South America ....... The Finale

South America has been action packed and we knew that going in. Typically to really get a feel for a place, city, culture, etc... my opinion would suggest you have to spend some real time there.. not just a few days... That said, you cant live everywhere for year. Unless you do. In which case you are really living life to its fullest.


South America offered a little of everything we were looking for coming out of this trip;

• Cultural perspective (as much as we could with our limited time)
• Adventure
• Pushing ourselves further than we thought we could go
• Exploring the unknown
• Fun, love and a strong sense of togetherness.

Our trip is 1/5 over. I don't know what the next leg holds (potentially some goon, surf, BBQs, bronzing, visiting old friends and more gentles) but if the first 2 months are any sign of whats to come, I cant wait to see what happens.


On to the next one.

Waiting for our flight out of Sao Paulo

Lots of love from the other end of the world.
OOO_JZ and Tals

Adventures in Paraty

The next morning we grabbed the 10am ferry from the island back to the main land to a town called Angra Dos Rios where we would get a bus to take us the 2hour ride to Paraty. Paraty is another beach town a little further south that had come highly recommended as a place to visit by a few American girls we had met back in Peru. It is famous for being home to about 50+ beaches in the surrounding area and for the charming and picturesque setting of the "Old Town" section of the city that has been preserved from the colonial time, uneven cobble stones and all.

The Charming Cobblestone streets in Old Town

The river canal headed into the Ocean

Once arriving in Angra dos Rios we set out on foot to the bust station until another traveler informed us that it was about a 30min walk - Not with our packs it is not, so instead we grabbed a cab and took the 5min ride instead. We were under the impression that there was a bus company there that had tickets to Paraty but it seemed that even though they still advertising them in the station they were no longer running that route so we needed to take the city bus from that station. We waited for a few buses to come and go that were all full and finally after seeing 2 buses go by we decided that we were going to squeeze in the 3rd even though it was standing room only. So gear and all we inched our way onto the bus and grabbed standing positions for the 2 hour ride. Luckily for us the bus started to clear out about half way through so we were able to get seats for the last hour. 

We had not booked any accommodations before we arrived in Paraty so we found a guy at the bus station who worked at a hostel and we took us there, however the joint was full. He took us on a little walking tour around the town to a few other hostels that "he likes" aka that his buddies work at our own and all of there were either full or massive dumps. Kait and I then decided to head out on our own while the boys waited with our bags to check out a few of the Pousadas instead. These can usually be a bit more expensive, like up to 150 Reals - 180 Reals/ night but when 4 people share the cost it works out to being not much more that a hostel anyways. We found one that suited our needs, even had a mini pool, which was key for us since we were sweaty messes from trekking all over town. After checking in and getting settled we took off to explore the town and decide what to do for the day. Much like in Ilha Grande there is a beach right in the town where everyone stays but it is not as nice as the beaches in the surrounding areas.

Since we had loved our boat cruise in Ilha Grande so much we decided on another boat cruise for the next day. This one was a bit different, it was on a Schooner boat and was only about 5 hours long visiting 2 secluded beaches and 2 islands in Paraty Bay. I won't say that we were disappointed by the beaches in Paraty because they were stunning, but we were a bit spoiled just 2 days before from our Island tour with Giovanni in Ilha Grande, if I were going to be in that area first I would start in Paraty and then move to Ilha Grande - that would be the perfect build up to finding paradise on earth.

Pulling up on the first of the Beautiful beaches of the day

What our boat looked like for the day

A private home on one of the islands

Enjoying our time on the boat

Panoramic view of 2nd beach for the day

After returning back to the docks in Paraty Jonny and I walked around the old town a little more and then went to check out the local beach before heading back to the Pousada. Kait wasn't feeling well that evening so she stayed back while the remaining 3 of us headed out to dinner in Old Town. We ended up at this great pizza spot that had an amazing quinoa salad, wood-fire oven pizzas and live music.  We discussed plans for the next day and it sounded like J.J and Kait were going to take a kayak tour around the bay and Jonny and I were going to head out to another beach nearby on the bus. Unfortunately all these plans came to a screeching halt through the night as it seemed whatever bug what started to affect Kait that day had then spread to me too. I will leave out the gory details but we took turns bring back up all the delicious meals we had that day. The next day I could not even get out of bed, just impossible so we stayed in all day. Jonny and I decided that we would head to Sao Paulo a day early since it didn’t look like we were going to get in any more beach time in my condition and he needed to find a place to get his tickets taken out as they were already a day overdue. After spending the entire day in bed I was able to drag my butt the 5 min walk to the bus station, poor Jonny had to carry ALL of our gear the whole way, and I settled in for the 6 hour bus ride with a couple gravols to help me make it. We made it to Sao Paulo without incident and I unfortunately had to spend the next day in bed all day again before I started to feel human again. 

