It has now been one month into our trip already! I feel like it has been ages since I wrote in this blog and time is not always on my hands to access the Internet.
So much has happened since I wrote my last entry so I'm not quite sure where to start. I have now lost count of the number of times we have moved around but we're seeing a lot and sometimes I feeling like I'm literally walking around the world!
We spent our third day in Brazil or around about there visiting the other side of the Iguazu waterfalls. It was nice to come back and visit this park and too see it all from a different perspective. This day was so hot and we could see all this water but could not get in it this time unlike the Argentinean side. I think we went through about 10 drinks and icy poles that day. Some bottles of water we drank and some we just had to pour over ourselves to cool down. We also visited Parque Das Aves on this day where we saw some amazing bird life! We were fascinated to see birds we have never seen before, especially the humming bird! These tiny little birds were the fastest flying birds we saw in the park and were so bright and colourful. They zip around the aviary and can be difficult to photograph but are great fun to watch. Dustin also held a snake on this day, something which I was not keen to try at all but was happy to hold a parrot.
This was definitely a nice way to first see Brazil and from here we were ready to move on to our next destination in the country.

The last 10 days we have crossed so much land and have looked at so many maps and everyday there are decisions that need to made, but its all for new experiences and that is what we want. From Foz do Iguazu we made our way to an island off the south east coast of Brazil, Ilha do Mel. This was a long journey catching an overnight bus to Curitiba, then catching another bus to Paranagua, then a ferry to the island. We spent about 5 nights here. The highlight of this trip was finally having our first swim in the ocean for the summer. The island was relaxing and surprising quiet. One night there was a lightening storm that lasted for around 20 minutes and was spectacular to watch. The whole sky light up and there was no rain. The island had many pousadas and a a few different beaches, yet not a whole range of places to eat or drink. One day we had an adventure walking from one side of the island to other through the jungle. There are a few hills and places to walk around the island and the scenery is really nice. However there is not a whole lot going on and 5 nights was enough to see us through and recharge our batteries before we set foot into the next concrete jungle.

We made our way back to Curitiba and spent 3 nights there which turned out to be a great time. We were not quite ready for the madness of Sao Paulo just yet, so this was a transition from the calmness of Ilda do Mel. This city is the capital of Paraná and was well worth the visit. This was a very Eco friendly city and the streets are so clean and everyone was very friendly. On arrival we had a little trouble finding somewhere to stay but ended up with a comfortable place that was opposite a park. One evening we wandered down there for a walk and to our surprise there were monkeys living in the park along with a bird park and other things like an outdoor gym. We saw white swans and people were out and about either walking around, exercising or just relaxing. There is a mix of Brazilian and European cafes in the city and again many interesting buildings. All the locals where very friendly and we could have easily spent more time here.


So in a nutshell this all brings us up to Sao Paulo where we have been for two nights. This city is HUGE! The largest city in Brazil with around 19 million people living here. Far out this is crazy. It is a concrete jungle however within this jungle there is enough restaurants, cafes, bars, museums, galleries and a whole world of the arts to explore day after day after day. We visited Musue de Arte de Sao Paulo today (MASP) which is an easily identifiable building along Avenue Paulista. It was rather strange to wander down this megatropolis street full of banks and massive buildings, only to be inside the contrast of the museum. There was an exhibition of portraits and there was a painting there that was around 700 years old! There are literally hundreds of museum's and gallery's here so we will visit more but simply not possible to see them all.


So here we are, making our way around the south of Brazil. A month into our trip already and still so much more to explore. It will be Carnaval this weekend and Dustin's 30th Birthday! I have posted some more photos and videos to the blog also. I will keep them coming... just wish I had more time to regularly update the blog in more detail, however we wont always be moving around so much so it will be possible. For now Ciao!