Rio Carnival 2011 (March ´11)

The largest and most spectacular party in the world... Rio Carnaval.

This was the main event that we'd been looking forward to since the words ¨We´re going to Rio!¨ were uttered. 

There was no way that we could prepared ourselves for what lay ahead... hold on to your hats (oh, and your wallet and cameras) it´s time for the crazy Carioca carnaval! 

The bloco on Rua Veira Souto, Ipanema. We were lucky enough to have friends who have an apartment over looking the beach and this spectacular view of a true bloco!

The blocos (street parties) are the best way to celebrate this event. These consist of a procession of drummers and vocalists followed by anyone who wants to dance through the streets of Rio. Just a few decided to join in. The brazilians know how to party!

Some blocos require costumes - drag, amazonian, really anything goes ....ummmmm looking good

Look who has popped into town to experience carnaval with us .....

And the Sambadromo...

The Sambadromo or 'Passarela-do-Samba' is a purpose-built samba-stadium / runway which accomodates over 60,000 spectators, and the top Samba schools in Rio...  The parade through the Sambadromo, featuring elaborate floats flanked by thousands of pounding drummers and twirling dancers, is the culmination of the festivities.

Words can not describe the excitement that the four of us were feeling. After the bloco experience, we were not quite sure what to expect, but we knew we were in for a good time.

The atmosphere was electric, the crowd was full of energy and excitement and the music was thumping in our chests and of course the beer was flowing ... let the carnaval parade begin!

Each of the 6 samba schools had between 2,500 and 4,000 participants who must cover the Passarela do Samba (parading area) in not less than 65 minutes and no more than 80 minutes. In that time they put on a performance every bit complex and visually exciting as any musical showing in London´s West End.

Samba schools are large social clubs found in Rio´s poorer communities and neighbourhoods, often linked to the local favelas.

Our amazing seats were directly opposite the judging box, so the best performances were witnessed, which were full of passion, emotion and energy.

Each samba school plays their anthem which is on a ~90 second loop for the the full 80 minutes.... The anthem reaches a crescendo as the samba band comes through - each school has a band of at least 200 people (here dressed as monkeys)

As you can see every band is led by a carnival drum queen, who energises the crowd with her dancing...

... and feathered costume...

... and killer heels...

... and other assets...

The extravaganza continues...

At 4.30am it was time to go home, but the parade and party at the Sambadromo continued long into the morning.

An incredible experience of sight and sound!

Some fantastic memories of the entire carnival holiday.....xxxx

Paradise - Praia Lopes Mendes, Ilha Grande (Jan´11)

Praia Lopes Mendes, the most beautiful beach in Brazil ... ?

3km of the whitest, finest sand that stretches out to a crystal blue ocean. The wow factor is enhanced by the arrival on a boat trip followed by a steep trek over a jungle-clad peninsular (the only route to the beach). There is is not a building or restaurant in sight, instead Lopes Mendes is lined with palm and almond trees and beautiful ocean-rollers in aquamarine complete the view...

Well... 'the most beautiful beach in Brazil' is quite a statement, so judge for yourselves from our attempt to capture the essence of it here...

 

Dreaming of a day in paradise... xxxx

Idyllic Ilha Grande (Jan´11)

The fabulous island retreat of Ilha Grande owes its pristine condition to its unusual  history. First it was a pirate´s lair, then a leper colony and finally, a prison for some of Brazils most violent and deranged criminals. Very little evidence of those days remain, however the beautiful tropical beaches and (now protected) virgin Atlantic rainforest, thankfully still exist in abundance.



The trip began with an exciting speed boat trip from the mainland of Costa Verde (2 hours West of Rio de Janeiro) across to Ilha Grande.

The tranquil surroundings of the Sagu Resort made us feel like we were in paradise.

We certainly took well to this relaxed pace of life. In fact Rob was asleep in the hammock within the first 10 minutes of our arrival. 

The beautiful calm seas were so inviting that we plunged in within the first hour...

...look who we spotted in the sea!

The island doesn´t permit any vehicles, apart from the odd tractor, so the only way to get around is by boat or foot. Our first outting was a walk to the popular ´Black Beach´. We saw some beautiful scenes on route.

It didn´t take long for the children to realise why the beach was called the Black Beach (although the geological description is too tedious to include here)...

It was soon washed off, after plenty of  jumping in the sea.

After hours of fun on the beach, we headed home, only to be stopped in our tracks by a stray tortoise!

With our resort surrounded by tropical fish and other amazing sea life, we made the most of exploring the waters as often as we could...

Daddy made a big splash which was quickly followed by several smaller ones...

... Jasmine is very happy with her achievement...

.. oh look out here comes another!

Once Rory is in, he notices some stripey fish, and it's not a bad place to try snorkeling for the first time... 

The swimming continued into the sunset ...

Mornings on this island and resort are simply beautiful ....

The breakfast was pretty good too...

 

Whilst the girls continued eating, the boys went looking for fish...

A schooner trip is essential on this island, especially as it´s the only mode of transport. Sharing a small boat with friendly holidaying Brazilians creates a relaxed party atmosphere. An occasion to remember.

The first location on the boat trip was 'Lagoa Azul' - the turquoise calm water here and multitude of fish made for great snorkeling. We then stopped at numerous beautiful beaches where we had to jump off and relax exploring unspolit beaches, until the sound of the schooner horn told us we were off to the next pirate cove...

The testosterone was showing when all the men begun the hunt in the island streams for the biggest `yabbies´.... look who found the two biggest!

All that splashing around gave us all a huge appetite, obvious Jasmine and Rob were hungry enough to chew away on baby octopus , along with all other types of sea food in big cooking pot...yum?!

Jasmine acquired an admirer on-board....

So it was soon time to head home, with a new captain and first mate in charge.

Back on the main island, we found some fantastic beach- restaurants, where the adults can chill with a cerveja (beer) or caiprinha, whilst watching the kids splash in the sea...

 

Beautiful Ilha Grande ....

We´ll protect it from any meany pirates!

Natural waterfall slides and calm warm waters, explored only by boat (or kayak)....would you want to leave?

So many friends recommended a visit to Ilha Grande and promised that we would not be disappointed... and we weren´t!

Think we might just come back ....xxxx