I was sweating. I traversed through the Pelourinho area and reached Praca da Se (where the bus from the airport dropped me yesterday). Although it does appear close to my Pousada, I will take a taxi from my Pousada to here before taking the shuttle bus to the airport (all this planning is when I head out of Salvador to Belo Horizonte next Tuesday!).
I took the Lacerda Elevator (Charge R$0.05) to Cidade Baixa (Lower City - Baixa is Lower and Cidade is City). I took pictures of the Church there, the Naval academy, Maritime area and aqueducts before taking the elevator back to Cidade Alta (high City!).
Once I got back to Praca da Se, I took a bus to Farol de Barra. I got off way beyond where I was supposed to. I ran into a young couple who were headed to the Farol as well. They asked me to follow them! Looking and acting dumb has its advantages! People go the extra bit to help you and guide you.
After traipsing along for about 20 minutes, we reached the Farol. I thanked the couple and headed to the Farol. If you remember your lessons from 2 days ago, you will recall that FAROL refers to a Lighthouse in Portuguese! The Hydro graphic (Oceanographic in English) museum is located within the lighthouse premises. The entry fee was R$6 and it was a decent museum. While the museum is in the lower level of the lighthouse, the upper level has a cafe and a viewing deck. I had travelled all the way from Praca da Se to visit this upper deck and hopefully take decent pictures of the sunset! The weather co-operated and I watched the sunset from the FIRST lighthouse in South America (1560s).
When I tried to get back to Praca da Se, I found that all buses were being re-routed due to some concert performance en-route. Even most drivers and conductors were clueless as to which bus will take me back to Praca da Se. I gave up after 30 minutes and hailed a taxi. It cost me R$13.
I stumbled upon a group of dancers near the church of San Francisco. It had some semblance to Carnival but it appeared to also have some religious overtones. Folks in Salvador are descended from African Slaves and despite following Catholicism also practice some native beliefs. Despite the numerous warnings I had received, I whipped out my camera and flash and took some pictures of these dancers.
I walked into a nearby cafe and announced to the helpful maitre´d that I was a vegetarian. I had white rice with green peas and pureed manioc for dinner. Manioc is a flour. I also requested and had some EXCELLENT hot sauce made from local pepper. The pepper is called MALAGUETA. No TASTELESS, ITALIAN CRAP tonight!
I walked back to my Pousada. En-route I kept popping into many music shops to inquire about some CDs that had been recommended by the NY Times as representing Bahian Music. I did not have any luck finding them tonight. I blogged on the hotel´s computer for 2 hours, chatted with my brother, wrote my diary before going to bed.
I may head out early tomorrow (by 9 AM) to take the ferry to Isla Itaparica.
The wonderful welts given to me so lovingly by the inhabitants of the Amazon have more or less disappeared!
February 17, 2008 - Salvador, Brasil
============================
I had a leisurely wakeup. It was pouring outside again. I helped myself to the sumptuous breakfast (yet again). As the rain continued to pour and showed no signs of abating, I blogged on the Hotel´s computer for a bit. I depart the hotel around 11 AM. The rain appears to have stopped completely. The weather forecast calls for 50% precipitation today and 20% precipitation tomorrow. I walk to Praca da Se and take the Lacerda elevator to Cidade Baixa. I head to the ferry docks and buy a 1-way ticket to Isla Itaparica (R$4). There was a departure at 11:30 AM (5 minutes later).
The boat has hardly left the Salvador quay when the sky opens up and it pours. And Pours. And Pours. The ferry to Itaparica is filled with locals and a few tourists. The rains appear to be keeping many folks away.
After a 35-minute ride, the ferry reaches Itaparica. As it is still raining, I debate about getting a return ticket and taking the ferry right back to Salvador. As I have a poncho handy, I decide to don it and walk a bit around Itaparica in the hope that the clouds will pass and the sun will Shine. (ever the optimist). I roll up my trousers to my knees, don my Poncho that covers me as well as my backpack and start walking. I head into a hotel a bit later to ask for directions to the old town. The English speaking owner is quite helpful and tells me that the old town is 20 kilometres (13 miles) away. With the weather being this bad, he does not think that today would be a good day to visit the old town.
I concur with his reasoning, thank him and head back to the Itaparica dock and purchase a ferry ticket back to Salvador. I take the 1 PM ferry back to Salvador. I take a few pictures of Itaparica from the shelter of the Ferry. On reaching Salvador, I head to Praca da se and take a bus to Barra. I get lost in trying to find a vegetarian restaurant and the locals help me find Ramma (pronounced HAMMA). It is a natural food restaurant and the price is by weight. You can fill your plate with whatever and how much ever you want and based on the weight you are charged. I have a decent lunch along with a glass of fresh Mango Juice. The price of R$15 (US$ 9) is well worth it. Ramma and the Chinese Vegetarian restaurant in Asuncion (Paraguay) both have fish cutlets at the end of their buffet counters! I guess this is to appease those folks who call themselves Vegetarian but like fish. The restaurant appears to be quite popular as it was packed.
I wait for 30 minutes for a bus back to Praca da Se. The rain has stopped completely now. I head to an Internet cafe and copy my memory cards to my portable hard disks. I head back to the hotel, shower and then blog for 2 hours before heading out to dinner at 9 PM. I find a Cafe in Carmo that is almost closing. I have an Excellent Green Pea Soup with Bruschetta followed by Brownie with coffee ice cream. Quite filling and I am happy. I head back to the hotel and blog for 2 more hours. I still have 2 weeks of blogs to catch up and get myself current.
As Brasil is famous for its coffee, I decide to try some good Brasilian coffee while I am in Salvador. Coffee is mostly grown in the State of Sao Paulo.
February 18, 2008 - Salvador, Brasil
===========================
A leisurely wakeup and sumptuous breakfast as usual. I head out into a light drizzle. It appears to be a pattern here. Quite similar to Rio (where it rained most of the days I was there). Within 10 minutes of my heading out, the clouds opened up and I took shelter (despite my Poncho) in the nearby Carmo Church.
The rain gods finally stopped raining on my Bahian Parade and I headed to the house of the writer Jorge Amado. I spent 30 minutes here. One gets a good view of the Pelourinho from the first floor of this building. Note to Self: Read books by Brazilian writers Jorge Amado and Paul Coelho. I wanted to buy a English edition of a book by Jorge Amado but the bookstore at Amado´s house wanted to charge me US$40 when the US retail price (as printed on the book jacket) was US$14.95. I shall wait to get back to the US and get it from AMZN or BN.
I visit the tourist office and use their public Phone and my Brazilian calling card to call home (India). The line kept getting disconnected every 4 minutes. I guess this is a good way to monitor my conversation! I visited the Museo Afro-Brasilero and Archaeology and Ethnographic Museum. There is a very helpful English guide book (returnable to museum upon exit) provided. I spent around 45 minutes here. Quite a decent museum. I next headed to a highly recommended cafe for a cup of Brasilian Coffee. Quite decent coffee. I purchased a small bottle of MALAGUATE Peppers doused in Vinegar.
I headed to Praca da Se and visited the Memorial Gobernadores. Free entry. Very Opulent Halls and ceilings. The Balcony of this building has great views of Cidade Baixa. I took pictures. It was quite hot and humid. I took a bus from Praca da Se to Barra Shopping. The music CDs (by the Brazilian Artists, I was looking for) were priced at R$30 to R$40. I was looking to pay R$10! As I walk around the mall, I see a movie theatre running JUNO with English dialogues and Portuguese Subtitles. The next show appears to be at 4:15 PM. I receive a call from a friend in the US and we chat for 20 minutes. TIM (the cell Phone company) had given me R$25 credit. The incoming call uses up all this free credit. I find an office of TIM within the mall and charge my Phone for R$50 (US$28).
I get back to the movie theatre by 4 PM. It turns out that JUNO is shown only ONCE every day at NOON. The 4:15 PM show that I saw earlier was for something else. Oh, one of these days, see an English dialogue movie, I shall!
Jean Paul is a Frenchman who has lived in Bahia for over 20 years. He has been Married to Zeline for a long time now and they have 2 sons. Zeline appears ageless! I saw pictures of her with her babies from years ago and she appears the same as today.
Jean-Paul provides me with the address of the Natural food restaurant he recommends and tells me on how I could get there. I take the name of the restaurant (including the address) and head to a bus station. I finally get a bus and show the address to the conductor. There is a long discussion between the bus driver and conductor on where I should get off to reach the restaurant. After a ride of 20-minutes, I am asked to get off at what appears to be a bus terminal.
I ask around a few times for the directions to the restaurant and after a steep climb on a cobblestone street, I reach the place. They are CLOSED!
The first act of my enlightened dictatorship (it cannot be anything but enlightened) would be to educate the Portuguese speakers in the TAMIL Language and cuisine and abolish Portuguese totally. Italian cooking and any cooking that cannot cater to vegetarians (Salads are for cows and horses) are abominations. Folks following these ought to be shows the path to salvation and good vegetarian "cooking". key word - "Cooking". Not boiling stuff. Actually cooking.
One of the first step in this Salvation process would be for each individual to consume a bottle of MALAGUETA Peppers. You may think this is Hunger and Anger (from hunger) talking, but I am dead serious!
I finally take a bus to Mercado Municipal (Municipal Market) and then the Lacerda elevator to Praca da Se. Walk to Praca 15 Noviembre hoping to have rice, green peas and pureed Manioc again. The restaurant is closed on Mondays! I head back to Hotel.
I have decided that I cannot have Italian Crap for dinner. I head to the cafe from yesterday. I order the Green pea soup and Natural sandwich (lettuce, carrots, corn, wheat bread). I open my bottle of MALAGUETA peppers and pour some of the vinegar onto my Natural Sandwich. I also take out a pepper, slice it into tiny pieces and spread it over my sandwich. Simply DIVINE!
I top this off with a coffee and head back to my Hotel and blog for 2 hours. I may decide to try something new with my MALAGUETA Peppers tomorrow!
============================
I woke up at 8 AM and turned out to be the sole person at the breakfast table. Sumptuous breakfast. Fresh fruits, fruit juices, bread, butter, marmelade, fried bananas, different types of cakes, bruschettas with tomato and coffee! I could not eat everything on offer. If you are a meat eater, I am sure you have other options that can fill your belly for an entire day!
