Hop those islands

On a brighter note, Bahia also boasts beautiful beautiful places. In particular, its islands! There are 56 islands dotted around the bay and yesterday we hopped on a tour boat and visited two of them.

I took a pill to help with seasickness....... one of the side effects? Drowsiness.....! So there I was, attempting to enjoy my boat trip and instead, falling asleep EVERYWHERE. I did get up to dance samba, in front of the whole boat..... a possible other side-effect = delusional?! Ha.
I fell asleep in the cabin at one point and was woken up by the musicians standing over me, wondering what this strange creature was doing sleeping instead of taking advantage of the beautiful scenery... Damn that pill!!

Islands visited:

Ilha dos Frades (Monk island) = 70 inhabitants, beautiful beach, run-down church and mango trees!! You know you're in Brazil when you can pick up mangos from the floor and eat them without a care in the world. YUM!














Ilha de Itaparica = 70,000 inhabitants, beautiful beaches! Horse riding on the beach, delicious lunch and siesta in a hammock. Perfect afternoon.

Your biggest fan,

Beijos

Facing realities

In my opinion, Brazil is the most diverse country in the world, in relation to it's people. How can it not be when during its colonization, various countries imprinted their mark on Brazil - the portuguese, the dutch and the french, as well as the african slaves that were brought in to do their dirty work. So today, Brazil is a rich mix of all types of backgrounds. There isn't a stereotypical Brazilian as anyone who is dark, blonde, ginger, white, tanned can be brazilian!

Bahia is made up of 80% Afro-Brazilians and 20% White-Brazilians. The descendants of these african slaves are a majority, yet they are the ones who suffer the most. When you walk around the city, you don't see a white boy up to his eyeballs on crack, you see a tiny afro-brazilian boy. When you go to cidade baixa, where the tall, beautiful colonial houses have been left to rot and are illegal to inhibit, you don't see white folk pouring their money into saving these buildings, but afro-brazilian women prostituting themselves and crack addicts sheltering in these broken down houses. The distribution of wealth in this city is so un-just yet no-one complains, no-one wants to make a difference. Everyone accepts that's the way it should be.

When I see a tiny boy or girl, begging for 20p to be able to go and get some crack, my heart breaks. Instead of giving them money, if I have food I offer them that. Most of the time they're grateful but sometimes, they would rather the money.

Walking the streets of Salvador you have to be on your guard the whole time. You don't know who's good and who could come up to you with a gun in your face demanding your money.

This country isn't ruled by politics. It's ruled by money for drugs. It's corrupt and it's dirty. No wonder the dwellers of the favela enjoy living there. As long as they obey the gang leader's rule, they are protected. Far more protection they'll get within their favela, then on the streets with the police.

The harsh realities of Bahian life that I have seen so far, make me so utterly grateful for where I come from. I am so lucky.

Your biggest fan,

Beijos

Favela Funkin'

Vidigal, Rio de Janeiro


Average friday night in Rio = baile funk party in one of the nearby favelas (brazilian ghettos).

My preconceptions of Brazilian favelas included: men and boys with guns and knives, run down wooden shacks with feeble cloth covering the doors and palm tree branches covering the roofs, no proper electricity, no running water, a lot of rubbish all around the streets, unwelcomed smells....

How wrong I was.. OK, granted, I did go to one of the "posher" favelas - Vidigal, it probably has the best view of Rio.... ironically enough! However, instead of reminding me of the slums in Mumbai, it reminded me of tiny Mexican villages.... over-crowded, disorganized, hilly but with a sense of order and very much livable. The danger factor? 0. Yes, you have to be aware, you don't walk in flashing your riches but the men and boys with arms are there to protect their territory from the police and other gangs.... It's relatively safe until a fight occurs... and when it does, run inside and don't come out until the last shot has been fired (so I've been told..!)

The reason for partying in a favela? BAILE FUNK. FUNK THAT BAILE. Awesome, awesome music! A mixture of hippy-hoppy (Hip-Hop) and electro.

" The funk popularized in the 80s in Rio de Janeiro ghettos called favelas. From mid-90s it was a mainstream phenomenon in Brazil. Funk songs discuss topics as varying as poverty, human dignity, racial pride of black people, sex (breaking it's moral values), violence and social injustice. Social analysts believe that the funk is a genuine expression of the severe social issues falling on the poor and black people in Rio. "

Massive sound system blaring out different tuuunes to which the brazilian girls shake and bop that booooty (bunda in portuguese!), grind with those sexy brazilian men and dance until the sun rises...
I tried my best to imitate them as it's incredibly sexy and I want to be able to shake my ass like that...!!! I think I did ok.... A lot more practice and I'll come back to Europe a fully fledged brazilian dancer ;)



Your biggest fan,

Beijos

Rain Rain GO Away..

Who would have thought that being in Rio would include spending days inside, sheltering from the torrential rain that has badly affected the city..... definitely not me!!

The past two days have been surreal, I don't think I've ever experienced such bad rain, even when I was in India during the monsoon period!

Monday night we waded through dirty dirty water just to cross the street and we were nearly swept away by the winds whilst walking by Copacabana beach..

Yesterday we were turned away by all museums in the centre of the city: "closed due to the rain". Our reaction, living in England and all, was of amazement... how can you close an entire city due to rain?! In our country we cope with it.... although the mention of snow in England does get us all nervous... Anyway, none of us had any idea of the extent of the damage the rain could cause until last night when we saw the deserted streets, the flooding pavements and huge branches falling from the trees.

We gave in pretty quickly and decided that being a tourist would just have to be put off for another day or two.... Here's to indoor partying.... capirinhas and films!

I pray the sun comes out soon, I would like to enjoy Rio for what it really has to offer..

Your biggest fan,

Beijos

Surf that couch

And so here starts my new brazilian adventure....

I have been here less than 48 hours yet I have
* sunbathed
*fought against the waves at Copacabana beach
*eaten feijoada(typical brazilian bean-meat stew)
*attempted to dance samba,
*watched with envy at those brazilian hotties shaking their asses
* hiked in a natural park


*listened to a monkey screaaaam
* showered under a natural waterfall
*been caught in the hot, humid rain, prone to Rio
*met lots of people from all over the world, all the whilst speaking my shockingly mixed-with-spanish portuguese.

All this my friends, due to couch surfing... this amazing network set up to help you meet new people, enjoy new experiences, walk the less touristy path and really feel "part of this world".

I can't wait for the next 3 months if they are anything like my first two days...!

Welcome to RIo................. why, muito obrigrada :)

Your biggest fan,

Beijos