Arrived bleary eyed at Porto Allegre bus station at 7 in the morning. Brazil was not being accommodating in allowing us to extract cash from a multitude of cash machines. Fortunately had a few Uruguayan pesos to exchange and able to purchase an onward bus ticket to Florianopolis on card so we continued on our merry way. Arrived in 'Floripa' mid afternoon and after booking an onward ticket to Iguacu we were in a 'taxi' (hilarious battered little old school fiat punto sized thing) with 2 rather large Danes (people from Denmark, not the dogs) and 4 sets of luggage. Driver stopped at HSBC for us to try our luck with our cards again - no good (but why would our own bank let us withdraw money?) - although eventually withdrew some with the credit card. Squeezed back in to the 'taxi' and we hurtled around bends and over hills to Barra de Lagoa on the eastern shore of Isla de Santa Catarina. Checked in to our hostel just over the canal from the main part of the village then went to check out our surroundings including our first Brazilian beach.
Opted for the easy option of dinner in our hostel, accompanied by some caipirinhas, an old English chap, 2 young Aussie lads and an unwanted guest in the form of annoying, drunk Brazilian Borat-wannabe.