It poured during the entire time I was having breakfast. Once it tapered a bit, I headed to the nearest Laundromat and gave them my clothes. They charged a flat rate of R$20 for up to 5 Kilos of load. They were to deliver my clothes in about 3 hours. They are not open Sunday, but I could always pick up my clothes on Monday.
I got back to my Hotel. Jean-Paul warned me to be careful about my camera in the Old city area as there have been reports of Camera snatchers. As the old city has way too many alleyways, it is rather difficult even for the police to chase after these folks to recover your goods!
The rain had stopped completely by the time I returned to the hotel and the sun was out. I headed out with my Camera and tripod. I reached the San Francisco Church in Pelourinho after a 20-minute walk. The church has its charm but the convent´s altar was OTT (Over the top). Gold coverings everywhere! No Photography was permitted and I did not attempt any. I had a coconut after I finished my visit and headed to the tourist office nearby where I obtained additional information and maps.
I headed back to the Laundromat at 1:30 and my clothes were ready. I took the bundle back to the hotel and rested a bit. As TIM (Brasilian Cell Phone company) does not provide free incoming calls, I recharged my Phone card.
I plan to visit a nearby Island (by taking a ferry) on Sunday. The local natural food store (that serves vegetarian food) was closed on Saturdays! I had a bruschetta and soda for lunch at a nearby cafe that had a good view of the Harbour and the sea.
It was getting quite hit and I was sweating. I traversed through the Pelourinho area and reached Praca da Se (where the bus from the airport dropped me yesterday). Although it does appear close to my Pousada, I will take a taxi from my Pousada to here before taking the shuttle bus to the airport (all this planning is when I head out of Salvador to Belo Horizonte next Tuesday!).
I took the Lacerda Elevator (Charge R$0.05) to Cidade Baixa (Lower City - Baixa is Lower and Cidade is City). I took pictures of the Church there, the Naval academy, Maritime area and aqueducts before taking the elevator back to Cidade Alta (high City!).
Once I got back to Praca da Se, I took a bus to Farol de Barra. I got off way beyond where I was supposed to. I ran into a young couple who were headed to the Farol as well. They asked me to follow them! Looking and acting dumb has its advantages! People go the extra bit to help you and guide you.
After traipsing along for about 20 minutes, we reached the Farol. I thanked the couple and headed to the Farol. If you remember your lessons from 2 days ago, you will recall that FAROL refers to a Lighthouse in Portuguese! The Hydro graphic (Oceanographic in English) museum is located within the lighthouse premises. The entry fee was R$6 and it was a decent museum. While the museum is in the lower level of the lighthouse, the upper level has a cafe and a viewing deck. I had travelled all the way from Praca da Se to visit this upper deck and hopefully take decent pictures of the sunset! The weather co-operated and I watched the sunset from the FIRST lighthouse in South America (1560s).
When I tried to get back to Praca da Se, I found that all buses were being re-routed due to some concert performance en-route. Even most drivers and conductors were clueless as to which bus will take me back to Praca da Se. I gave up after 30 minutes and hailed a taxi. It cost me R$13.
I stumbled upon a group of dancers near the church of San Francisco. It had some semblance to Carnival but it appeared to also have some religious overtones. Folks in Salvador are descended from African Slaves and despite following Catholicism also practice some native beliefs. Despite the numerous warnings I had received, I whipped out my camera and flash and took some pictures of these dancers.
I walked into a nearby cafe and announced to the helpful maitre´d that I was a vegetarian. I had white rice with green peas and pureed manioc for dinner. Manioc is a flour. I also requested and had some EXCELLENT hot sauce made from local pepper. The pepper is called MALAGUETA. No TASTELESS, ITALIAN CRAP tonight!
I walked back to my Pousada. En-route I kept popping into many music shops to inquire about some CDs that had been recommended by the NY Times as representing Bahian Music. I did not have any luck finding them tonight. I blogged on the hotel´s computer for 2 hours, chatted with my brother, wrote my diary before going to bed.
I may head out early tomorrow (by 9 AM) to take the ferry to Isla Itaparica.
The wonderful welts given to me so lovingly by the inhabitants of the Amazon have more or less disappeared!
February 17, 2008 - Salvador, Brasil
============================
I had a leisurely wakeup. It was pouring outside again. I helped myself to the sumptuous breakfast (yet again). As the rain continued to pour and showed no signs of abating, I blogged on the Hotel´s computer for a bit. I depart the hotel around 11 AM. The rain appears to have stopped completely. The weather forecast calls for 50% precipitation today and 20% precipitation tomorrow. I walk to Praca da Se and take the Lacerda elevator to Cidade Baixa. I head to the ferry docks and buy a 1-way ticket to Isla Itaparica (R$4). There was a departure at 11:30 AM (5 minutes later).
The boat has hardly left the Salvador quay when the sky opens up and it pours. And Pours. And Pours. The ferry to Itaparica is filled with locals and a few tourists. The rains appear to be keeping many folks away.
After a 35-minute ride, the ferry reaches Itaparica. As it is still raining, I debate about getting a return ticket and taking the ferry right back to Salvador. As I have a poncho handy, I decide to don it and walk a bit around Itaparica in the hope that the clouds will pass and the sun will Shine. (ever the optimist). I roll up my trousers to my knees, don my Poncho that covers me as well as my backpack and start walking. I head into a hotel a bit later to ask for directions to the old town. The English speaking owner is quite helpful and tells me that the old town is 20 kilometres (13 miles) away. With the weather being this bad, he does not think that today would be a good day to visit the old town.
I concur with his reasoning, thank him and head back to the Itaparica dock and purchase a ferry ticket back to Salvador. I take the 1 PM ferry back to Salvador. I take a few pictures of Itaparica from the shelter of the Ferry. On reaching Salvador, I head to Praca da se and take a bus to Barra. I get lost in trying to find a vegetarian restaurant and the locals help me find Ramma (pronounced HAMMA). It is a natural food restaurant and the price is by weight. You can fill your plate with whatever and how much ever you want and based on the weight you are charged. I have a decent lunch along with a glass of fresh Mango Juice. The price of R$15 (US$ 9) is well worth it. Ramma and the Chinese Vegetarian restaurant in Asuncion (Paraguay) both have fish cutlets at the end of their buffet counters! I guess this is to appease those folks who call themselves Vegetarian but like fish. The restaurant appears to be quite popular as it was packed.
I wait for 30 minutes for a bus back to Praca da Se. The rain has stopped completely now. I head to an Internet cafe and copy my memory cards to my portable hard disks. I head back to the hotel, shower and then blog for 2 hours before heading out to dinner at 9 PM. I find a Cafe in Carmo that is almost closing. I have an Excellent Green Pea Soup with Bruschetta followed by Brownie with coffee ice cream. Quite filling and I am happy. I head back to the hotel and blog for 2 more hours. I still have 2 weeks of blogs to catch up and get myself current.
As Brasil is famous for its coffee, I decide to try some good Brasilian coffee while I am in Salvador. Coffee is mostly grown in the State of Sao Paulo.
February 18, 2008 - Salvador, Brasil
===========================
A leisurely wakeup and sumptuous breakfast as usual. I head out into a light drizzle. It appears to be a pattern here. Quite similar to Rio (where it rained most of the days I was there). Within 10 minutes of my heading out, the clouds opened up and I took shelter (despite my Poncho) in the nearby Carmo Church.
The rain gods finally stopped raining on my Bahian Parade and I headed to the house of the writer Jorge Amado. I spent 30 minutes here. One gets a good view of the Pelourinho from the first floor of this building. Note to Self: Read books by Brazilian writers Jorge Amado and Paul Coelho. I wanted to buy a English edition of a book by Jorge Amado but the bookstore at Amado´s house wanted to charge me US$40 when the US retail price (as printed on the book jacket) was US$14.95. I shall wait to get back to the US and get it from AMZN or BN.
I visit the tourist office and use their public Phone and my Brazilian calling card to call home (India). The line kept getting disconnected every 4 minutes. I guess this is a good way to monitor my conversation! I visited the Museo Afro-Brasilero and Archaeology and Ethnographic Museum. There is a very helpful English guide book (returnable to museum upon exit) provided. I spent around 45 minutes here. Quite a decent museum. I next headed to a highly recommended cafe for a cup of Brasilian Coffee. Quite decent coffee. I purchased a small bottle of MALAGUATE Peppers doused in Vinegar.
I headed to Praca da Se and visited the Memorial Gobernadores. Free entry. Very Opulent Halls and ceilings. The Balcony of this building has great views of Cidade Baixa. I took pictures. It was quite hot and humid. I took a bus from Praca da Se to Barra Shopping. The music CDs (by the Brazilian Artists, I was looking for) were priced at R$30 to R$40. I was looking to pay R$10! As I walk around the mall, I see a movie theatre running JUNO with English dialogues and Portuguese Subtitles. The next show appears to be at 4:15 PM. I receive a call from a friend in the US and we chat for 20 minutes. TIM (the cell Phone company) had given me R$25 credit. The incoming call uses up all this free credit. I find an office of TIM within the mall and charge my Phone for R$50 (US$28).
I get back to the movie theatre by 4 PM. It turns out that JUNO is shown only ONCE every day at NOON. The 4:15 PM show that I saw earlier was for something else. Oh, one of these days, see an English dialogue movie, I shall!
Jean Paul is a Frenchman who has lived in Bahia for over 20 years. He has been Married to Zeline for a long time now and they have 2 sons. Zeline appears ageless! I saw pictures of her with her babies from years ago and she appears the same as today.
Jean-Paul provides me with the address of the Natural food restaurant he recommends and tells me on how I could get there. I take the name of the restaurant (including the address) and head to a bus station. I finally get a bus and show the address to the conductor. There is a long discussion between the bus driver and conductor on where I should get off to reach the restaurant. After a ride of 20-minutes, I am asked to get off at what appears to be a bus terminal.
I ask around a few times for the directions to the restaurant and after a steep climb on a cobblestone street, I reach the place. They are CLOSED!
The first act of my enlightened dictatorship (it cannot be anything but enlightened) would be to educate the Portuguese speakers in the TAMIL Language and cuisine and abolish Portuguese totally. Italian cooking and any cooking that cannot cater to vegetarians (Salads are for cows and horses) are abominations. Folks following these ought to be shows the path to salvation and good vegetarian "cooking". key word - "Cooking". Not boiling stuff. Actually cooking.
