After getting a mini bus along the Brazilian coast which was beautiful we arrived at a small village where we caught a boat to Ilha Grande. The 45 minute boat ride was very choppy and Rachel began to feel ill quite quickly, but the driver insisted there was 'no danger' which was a relief. The owner of the boat was 79 years old, but could have easily been 60, it must be the laid back Brazilian lifestyle! We arrived at Ilha Grande and were dropped straight off at...

After saying goodbye to our parents at Heathrow and shedding some tears we started our 12 hour plane journey to Rio. Rachel thought it went quickly as she slept for most of the flight, but for J the journey dragged. We arrived in Rio, there was some confusion about our transfer from the airport but mainly due to the language barrier it was sorted fairly quickly. In the taxi we saw Christ Redeemer lit up on the mountain and arrived at our hostel, Choice Hostel, ...