The journey back on the ferry was rough and the jolly music turned up loud to cover the sound of vomiting. We were lucky as we picked good seats between the doors with a breeze in the centre where there was only a gentle roll so we closed our eyes and pretended we were on a hammock for 2 and a half hours. We had a final day in Rio before heading home spent by the beach and by the large lake behind it, getting caught in a tremendous thunder storm just as we needed to get back to pick up our cases and head for the airport. The cafe owner borrowed the umbrella off the coconut juice stall holder next door for us and he still got soaked standing under a tree by the road for 20 minutes trying to get us a taxi.
So many amazing experiences and memories can i manage a top ten good/bad things?
Top ten: the helpful and friendly people, the natural beauty and variety of the country, Iguazu falls, sipping milk from coconuts and the exotic fruit juices, knock your head off caipirinhas, the food, the music, the positive energy, lack of crime despite dire guide book warnings and exhilirating taxi rides.
Ten worst things: the amazon without AC or a fan, the poverty, children working on the streets, the gap between the rich and the poor, the level of obesity, the lack of good roads outside big cities, poor housing, toilet paper goes in basket by loo (like in China), the taxi drivers, and that below the surface this is still a developing country, but it is steaming ahead.