So I’ve been on vacation at the end of March. My buddy had a wedding in Brazil and a few of us flew out there. You ask, wait Daddy, how do you get to Brazil from China. I’ll tell ya how. You fly 15 hours to Chicago, then hang out for 3 hours, and take another 10.5 hour flight to Sao Paulo. Wedding is at 5:00 PM and I get there at 9:30 in the morning. Plenty of time.
I come out, exchange some money, people who work at the airport takes me to the taxi line, we agree to a prearranged cost without the meter (I speak the no portugese, but their English is good enough and I don’t argue too much). Because it was raining, I was told to expect heavy ass traffic, but we make it to the hotel in reasonable time. I get there and my buddies who got there a day earlier are still recovering from umm jetlag…but man its good to see them. Right away, I get asked “how’s lent” in reference to me giving up meat in Brazil and missing out on all the ridiculous Brazilian BBQ. Nothing like getting your balls busted by some good friends. I have no comeback.
We go out for lunch and admire the um beautiful local scenery. I tell you what, I don’t care if you call me a chauvinist, whatever, but Brazilian women are beautiful, just plain and simple. WOW, is all I can say. It’s as if they were born into the clothes they wear. Unbelievable.
The lunch was okay, but we get back eventually to the hotel and start getting ready. We get lost on our way to the wedding, but quickly recover. There is a huge German population in Sao Paulo, a lot of the guests who were our age went to a German university in Sao Paulo. So the whole ceremony was in German which was interesting. Traditional catholic. The reception was nice and yes, yes I did bring my dancing shoes. I can put down a mean two step and that aint’ no joke. Samba, not so much. But we danced t’ll like 3 in the morning and a small after party at an outdoor bar nearby to wind down and that was that.
The next day we got treated to a private family BBQ and got to play some soccer 3 on 3 style. Good times. We were hosted by the bride’s aunt at her family house. The house was really cool, really open architecture for cross ventilaltion, no air conditioning, and I can’t wait to live in a house like that, practical and environmentally conscious. There fruit trees all over the back yard. Avocados the size of my head.
But it’s the following day the real fun starts. We drovea bout 7 hours to the coast which is 2 hours from Rio to ANgra dos Reis. The drive was interesting at parts because you’re going on these windy cobble stone roads with blind turns and one fuck up and you’re off the cliff, and it’s raining. We saw a really bad accident, still don’t know if everyone was okay and then another bad one the car was upside down, but everyone seemed to be sitting outside the car. It was pretty bad, but everyone in our group made it down okay. 1.5 hour boat ride and we made it Hotel Nautilus. We had our rooms, nice cozy. 3 meals a day inclusive. Snorkling, and fishing and some trips to some secluded beaches. I went snorkeling for the first time, so kick ass. The goggles, they do something. Starfish, blowfish, urchins, all sortsa crazy striped fish.
Then at night we go fishing. No Rods, just a line and a hook and some bait. The line is attached to a piece of flat wood 7 by 10 inches or so. How did that go? Well let’s just say you are reading the ramblings of the worst fisherman in the group. Even the newbies caught one, (this was my second time fishing, well third if you count the time I used a towel to catch a minnow back when I was like 9). Come to think of it, that’s the only fish I’ve ever caught in my life. So the rest of the week was spent listening to “hey, how many fish did you catch” jokes. Good times. Oh night time was also poker night, I haven’t played in the longest time, and I can’t wait to go back to Shanghai and start a poker night. Scavenger hunt, ladies vs. the manly men, and yes this is a man’s world. Damn right we won….
The following day we get on a boat and head out to a secluded beach, we get there and there is nobody on the beach. We anchored about 75 yards from the beach and I just jumped in and had to be the first on the beach. Kick ass. Barbeque on the boat, swimming, snorkeling, a little beach volleyball…got burned like a mofo, first time ever. The brazilian sun is super intense. Could not believe that. I wear sunscreen all the time now.
Get back I try my hand at fishing again on a kayak and my back is killing me, I try to stretch out and I flip the sonofabitch. Good thing I passed pull up class cause it took me some doing to get back on that thing. Everybody had a good laugh at that one. Did a little hiking the next day and I had to get back to catch my flight....we'll finish up the story tomorrow...
