Salvador de Bahia / Morro de Sao Paolo

After our adventures in Argentina, we headed on North to Salvador de Bahia. It's the largest city in Northeast Brazil. This is city is also called the city of happiness for their easy going population, music, and outdoor parties. 

The historical center is quite small but very charming. The streets are lined with brightly colored houses still painted today like they were during colonial times. Bahia has is one of largest Afro-Brazilian populations in Brazil which adds to the rich culture. There large elevator that brings you from lower town to upper town is strange landmark, where you pay just 15 cents (7 US cents) to take a ride.

 Despite the quaintness of the historic center, Bahia is were we felt least safe. There are policemen standing on every corner and it isn't recommended to walk by yourself or wander outside of the center, so we decided to spend a few days on the island, Morro de Sao Paolo, which is a 3 hour ferry ride from the coast. 

Morro de Sao Paolo is small tourist island known for its four beaches. It was very relaxing and we enjoyed ordering custom caipirinhas from caipirinha bars with passion fruit, cashew, and guava. We also saw beautiful sunsets and wildlife and enjoyed the nicest pousada we stayed at on the trip, enjoying relaxing out on the hammock every morning and evening. 

Foz de Iguaçu

The Iguazu Falls lie on the border of Argentina and Brazil. The name comes from the native Gaurani language Y for "water" and ûsaú for "big", and in fact these falls are incredibly powerful and breathtaking. The falls are formed by the Iguazu River and Paranà River running over the Paranà Plateau. 

To visit the falls you can stay on the Brazilian side in Foz de Iguaçu or on the Argentinean side in Puerta Iguazu. We decided to cross the border, add an extra stamp to our passport, and stay in Argentina. We also had heard that the Argentinian side is more impressive, and so it was! 

The falls are part of a national park which has many trails where you can see lots of animals and also see the falls from the lower trail or from above on the upper trail. We first walked the lower trail and couldn't imagine how the upper trail could be more beautiful as argued in the guide books. But once we walked the upper trail we were completely taken a back by the beauty that is so awe inspiring. 

The upper trail is where you see the Garganta do Diabo, "The Devil's Throat" which is the largest waterfall in the whole park. The force, the sound, the wind, the experience of standing of this massive waterfall is incredible. You keep asking yourself " Where does all this water come from? It just doesn't stop!" 

Argentina had a completely different feel than the Brazil we had experienced so far in Rio de Janeiro. Being winter it was quite cold, cloudy, and damp. Puerta Iguazu is a very small town and almost has the feel of an old Western shanty town. 

Every few steps we saw Argentines drinking Yerba Maté with their personal mug and metal straw and dressed in thick sweaters made from Llama wool. We enjoyed the infamous argentine barbecue and discovered a local hot sauce, Chimi Churri, which we brought back two bottles! 

Brazil - Rio de Janeiro Cidade Maravilhosa

The start of our three week trip in Brazil started in Rio de Janeiro. I didn't really have many expectations for Brazil other than being concerned for our safety as we read many horror stories on forums online of people being held at knife point, or stabbed and robbed or even worse- kidnapped or killed. 

So we started our trip out being very cautious, dressing down with no jewelry or purses/bags and we quickly realized that Rio de Janeiro wasn't really as dangerous as it was made out to be (only if you venture into the famous favelas). It is a beautiful, lively city, with of course the famous beaches Ipanema and Copacabana, and kiosks everywhere selling fresh fruit juices, coconut water in the coconut, and caipirinhas. 

Since Brazil is of course on the other side of the equator, while we were there in August, it was their winter. However a winter where the low is 75 and this high is 85 isn't so bad. The beaches were crowded with students in the afternoon who go and practice soccer, volleyball, racket ball, and just sit with their friends listening to music hanging out. 

We only had 3 days in Rio and so the first day we went to Pao de Açúcar (Sugarloaf Mountain). We had perfect timing and we're at the top of one those oddly looking shaped mountains and had a gorgeous view of the sunset over looking all of the city. 

The second day we ventured up to see one of the seven wonders of the world- Cristo Redentor, Christ the Redeemer. In order to get all the way up there, we had to take a little train, then once up there it was a mass of tourists. You could barely walk around, however the incredibly large Jesus is quite impressive and the view is also breathtaking. 

We also were able to make it the Botanical Gardens in Rio, which were a delight. We saw all sorts of fish and monkeys and of course it's relaxing, peaceful, and full of beautiful flowers, trees, pergolas, waterfalls, and walking paths.