One of the first step in this Salvation process would be for each individual to consume a bottle of MALAGUETA Peppers. You may think this is Hunger and Anger (from hunger) talking, but I am dead serious!
I finally take a bus to Mercado Municipal (Municipal Market) and then the Lacerda elevator to Praca da Se. Walk to Praca 15 Noviembre hoping to have rice, green peas and pureed Manioc again. The restaurant is closed on Mondays! I head back to Hotel.
I have decided that I cannot have Italian Crap for dinner. I head to the cafe from yesterday. I order the Green pea soup and Natural sandwich (lettuce, carrots, corn, wheat bread). I open my bottle of MALAGUETA peppers and pour some of the vinegar onto my Natural Sandwich. I also take out a pepper, slice it into tiny pieces and spread it over my sandwich. Simply DIVINE!
I top this off with a coffee and head back to my Hotel and blog for 2 hours. I may decide to try something new with my MALAGUETA Peppers tomorrow!
Thursday, March 20, 2008
February 15, 2008 - Recife & Salvador, Brasil
February 15, 2008 - Recife, Brasil
=========================
I wake up late and finish breakfast by 9 AM. I inform Francisco that I will check out at 12 Noon. As MasterCard is accepted, I could pay by Credit card as well. I decide to explore a bit of Boa Viagem and walk along its Beachfront. Nothing strikes me as being great or extraordinary. The surprising aspect of the beach is that it is a very short one. There is hardly 15-feet of sand before one reaches the water´s edge. I head to an Internet cafe and blog for 2 hours. I have completed my blogs of Paraguay and have commenced Iguacu.
I get back to the hotel by Noon. The front desk clerk offers me a discount of 10% on the bill, if I pay by cash. I take the offer and pay cash. While the clerk calls a taxi for me, I bid adieu to Renato - the restaurant manager of the hotel - who, like Francisco, is also from Italy and has been in Brasil for 10 years.
The taxi arrives in 10 minutes. It is a flat R$10 fee to the airport (as it is very close to Boa Viagem). It is certainly cheaper than the incoming ride from the airport to the hotel that cost me R$15. We reach the airport in 15 minutes.
TAM´s automatic check in kiosks are not working. We stand in Queue. However, there appears to be no one at the counters. Talk about being disorganized! All the pretty faces and killer dresses cannot hide the basic inefficiency. Of course, their excuse for sloppy service could be Carnaval - even though it has been over for a week now!
The queue finally starts moving and I get my boarding pass. There is no vegetarian food option possible on TAM flights. I go looking for LUNCH. I find a cafe and have a grilled cheese sandwich and hot chocolate for Lunch.
The flight appears to be full. As always I have a window seat and (as always) I doze on and off. One gets a very good of Recife while taking off (remember I landed in the night and could not see much) and we also had a good look at Salvador while we were circling before landing.
February 15, 2008 - Salvador, Brasil
===========================
The flight was just 10 minutes late. The flight time from Recife to Salvador was an Hour and 10 minutes. I collect my bag and find that no locks have been broken on it - to my huge relief. I obtain a map of Salvador from the tourist office at the airport as well as the various transport options to my Hotel.
The "ONIBUS" (yes, they cannot seem to pronounce the M in "OMNIBUS") appears to be the cheapest option to get to my hotel. I must also mention (in case I have not already) that they pronounce the letter "R" as "H". Therefore, "RIO" is pronounced "HEO" and "Recife" is pronounced "Hecife". The RIO pronunciation as HEO appears to apply only to the City, as they seem to Pronounce the names of the Rivers (Rivers are called Rio in Portuguese and Spanish) properly - As in RIO Negro or RIO Amazonas.
I digress. I wait for 20 minutes before an ONIBUS shows up. The fare is R$4 to a place in the centre of the old city called - Praca da Se (in English - Plaza of Se). The ride from the airport to the Praca da se takes 90 minutes - More time than my flight from Recife to Salvador! Hey, I am on an extended vacation here - no sense in rushing it.
On getting down at Praca da se, a local (who travelled with me on the bus and who speaks good English) helps me find a taxi and gives the appropriate directions to the driver (in Portuguese) on how to take me to my Hotel. There is a Heavy albeit brief downpour during our ride to the hotel. After a few wrong turns, we reach my hotel after 30 minutes! It should have taken 15-minutes at most. The taxi fare is R$13 (and the longer bus ride was R$4). The Taxi from the airport would have cost me R$85. As I said before, Rio and Amazon have spiked my expenses and if it has to bread and water, so be it!
I chat with Zelina (Wife of Jean-Paul) who greets me and shows me to my room. I have had many conversations (via e-mail) with Jean-Paul and Zelina before booking this Posada Baluarte.
I have a nice big room with a fan. There is a mosquito netting suspended from the ceiling that covers the entire bed. Nice bathrooms. In all, very tastefully done place. I am paying R$100 per night (US$57 approx.).
I freshen up and head out for dinner. Although the tourist office listed a few Vegetarian restaurants, none are open for dinner! The old city is called Pelourinho. I walk around Pelourinho. Great colonial edifices and cobble stoned streets. I visit "Al Carmo", Italian restaurant. I pay R$47 (US$28) for BAD penne, wine and dessert.
I walk back to the Pousada. As they have free e-mail, I spend some time checking my mail and reading the news. I am not in the mood to blog. I write my diary for the day and read up on things to see and do in Salvador for the next 4 days before going to bed.
=========================
I wake up late and finish breakfast by 9 AM. I inform Francisco that I will check out at 12 Noon. As MasterCard is accepted, I could pay by Credit card as well. I decide to explore a bit of Boa Viagem and walk along its Beachfront. Nothing strikes me as being great or extraordinary. The surprising aspect of the beach is that it is a very short one. There is hardly 15-feet of sand before one reaches the water´s edge. I head to an Internet cafe and blog for 2 hours. I have completed my blogs of Paraguay and have commenced Iguacu.
I get back to the hotel by Noon. The front desk clerk offers me a discount of 10% on the bill, if I pay by cash. I take the offer and pay cash. While the clerk calls a taxi for me, I bid adieu to Renato - the restaurant manager of the hotel - who, like Francisco, is also from Italy and has been in Brasil for 10 years.
The taxi arrives in 10 minutes. It is a flat R$10 fee to the airport (as it is very close to Boa Viagem). It is certainly cheaper than the incoming ride from the airport to the hotel that cost me R$15. We reach the airport in 15 minutes.
TAM´s automatic check in kiosks are not working. We stand in Queue. However, there appears to be no one at the counters. Talk about being disorganized! All the pretty faces and killer dresses cannot hide the basic inefficiency. Of course, their excuse for sloppy service could be Carnaval - even though it has been over for a week now!
The queue finally starts moving and I get my boarding pass. There is no vegetarian food option possible on TAM flights. I go looking for LUNCH. I find a cafe and have a grilled cheese sandwich and hot chocolate for Lunch.
The flight appears to be full. As always I have a window seat and (as always) I doze on and off. One gets a very good of Recife while taking off (remember I landed in the night and could not see much) and we also had a good look at Salvador while we were circling before landing.
February 15, 2008 - Salvador, Brasil
===========================
The flight was just 10 minutes late. The flight time from Recife to Salvador was an Hour and 10 minutes. I collect my bag and find that no locks have been broken on it - to my huge relief. I obtain a map of Salvador from the tourist office at the airport as well as the various transport options to my Hotel.
The "ONIBUS" (yes, they cannot seem to pronounce the M in "OMNIBUS") appears to be the cheapest option to get to my hotel. I must also mention (in case I have not already) that they pronounce the letter "R" as "H". Therefore, "RIO" is pronounced "HEO" and "Recife" is pronounced "Hecife". The RIO pronunciation as HEO appears to apply only to the City, as they seem to Pronounce the names of the Rivers (Rivers are called Rio in Portuguese and Spanish) properly - As in RIO Negro or RIO Amazonas.
I digress. I wait for 20 minutes before an ONIBUS shows up. The fare is R$4 to a place in the centre of the old city called - Praca da Se (in English - Plaza of Se). The ride from the airport to the Praca da se takes 90 minutes - More time than my flight from Recife to Salvador! Hey, I am on an extended vacation here - no sense in rushing it.
On getting down at Praca da se, a local (who travelled with me on the bus and who speaks good English) helps me find a taxi and gives the appropriate directions to the driver (in Portuguese) on how to take me to my Hotel. There is a Heavy albeit brief downpour during our ride to the hotel. After a few wrong turns, we reach my hotel after 30 minutes! It should have taken 15-minutes at most. The taxi fare is R$13 (and the longer bus ride was R$4). The Taxi from the airport would have cost me R$85. As I said before, Rio and Amazon have spiked my expenses and if it has to bread and water, so be it!
I chat with Zelina (Wife of Jean-Paul) who greets me and shows me to my room. I have had many conversations (via e-mail) with Jean-Paul and Zelina before booking this Posada Baluarte.
I have a nice big room with a fan. There is a mosquito netting suspended from the ceiling that covers the entire bed. Nice bathrooms. In all, very tastefully done place. I am paying R$100 per night (US$57 approx.).
I freshen up and head out for dinner. Although the tourist office listed a few Vegetarian restaurants, none are open for dinner! The old city is called Pelourinho. I walk around Pelourinho. Great colonial edifices and cobble stoned streets. I visit "Al Carmo", Italian restaurant. I pay R$47 (US$28) for BAD penne, wine and dessert.
I walk back to the Pousada. As they have free e-mail, I spend some time checking my mail and reading the news. I am not in the mood to blog. I write my diary for the day and read up on things to see and do in Salvador for the next 4 days before going to bed.
February 13-14, 2008 - Recife, Brasil
February 13, 2008 - Recife, Brasil
==========================
I woke up a bit late. The breakfast was acceptable. People just do not seem to have toast in Brasil. All one finds are untoasted buns on which butter, marmalade, cheese and even ham are added and eaten. "Toasting" is still a requirement for me. Hence the "acceptable" definition for the breakfast here.
Post breakfast I chatted with Francisco on find out what to see and do and the ways of doing it by using public transport. Francisco provided me with some guidance on the different transport options. I headed to the tourist kiosk nearby. The folks in attendance spoke decent English and I managed to find out a lot more information.