OOO_Talia

Paradise, Found: Ilha Grande, Brazil

After a 4am wake up, short cab to the bus station, 2 hour bus ride and 1:45min ferry ride through the Atlantic Ocean, we had finally arrived at Ilha Grande around 10am, little did we know at the time that we had stumbled onto Paradise Island. We didn't really know too much about Ilha Grande before we arrived there as the lonely planet did not really have much to say about the place, but when Jonny and I were on the plane to Lima the guy sitting beside us suggested that we check in on it, and it was on our route from Rio to Sao Paulo so we thought - why not? It turned out that we had stumbled upon the most picturesque island with the most incredible, pristine, beaches that I have ever been to in my life which are surrounded by these massive mountains that looked like they are coming right out of the ocean. The island itself is about almost 2 hours off the coast of Angra dos Rios and when you arrive you pull into the beach town of Abraao which is the main port and commercial area of the island. The streets are lined with small beach shops, travel agencies, restaurants, hostels and Pousadas - A Pousada is the Brazilian word essentially for a Guest house. 

Pulling into the docks at Abraao Beach

Looking up at the town from the Beach

After getting off the ferry we stopped quickly to pick up an island map before starting out on the 5min or so walk to our Pousada, Bossa Nova, which we had pre-booked. It was a very quaint little spot but unfortunately we were a bit early to check-in. The wonderful girl at the desk let us lock up our bags and use the washroom to get changed so we could head out and explore the little town. After our quick change we headed out to explore and make our plans for the day, with only 2 days on the island we wanted to ensure that we got the chance to explore the best beaches that it has to offer. Although Abraao is a lovely beach and town but it doesn't hold a candle to some of the other beaches that the island boasts - including some that are considered the best in Brazil and top 50 in the world. After stopping in a few tourist offices and negotiating to get the best deals, we booked a 12:30 schooner boat to take us to Lopes Mendes Beach for the afternoon (supposedly the best in Brazil) and a full day island tour on a speed boat for the next day. This gave us just enough time to get back to our Pousada for 12pm check-in to change and pack up for the day


A quick 45min boat ride and we arrived in Poussa, the docking station to get to Lopes Mendes Beach. Besides the silky white sand, transparent water and decent surfing waves, Lopes Mendes is also famous for being incredible secluded. There is no way to get there by boat, you must first arrive in Poussa and then walk a 1.1km through a relatively treacherous, up and down, path through the forest before you final get a peek at the beach. We set up our spot right on the edge of the surf and spent the day tanning, reading, swimming and just plain relaxing on the most incredible beach I have ever been to. We opted to take the very last possible boat back to Abraao which allowed us to take in take in as much of the beach as possible and even catch a glimpse of the sunset as the boat rounded the bay back into the port. 

Sign directing us along the way to Lopes Mendes

Entering the forest for our walk to the beach

Some of the many monkeys we encountered along the way

First glimpse of the beach through the forest

The beautiful sand at Lopes Mendes beach

The amazingly serene beach 

Enjoying the beach, too hard to wipe the smiles off our face

Enjoying the sunset from the boat

After a rest and a change back at the Pousada we headed out to grab dinner. We decided on a little spot with tables set up right on the beach complete with tiki torches, candlelight and even and band playing off to the side. Dinner was long but fabulous, the boys opting for fish (given that we were sitting literally on the edge of the ocean so that was a no-brainer) and Kait and I shared some chicken. After enjoying dinner on the water we headed back to the Pousada to catch some sleep before our full-day boat tour the following day. 


OOO_Talia

Soccer and Sun.....our last few days at the Sheraton

After Carnival we had 2 days and 1 night left at the Sheraton and then our plan was to move on from Rio, but since we didn't really get the chance to see much of the city as we were busy with Carnival we decide to extend our stay by 2 more nights and head back to the hostel life. 


