Zebrafish

Copacabana sea front is a bustle of sun worshippers, hustlers, sweaty joggers, roller bladers, muscle men pumping iron, surfers and camera toting tourists wearing their backpacks on their bellies. Favelas rise up on hills beside luxury apartments, corner cafes, bars selling guarana protein energy drinks, feijoada - the national dish of salty pork and bean, designer clothes and beggars.







We celebrated xmas with Johanna's dad Timo and his partner Birgitta eating plenty of sushi, salads and fruit. Some highlights included catching the old tram up hill to the colonial heart of Santa Teresa and hearing samba, loud through worn speakers. Exploring Centro's mix of modern pedestrian streets and worn Portuguese avenues and plazas. Seeing the view of Rio from the feet of Jesus Christ the redemptor, finding monkeys below Sugar Loaf and sipping lethal caparinas watching a sublime sunset over Ipanema beach.







There were quite a few thunderstorms inbetween hot sun and after a week we left to see in the new year in the old port of Parati. This is peak time for tourism in Brazil and prices go through the ceiling. We ended up paying $100 each just to stay in a dormitory.

However Parati is a wonderful place of chunky cobbled streets, horse pulled carts and trinket shops. We took a boat around the nearby tropical islands giving us plenty of chance to swim. Here we met Johnny Walker from London whom we celebrated the new year with at the huge beach party where most people wear white to symbolise a fresh start.



Caparinhas are a cheap deadly concoction of half a cup of sugar, half a cup of clear sugar cane spirit, and as many limes and ice as you can cram in a plastic cup. Soon everyone is dancing to the samba band no matter how bad the singing and celebrating in the new year with strangers who are our new found friends. We randomly met an Irish manager from Microsoft with his Brazilian wife and family, a woman from Dorset wandering around with a bottle of champagne and Johanna picked up about 8 gay guys.

New years day we moved onto Sao Paulo and slept. Sao Paulo doesn't have a great image being the kidnapping capital of South America. However its a massive city with a well planned centre and good for daytime walking, provided you stay in busy areas. We really loved the Japanese and Asian area of Liberdade, a mini Tokyo. On Friday lunchtime they were offering sashime and an all you can eat sushi buffet which was close to food heaven.



Curitiba's old European centre was taken over by a huge craft market and we found a little corner of Bavaria where we could eat bockwusrt, saurkraut and beer. We have quite a few friends from Curitiba but unfortunately they are all in London right now!

Ten hours later and we are in the tri-frontier town of Foz. The next morning we joined the queues with everyone else to see the Iguazu waterfalls, nevertheless these are the most amazing on earth, its even hard to imagine something so impressive as this can even exist.



To see them properly you need 2 days on both sides of the border. The Brazil side gives you the overview but in Argentina you get to walk right above the falls. And the Garganta del Diabolo or Devil's throat is beyond words to describe, such is the sheer scale and force at your feet and impossible to photograph.





At long last I got to sink my teeth into an Argentinian steak, I like the way it is served here just on an empty plate with perhaps a slice of carrot and some parsley. Later we sat outside at Bar Tango drinking beer with impromptu couples showing off their dancing skills.





Buenos Aires was baking in heat and many had headed off to the coast. We spent a couple of idle days wandering around touristy La Boca, San Telmo's squares, antique markets, Palermo's bars and meeting up with Mike and Gemma from Auckland for a meat feast. Days start sometime in the afternoon and dinner after 10pm.





Many locals soak up the sun in Mar del Plata and that's also where we went to meet up with Johanna's friend Gabriella and her husband Sergio. We were looked after extremely well that week, even lending us a spare house which was a nice change from hotels. Afternoons were spent at their beach tent drinking maté and until the early hours in Mardel's restaurants. On Sunday we joined the whole family for a traditional asado or meat BBQ.



Boca Juniors were playing San Lorenzo and Johanna and I went along to feel a bit of the football frenzy. Both teams had giant flags they pulled over the entire stand of fans, one with Diego Maradona across in huge letters. Boca had a small brass band and drums, where as San Lorenzo set off bright red flares. Unfortunately there were no goals, and a couple of fans were clearly frustrated and hurled abuse to their rivals between the high fences and riot police. But it was a good experience if not a little cold.



We made our sad farewells and jumped on the bus to Patagonia nursing our coughs and colds.