Public buses run to both OLINDA and JOAO PESSOA. OLINDA is 10 Kilometres (6 miles) and 40-minutes away (it is treated like a suburb of Recife) whereas to reach JOAO PESSOA, I need to take a train to get to the long distance bus station (1-hour journey) and then take a bus from there (2-hour journey). As it was already 10 AM, I decided to do OLINDA today.
The bus stop for OLINDA was close to the tourist kiosk. I had a 20-minute wait at the bus station and kept saying "Desculpe" (sorry) many times as folks assumed I was a local (a TAMIL speaking Brazilian at that) and kept asking ME for directions!
I managed to get a seat on the bus as it was rather empty. The fare was R$2.60 (US$1.45). I watched the passing traffic, people and scenery during the 40-minute ride until I was told by a rather helpful fellow lady passenger to get off at OLINDA. I had obtained a decent map from the tourist office and headed towards the local tourist office. [While the big cities might provided a small scale map of nearby areas and suburbs, it is better to visit the local tourist offices in those nearby areas and suburbs and obtained a large scale map of the area]
En-route, I was accosted by "Guides". I had read about them in my guidebook. They are former street kids who have been trained in the local history (and are perhaps taught at least 1 additional language in addition to their native Portugese) and are authorized to act as guides to tourists. Muggings in these areas are apparently quite common and hiring one of these "Guides" is an insurance against such muggings.
One of the more persistent kids walked all the way to the tourist office with me. Although he spoke some English, I preferred to get the explanations in Portugese with some English thrown in as this was the only way, I would get to familiarize myself in that language.
The local tour office provided me with a list of maps, cultural events, museums, ways to prevent AIDS etc. in a decent handy packet. They also advised that I could pay R$5 per hour for the services of the guide.
The guide started at R$25 for a 2-hour tour of the area. I bargained him down to R$15 for 2 hours. It was 12:45 PM. We started to walk the cobble stoned streets and hit a slew of old churches and cathedrals. During our walk, a young lady wanted to be photographed! After confirming with the guide that it was not for money, I obliged her. I was also trying to test my portraiture skills as most of what I take pictures of are landscapes! An attractive local girl.
My head is spinning with all the church related information my guide is reeling fast and furiously. Most of the churches and cathedrals are closed for restoration. OLINDA is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Some of the churches open at 6 PM for services while others open at 2 PM after lunch.
Igreja Da Se (Igreja is similar to Iglesia in Spanish - Church) presented an excellent viewpoint from which to view OLINDA, Recife, the beaches, Atlantic Ocean and even the distant suburb of Boa Viagem (where my hotel is located)!
Most of the churches here were built in the 1500s. The entire area of OLINDA is paved with cobble stoned streets. Decor from Carnaval celebrations were still around. While the CARNAVAL at Rio is world famous, places like Recife and Salvador have apparently terrific Carnaval celebrations. I was told this by locals who can probably appreciate these things better.
We end the tour around 1:45 PM. The guide demands R$20. I politely tell him that even though has lasted just an hour, I will pay him the agreed upon R$15 (rather than prorate the fee and pay him just R$7.50). He does not have change for R$50 (US$30). We walk around some more and ask at 4-different places. No luck. Finally a stranger on the street changes the R$50 bill for smaller bills! I pay the guide and thank him.
I head to a Creperie for Lunch. I have a decent crepe and a Cashew juice for Lunch. Cashew is pronounced CAJU - Similar to the Hindi term for Cashew. I redo a walk to some of the places (I visited with the guide earlier) and take some additional pictures. I also visit some additional places that the guide has missed in his hurry. The houses here date mostly to the 1800s. There are some houses that date even earlier. They are all very colourfully painted. Walking around OLINDA involves steep climbs and descents!
I sat down after one of these climbs and had coconut water. The old man (running the stall) and I had an extensive conversation in Portugese with me nodding my head pensively from time to time! It worked! I did not have to provide an answer or comments to whatever he was saying!
As I walked around some more, I noticed that the municipal workers were gradually starting to bring down the celebratory decor from the utility poles!
I visited a Church and a Monastery and used my tripod liberally as there was a ban on flash photography.
I finished seeing all the places in OLINDA by 4 PM. I headed back to OLINDA´s bus station and waited for 15 minutes before a bus arrived. I picked up the same bus as I came in earlier this morning. As the bus was returning to Boa Viagem on a parallel street, I mistakenly got off 20-blocks too early and had a 20-minute walk back to the hotel. I got back around 5:45 PM.
I had requested Francisco to find out about Organized tours to Joao Pessoa. Apparently all tours to Joao Pessoa require a minimum of 15 people. As that is a non-starter of an option, I plan to take the train and public bus and visit the place on my own.
I visited a local internet cafe to check my mail, credit cards, bank accounts etc. All is well. I head to another Internet cafe with faster connections and blog for an hour. I am far from being up to date.
On my return to the hotel, I stop at a supermarket and buy some bottles of water. I visit the Hotel´s restaurant at 10:30 for dinner. I order a fettuccini with tomato sauce. I write my diary while waiting for my food. The visits to Rio de Janeiro and the Amazon Jungle Lodge have really escalated my expenses for February. It will have to be bread and water from now on!
I finish dinner and finish updating my diary. I have an early day tomorrow and it is well past midnight now!
February 14, 2008 - Recife, Brasil
==========================
I woke up at 6 AM. I get ready, finish breakfast and am at the Bus stop by 7:30 AM. I don´t think I am ever this punctual and enthusiastic for anything related to work! The bus drops me at the train station around 8:25 AM. The train drops me at the long distance bus terminal around 8:50 AM. The train was an Air-Conditioned train. Both the train and bus were quite empty. Either people here start work really early, or they have all taken time off during the month of February to enjoy the summer!. The bus and train ride together cost me R$1.75 (US$1.00). The combined bus and train ride to the long distance bus terminal has taken me close to 75 minutes.
The Progreso bus company had a departure for Joao Pessoa at 10:30 AM, while the Bonfin Bus company had a departure to Joao Pessoa at 9 AM. I took the 9 AM bus from Bonfin. The fare was R$22 (US$13). It was an executive bus and the seats reclined well. I, however, sat upright and watched the scenery. Road expansion works were in progress and it looks like the Brazilian army was helping out (folks dressed in Military fatigues were helping around and hence my assumption).
The bus made a few stops to pick people up and we reached Joao (Pronounced "Jo") Pessoa (Pronounced "Pesso") at 11 AM. As always I obtained a good map from the local tourist office (many are located at Bus terminals and airports in addition to prominent streets within the city).
The ONLY reason I had Joao Pessoa on my Agenda is because it is the Eastern most point in all of America (yes, that includes North and South!). A lighthouse apparently exists at the eastern most point and this is where I wanted to do. It was called Farol "Cabo Branco" (Farol means Lighthouse in Portugese)
I take a local bus (507) to "Cabo Branco". The fare was R$1.70 (US$1). After navigating through the city for a bit, the bus traverses through the lovely beachfront of Joao Pessoa. Bus 507 does not go all the way to the Lighthouse but stops about 2 Kilometres (1.2 miles) from it. I was to take a PENHA bus from the end of this line and eventually reach the lighthouse.
As our bus is pulling into its final stop at Cabo Branco, our driver notices that the Penha bus is just departing. He pulls right in front of the Penha bus thereby ensuring that those of us wanting to take that bus can do so!
I am dropped (after a ride of 5-8 minutes) near a construction site. Before I could turn around, the bus speeds off! A security guard at the construction site see a lame tourist (moi) standing clueless and directs me to the lighthouse. After a 500-metre walk, I come upon a sign (in Portugese) about this being the easternmost point in all of America. The Cabo Branco Lighthouse is also nearby. It is not functioning at the moment.
I spend around 20 minutes here taking pictures and requesting a local coconut vendor to take my picture. As I was quite thirsty, I ordered a coconut from the vendor (for the coconut water). I was asked by the vendor and his assistant to put away my camera in my bag before I leave the area as they were afraid that I would get mugged. I duly complied!
I head back to the construction area and the security guard tells me that buses comes this way every 30 minutes. As there is no proper bus stop, I take shelter under a billboard for the shade while I wait for the bus. About 20 minutes later, a bus comes in the opposite direction and does a quick U-turn about 50 metres ahead of me and starts to pull away towards the city. A local construction worker sees my plight and whistles. The bus promptly stops. I run and get on board. Both men and women whistle here and buses actually stop to pick them up. I need to learn to whistle well!
We get back to the area where bus 507 had dropped me earlier. As the 507 buses are quite frequent, I decided to walk to the beach and wander for a bit rather than take the next 507 back to the long distance bus station (Rodoviaria is the name given to long distance bus terminals).
What a magnificent beach! Turquoise green waters and white sand. Quite long and beautiful as well. Rio´s beaches are dumps compared to this. I am not sure why tourists flock to Rio for its "Beaches". If you want Beaches, sun and Sand, JOAO PESSOA is THE PLACE. And to top it all, there are hardly any Tourists and therefore quite peaceful.
I approached 3 sunbathers and asked whether I could capture their profiles in the picture I was composing (framed between a pair of palm trees). They agree readily. I take the picture and return to thank them. The picture has turned out well (especially in Black & White). There are lots of Coconut and Palm trees in the beach area here. I am not sure what the property prices are here.
I take bus 507 back to the centre of Joao Pessoa. I ask the conductor where to get off so I can view a famous cathedral and a lake in the centre of the city. He tells me that the bus travels close to both places. I presume I should be OK. All of this conversation is Spangese (mucho Espanol and poco portuges). After a 25-minute ride, a young lady approaches me and tells me that I need to get off at the next stop. The conductor has told her what I wanted to see and she dutifully remembers it and tells me that this is where I need to get off the bus. Quite helpful folks. I do see the park from the bus and get off.
I take a few pictures of the lake (located in a park in the very heart of Joao Pessoa) and walk to Cathedral San Francisco. I walk by a shopping centre and head to the food court. Pizza appears to be the only option here. I am quite revolted by the sight of Italian food these days. If you are eating the same stuff (that is ALIEN to your basic cuisine) day after day for months on end, I am sure many of you will be disgusted as well. Ah, the things I have to put up with - in the name of adventure!