On the day after Carnival Jonny and I decided that we would just take in easy and have another beach day, but decided to head down to Copacabana beach to hang with the locals instead of spending the day at the Private beach at the Sheraton. We had been down there during Carnival and knew we wanted to return - the sand in amazingly white and the turquoise colour of the water on this part of the beach rivals those of Cancun and other Caribbean hot spots. For 15 reals (about $10 CDN) we rented 2 chairs and an umbrella for the day to relax under. The beach there is amazing, everything that you need comes to you as the locals walk up and down the beach selling things all day long. Without having to leave the comfort of our beach chairs we were able to score 2 pairs of sunglasses (since we have already broke our lost all others), a sarong, 2 empanadas, 4 waters and 2 popsicles.

Copacabana beach (image courtesy of google images)

After spending the day there we headed back to the hotel to get ready for the futbol (soccer) match that we had tickets for. We had purchased them the day before from the hotel concierge for about 150 Reals a pop (about $90 CDN) Flamengo vs. Vasco. Much like going to a match in Argentina, they recommend that foreigners head there with a tour company as it can be a bit dodgy to get into the stadium. Particularly this one was in a very dangerous neighbourhood because the regular stadium that Flamengo plays in is being renovated for the upcoming world cup. The city is putting in a lot of effort however to clean up this other neighborhood because the stadium that we went to is actually going to be the 2016 Rio Olympic stadium (after they add an additional 30,000 seats to the existing ~25,000 seats) 

A van picked us up at the hotel, and after stopping at a handful of other places to pick up the rest of the people joining us we started the 45min ride to the stadium through all types of neighbourhoods rich and poor before pulling up on the stadium. The stadium itself was quite a contrast the neighborhood that surrounds it, a very architecturally beautiful building with brightly lit archways set against a slum. 

View of the future Olympic stadium from the street

Entering the stadium

When we arrived at the stadium we had to wait about 15 - 20 mins before our guide could get the tickets so we had just enough time to grab a couple Bhrama's, meat on a stick and for me to get a Flamengo jersey for the game - when in Rome! As we were waiting for tickets we also got to see the hooligans coming into the stadium, it seemed as though the were headed to some back entrance and the group of about 200 or more were being escorted by heavily armed policeman. I am not sure if the police escort was for their protection of ours lol. Finally it was our turn to go in, the security getting into the game was nothing compared to La Boca in Argentina so we were in very quickly. Since this stadium is a lot bigger than the regular stadium and is about 45 mins outside of the city it wasn't sold out but that didn't stop the crowd from making it feel like it was a sold out game. I may even wager to say that the Flamengo fans may have been louder than the La Boca fans. Afterall they do have something like 40 million fans across the world...... that is more that there are Canadians TOTAL. 

Beers and Jersey outside of the Stadium

Jonny getting pumped  up with the crowd

showing off my Jersey

Flamengo's Hooligans side

As the crowd were starting to enter the stadium

It was a great game - the teams were very well matched so it was fast moving, plus it was the semi-final game for the Rio State championships so there was a lot on the line for both teams. Flamengo took the lead with a goal in the first 5 mins but Vasco caught up right before the end of the half. In the end Vasco took the game with a 2nd goal with about 5 mins left in the game. We were on the edge of our seats for the whole game! After the game we headed back to the Sheraton for one last sleep in our comfy beds before heading back to hostel life.

Since I am a platinum member, one of the perks I get is 4pm check-out at any starwood property so Jonny and I took full advantage of this privilege. Kait and J.J headed out early to get checked into the hostel and take in some of Rio and Jonny and I spent the day lounging poolside 

Enjoying our last day at the Sheraton

The last of the private beach rays

one last shot for the road

Finally around 3:30 we begrudgingly dragged ourselves upstairs to finish packing and check-out for grabbing a cab to our hostel for the next 2 nights.......back to the real backpackers life!

OOO_Talia

Carnival - You were one wild ride!

What do you get when you cross the cultural pride expressed during Canada Day, the amazing beats and rhythm of Caribana, The wild and nearly not there costumes of Halloween, and the all out partying on the streets of Pride, give it some crack and then extend it all to 1 week......... then you would get Carnival!  We actually finished our time at Carnival almost a week ago now but we have been going pretty much non-stop since then so we are a bit behind on the updates. That could also explain why I see to have come down with the flu.

