Floripa

So I arrived in Florianopolis on Saturday morning- the city is the gateway to Ilha Santa Catarina. I had been talking to a couple of Canadian girls on the bus from Foz and so we decided to look for a hostel together. We consulted the interweb and realised that we were all swooning at the same hostel photos so jumped in a cab to go there.

The cab left the city and then drove us through some dreamy landscapes- all beaches, lakes, picturesque rivers winding through gorgeous villages. In fact, every time we turned another corner we all sighed with the satisfaction of the place.

The taxi pulled up next to a small bridge leading over a river which led away from the 16km of sandy beach. As I got out of the taxi a familiar face was getting off a bus- Niall who I had met standing by the road in the Pantanal. We all went over the bridge and found the hostel easily.

However, it was the wrong one. I decided to stay and the girls went off to the other one. Me and Niall hit the beach pretty quickly. Ah sigh, perfection.

That night in the hostel there was quite a gathering in the bar, a host of caipirinhanas were consumed and then we went to a nightclub. Things are a bit vague after that. There was a band singing, they werent very good. I bumped into the Canadian girls, they pulled me out of the club, I grabbed Niall and suddenly we were walking along a steep, muddy and very dark footpath- I know not why. At the end we realised that the Brazilian guy were were following didnt seem to have much of a clue where he was going so we grabbed a cab and went home.

It was about that time that I posted the last entry here.

Awoke the next morning to the sound of rain. It continued for most of the day. But the hostel barbecue in the evening made up for it in some small way. As did the nightly arrival of the chocolate man- a lively old fella who sells homemade chocolates- lovely.

The next morning there was more rain. Half of the hostel signed up to leave the next day. I had to think of a plan quickly, yes I was going to leave but where was I going to go?? I am flying out of Porto Alegre to Buenos Aires and have some old students to visit there in my last week but I didnt want to make it a week and a half there. After much thinking about it and waiting to use the free internet in the hostel (and quick nipping out to the ever popular ice cream buffet) I decided to go the wrong way and head north to Sao Paulo for a couple of days and then head south again.

Yes, it is the wrong way but the bus is pretty cheap. And no one, guide book included, could think of other places for me to go in the south before Porto Alegre so that was that. Decision made. Spent the evening chatting to a guy from Nicaragua and one from Chile.

Awoke on the morning of my final day to glorious sunshine once more.

Huff.

Undaunted I am continuing with my Sao Paulo plan- I am meeting another old student there tomorrow when she finishes work. I am travelling overnight again so will have to dump my stuff in the Guarda Volumes in the bus terminal for the day and then pick them up to meet her later.

Now I am just killing time waiting for the bus- I have about an hour and fifty minutes to go......