My travels through Brazil.

Rio School Lunches

March 30, 2007
Day 548

Francisco is going to school for his master's degree, and today I met him there for lunch. I paid a fixed price and got to load my plate with food. It was a great deal. Francisco also showed me the robotics and computer labs. The facilities were really nice,… Read More »

Cheaper Than the Bus, But is it Better?

March 29, 2007
Day 547

I know Salvador and Rio look far apart on the map, but when I heard that the bus for that leg of my journey would take twenty-six hours, the lifeforce got sucked right out of me. When I inquired and found out that a $100 price tag would accompany… Read More »

Beaches, Turtles, a Castle, and a Coincidental Encounter

March 25-28, 2007
Day 543-546

I decided I'd had enough of Salvador and headed to Praia do Forte, yet another cookie cutter-beach resort town on Brazil's NE coast. Accommodation was supposed to be expensive, so I headed for the campground. The only problems with this were that I was the only camper and would… Read More »

Recovery Where the Music Never Stops

March 24, 2007
Day 542

The center of Salvador is a pretty crazy place. You have prostitutes right outside of fine dining establishments, women in pretty white dresses selling fatteningly delicious traditional African food in plazas surrounded by at least three cathedrals, hippies selling hand-made hemp necklaces and bracelets in front of high-end jewelry… Read More »

The Repercussions of Drinking River Water

March 23, 2007
Day 541

I had been drinking river water the last few days in Chapada Diamantina. It looked like a dirty red color to me, but the guides drank it and said it was clean. I'm not saying they were necessarily wrong, but today a nasty stomach illness gradually developed inside me.… Read More »

Return to Salvador

March 22, 2007
Day 540

The last few days were nice and cool, but that was bound to change. The clouds that had been covering the area suddenly disappeared this morning and Lencois became an oven. Just standing outside left me covered in a ball of sweat.

I was thinking of visiting some caves… Read More »

Another Area Waterfall

March 21, 2007
Day 539

This morning, Ano, Oliver, and Rico (a Swiss guy from my hotel who has been living in Lencois for three weeks), and I decided to walk to Cachoeira do Sossego, another waterfall on the Riberao River, upstream from where I went to the water slide when I first got… Read More »

Walking to the Top of the Waterfall

March 20, 2007
Day 538
Chapada Diamantina Trek Day 3

The crew looked pretty exhausted again this morning. This was the last day of our trek and I think most were glad it was almost over.

We started going uphill as soon as we left camp. Everyone saw how high that waterfall was… Read More »

Sleeping in Caves Sounds Great Until You Actually Do It

March 19, 2007
Day 537

Chapada Diamantina Trek Day 2

We were supposed to leave at 8:00 this morning, so I got up at 7:00 in anticipation. Frequent camping on this trip has put me in the routine of getting up, putting away my sleeping bag and mattress, cooking and eating breakfast, cleaning my… Read More »

Trekking Through Chapada Diamantina

March 18, 2007
Day 536

Chapada Diamantina Trek Day 1

I got up plenty early today to ensure I'd be able to meet the group at the designated time of 8:30. Things were a bit out of order when Pierre, Omer, and I got there. The guide who said he'd take us suddenly said… Read More »