Georgiana and Nick's Next Great Adventure... The Girl's From Ipanema

2009 Grand

South America & Antarctica Voyage

Holland America - ms Prinsendam

January 2 – March 11, 2009

Report #3 – from January 20 – 28, 2009

Itinerary – Sailing south from the Amazon region along the coast of Brazil, with stops at Fortaleza, Maceio, Salvador da Bahia, Rio de Janeiro (2 days) and Ilhabela

After leaving the brown waters of the Amazon River, the dark blue waters of the Atlantic and a day at sea were a refreshing and relaxing change.  It was January 20, Inauguration Day, and the ship hosted live satellite coverage of the inauguration in the highly-decorated Queen’s Lounge.  Special drinks included the Obama Special, the Presidential Shake and the American Dream – I drank champagne.  In the evening, festivities continued with the Captain’s Formal Black & White Ball.

The next day we arrived in Fortaleza, a city of nearly 2 million people on the northern coast of the “bump” of Brazil. The area boasts of tropical climate and beautiful beaches and has become a favorite place for tourist from around the world (or so they said).  The culture is diverse and the folklore stems from a mixture of beliefs from white colonizers, native groups, Syrian-Lebanese immigrants and African traditions.  Our tour for the day included a trip to the Cumbuco Beach Resort followed by a harrowing ride in open dune-buggy vehicles over 80 - 100 feet high sand dunes.  Each buggy (pronounced boo-gee) held four plus the driver, with three seating across a high bench seat in the back with no belts, sides or top – so much for safety.  I, along with two friends, had the roll bar to hang on to and Nick sat in the front seat next to the driver.  Our young Brazilian driver was very experienced and it was a fun day, with only a few aches and pains appearing the next day.

On January 23, we arrived at Maceio (mah-say-oh), a city of 920,000 just south of Recife.  From the dock, we boarded a motorized schooner for a cruise around some small islands to the barrier reef that protects Maceio’s bay.  After anchoring at Gunga Beach, ranked as one of Brazil’s most beautiful, we had time to swim, have a few drinks and people watch, before heading back to the ship for our 6pm departure.

Our trip continued south along Brazil’s east coast to Salvador da Bahia – know for many years as Bahia.  Salvador’s full name is Sao Salvador da Baia de Todos os Santos, meaning “Holy Savior of All Saints’ Bay” and the city is one of the oldest in Brazil, founded in 1549.  It was Brazil’s capital, until it was replaced by Rio in 1763 and is currently the country’s third most populous.  It is also the place where much of today’s characteristically Brazilian foods, religion, dance and music originated; when the culture of the Catholic Portuguese blended with the beliefs and lifestyle of West African slaves.  The African cultural aspects are evident everywhere and our day was spent touring several local fruit, vegetable, seafood and meat markets with a Bahian guide, who seemed to personally know all the vendors by first name.  After that, we enjoyed a typical and freshly-made Bahian lunch at a colorful second-floor balconied restaurant, located in the old city.  Our table for four overlooked the street and the scenes below.  The food was hot and spicy, but a few local beers and caipirinhas helped cool us down.

January 25 was a sea day and on January 26, we sailed into one of the most beautiful natural harbors in the world to a cidade maravilhosa – the marvelous city – of Rio de Janeiro.   Rio is, of course, famous for its Carnival celebrations, samba music, Sugarloaf Mountain, and the giant statue of Jesus, known as Christ the Redeemer atop Mt. Corcovado (the city’s highest point at 2,330 ft.).  Unfortunately the weather was cloudy, with rain, so the view from Corcovado was zero and Nick’s photo opportunities almost nil.  Even so, the rain didn’t stop us from seeing all the sights we could fit-in during the day and attending an “all you can eat” Brazilian barbeque, followed by a Samba and Night Club show, at night.

The second day was bright and sunny, so we were off to the beaches, via the H. Stern shuttle.  Just in case you don’t know, H. Stern is Brazil’s largest producer and distributor of gemstones and their world headquarters is in Rio at Copacabana.  They also have showrooms in major cities around the world and in the Caribbean.  Taking the shuttle did not obligate us to buy anything, but needless to say, we gave in to the - Opportunity to take home a piece of Brazil’s exuberant nature.  Two blocks from H. Stern is Copacabana Beach and to the right a few blocks, Ipanema.  Both beaches were crowded and clean and many people were, like us, just strolling along the sidewalk.  Across the road from the beach are many high-rise condos and hotels and everywhere you looked there were “tourist police.”

Rio de Janeiro is a city of contrasts with the very wealthy that can afford all its splendors to the extremely poor who live in large crowded slums (called favelas), situated within close proximity to some of the wealthiest neighborhoods.  Over 6 million residents live in poverty and, as a result, crime is a major problem.  Things are improving for some, but there is little chance for a poor Brazilian to be anything other than poor – in this city or anywhere else in the country. The Prinsendam sailed out of busy and crowded Rio harbor at 11PM and south past brightly-lit Copacabana and Ipanema Beaches, enroute to our last Brazilian stop at the island of  Ilhabela (E-ha-bell-a).

Ilhabela (island of beauty) is one of Brazil’s largest coastal islands and is just off the coast of Sao Sebastiao.  Most of the island (85%) is protected as a marine park, with the rest mainly along the western coast dotted with little towns and beach resorts.  It was a maiden call for the Prinsendam and the weather was just perfect.  It was a good R&R type day, so we went off for a long sightseeing walk-around, followed by a 2-hour local lunch and conversation with anyone who spoke English - our Portuguese is limited to a few vitally important words.    Our stop in Ilhabela was a nice way to end our time in the vast, complex and diverse country of Brazil.   Next port-of-call – Montevideo, Uruguay.

Brazil Facts:

·         World’s 5^th largest nation with an area of 3,286,000 square miles

·         Borders on French Guiana, Suriname, Guyana, Venezuela and Columbia to the north; Peru and Bolivia to the west; Paraguay, Uruguay and Argentina to the south – Brazil borders on every South American country except Chile and Ecuador

·         Language – Portuguese

·         Currency – Brazilian Real (ree-Al)

·         Capital – Brasília

·         Population – 190 million

·         Government – Federal Republic with 27 states; President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva is the head of the government (elected in 2002; reelected in 2006);

·         Country is almost self-sufficient in food; world’s largest producer of coffee; huge reserves of metals and minerals

·         Gap between rich and poor is huge