I come out, exchange some money, people who work at the airport takes me to the taxi line, we agree to a prearranged cost without the meter (I speak the no portugese, but their English is good enough and I don’t argue too much). Because it was raining, I was told to expect heavy ass traffic, but we make it to the hotel in reasonable time. I get there and my buddies who got there a day earlier are still recovering from umm jetlag…but man its good to see them. Right away, I get asked “how’s lent” in reference to me giving up meat in Brazil and missing out on all the ridiculous Brazilian BBQ. Nothing like getting your balls busted by some good friends. I have no comeback.
We go out for lunch and admire the um beautiful local scenery. I tell you what, I don’t care if you call me a chauvinist, whatever, but Brazilian women are beautiful, just plain and simple. WOW, is all I can say. It’s as if they were born into the clothes they wear. Unbelievable.
The lunch was okay, but we get back eventually to the hotel and start getting ready. We get lost on our way to the wedding, but quickly recover. There is a huge German population in Sao Paulo, a lot of the guests who were our age went to a German university in Sao Paulo. So the whole ceremony was in German which was interesting. Traditional catholic. The reception was nice and yes, yes I did bring my dancing shoes. I can put down a mean two step and that aint’ no joke. Samba, not so much. But we danced t’ll like 3 in the morning and a small after party at an outdoor bar nearby to wind down and that was that.
The next day we got treated to a private family BBQ and got to play some soccer 3 on 3 style. Good times. We were hosted by the bride’s aunt at her family house. The house was really cool, really open architecture for cross ventilaltion, no air conditioning, and I can’t wait to live in a house like that, practical and environmentally conscious. There fruit trees all over the back yard. Avocados the size of my head.
But it’s the following day the real fun starts. We drovea bout 7 hours to the coast which is 2 hours from Rio to ANgra dos Reis. The drive was interesting at parts because you’re going on these windy cobble stone roads with blind turns and one fuck up and you’re off the cliff, and it’s raining. We saw a really bad accident, still don’t know if everyone was okay and then another bad one the car was upside down, but everyone seemed to be sitting outside the car. It was pretty bad, but everyone in our group made it down okay. 1.5 hour boat ride and we made it Hotel Nautilus. We had our rooms, nice cozy. 3 meals a day inclusive. Snorkling, and fishing and some trips to some secluded beaches. I went snorkeling for the first time, so kick ass. The goggles, they do something. Starfish, blowfish, urchins, all sortsa crazy striped fish.
Then at night we go fishing. No Rods, just a line and a hook and some bait. The line is attached to a piece of flat wood 7 by 10 inches or so. How did that go? Well let’s just say you are reading the ramblings of the worst fisherman in the group. Even the newbies caught one, (this was my second time fishing, well third if you count the time I used a towel to catch a minnow back when I was like 9). Come to think of it, that’s the only fish I’ve ever caught in my life. So the rest of the week was spent listening to “hey, how many fish did you catch” jokes. Good times. Oh night time was also poker night, I haven’t played in the longest time, and I can’t wait to go back to Shanghai and start a poker night. Scavenger hunt, ladies vs. the manly men, and yes this is a man’s world. Damn right we won….
The following day we get on a boat and head out to a secluded beach, we get there and there is nobody on the beach. We anchored about 75 yards from the beach and I just jumped in and had to be the first on the beach. Kick ass. Barbeque on the boat, swimming, snorkeling, a little beach volleyball…got burned like a mofo, first time ever. The brazilian sun is super intense. Could not believe that. I wear sunscreen all the time now.
Get back I try my hand at fishing again on a kayak and my back is killing me, I try to stretch out and I flip the sonofabitch. Good thing I passed pull up class cause it took me some doing to get back on that thing. Everybody had a good laugh at that one. Did a little hiking the next day and I had to get back to catch my flight....we'll finish up the story tomorrow...
Note on the images: the first is we are pretty damn high on those windy roads and the clouds are pretty close to us, and it's a long ways down through the fog. 2nd the secluded beach as we leave (more people came). the last one was the evening sky right after the wedding ceremony, it was...well look at the picture...
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