After lunch, I head to Cathedral San Francisco. The locals direct me properly as I am visiting a place of worship! Excellent Baroque Architecture. I spent 20-minutes or so taking pictures and head to the Rodoviaria. I reach the Rodoviaria around 3:45 PM. A bus by Bonfin to Recife leaves at 4 PM. The fare is the same - R$22. I doze on and off during the ride back. During my onward journey to Joao Pessoa and during my return trip to Recife, a lady inspector get on the bus to inspect the tickets. I guess this is one more way of ensuring full employment :)
As we reach close to Recife, the bus more or less empties. A gentleman wearing what looks like a very official looking badge tells me that this is the place to get off for Boa Viagem (even though I know that this is NOT the main Bus terminal!). Then again, this place could be closer to Boa Viagem (the suburb of Recife where my hotel is located) that the main Bus Terminus.
After I get down and the bus departs, he offers me "TAXI" options to Boa Viagem. Turns out that he is an Official Taxi Agent and hence the badge. I am livid and I let it show. He promptly directs me to a Bus that supposedly takes me to Boa Viagem Shopping. Shopping malls are a very big thing in Brasil. Everywhere you turn, you can hear the word "Shopping" amidst a smattering of Portuges. I pay the R$1.75 bus fare and hope that the bus does indeed take me to Boa Viagem Shopping.
The street names are a bit far away for my blind eyes to read at night so I am quite clueless as to where I am (all part of the adventure). After 40-minutes or so, the bus more or less empties. A fellow lady passenger tells me that this is indeed Boa Viagem Shopping. I walk to the Information desk in the mall and they point out the location where this mall is located. It is about 10 blocks from my hotel. Not too bad.
The place is packed with people young and old. Malling did not appear to be a big thing either in Chile, Argentina or Paraguay. Starting from "Foz do Iguacu" (my entry point into Brasil) everyone always took a bus to go "Shopping". After all I was taken 2 nights in a row to a mall while in the Brasilian side of Iguacu!
I look around for dinner and do not have much luck. I have a milk shake for dinner. I walk to the hotel and rest a bit. I hit an internet cafe nearby and blog for 2 hours. I am getting closer to finishing my Paraguayan experience and thereby the month of January 2008.
I stop by a 24-hour grocery store and pick up water and get back to the hotel. By the time I write my diary for the day and go to bed, it is 1 AM.
As Francisco was telling me earlier, if the tour companies offer a tour option to Joao Pessoa for R$55 (US$34) and cover the places I saw on my own today, I would say it is a fantastic bargain as I have spent close to R$54 on my visit to Joao Pessoa today.
Then again you lose out on the thrill and adventure aspects as half the fun is finding out what you can do and how you can do it, in a place where you do not speak the language very well!
As I have said before, the Brazilian tourism agency is excellent. The tourism offices are quite helpful and provide excellent maps and any additional information you require. More and More, Brasil reminds me of India in many aspects. A major similarity is in the manic driving that takes place both here and in India! A second major similarity is the colour of the people - ranging from very fair skinned to very dark skinned.
==========================
I woke up a bit late. The breakfast was acceptable. People just do not seem to have toast in Brasil. All one finds are untoasted buns on which butter, marmalade, cheese and even ham are added and eaten. "Toasting" is still a requirement for me. Hence the "acceptable" definition for the breakfast here.
Post breakfast I chatted with Francisco on find out what to see and do and the ways of doing it by using public transport. Francisco provided me with some guidance on the different transport options. I headed to the tourist kiosk nearby. The folks in attendance spoke decent English and I managed to find out a lot more information.
Public buses run to both OLINDA and JOAO PESSOA. OLINDA is 10 Kilometres (6 miles) and 40-minutes away (it is treated like a suburb of Recife) whereas to reach JOAO PESSOA, I need to take a train to get to the long distance bus station (1-hour journey) and then take a bus from there (2-hour journey). As it was already 10 AM, I decided to do OLINDA today.
The bus stop for OLINDA was close to the tourist kiosk. I had a 20-minute wait at the bus station and kept saying "Desculpe" (sorry) many times as folks assumed I was a local (a TAMIL speaking Brazilian at that) and kept asking ME for directions!
I managed to get a seat on the bus as it was rather empty. The fare was R$2.60 (US$1.45). I watched the passing traffic, people and scenery during the 40-minute ride until I was told by a rather helpful fellow lady passenger to get off at OLINDA. I had obtained a decent map from the tourist office and headed towards the local tourist office. [While the big cities might provided a small scale map of nearby areas and suburbs, it is better to visit the local tourist offices in those nearby areas and suburbs and obtained a large scale map of the area]
En-route, I was accosted by "Guides". I had read about them in my guidebook. They are former street kids who have been trained in the local history (and are perhaps taught at least 1 additional language in addition to their native Portugese) and are authorized to act as guides to tourists. Muggings in these areas are apparently quite common and hiring one of these "Guides" is an insurance against such muggings.
One of the more persistent kids walked all the way to the tourist office with me. Although he spoke some English, I preferred to get the explanations in Portugese with some English thrown in as this was the only way, I would get to familiarize myself in that language.
The local tour office provided me with a list of maps, cultural events, museums, ways to prevent AIDS etc. in a decent handy packet. They also advised that I could pay R$5 per hour for the services of the guide.
The guide started at R$25 for a 2-hour tour of the area. I bargained him down to R$15 for 2 hours. It was 12:45 PM. We started to walk the cobble stoned streets and hit a slew of old churches and cathedrals. During our walk, a young lady wanted to be photographed! After confirming with the guide that it was not for money, I obliged her. I was also trying to test my portraiture skills as most of what I take pictures of are landscapes! An attractive local girl.
My head is spinning with all the church related information my guide is reeling fast and furiously. Most of the churches and cathedrals are closed for restoration. OLINDA is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Some of the churches open at 6 PM for services while others open at 2 PM after lunch.
Igreja Da Se (Igreja is similar to Iglesia in Spanish - Church) presented an excellent viewpoint from which to view OLINDA, Recife, the beaches, Atlantic Ocean and even the distant suburb of Boa Viagem (where my hotel is located)!
Most of the churches here were built in the 1500s. The entire area of OLINDA is paved with cobble stoned streets. Decor from Carnaval celebrations were still around. While the CARNAVAL at Rio is world famous, places like Recife and Salvador have apparently terrific Carnaval celebrations. I was told this by locals who can probably appreciate these things better.
We end the tour around 1:45 PM. The guide demands R$20. I politely tell him that even though has lasted just an hour, I will pay him the agreed upon R$15 (rather than prorate the fee and pay him just R$7.50). He does not have change for R$50 (US$30). We walk around some more and ask at 4-different places. No luck. Finally a stranger on the street changes the R$50 bill for smaller bills! I pay the guide and thank him.
I head to a Creperie for Lunch. I have a decent crepe and a Cashew juice for Lunch. Cashew is pronounced CAJU - Similar to the Hindi term for Cashew. I redo a walk to some of the places (I visited with the guide earlier) and take some additional pictures. I also visit some additional places that the guide has missed in his hurry. The houses here date mostly to the 1800s. There are some houses that date even earlier. They are all very colourfully painted. Walking around OLINDA involves steep climbs and descents!
I sat down after one of these climbs and had coconut water. The old man (running the stall) and I had an extensive conversation in Portugese with me nodding my head pensively from time to time! It worked! I did not have to provide an answer or comments to whatever he was saying!
As I walked around some more, I noticed that the municipal workers were gradually starting to bring down the celebratory decor from the utility poles!
I visited a Church and a Monastery and used my tripod liberally as there was a ban on flash photography.
I finished seeing all the places in OLINDA by 4 PM. I headed back to OLINDA´s bus station and waited for 15 minutes before a bus arrived. I picked up the same bus as I came in earlier this morning. As the bus was returning to Boa Viagem on a parallel street, I mistakenly got off 20-blocks too early and had a 20-minute walk back to the hotel. I got back around 5:45 PM.
I had requested Francisco to find out about Organized tours to Joao Pessoa. Apparently all tours to Joao Pessoa require a minimum of 15 people. As that is a non-starter of an option, I plan to take the train and public bus and visit the place on my own.
I visited a local internet cafe to check my mail, credit cards, bank accounts etc. All is well. I head to another Internet cafe with faster connections and blog for an hour. I am far from being up to date.
On my return to the hotel, I stop at a supermarket and buy some bottles of water. I visit the Hotel´s restaurant at 10:30 for dinner. I order a fettuccini with tomato sauce. I write my diary while waiting for my food. The visits to Rio de Janeiro and the Amazon Jungle Lodge have really escalated my expenses for February. It will have to be bread and water from now on!
I finish dinner and finish updating my diary. I have an early day tomorrow and it is well past midnight now!
February 14, 2008 - Recife, Brasil
==========================
I woke up at 6 AM. I get ready, finish breakfast and am at the Bus stop by 7:30 AM. I don´t think I am ever this punctual and enthusiastic for anything related to work! The bus drops me at the train station around 8:25 AM. The train drops me at the long distance bus terminal around 8:50 AM. The train was an Air-Conditioned train. Both the train and bus were quite empty. Either people here start work really early, or they have all taken time off during the month of February to enjoy the summer!. The bus and train ride together cost me R$1.75 (US$1.00). The combined bus and train ride to the long distance bus terminal has taken me close to 75 minutes.
The Progreso bus company had a departure for Joao Pessoa at 10:30 AM, while the Bonfin Bus company had a departure to Joao Pessoa at 9 AM. I took the 9 AM bus from Bonfin. The fare was R$22 (US$13). It was an executive bus and the seats reclined well. I, however, sat upright and watched the scenery. Road expansion works were in progress and it looks like the Brazilian army was helping out (folks dressed in Military fatigues were helping around and hence my assumption).
The bus made a few stops to pick people up and we reached Joao (Pronounced "Jo") Pessoa (Pronounced "Pesso") at 11 AM. As always I obtained a good map from the local tourist office (many are located at Bus terminals and airports in addition to prominent streets within the city).
The ONLY reason I had Joao Pessoa on my Agenda is because it is the Eastern most point in all of America (yes, that includes North and South!). A lighthouse apparently exists at the eastern most point and this is where I wanted to do. It was called Farol "Cabo Branco" (Farol means Lighthouse in Portugese)
I take a local bus (507) to "Cabo Branco". The fare was R$1.70 (US$1). After navigating through the city for a bit, the bus traverses through the lovely beachfront of Joao Pessoa. Bus 507 does not go all the way to the Lighthouse but stops about 2 Kilometres (1.2 miles) from it. I was to take a PENHA bus from the end of this line and eventually reach the lighthouse.
