Today we were allowed another lie in as we had a long day ahead of us; after lunch were had a 4-5 hour drive to Caratinga our last stop on this leg of the trip.
So it was up for breakfast at 7am - today I decide to warm my roll and fill it with slightly melted cheese, fried banana and honey -it was really yummy and to be recommended!
This morning we went off to look for more birds and to see if we could see the Titi monkeys and marmosets again - we went along the same trail as yesterday as everyday can be different - and so it proved to be.
The weather started sunnier and we could hear lots of monkeys in the forest but not in our patch; the weather then closed in and it drizzled a little before brightening later. Patience is a virtue as is birding! Looking for birds is interesting and it also helps pass the time while you are waiting for the monkeys to wake up and start moving around - Fred knew they would be in the area as they are territorial and so would not stray far. But if they are not moving it is like looking for small bundles of fluff on the branches and they could easily be mistaken for termite nests or vice versa. Around 1030ish however John and Fred spotted them - the two from yesterday and another 6-8 or so close by - probably the whole family - we watched them for about an hour and a half - an amazing experience and lots of photos taken - hopefully some of them good. It was difficult to leave them but lunch and a long drive beckoned. We especially wanted to get into lunch before the church service finished as the dining hall would be busy. After lunch a final pack and we were on the road by 1pm.
We arrived in Caratinga at about 5.15pm and booked in at the Hotel Vinds it was clean and comfortable with cable tv and wifi so I caught up with the final Olympic events results and watched some of the closing ceremony. As the hotels restaurant was not open we agreed to meet Fred at 1830 and go to a local Pizzeria - where we had really good pizzas and watched the last couple of hours of the closing ceremony on the restaurant tv. Fred was really impressed by the music as he is a rock fan and learnt much of his English from translating lyrics and listening to the Beatles with his Dad. Even better he could explain the Brazilian segment and told us how the street cleaner became very famous in Brazil during carnival where he danced as he swept and people loved him -interestingly he remains a street cleaner! We also commiserated with him about Brazils change of fortune in the Volleyball; Brazil had almost won it 2 sets up and up in the 3rd when Russia turned the tables with an extraordinary comeback to win the match and leave Brazil with silver. There is every chance that they and the footballers will reverse their fortunes in 2016 when they are on home soil. Indeed olympic gold is the only thing that eludes the footballers, having won 4 world cups, and it is the one thing they really really want - so watch out in Rio! He was also pleased as were we with their bronze in the modern pentathlon and our silver. Sad to see the games come to an end as we could feel the warmth and pride in the country from thousands of miles away - who says positive press doesn't sell newspapers! We need more endeavour and less cynicism as we clearly thrive on it.
Back at the hotel and an earlyish night was on the cards as we needed to be up and the car packed by 5.30 so we could breakfast and be away smartly at 6am to go to to the Ecological reserve.