Fox on a Boat

Island Cat Tonight is my last night on Ilha Grande. Tomorrow I head back to Rio, where I shall spend the night, before flying back to London via Sao Paulo on Wednesday night. If all goes accordingly, by Thursday evening I should be at home enjoying a nice cup of tea with my cats. The weather here was wonderful today - hot and sunny. I had planned to go to the beach, then to lunch, then possibly the beach again, but then I remembered the natural pool that I had not yet swum in. So there I went. To get there, one must follow the seafront road, heading right if you start from the pier, facing the town. After a few minutes, you'll see a sign marked T1 - this is the first trail. (There are trails going all around the island). The first part of the trail forms a loop - to the right Praia Preta, to the left, the pool - but of course either way will get you to both these places, it will just take slightly longer. By Lucas César Felicíssimo Mendes, via Wikimedia Commons Th

Ilha Grande Boats Tonight I am writing from a hostel in Ilha Grande - the Big Island! I will have to add photos later however when I am home with my own laptop.. So far I've experienced a Brazilian wedding, watched a sunset over Rio from Pão de Açúcar, hiked up the mountain to Corcovado (who needs cardio machines!?) and sailed to Ilha Grande, my current location. Here it is a lot more peaceful/laid back than in Rio. There are no cars which is quite nice. I feel a bit like I am in Animal Crossing, which is intensified when I see beautiful butterflies fluttering around the hiking trails. Quick, where's my net? There are numbered trails going all around the island, and I have hiked up the closest two. The others are too far by foot unless you set up camp for the night as you go.. which I will not be doing. My first trail was T1, which goes past a natural pool, an aqueduct, old farmhouse ruins which were used as a quarantine camp, and a waterfall. Had I walked farther

View from the first flat I stayed in - Copacabana Favela It's been a while since my last blog post, during which nothing much was happening - until very recently. For one, I am writing this blog post from Brazil! I am sitting on a couch in a small flat in Copacabana's favela - you may have pre-conceived notions of such a place (and the name does have a negative connotation) - but the flat is nice, and the previous flat I stayed in, and the people are friendly. The children will call out "Oi!" as you walk up the stairs - and this is not the "Oi" of Brixton, circa The Clash.. No, it simply means hello. Of course, I could not seem to manage going on a trip without some sort of.. well, let's call it "adventure"... Upon arrival in Rio, after a stop and transfer in Sao Paulo, I realised that my luggage had not made it. I should have grabbed it in Sao Paulo and checked it again, and I had thought it was moved during transit in the same manner