As our bus is pulling into its final stop at Cabo Branco, our driver notices that the Penha bus is just departing. He pulls right in front of the Penha bus thereby ensuring that those of us wanting to take that bus can do so!
I am dropped (after a ride of 5-8 minutes) near a construction site. Before I could turn around, the bus speeds off! A security guard at the construction site see a lame tourist (moi) standing clueless and directs me to the lighthouse. After a 500-metre walk, I come upon a sign (in Portugese) about this being the easternmost point in all of America. The Cabo Branco Lighthouse is also nearby. It is not functioning at the moment.
I spend around 20 minutes here taking pictures and requesting a local coconut vendor to take my picture. As I was quite thirsty, I ordered a coconut from the vendor (for the coconut water). I was asked by the vendor and his assistant to put away my camera in my bag before I leave the area as they were afraid that I would get mugged. I duly complied!
I head back to the construction area and the security guard tells me that buses comes this way every 30 minutes. As there is no proper bus stop, I take shelter under a billboard for the shade while I wait for the bus. About 20 minutes later, a bus comes in the opposite direction and does a quick U-turn about 50 metres ahead of me and starts to pull away towards the city. A local construction worker sees my plight and whistles. The bus promptly stops. I run and get on board. Both men and women whistle here and buses actually stop to pick them up. I need to learn to whistle well!
We get back to the area where bus 507 had dropped me earlier. As the 507 buses are quite frequent, I decided to walk to the beach and wander for a bit rather than take the next 507 back to the long distance bus station (Rodoviaria is the name given to long distance bus terminals).
What a magnificent beach! Turquoise green waters and white sand. Quite long and beautiful as well. Rio´s beaches are dumps compared to this. I am not sure why tourists flock to Rio for its "Beaches". If you want Beaches, sun and Sand, JOAO PESSOA is THE PLACE. And to top it all, there are hardly any Tourists and therefore quite peaceful.
I approached 3 sunbathers and asked whether I could capture their profiles in the picture I was composing (framed between a pair of palm trees). They agree readily. I take the picture and return to thank them. The picture has turned out well (especially in Black & White). There are lots of Coconut and Palm trees in the beach area here. I am not sure what the property prices are here.
I take bus 507 back to the centre of Joao Pessoa. I ask the conductor where to get off so I can view a famous cathedral and a lake in the centre of the city. He tells me that the bus travels close to both places. I presume I should be OK. All of this conversation is Spangese (mucho Espanol and poco portuges). After a 25-minute ride, a young lady approaches me and tells me that I need to get off at the next stop. The conductor has told her what I wanted to see and she dutifully remembers it and tells me that this is where I need to get off the bus. Quite helpful folks. I do see the park from the bus and get off.
I take a few pictures of the lake (located in a park in the very heart of Joao Pessoa) and walk to Cathedral San Francisco. I walk by a shopping centre and head to the food court. Pizza appears to be the only option here. I am quite revolted by the sight of Italian food these days. If you are eating the same stuff (that is ALIEN to your basic cuisine) day after day for months on end, I am sure many of you will be disgusted as well. Ah, the things I have to put up with - in the name of adventure!
After lunch, I head to Cathedral San Francisco. The locals direct me properly as I am visiting a place of worship! Excellent Baroque Architecture. I spent 20-minutes or so taking pictures and head to the Rodoviaria. I reach the Rodoviaria around 3:45 PM. A bus by Bonfin to Recife leaves at 4 PM. The fare is the same - R$22. I doze on and off during the ride back. During my onward journey to Joao Pessoa and during my return trip to Recife, a lady inspector get on the bus to inspect the tickets. I guess this is one more way of ensuring full employment :)
As we reach close to Recife, the bus more or less empties. A gentleman wearing what looks like a very official looking badge tells me that this is the place to get off for Boa Viagem (even though I know that this is NOT the main Bus terminal!). Then again, this place could be closer to Boa Viagem (the suburb of Recife where my hotel is located) that the main Bus Terminus.
After I get down and the bus departs, he offers me "TAXI" options to Boa Viagem. Turns out that he is an Official Taxi Agent and hence the badge. I am livid and I let it show. He promptly directs me to a Bus that supposedly takes me to Boa Viagem Shopping. Shopping malls are a very big thing in Brasil. Everywhere you turn, you can hear the word "Shopping" amidst a smattering of Portuges. I pay the R$1.75 bus fare and hope that the bus does indeed take me to Boa Viagem Shopping.
The street names are a bit far away for my blind eyes to read at night so I am quite clueless as to where I am (all part of the adventure). After 40-minutes or so, the bus more or less empties. A fellow lady passenger tells me that this is indeed Boa Viagem Shopping. I walk to the Information desk in the mall and they point out the location where this mall is located. It is about 10 blocks from my hotel. Not too bad.
The place is packed with people young and old. Malling did not appear to be a big thing either in Chile, Argentina or Paraguay. Starting from "Foz do Iguacu" (my entry point into Brasil) everyone always took a bus to go "Shopping". After all I was taken 2 nights in a row to a mall while in the Brasilian side of Iguacu!
I look around for dinner and do not have much luck. I have a milk shake for dinner. I walk to the hotel and rest a bit. I hit an internet cafe nearby and blog for 2 hours. I am getting closer to finishing my Paraguayan experience and thereby the month of January 2008.
I stop by a 24-hour grocery store and pick up water and get back to the hotel. By the time I write my diary for the day and go to bed, it is 1 AM.
As Francisco was telling me earlier, if the tour companies offer a tour option to Joao Pessoa for R$55 (US$34) and cover the places I saw on my own today, I would say it is a fantastic bargain as I have spent close to R$54 on my visit to Joao Pessoa today.
Then again you lose out on the thrill and adventure aspects as half the fun is finding out what you can do and how you can do it, in a place where you do not speak the language very well!
As I have said before, the Brazilian tourism agency is excellent. The tourism offices are quite helpful and provide excellent maps and any additional information you require. More and More, Brasil reminds me of India in many aspects. A major similarity is in the manic driving that takes place both here and in India! A second major similarity is the colour of the people - ranging from very fair skinned to very dark skinned.
Thursday, March 6, 2008
February 12, 2008 - Manaus & Recife, Brasil
February 12, 2008 - Manaus, Brasil
===========================
After having an early breakfast, I headed out to see Valdemar (the agent for Anavilhanas Lodge). We chatted for 35 minutes. I told him that the lodge needs to post clear signs for NOT smoking during Canoe trips. The NYT article has apparently triggered an avalanche of bookings here. As there are just 12 cabins, one need not fear the hordes overwhelming the place anytime soon. They have good guides and free transfers from and to Manaus. Apparently all the guides who work for them are free lancers. There is apparently a guide of Indian Origin (Prakash) who speaks Hindi (as a guide). Nope, he was not around during the time I was there.
The shops here open at 8 AM and close by 6 or 7 PM. I had a bit of a walk and headed back to the hotel around 9:45 AM. I ran into Wilson and Djallman at the entrance. They were apparently headed to the airport for a pickup and they offered a ride to the airport for R$20. I promptly checked out of the hotel and accepted their discounted ride. I was at the airport by 10:30 or so. I checked in and found out to my surprise that my flight was not a non-stop flight to Recife. On my flight into Manaus, I had a single stop over (Brasilia) from Rio.
My flight to Recife from Manaus was to stop at Santarem, Belem, Sao Luis, Fortaleza and Recife before heading to Salvador! If I am expected to reach Recife at 9:25 PM, I pity the person who is travelling from Manaus to Salvador on this flight! The saving grace was that I did not have to change planes. I just sit in my allocated seat for the next 9 hours! The bag checked in at 19 Kilos.
I did some small souvenir shopping at the Airport. Knowing that there will be no vegetarian food on the plane, I had a Panini (Sugar with Cinnamon) and Mango Juice. I boarded the flight around 12:10 PM. It was pouring rain outside. I read Bruce Chatwin for a bit and dozed off (maybe it is his writing style!). I woke up at 1 PM and found the plane still sitting at the gate! Weather delay. We finally departed at 1:15 PM.
We landed at Santarem at 2:10 PM. The forest was at the very edge of the airport. The Amazon river stretched well into the Horizon. Truly mighty river. For a town with a population of 300,000 the airport looked fairly quaint. We departed Santarem at 2:30 PM and flew over the Amazon. The Rio Negro and Solimoes were separate. There is apparently another meeting point at Santarem. We will follow the Amazon through to Belem (our next stop).
We landed at Belem at 3:40 PM. The Amazon´s might was quite evident here as well. We departed Belem at 4:20 PM. Although Belem is as big as Manaus (population wise), it appeared a bit more organized (in terms of Urban planning) as opposed to Manaus (which appeared to lack any form of it!).
We arrived at Sao Luis at 5:20 PM. We appear to be 1 hour ahead already. We departed Sao Luis at 5:45 PM (or the new 6:45 PM). It had started to get quite dark.
We reached Fortalezza at 7:50 PM. It looked like a well planned city from above.
I had reached the maximum stops (EVER) on an in-country flight (I would have to research all my International flights to see if any of them had so many stops without a break). We had the largest incoming crowd (thus far) at Fortalezza. The flight may even be full from here on. We depart Fortalezza at 8:20 PM.
We reach Recife at 9:20 PM as per our Schedule.
One curious note: Brazilians pronounce the "r" letter as "h". RIO becomes HEO. RECIFE becomes HECIFE.
February 12, 2008 - Recife, Brasil
=========================
I collected my bag and picked up a few local maps and information from the tourist booth at the airport. I took a pre-paid taxi from the airport to my hotel. The 10 minute ride cost me R$12. I requested a quiet room at the hotel. I am being Charged R$84 (US$50) per night at the hotel. The room is probably worth US$30.
As I was too tired to go out for dinner, I had dinner at the Hotel restaurant. Italian restaurant. Penne with Pesto and an Italian Wine. Good dinner. Owner is an Italian migrant who has been in Brasil for 10 years. Towards the end of my dinner, I met Francisco Appio (also a migrant from Italy) with whom I had communicated during the research the reservation process.
I need to decide on what I can do tomorrow. I have 2 full days in Recife before I head to Salvador on the 15th.
