At the airport in Sao Paulo I saw there was a lot of people waiting for the same flight to Foz do Iguacu. I thought I may have a half empty flight but there seemed to be lots of groups for some reason. I heard a couple of Australian and British accents which has been rare the last few weeks and there was also a big group of Chinese tourists fullfilling the stereotype but also a big bunch of grunge rock/skate dudes/girls waiting to board. Well it became clear wh...

The final part of the 'group honeymoon' was spent in a holiday resort in Porto de Galinhas for a bit of R&R..hey it's tough doing all those other activities on the beach! Porto de Galinhas itself is quite a touristy town but is historically famous for being a port for importing slaves from Africa. Even when this was outlawed, the practice continued covertly. Ships filled with slaves were hidden by loads of black chickens imported from Angola. When the...

Fernando de Noronha as a UNESCO preserved island surrounded by a small archipelago. The are coral reefs and wildlife reserves all around the island which the island is famous for as well as its spectacular beaches including the one voted the best in Brazil. Visiting the island is a special treat but this does come at a price. You pay a local tax/fee at the airport dependant on how many days you are staying which is fair enough as the fees go to the upkeep of...

Sao Paulo itself so far had never been described to me in a positive light. This is the financial, cultural and nightlife capital of Brazil and locals (Paulistas) stoically defend their city (especially against the Cariocas of Rio), but this city is aesthetically monstrous. The high rise concrete buildings seem never ending and even locals find it hard to navigate but underneath the surface in certain pockets, it seemed quite nice and even interesting. So th...

The bus ride to Paraty from Rio was comical at times, well at least for some of us. Before getting on the bus there was a rather 'loud' local woman (if that's what you could call her) mouthing off about something. We soon worked out it was because they didn't have any seats left on the bus and she was furious about this. So mad that she refused to get off the bus. Eventually they crew gave in and managed to let her stay on as there was one seat spare. She was...