We leave Ponta Pora early and get a nice cozy air conditioned private bus to Bonito!  

This is our bus for the remainder of our time in Brazil and also takes us to the Pantanal and then onto Corumba.

The only draw back is that there are no toilets on board ...

A positive though, is this gives us an opportunity to stop at random places to use their roadside loos and get amongst the locals!

Locals who sit at the roadside shacks, on their plastic chairs, at tables that display the Skohl beer logo, sipping thier tasty beverage at 10.30 in the morning!  

They only stare at us when we're off the bus, but when we're back in it again, they all wave and we wave back!

Adios gringos!

Only a small moment of connection but the more that are made, the more rewarding the holiday!

We get to Bonito about lunch time and change in preparation for an afternoon at the water park!

So our idea of a waterpark is a bit different from theirs ... 

There were no slides and just a river.  It did feel a little like Calypso Beach at WetNWild though, as you could ride the river current from upstream to the main lagoon.  

Also it's a bit more exciting then WetNWild as you swim amongst carp and other litte fish that eat the dead skin of you!  You have to pay for similar treatments at Singapore airport but here it's FREE :-)

We had grabbed supplies for lunch on the way to the park, so started cooking the BBQ lunch when we arrived.

We were entertained by the group sitting next to us who were having a great time making samba beats on their drums while others danced.

I rejected their offers to join in as hadn't yet had a caiprihina which I have discovered is the secret to me being able to dance samba! 

The swimming and BBQ were great fun, and did even find that there was a bar there selling caiprihinas but the group had moved on by the time I bought my 'confidence in a cup'!  

That evening after my nanny nap, I had a nice evening nanna nap, I joined the others to finish off our bottle of cachaca and make more caiprihinas :-)

We'd heard from a guy at the hotel that there was a fiesta on with music etc, about 1.5km down the main road, and just out of town, So some of us headed out to check that out.

It was where we'd seen a rodeo being held earlier that day, and was a dance with a live band for all the cowboys (gauchos).

No samba (unfortunately), but before long me and another girl were up dancing with a couple of the local boys, and having a lot of fun as they showed us the moves. Demonstration only as no English spoken by any of them ... 

Even after the caiprihinas I still had 2 left feet so fortunately they kept it nice and simple for me!

After an hour or so, the group wanted to head back to the hotel.

I said goodbye to Fernando who I'd mostly been my dancing with, but he insisted on walking me back to the hotel ...(well I'm not sure if that was exactly what he was saying but he wouldn't stay when I told him to in Spanish!).

Fernando's cute little golden cocker spaniel, Freiji, joined us for the walk.

After we got onto the main road, Freiji strayed to the far side and I pointed this out to Fernando. 

He calls him back and Freiji responds at just the wrong moment, a motorbike knocking him down and spinning him across the road. 

The bike rides  on and we run over to Freiji who is bleeding heavily from the mouth and not moving.

We pull him to the side of the road and after a couple of minutes he comes to and whimpers.

Fernando is a mess and I feel terrible wishing I hadn't pointed out he'd strayed, so that he wouldn't have called him back at that moment :-(

I can't communicate with Fernando to find out what we can do to help Freiji?! Is there a vet? Does he have a car to get him to one?!

He picks Freiji up and we carry him off in the same direction we were heading and after a bit Freiji starts whimpering again so we stop and put him down.  He's still bleeding heavily and I pat him and feel for wounds on his body but can't feel obvious ones. 

Fernando makes some calls on his phone and I stay with them
continuing to pat poor little Freiji, thinking if he's going to die then at least he'll feel loved with all the affection!

My group were ahead of me and hadnt seen what happened but one of the girls from the group comes back to get the room key that I'd forgotten was in my pocket, and check what I was doing.

 I tell her I can't just leave the poor guy here (who was still beside himself) on his own here with his dying dog! 

She leaves and about 1.5 hours later I finally make it back to our hotel ... 

Fernando had been taking Freiji to his parents who happened to live across the road from my hotel.

Freiji was more alert by this time but still whimpering in pain.  He had tried a couple if times to stand but sadly his back legs didn't seem to be working :-(

I farewell Fernando here and try to use my bad Spanish to express how sorry I was and wish him and Freiji luck!

The next day, we took the bus to a place where we had lunch then lay in hammocks waiting for our turn to go fresh water snorkelling in a nearby river that was fed by a natural spring.

To do this we had to gear up in knee length wet suits and booties, and were issued with a mask & snorkel. 

We then drove 10 minutes to a path, then walked another half hour through the mosquito infested rainforest to a fresh water river.

Unfortunately to avoid pollution, they request you don't wear sunscreen or mosquito spray, so now have a few nasty bites (and hopefully no Dengue Fever!).

The first area had a lagoon where you practiced floating and using our mask and snorkel (not so hard!). From there we followed the instructor down the river in single file, floating the whole way and capturing amazing photos of fishes as we went, a the water in incredibly clear.

It was a great day and we all had so much fun! Dont be surprised if you catch me at home in Aus, mask & snorkel in hand in search of creeks clear enough to do the same!

That night when our group went for dinner at Tarobar I ran into Fernando. Poor little Freiji didn't make it and had to be put to sleep :-(

Once again it is extremely frustrating expressing your condolences and sympathy when you can't speak someones language, and hoping he can understand enough of my dodgy Spanish to convey the message!

Alas we have swapped email / Facebook and there is always google translator!

The next morning we left early, once again in our super comfy private mini bus, heading for the Pantanal!