Note on Tourism
============
Just about every place I have visited thus far has a nice tourist office with very detailed maps of the area. The folks staffing the tourist office may not always speak English but they are very knowledgeable and are able to help with little details.
They are definitely a saving grace for the single traveller.
===========================
After having an early breakfast, I headed out to see Valdemar (the agent for Anavilhanas Lodge). We chatted for 35 minutes. I told him that the lodge needs to post clear signs for NOT smoking during Canoe trips. The NYT article has apparently triggered an avalanche of bookings here. As there are just 12 cabins, one need not fear the hordes overwhelming the place anytime soon. They have good guides and free transfers from and to Manaus. Apparently all the guides who work for them are free lancers. There is apparently a guide of Indian Origin (Prakash) who speaks Hindi (as a guide). Nope, he was not around during the time I was there.
The shops here open at 8 AM and close by 6 or 7 PM. I had a bit of a walk and headed back to the hotel around 9:45 AM. I ran into Wilson and Djallman at the entrance. They were apparently headed to the airport for a pickup and they offered a ride to the airport for R$20. I promptly checked out of the hotel and accepted their discounted ride. I was at the airport by 10:30 or so. I checked in and found out to my surprise that my flight was not a non-stop flight to Recife. On my flight into Manaus, I had a single stop over (Brasilia) from Rio.
My flight to Recife from Manaus was to stop at Santarem, Belem, Sao Luis, Fortaleza and Recife before heading to Salvador! If I am expected to reach Recife at 9:25 PM, I pity the person who is travelling from Manaus to Salvador on this flight! The saving grace was that I did not have to change planes. I just sit in my allocated seat for the next 9 hours! The bag checked in at 19 Kilos.
I did some small souvenir shopping at the Airport. Knowing that there will be no vegetarian food on the plane, I had a Panini (Sugar with Cinnamon) and Mango Juice. I boarded the flight around 12:10 PM. It was pouring rain outside. I read Bruce Chatwin for a bit and dozed off (maybe it is his writing style!). I woke up at 1 PM and found the plane still sitting at the gate! Weather delay. We finally departed at 1:15 PM.
We landed at Santarem at 2:10 PM. The forest was at the very edge of the airport. The Amazon river stretched well into the Horizon. Truly mighty river. For a town with a population of 300,000 the airport looked fairly quaint. We departed Santarem at 2:30 PM and flew over the Amazon. The Rio Negro and Solimoes were separate. There is apparently another meeting point at Santarem. We will follow the Amazon through to Belem (our next stop).
We landed at Belem at 3:40 PM. The Amazon´s might was quite evident here as well. We departed Belem at 4:20 PM. Although Belem is as big as Manaus (population wise), it appeared a bit more organized (in terms of Urban planning) as opposed to Manaus (which appeared to lack any form of it!).
We arrived at Sao Luis at 5:20 PM. We appear to be 1 hour ahead already. We departed Sao Luis at 5:45 PM (or the new 6:45 PM). It had started to get quite dark.
We reached Fortalezza at 7:50 PM. It looked like a well planned city from above.
I had reached the maximum stops (EVER) on an in-country flight (I would have to research all my International flights to see if any of them had so many stops without a break). We had the largest incoming crowd (thus far) at Fortalezza. The flight may even be full from here on. We depart Fortalezza at 8:20 PM.
We reach Recife at 9:20 PM as per our Schedule.
One curious note: Brazilians pronounce the "r" letter as "h". RIO becomes HEO. RECIFE becomes HECIFE.
February 12, 2008 - Recife, Brasil
=========================
I collected my bag and picked up a few local maps and information from the tourist booth at the airport. I took a pre-paid taxi from the airport to my hotel. The 10 minute ride cost me R$12. I requested a quiet room at the hotel. I am being Charged R$84 (US$50) per night at the hotel. The room is probably worth US$30.
As I was too tired to go out for dinner, I had dinner at the Hotel restaurant. Italian restaurant. Penne with Pesto and an Italian Wine. Good dinner. Owner is an Italian migrant who has been in Brasil for 10 years. Towards the end of my dinner, I met Francisco Appio (also a migrant from Italy) with whom I had communicated during the research the reservation process.
I need to decide on what I can do tomorrow. I have 2 full days in Recife before I head to Salvador on the 15th.
Note on Tourism
============
Just about every place I have visited thus far has a nice tourist office with very detailed maps of the area. The folks staffing the tourist office may not always speak English but they are very knowledgeable and are able to help with little details.
They are definitely a saving grace for the single traveller.
February 11, 2008 - Anavilhanas, Amazonas, Brasil
February 11, 2008 - Anavilhanas, Amazonas, Brasil
======================================
I had a leisurely wakeup and headed for breakfast where I bid adieu to the English (Indian / Sri Lankan) girls. I shared my breakfast table with an elderly Indian gent. There was yet another Indian family of 4 seated at the next table. 8 South Asians in the same place! This is the first time that has happened during my 9-week travel.
I had my final excursion at 8:30. 4 of us (with our Italian Guide) sped off in a canoe at 8:30 AM. 3 other canoes (that were tied to our canoe) trailed behind us. We reached branch of the Rio Negro after 20 minutes. The 3 canoes were detached from ours. The elderly Indian gent and I got into a canoe, a middle eastern couple got into the second canoe and the Italian guide got into the 3rd canoe by himself. We were to paddle in the Amazon! I let my partner sit up front and steer the boat while I sat behind and got into the paddling rhythm.
We spotted a few birds and a trio of insect eating bats. As neither of us were good paddlers, I lad left my camera bag behind in the motorized canoe which was being piloted by a driver well behind us. In the event I need the camera, I could always signal and take it from him. It was a fantastic experience. The only sounds were the sounds of the Jungle and our paddles swishing the waters of the Rio Negro.
We paddled to the end of the tributary where the middle eastern couple and our guide took a dip in the waters. The paddling during our return journey appeared a bit easier. In all we paddled about 2 kilometres (1.2 miles approx) before boarding out motorized canoe for our ride back to the lodge.
We got back to the lodge around 12:15 PM. I showered and packed up as I was scheduled to leave for Manaus after Lunch. After Lunch, I paid up the hotel bill and provided a very positive feedback on my experience there. I requested that neither Cell phone nor internet connection EVER be established here. I met the young couple from Sao Paulo who own and operate this place. Although this place has been in operation for less than a year, the NY Times review boosted their visibility immensely and many of the folks at the lodge were booked at this place by their travel agents. Needless to say, I was the lone exception in that I contacted the lodge and booked my stay with them directly.
The waste water from the cabins in treated and then sent into the ground (NOT the river). They run a very eco-friendly operation. The exchange rate given to me during the billing process was quite bad as it increased my bill by at least US$70.
I have cruised the Amazon, trekked in it, observed the sun rise and paddled in it and have large welts (from the numerous insects that relished my blood) to prove it. I hope the welts are not permanent :) I am completely satisfied.
Cassio (my guide for the past 2 days) was headed back to Manaus as well. I was the sole passenger headed back to Manaus. The three of us (Including the driver) were driven in a cross-over vehicle to Manaus. Cassio works only 10-days per month at the lodge. He works for the rest of the month in Manaus as a tour guide (for different cruise ships that stop at Manaus) taking tourists to the "Meeting of the Waters" and "Janaury Island". He is too good a guide to be wasted on small stuff like that!
The weather during our drive was the very definition of unpredictable. It rained for 2 minutes, the sun shone for 2 minutes and then it rained again for 3 minutes and so on. We stopped to see a dead snake on the road. It was a poisonous one. After making sure it was dead, Cassio picked it up and I snapped a picture :)
We reached the other side of the Amazon (across from Manaus) 2 hours after departing the lodge. As we had to wait for 30 minutes to board the next ferry to Manaus, I headed to the nearest post office to mail my post cards. After the ferry crossing, I was dropped at my Hotel. Cassio gave me his contact information.
February 11, 2008 - Manaus. Brasil
==========================
After checking-in (I requested and got the same room) and dropping my bags, I headed out in search of an IPOD Charger. A locally made charger was being sold was 70 Reais (US$ 40). I gave up. I headed to a nearby internet cafe and backed up all my memory cards from the Amazon trip and updated my blog for 3 days. (Still a long way to go before I am current).
I also researched things to do in Recife (my next stop) and Salvador (the subsequent stop after Recife). I leave tomorrow afternoon for Recife.
======================================
I had a leisurely wakeup and headed for breakfast where I bid adieu to the English (Indian / Sri Lankan) girls. I shared my breakfast table with an elderly Indian gent. There was yet another Indian family of 4 seated at the next table. 8 South Asians in the same place! This is the first time that has happened during my 9-week travel.
I had my final excursion at 8:30. 4 of us (with our Italian Guide) sped off in a canoe at 8:30 AM. 3 other canoes (that were tied to our canoe) trailed behind us. We reached branch of the Rio Negro after 20 minutes. The 3 canoes were detached from ours. The elderly Indian gent and I got into a canoe, a middle eastern couple got into the second canoe and the Italian guide got into the 3rd canoe by himself. We were to paddle in the Amazon! I let my partner sit up front and steer the boat while I sat behind and got into the paddling rhythm.
We spotted a few birds and a trio of insect eating bats. As neither of us were good paddlers, I lad left my camera bag behind in the motorized canoe which was being piloted by a driver well behind us. In the event I need the camera, I could always signal and take it from him. It was a fantastic experience. The only sounds were the sounds of the Jungle and our paddles swishing the waters of the Rio Negro.
We paddled to the end of the tributary where the middle eastern couple and our guide took a dip in the waters. The paddling during our return journey appeared a bit easier. In all we paddled about 2 kilometres (1.2 miles approx) before boarding out motorized canoe for our ride back to the lodge.
We got back to the lodge around 12:15 PM. I showered and packed up as I was scheduled to leave for Manaus after Lunch. After Lunch, I paid up the hotel bill and provided a very positive feedback on my experience there. I requested that neither Cell phone nor internet connection EVER be established here. I met the young couple from Sao Paulo who own and operate this place. Although this place has been in operation for less than a year, the NY Times review boosted their visibility immensely and many of the folks at the lodge were booked at this place by their travel agents. Needless to say, I was the lone exception in that I contacted the lodge and booked my stay with them directly.
