Hmmmmm had a bad day. Woke up to email out of the blue from the Bad One. Felt really unsettled in a new city in the rain. Then the rain cleared, went for a wander & then hit the beach. Cloudy but warm, hurrah!!! Did some stern talking to myself whilst watching the ocean. My goodness the waves were crazy huge & strong. By sunset the waves were over 12 ft high & had created a moat on the shore. Was amazing to watch. Had a brave wander to the Lagoa i...

Wow standing with 25,000 fans in the pouring rain watching Edmundo's farewell game for Vasco.... awesome!! English football matches are not a touch on this level of passion. Even enjoyed the 25 min power cut where everyone (including the players) stood in the dark chanting. Vasco won 9-1! Ahhhhh E Edmundo!!!!!

Arrived in Rio just past midnight. Landed & settled into my airport hotel in under an hour. Was mistaken for Brazilian & told to go in the immigration queue for citizens when I tried to use the foreigners queue! Staff were lovely to me. Cleared immigration in 10 mins! A record! So excited & nervous so sleep was difficult. After a few hours of kip it was time to raid all the complimentary toiletries, check out & start my Brazilian adventure. Hm...

And so ends my Central American adventure....on to Brazil! Feel super excited to be branching out on my own :).

After a quiet morning I joined Jen & Mareika for lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe. Not my favourite Panamanian meal. We then wandered through the skyscrapers on the bay to Punta Pacifica. Stopped in at Trump Towers for a cocktail on 13th floor whilst being buffeted by the wind. Made friends with the bar manager who thought I was a guest despite being dressed like a tramp! Btw $9 for an excellent Caipiroska (muddled with Persian limes of course ;)) seems cheap to t...