It is really hard to describe what the experience of Carnival in Rio was like, somehow I am finding it almost impossible to convey the energy that takes over the entire city in words so instead so will just say.... GO EXPERIENCE IT! There are really 2 ways to do Carnival in Rio, there is the official Carnival at the Sambadrome which is made up of 3 nights of parades where the Samba schools from across the city compete in incredibly elaborate costumes and floats from about 8pm until 6am and there is street Carnival, or Blocos, which is basically just organized block parties on street corners around the city. Each Bloco, and there must be over 300 of them each day spread across the city, includes a live samba band, street food, thousands of people in costume and more men selling beer that you can shake a stick at - and at 2.50 Reals a pop (about $1.50 CDN each) how could we refuse! We definitely got a taste for both ways of doing Carnival, however there is very little photo documentation of us at Carnival because a) what happens at Carnival stays and Carnival..... and b) we were warned by many many people that it is too dangerous to carry a camera around on the streets and since we are already down 1 camera we decided to keep the other safely locked up at the Sheraton, but here are a few images courtesy of google images to give you the idea

Overlooking the Sambadrome at one of the parades

The float and elaborate costumes of 1 Samba school

This is pretty much what a Bloco looks like during carnival

An excellent representation of our time during street carnival

On our first Carnival day we decided to take in a Bloco on Leblon beach a short walk away from our hotel. After indulging in an amazing breakfast courtesy of the Sheraton and then lounging poolside for a while we started our walk down to Leblon beach. Once we rounded the corner we and caught our first glimpse of the beach and the party already started on it we knew we were in for a wild ride. Our first order of business was to grab a couple Antartica's, The beer sponsor for the street parties and so there was a man selling then out of a cooler literally every 10 steps, and then to get into the crowd. It was at this point that we realized that we didn't quite fit in because we had no costumes, or as we started to call it Flare. The have people selling it all over the place, colorful wigs, angel wings, glitter, etc, etc, but at some point along the way we found somebody giving away promo Flare so Kait and I fought our way through the massive crowd that had gathered around them and managed to score some colourful fedoras, blue tutus and oversize sunglasses to wear for the day.

Kait and I in our Flare for the day (photo credit J.J Sullivan)

We partied along Leblon beach most of the afternoon, taking in all the sights to see at your typical Bloco, hilarious costumes, dudes selling shots, passion Brazilian make-outs in the middle of the street and much more. We danced along in the parade for a little while (as long as Jonny's bum leg would let us before getting sore) - the parades at the street parties are not like other parades, they are usually just 1 small float or even just a band leading at the front with some great samba music and then the crowd just joins in and follows through the streets. After a short dip in the ocean we decided that we would head a street or 2 up to try and find some food (we had not yet discovered all the amazing street food we would come to love) and ended up in some sort of mall food court. we grabbed a quick bite there and then decided we would head back to the hotel to get some rest before heading out to a night-time party. We hopped on the first bus that looked like it was headed our way, after about 10 mins it took a tour that clearly was not going to take us home so we got off and hopped a cab to let Jonny rest his leg for a bit. 

Once we arrived at the hotel we decided just to grab pizza at one of the 4 hotel restaurants (after a short siesta of course) and then get ready to go out. By the time our pizzas came it was clear we were all pretty much falling asleep - the sun and dancing had gotten to all of us so we decided to call it a night and rest up to go harder the next day. 

On day 2 we had a good sleep in, indulged in the Sheraton breakfast once again and then decided to hang out at the hotel pool and beachside for the better part of the day. We had planned to hit a bloco in Copacabana beach that day and since most of the bloco's there didn't really get going until 5 or 6 we figured we would conserve our energy to avoid the rookie mistake made the previous day. Around 5 we hopped on a bus headed to Copa. Once we exited the bus Jonny and I bought matching light up devil ears, our Carnival flare for the evening and then started our stroll along Copa's beach. for the next few hours we did pretty much the same as we did the day before, partied in the streets, joined in the parades, etc. By this day we had caught on that street food was the way to go so throughout the evening (and maybe some of it was the next day) we dined on a plethora of different street foods including; corn on the cob, Churro's, Sausage on a stick, popcorn mixed with cheese balls, hotdogs, dough covered grilled cheese on a stick - this one was the most delicious, I am sure there were may others as well but trying to remember them all is making me very hungry. 

