So Ilha Grande was awesome, beautiful, peaceful, but maybe not the best place
for night-life I pretty much spent two days last weekend wondering the Island on
my own. I walked from the north to the south on Saturday where I found a
secluded beach and I swam out to a smaller island. Then walked up Pico do
Papagaio (Parrot Peak) on Sunday. I was joined by a group of Brazilians half way
up. After the (about) 3 hour hike up through proper jungle, singing much Led
Zeppelin, there was so much cloud that there was no view at all, but it soon
cleared for some amazing views of the island, spending a “moment with Bob”
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| The beach at Vila do Abrão, the area that we were staying |
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| Pico do Papagaio (982m tall) from a distance |
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| Arriving at Dois Rios beach after walking through the jungle |
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| I decided to swim out to this island, which turned out to be further out than I thought it was, and it also turned out to be the end of my camera |
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| The following day, half way up Pico! |
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| And the view from the top...at first! |
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| Real case of vertigo!!! |
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| Looking down on Vila do Abrão |
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| Walking all the way up and down in just my flip-flops might not have been the smartest thing that I've ever done! |
Leaving the island on Monday, finally headed to Rio de Janerio, my last
destination of all of my travels! Whata amazing city, GO THERE! It’s been a few
days, of tours, drinking, chilling, loving the amazing views. And finally the
last thing I did, going for a walk in the woods (a rainforest in the middle of
the city), never really setting to obtain anything, but Lisa, Ruk, Monika and I
ended up reaching the top of Cristo Redentor. Whata amazing way to finish my time in Rio, and
Brazil, and all my travels. Rio really has everything, huge city with a lot
going on day and night, mountains, forests, beaches, not may clothes…..if I
could speak Portuguese it really would be a great place to be!
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| Copacabana beaches, it wasn't too great weather on Monday, but still warm! |
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| Sweet sign for the hostels we were staying in! |
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| Cristo Redentor (or Christ the Redeemer) on Tuesday, not such a great view really! |
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| But it did clear. Pão de Açúcar (or Sugarloaf Mountain) in the distance |
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| Escadaria Selarón |
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| Not quite as colourful on route down! |
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| Rio at night from Sugarloaf Mountain |
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| The following morning in Rocinha (Little Farm), the biggest Favela in Latin America |
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| A.D.A - Amigos dos Amigos - Friends of Friends |
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| Bullet holes! |
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| And just like that, the favela ends, and you're in the "normal" world |
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| And the start of yesterday morning |
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| This time it was a lot clearer from the top! |
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| More monkeys on route down |
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| And the sun setting over Copacabana just before I got my shuttle to the airport, yesterday! |
Brazil was honestly amazing, and I will go back (hopefully) one day, and see
a lot more of it. The people are amazing, full of character and so friendly, and
it really was an amazing place to end my travels!
Sorry this update is brief but I'm a bit pushed for time, and I really wanted
to get this on-line before my next flight. I've just arrived in Lisbon airport,
Portugal, so I'm back in Europe for the first time in over 31 months (2 years
and 7 months). 31 flights done, 1 more left - Next stop is London, England! Before heading home to Southampton!
I can’t begin to explain everything that I have experienced, but I hope that me writing this blog has given you some idea of it all. If not, at least it’s there
for my memories, and I have enjoyed writing it all! I have tried to keep it ‘PG’ and clean throughout, but I have
also tried to be as honest as possible. Having said that, keeping it ‘PG’; means
that at times some stories or details have been missing, but some of them
stories I’d be more than happy to tell / brag about in actual conversation. I
have also (well at least I hope I have) tried to write in a positive way, and be
pretty informative in certain areas. There has also been several jokes that have
just been included for my benefit or just for a person, or a small handful of
people, so I apologise (just a little) if things have not been clear or have
gone over your head at times.
- From topless snowboarding in Mount Marmot Basin, Canada to snowboarding in a 'painted on bikini' up Mt Hutt, New Zealand.
- From talking with a 17 year old Novice Monk in Vientiane, Laos looking out
to the sunset over Thailand to not remembering how to talk at Parklife festival
in Brisbane, Australia.
- From seeing System of a Down at Soundwave in Brisbane, Australia to seeing
live Peruvian flute bands all over Peru.
- From living in the mountains in Jasper, Canada to living up a mountain in
Methven, New Zealand
- From waking up to natural hot pools somewhere in outback California, USA to
going to sleep in a hammock under the stars on the remote beaches on Poneloya, Nicaragua.
- From working on radars that read rock movements to help predict potential
land slides working as a Reliability Engineer in Brisbane, Australia to taking
people out on kayaking tours to and under Haruru falls in Paihia, New Zealand.
- From partying with a load of tourists for a full-moon party on Koh Phangan,
Thailand to arriving at a random festival where they plant trees in the middle
of the road then partying with loads of locals with live salsa music on the streets of Chachapoyas,
Peru.
