Partying in Paraty

After my four day excursion in Paraty, I have to say everything in Brazil may be downhill from here. It was that amazing.

On the drive up, our charter bus stopped at a nice beach for lunch. Of course, relaxing on the sand and taking a dip in the water just wasn`t cutting it for me, so I decided to follow the boulder trail that ran along the far left side of the beach. Why relax when you can explore? I banged up my leg a bit when I lost my footing (it was the start of a theme for this trip), but the view at the end of the trail made it a worthwhile endeavor. After hopping from stone to stone for a good 20 minutes, I crossed a small channel and wound my way to the top of large granite island where a perfect perch for one beckoned at the top. The view was great. Distant waters, the beach at my back, the sounds of the ocean, a nice sun. It was very calm. I couldn have sat there for hours.

We arrived in Paraty in the late afternoon. Paraty, a coastal city south of Rio de Janeiro, used to be the beginning and end of the gold trail in Brazil when it was still a colony of Portugal. Today, it still rakes in the gold, but it´s coming from the pockets of tourists instead of the gold mines of Minas Gerais. The city has been virtually unchanged on the outside for a couple centuries. The roads made up of randomly arranged stones can best be described as cobblestone, and it´s a good idea to watch your step because trickles of water flow in the middle of the streets (not to mention the occasion pile of horse manure). The shops of Paraty sell all things touristy and many of the restaurants are super expensive, but the real attraction is the ecotours that are offered.

After our arrival, we settled into our pousada, which is like a bed and breakfast hotel. My room had old wooden floors, squeaky beds and old-fashioned wooden shuters. Kinda cute. The bathroom, however, was conveniently modern and the air-conditioning was heavenly.

I recieved my first introduction to basketball brasiliero-style that night when I found a court where a 3-on-3 game was being played. It felt good to be on familiar territory again - even if I had no idea what the score was.

On my first full day in Paraty, our group boarded a schooner in the morning at the dock for a tour of the islands. There were many commercial boats available looking for tourists. They were all fairly similar boats with canvas covers and wooden masts. Our boat took off with a group of about 50 people on board.

The landscape was beautiful throughout the tour. Island after island reminded you of a postcard picture. With the mountains in the distance, the trees sloping towards the beaches and the crystal water on all sides, it`s hard to imagine a more ideal landscape. Our boat stopped several times so people could swim in the water or walk along the beaches of one of the islands. At one stop, I enjoyed battered shrimp and cashew juice on a sandy beach. All that was missing was a little parasol for my drink to complete the picture. We ate luch (fish, of course) on the boat and returned to the dock in the afternoon. Though I did little more than lye on a boat all day, I was fairly exhausted when we made it back to dry land. I don`t know if I will ever have the energy to retire in paradise someday.

That night, I attended a puppet show like no other in the Teatro Espaco in Paraty. The show was entitled ¨Em Concerto¨ and was composed of seven independent scenes which ranged from cute and funny to bizarre and unsettling. The style of puppetry was rather unique as the puppets were basically like action figures, and the puppeteers dressed entirely in black and manipulated the puppets with their hands. Next time just give me Pinocchio or something. I can´t take dolls seriously.

The second day in Paraty, the group boarded all-terrain vehicles and went on an amazing tour in the mountains. You know you´ll be visiting some cool places when your guide shifts into four-wheel drive. After driving uphill for about an hour, we began the tour with a light downhill hike on the historic gold trail. Our guide stopped us at various places to explain the natural benefits of a few plants, but if my life depended on it I couldn´t tell you the difference between the plant that settles your stomach and the one that gives you diarrhea when consumed.

The highlight of the weekend was the gentle rapids and not-so-gentle waterfalls that we stopped to explore and swim beside. The water looked clean enough to drink and felt absolutely artic at first. I decided I would choose fresh water over salt water any day of the week. A few of us daring Americans ventured upstream about a quarter of a mile, hopping from stone to stone, struggling against the the rapids and wriggling ourselves out of tight spots. After surmounting a giant boulder and surveying our conquered rapids, we dismounted and made the tricky return. (Actually, we were told to come back. I guess they don`t normally allow tourists to do their best Louis and Clark impersonations.) The return to the waterfall was much more difficult than the initial journey. It´s much easier to fight the current when you are traveling against it then when you are traveling with it. I think I went down at least two rapids face first, and I`ve got the bruised to prove it. Louis and Clark probably did the same on their first river walk too.

I just finished the Intensive Language and Cultural Program in Sao Paulo yesterday, and let me tell you, they weren`t joking about the intense part. Just about every day this month there was something planned for us and even when there wasn`t something planned there were things to do. I spent this past week writing the papers - in Portuguese - that I haven`t had time to write for my Brazilian culture class.

I always thought this whole writing in another language thing would be easy once I got into the flow of things. I thought I would absorb the language like a dry sponge thrown into a bucket of water. It hasn`t been anything like that. I labored over those papers for hours, and I`m sure a sixth grader probably has better grammar than what I managed to patch together. Still, I`m glad that I was able to complete the assignments, and if I showed my paper to someone who didn`t know a word of Portuguese they would probably be impressed.

To celebrate the end of ILCP, our group met on the top floor of Edificio Italia, one of the tallest buildings in Sao Paulo. On the 47th floor, I stuffed my face with finger foods and bite-size desserts. After finishing all those papers, I had worked up quite an appetite.

It`s hard to imagine that I`ve been here for over a month already. I feel like I`m still getting to know the place. Next week classes begin at PUC, and I`m not too sure what classes I`ll end up taking. Enjoy the Super Bowl. Colts by a touchdown.