Around 10:30, party still in full swing in Copa, we decided to get on the subway to head down-town to the Sambadrome to take in some of the "official" Carnival festivities. We didn't have tickets to actually go into the Sambadrome as they can run up to about $200 CDN a pop, although Jonny and I really did consider either getting those or renting costumes and participating in the parade which can cost about $500 each but would be such and incredible experience. I still kind of do wish we had done the costumes but in hindsight it kind of worked out because Jonny could not do it with his leg. Either way, the concierge warned us that we could not miss the energy and parties around the Sambadrome, so upon exiting the subway we did as he told us - followed the crowd. He definitely did not steer us wrong. There was a massive crowd collected around the Sambadrome, tons of food stalls and men with coolers of beer (of course). It is a pretty good set up there as the gathering spot for the party is right at the fence where the Samba schools that are getting ready for their turn to shine in the Sambadrome line up, so from our position we could watch the next floats getting ready as well as their entourage of people in costumes and after a school performs many of the performers come join the crowd outside still in full costume. In addition to the great party and amazing floats and costumes, after each Samba school finishes their 45mins - 1 hour in the Sambadome there is a fireworks display signalling that a new school is coming. We stayed there partied, drank and eat for a few hours before  the sun and dancing caught up with us again before getting back on the subway home again to get some sleep for one last day of Carnival festivities. 

Our final day of Carnival followed a very similar routine - Delicious breakfast, a few hours poolside and then heading out to our final day of Bloco's. I had read about 1 street party that was supposed to be a must-see that takes place on the final day in Ipanema beach (another one of Rio's most famous beaches). This one in particular was supposed to have an amazing Samba band and also attracted numerous drag queens - Brazilian drag queens during Carnival - now this has got to be amazing! It certainly did live up to the hype! Once the parade got going we joined in and partied this way for a good while. Somehow those men with the beer coolers are even able to find their way into the parade crowd so we were never in short supply of those. After a while of this Jonny's leg had begun to hurt and for some reason the parade had seemed to stay in one spot for a while when we were unfortunately directly beside the port-a-potties (which after 5 days did not smell fresh to say the least) so we decided to take a break and head to the beach for a while. After a quick dip and watching a bit of sunset we headed back up to the street where the party was still in full swing.  

We had been drinking beer all day so when we came across a man selling fruity Caipirinha's we all jumped on the watermelon one's - and this may very well be the best cocktail I have ever had! Caipirinha's are Brazil's traditional drink and are traditionally made of ALOT Cachaca (sugar cane liquor made native to Brazil), sugar and lime (which in Brazil are called lemons......I am still trying to figure out what lemons are called).  This particular one was made with fresh chunks of watermelon instead of the lime and was absolutely delicious. With our drinks in hand we took a little rest on the curb to do some more people watching and take in some more of the party. The boys were sitting a little further back than Kait and I, and while we were sitting on the curb we must have had more than 3 boys approach us with the same message, " its the last night of Carnival and we can't leave without kissing a Brazilian man", Although the offers were tempting, we both resisted for the time being.  We continued to party the night away before making one more quick stop for late night Burrito's (some things never change lol) before heading back to the hotel to rest after what had been one hell of a ride!

OOO_Talia

Keep on Dancin.. Dancin... in Rio, for Carnival

Unknown to most, word on the street is that Sao Paulo, although a massive (largest city in the southern hemisphere) city, is considered the culture capital of Brazil. We have just set foot in the massive city and I'm not one to jump to rash opinions before even experiencing a place. but there is no fucking way that Sao Paulo can pack in the culture, more so than Rio de Janeiro.


I wont be upset or disappointed if it ends up that way. Hell, if it does I guess that means Ill be half-naked for 4 days, dancing instead of walking (with or without stitches in my knee), taking part in random Blocos filled with 50,000 others just like me (they just don't speak english and most have hair on their heads) - All the while just celebrating the joy of dancing in the streets with literally a 1992 Blue Jays Skydome full of people at a time. I will be dressed in random Halloween-esque flare (the less clothing thing doesn't apply here because a typical Canadian Halloween costume typically includes a lack of clothing... PHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEWW. That was a lot and a horrible demonstration of proper grammar.


If you cant tell by my excitement, Carnival is EPIC.. just bananas. In this blog, there will not be any photos because we left our only remaining camera at home for the celebrations..... besides, pictures just wouldn't do this any justice.. just go.. trust me!


I guess seeing Rio during Carnival, its easy to have a bias or skewed view when trying to compare culture capitals. But fuck it.


I love.... to dance. There are a lot of people (including my DPFL (dance partner for life), my main, amongst other credible sources) that can attest to that and most of them have the same addiction as me. No.. I'm not talking about lava parties although they are a standard result of the addiction (of dance). All I usually need is a few gentles a room filled with epic tunes and BOOM [there goes the fire extinguisher..hahah]. The celebrating (usually of the weekend arrival) begins. LAVA!!