- From (somehow) surviving the hecticness of Hanoi, Vietnam, to being
completely remote and lost off of the beaten track on a mountain bike in a
random cactus field somewhere outside San Pedro de Atacama, Chile
- From watching the Red Sox turn over the Yankees at Fenway Park, Boston, USA
to watching (not that I can remember much) Queensland beat New South Wales by
one point in the deciding game of the State of Origin at The Suncorp Stadium,
Brisbane, Australia.
- From scrambling rocks surrounded by amazing scenery in Arthur's Pass, New
Zealand, to concurring Death Road – downhill mountain biking, again surrounded by amazing scenery (not that I could look too much) near La Paz,
Bolivia.
- From hiking, in just flip-flops in less than a day, a huge chunk of Abel
Tasman (one of my favourite parts of the world), New Zealand, to completing the
Inca Trail to Machu Picchu on a 3 day hike, near Ollantaytambo, Peru.
- From walking on frozen lakes around frozen waterfalls at night near Jasper,
Canada to waking up at ‘stupid o’clock’ to climb a mountain in the dark to watch
the sunrise at the peak of Mt Warning, Australia (a year ago today).
- From watching Saints lose to Rochdale 2-0 in League One in September 2010 to
(hopefully) watching them beat/thrash West Ham in the Premier League tomorrow
again at St Mary’s!
- From Boston, USA to Rio de Janerio, Brazil in 2 years and 7 months, covering
22 countries over 4 continuants!
- From Thursday 9th September 2010 to Friday 12th April 2013, I'm finally
coming home!
- USA
- Canada
- Hong Kong
- Vietnam
- Laos
- Thailand
- Australia
- New Zealand
- Costa Rica
- Nicaragua
- El Salvador
- Honduras
- Guatemala
- Belize
- Mexico
- Peru
- Bolivia
- Chile
- Argentina
- Uruguay
- Paraguay
- Brazil
Most importantly though - Thank you to EVERYONE that I have had the pleasure
of meeting / remeeting over all of my travels, you have ALL played a massive
part in making everything so amazing, all in different ways. I can’t thank you
enough for all the great memories created, the things that I've learnt or
taught, the crazy epic times and adventures. To list you all would be stupid,
but you know who you are. I hope I get to meet lots of you again. Thank you for
showing me round your awesome countries and/or cultures, thank you for sharing
these epic times with me, thanks for: making me laugh; making me smile; helping
me have a better understanding; teaching me; listening to me; getting messed up
with me; taking me to the hospital; the list goes on and on. And some of you I
will always hold so close to me wherever I am in the world! And again, you know
who you are. I miss you a lot, and I can’t lie, leaving Rhode Island so early on
felt weird and wrong, leaving Australia just didn't feel right at all, and
leaving New Zealand really just made me feel sick, but when you live in places
for so long (or plan to, in the Rhode Island incident) and get so close to
people it’s never easy! Much love goes out to all you people, and I really mean
that! THANK YOU!
To pick a favourite time/occasion or to pick a favourite location/country
would be impossible, so all I will say is that the last 31 months have been
amazing, and all 22 countries have also all been amazing, all for their own
unique reasons!
If anyone is ever thinking of travelling I’d always be more than happy to
help, give advice or recommend anything, but my main advice will always be…JUST
GET OUT THERE AND DO IT, why not!? You only live once!
I managed to write all the above on my flight from Rio to Lisbon, and at Lisbon airport, but (again) I was unable to post it due to internet issues! I have since arrived back in England, and I'm currently typing this in my old/current room. Last time I slept in this room was the night before I flew out to Boston to live in Rhode Island, USA. Earlier this afternoon I left Portugal and flew over France, with not a cloud in the bright blue sky (I was actually listening to Pink Floyd's 'Goodbye Blue Sky' when the called for "boarding to London"), and as I arrived over England, I couldn't help but laugh to myself as I could not see my home land below! I really was laughing out load to myself on the plane......'typical!' I haven't actually been this excited arriving in a country for a while, crossing new boarders doesn't really seem weird or daunting to me at all any more but coming home to England felt crazy! I knew I was back in England straight away due to 3 things, 1: The weather, it was spitting and cold, I haven't felt that cold for a while ("Oh, maybe I should put my jumper on" cold), 2: As soon as people got on the escalator they moved to the right, so that people (like me) can just by-pass them on the left (I love my English for that), and 3: When I went through customs (which was really really easy) I approached the Customs Officer and as I handed him my passport I asked him "Hay Buddy, how's it going?" with a response of "nhwuh"....yep, I'm back in England! And everyone has an accent here, like really, I never noticed it before!
My parents (whom I haven't seen since I left England) and my sister (who I haven't seen since she left Australia about a year and a half ago) came and picked me up from the airport. I don't think I've ever met anyone as excited as I was to get back to Southampton, seeing all the London posters made me realise I was close, but London aint quite home! Was awesome to see them all again (I have to write that, they read this). We then headed home for a chilled out evening, a few beers, a catch up, and fish and REAL CHIPS, a meal my Mum asked me about two months ago! I haven't had real chips in sooooooooooo long.
Tomorrow's catching up with my Brother and nephew, watching the Super Super Saints, and then out with the boyssssssssssssssss..................
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| I'm home, what more can I say?!!!!! |