The waste water from the cabins in treated and then sent into the ground (NOT the river). They run a very eco-friendly operation. The exchange rate given to me during the billing process was quite bad as it increased my bill by at least US$70.
I have cruised the Amazon, trekked in it, observed the sun rise and paddled in it and have large welts (from the numerous insects that relished my blood) to prove it. I hope the welts are not permanent :) I am completely satisfied.
Cassio (my guide for the past 2 days) was headed back to Manaus as well. I was the sole passenger headed back to Manaus. The three of us (Including the driver) were driven in a cross-over vehicle to Manaus. Cassio works only 10-days per month at the lodge. He works for the rest of the month in Manaus as a tour guide (for different cruise ships that stop at Manaus) taking tourists to the "Meeting of the Waters" and "Janaury Island". He is too good a guide to be wasted on small stuff like that!
The weather during our drive was the very definition of unpredictable. It rained for 2 minutes, the sun shone for 2 minutes and then it rained again for 3 minutes and so on. We stopped to see a dead snake on the road. It was a poisonous one. After making sure it was dead, Cassio picked it up and I snapped a picture :)
We reached the other side of the Amazon (across from Manaus) 2 hours after departing the lodge. As we had to wait for 30 minutes to board the next ferry to Manaus, I headed to the nearest post office to mail my post cards. After the ferry crossing, I was dropped at my Hotel. Cassio gave me his contact information.
February 11, 2008 - Manaus. Brasil
==========================
After checking-in (I requested and got the same room) and dropping my bags, I headed out in search of an IPOD Charger. A locally made charger was being sold was 70 Reais (US$ 40). I gave up. I headed to a nearby internet cafe and backed up all my memory cards from the Amazon trip and updated my blog for 3 days. (Still a long way to go before I am current).
I also researched things to do in Recife (my next stop) and Salvador (the subsequent stop after Recife). I leave tomorrow afternoon for Recife.
February 10, 2008 - Anavilhanas, Amazonas, Brasil
February 10, 2008 - Anavilhanas, Amazonas, Brasil
======================================
I was woken up at 5 AM for the Sunrise viewing and contemplation. We gathered in the lobby at 5:20 AM and set on in a single canoe by 5:30 AM. There were 5 of us, plus a guide and the boatman. We entered the Anavilhanas Archipelago and cruised for 20 minutes. We saw a beautiful clean sky.
I saw the southern cross for the first time since leaving Australia / New Zealand in 2001! Although one could see it in Chile, it can only be spotted in the early hours of the morning and I did not visit any observatory at 5 AM in the morning while in Chile. We also saw the Scorpion´s tail as well as Venus. Although the sky was quite brilliant with all these astronomical formations viewable, the low light and the travelling canoe made pictures impossible (most images required a 2-3 minute exposure)
The calm waters of the Archipelago were disturbed partially as our canoe glided through. The sky turned pink around 5:50 AM and by 6:10 AM or so, the sun peeked out as a deep orange ball before sliding behind clouds. Sunrise on the Amazon to go with am evening at the Carnaval and a game at the Maracana!
We spotted a few birds but they were a bit far for us to see them properly or get any decent pictures. The closet we saw were a flock of 8-19 birds belonging to the Macaw family.
We got back to the lodge area by 7 AM and I was at breakfast by 7:15 AM. It was a very good breakfast. I had toasted bread for the first time in 2 weeks (after Asuncion, Paraguay). I will try the Manioc (flour made from a root) pancake tomorrow. Pete and Pam (folks who joined me for dinner last night) gave me their card.
I headed back to my room and had a quick shower and was ready for our 8:30 AM tour. We took a short canoe ride to the village of Novo Airao to fee PINK DOLPHINS. Dead Piranha were chopped up and provided to us to feed the dolphins. Cassio held up a piranha and opened its mouth to reveal its rows of sharp teeth. Took picture! Folks can swim with the dolphins and feed them as well. All except me got into the water for a swim and feed. I was the Photographer!
We walked into Novo Airao village and visited numerous artisan shops for an hour or so. Nothing caught my attention and I did nit buy anything. I did have a delicious, sweet coconut water. Simply fantastic. The Amazon river traverses over 6 states in Brasil. The Amazonas state is the largest of the 6 states and Manaus is its capital. Many small towns lie on the shores of the Amazon and they range in population from a few thousand people to over 100,000 people.
According to Cassio, I could get a nice house in Novo Airao for 40,000 Reais (US$22,000). Paraguay is still in my heart. Novo Airao is 3 degrees south of the Equator.
We got back to the hotel after our tour. The air-conditioned log cabin is a godsend! I rested a bit and labelled the pictures I had taken. I wrote my diary. After lunch we are scheduled to go on an extended cruise inside the Anavilhanas Archipelago.
We had a decent lunch. The clouds opened up and it poured. The lodge is well organized in certain aspects. They had at least 15 or so golf umbrellas for us to use. I took one and got back to my cabin. I headed to the rear veranda and slept on my hammock (well shielded from the rain) for an hour or so. It was a great feeling. If I did not have the cruise at 3 PM, I would have dozed until dinner! The rain had stopped completely by now and the sun was shining.
Our canoe cruise in the afternoon within the Anavilhanas Archipelago was for 2.5 hours. From the little I have seen of the Amazon, it is quite extraordinary. Extraordinary plant and animal diversity (although we did not see a lot of the animals of the Amazon). We spotted Vultures, river dolphins (also known as Black dolphins), Toucans and a few other birds. It turned out to be an excellent afternoon with lots of Sunshine and I took lots of pictures.
Upon my return to the lodge, I researched hotels for the next stops in my extended vacation. I played a game of pool with the English girls until dinner. The dinner was good. I have not suffered from lack of good food or monotony of the same food at this lodge.
Post dinner, we were scheduled to go for a night cruise at 8:30 PM. It was pitch dark with a lovely starry sky. We had an Italian guide with us for this trip. What an excellent vision he had. He spotted tiny birds and snakes (no more than 6 inches in length) from over 50 metres away with the aid of the flashlight. Although this trip was to sight Caimans, we did not spot any as they would dive underwater by the time we reached them. Ideally one should catch them unawares. We were not lucky tonight.
Visiting and cruising the Amazon: Yet another childhood geography lesson come true!
======================================
I was woken up at 5 AM for the Sunrise viewing and contemplation. We gathered in the lobby at 5:20 AM and set on in a single canoe by 5:30 AM. There were 5 of us, plus a guide and the boatman. We entered the Anavilhanas Archipelago and cruised for 20 minutes. We saw a beautiful clean sky.
I saw the southern cross for the first time since leaving Australia / New Zealand in 2001! Although one could see it in Chile, it can only be spotted in the early hours of the morning and I did not visit any observatory at 5 AM in the morning while in Chile. We also saw the Scorpion´s tail as well as Venus. Although the sky was quite brilliant with all these astronomical formations viewable, the low light and the travelling canoe made pictures impossible (most images required a 2-3 minute exposure)
The calm waters of the Archipelago were disturbed partially as our canoe glided through. The sky turned pink around 5:50 AM and by 6:10 AM or so, the sun peeked out as a deep orange ball before sliding behind clouds. Sunrise on the Amazon to go with am evening at the Carnaval and a game at the Maracana!
We spotted a few birds but they were a bit far for us to see them properly or get any decent pictures. The closet we saw were a flock of 8-19 birds belonging to the Macaw family.
We got back to the lodge area by 7 AM and I was at breakfast by 7:15 AM. It was a very good breakfast. I had toasted bread for the first time in 2 weeks (after Asuncion, Paraguay). I will try the Manioc (flour made from a root) pancake tomorrow. Pete and Pam (folks who joined me for dinner last night) gave me their card.
I headed back to my room and had a quick shower and was ready for our 8:30 AM tour. We took a short canoe ride to the village of Novo Airao to fee PINK DOLPHINS. Dead Piranha were chopped up and provided to us to feed the dolphins. Cassio held up a piranha and opened its mouth to reveal its rows of sharp teeth. Took picture! Folks can swim with the dolphins and feed them as well. All except me got into the water for a swim and feed. I was the Photographer!
We walked into Novo Airao village and visited numerous artisan shops for an hour or so. Nothing caught my attention and I did nit buy anything. I did have a delicious, sweet coconut water. Simply fantastic. The Amazon river traverses over 6 states in Brasil. The Amazonas state is the largest of the 6 states and Manaus is its capital. Many small towns lie on the shores of the Amazon and they range in population from a few thousand people to over 100,000 people.
According to Cassio, I could get a nice house in Novo Airao for 40,000 Reais (US$22,000). Paraguay is still in my heart. Novo Airao is 3 degrees south of the Equator.
We got back to the hotel after our tour. The air-conditioned log cabin is a godsend! I rested a bit and labelled the pictures I had taken. I wrote my diary. After lunch we are scheduled to go on an extended cruise inside the Anavilhanas Archipelago.
We had a decent lunch. The clouds opened up and it poured. The lodge is well organized in certain aspects. They had at least 15 or so golf umbrellas for us to use. I took one and got back to my cabin. I headed to the rear veranda and slept on my hammock (well shielded from the rain) for an hour or so. It was a great feeling. If I did not have the cruise at 3 PM, I would have dozed until dinner! The rain had stopped completely by now and the sun was shining.
Our canoe cruise in the afternoon within the Anavilhanas Archipelago was for 2.5 hours. From the little I have seen of the Amazon, it is quite extraordinary. Extraordinary plant and animal diversity (although we did not see a lot of the animals of the Amazon). We spotted Vultures, river dolphins (also known as Black dolphins), Toucans and a few other birds. It turned out to be an excellent afternoon with lots of Sunshine and I took lots of pictures.
Upon my return to the lodge, I researched hotels for the next stops in my extended vacation. I played a game of pool with the English girls until dinner. The dinner was good. I have not suffered from lack of good food or monotony of the same food at this lodge.
Post dinner, we were scheduled to go for a night cruise at 8:30 PM. It was pitch dark with a lovely starry sky. We had an Italian guide with us for this trip. What an excellent vision he had. He spotted tiny birds and snakes (no more than 6 inches in length) from over 50 metres away with the aid of the flashlight. Although this trip was to sight Caimans, we did not spot any as they would dive underwater by the time we reached them. Ideally one should catch them unawares. We were not lucky tonight.
Visiting and cruising the Amazon: Yet another childhood geography lesson come true!
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)