Dance in Brazil and more specifically Carnival is next level. From my gringo view, its a celebration of just that.... dance, good times, a new year, etc.... 


The cultures within Rio diversify as you travel from Bloco to Bloco, neighbourhood to neighbourhood which was by far my favourite part of our stay.

• The beaches are straight up samba mixed within 50,000 others just like you all dancing (instead of marching) in a parade.
• Lapa - the boho/hipster hood, is a folky-samba that when listened to closely (whether you understand it or not) tells a Bob Dylan-esque story.
• Santa Teresa boasts a more modern, yet authentic history lesson told through samba
• Central/Sambadrome is just straight up bonkers. Its the ocho cinco and TO or TD dances.

The best part of all is these subcultures come to life year round (or so it seems that way from our 2 days post-carnival).


I wish we spent more time there, but we just couldn't do it. If you go.. go during carnival and stay for a month... 


I love the idea of getting a more culturally-rich experience out of Sao Paulo (more so than Rio), I just don't believe it can happen. That said, if the first 2 months of this trip, combined with my standard PMA (positive mental attitude) have shown me anything... its to go into each new experience with an open mind and heart.. with that, only the best will come from your journey. Whatever that journey is.


OOO_Jonny

Ohhhhh the good life how I have missed you

We had been looking forward to our arrival in Rio for a really long time, even before we left Toronto really for a number of reasons. The allure of exploring such an amazing tropical city, jumping head first into Carnival in the biggest celebration in the world, soaking up the sun on any number of Rio's amazing beaches - all of these things for sure, but the other reason we were looking so forward to it was because we had booked 5 days at the luxurious Sheraton Resort directly on one of Rio's most famous beaches. After spending many weeks sharing hostel accommodations with an random array of strangers we were really looking forward to a taste of the good life again. How do people that have quit their jobs to travel around the world for 1 year afford 5 blissful days and nights at the Sheraton during Carnival you might ask? The answer is POINTS!!!!  One of the perks of my previous work routine of spending 4 days/3 nights a week living in a hotel in various US cities was that I collected massive quantity of hotel points - enough to become a platinum starwood member. This allowed us to get 5 completely free nights (other than a whole bunch of points) at the Sheraton in Leblon beach, one of the only hotels in Rio that is directly on the beach and no set behind the road, during Carnival. Jealous yet?? 

View from our room at the Sheraton

Private beach at our hotel

Looking at the hotel from the beach

Upon arrival we found out that we actually would have been upgraded to a top floor suite, but I had requested 2 double beds and they only had king beds up there - DAMN YOU KAIT AND J.J!! Just kidding, our room was still amazing, high floor, ocean view, champagne on ice waiting for us.....all the perks. So we made the Sheraton our how home for 5 days and spent our days lounging by the pool/beach all day and partying for Carnival all night. Somehow it seems that backpacking should be rougher than this lol. 

Champagne waiting on ice.... thank you Sheraton!

Lounging by the beach

Lounging by the pool

Jonny tanning in his new shorts

By the time we arrived and got settled in our room it was around 8pm and we were all pretty beat from the travel. We were going to try and hit one of the Carnival parties that night but given our long day or travel and Jonny's injury (see update from Iguazu falls for all the details) we decided that we would go out for a nice dinner instead and then hit the Carnival street parties the following day. We decided to try a Brazilian steak house that the hotel concierge recommended and it was quite the experience. 

On our way out to dinner - from  our balcony

First off the restaurant comes to pick you up in a Van and then drove us for approximately 10mins, through all kinds of Rio neighbourhoods both rich and poor, until we arrived at the place. We were a little uneasy at first since it was pretty empty (it was about 10:15pm....apparently they don't eat as late as B.A) and it looked like it had a pretty touristy look to it, but the food was UNREAL. The way a Brazilian steakhouse works is you sit at a table and the servers come around with every kind and cut of meat imaginable on a massive spear and just cut pieces off directly onto your place. They will do this forever until you eventually wave the white flag and lay your napkin on your plate. I am pretty sure we each must of have about 10 to 12 different pieces of amazing meat. Oh and did I mention that there is also a massive buffet that comes along with it that has salad, cheese, pasta and sushi........just in case a massive plate of meat isn't enough for you. Needless to say after dinner we were all quite full and hit the sack for a luxurious nights sleep in our Sheraton beds before hitting the streets for Carnival the next day!


OOO_Talia