The Beauty and the Beasts! - Ilhabela

05/03 - 09/03

For one last time, we had to sacrifice a whole day for traveling to the next destination. These exhausting travel days are definitely something we won't miss. From Curitiba, we took a six-hour bus trip to São Paulo. Upon arriving at the bus station, we wandered around a bit until we found the right ticket counter for the next bus. Since hardly anyone in Brazil speaks English, we had to explain with hand gestures where we wanted to go. After a tedious communication process, we finally got our tickets for the bus to São Sebastião. While waiting, we tried to find something to eat, but the Brazilian bus station kitchen didn't offer anything appealing. They love to fry everything here, which we are already tired of. So we settled for coffee and sweets. The bus ride to the coast took about three and a half hours and it was already dark when we arrived at the São Sebastião ferry terminal. We took a 15-minute ferry ride to our destination: Ilhabela - the beautiful island.

The next day was very sunny, so we dedicated ourselves to our main task in Brazil - visiting the beaches. However, Ilhabela turned out to be bigger than we thought and we didn't have any means of transportation. Our landlady explained to us in a more or less understandable way how the bus system on the island worked. We followed her instructions, but I wasn't entirely convinced. After a short wait, a bus actually came by and took us in the right direction. At the ferry terminal, we had to switch to another bus route.

That's how it happened that it took us a good hour from our accommodation to our desired beach, the 'Praia Julião'. Once there, we found a nice spot and enjoyed the atmosphere. The beach was small but very crowded, and the water was incredibly warm. We soon realized that Brazilians have a different way of 'going to the beach' than we do. While we were equipped with a towel and a bottle of water, the Brazilians had camping equipment-like utensils. They all had camping chairs and coolers in which they kept drinks, especially beer, and various snacks. Some even had a pavilion tent, which provided plenty of shade or shelter in case of rain.

At lunchtime, we looked for a place to have a snack. Looking at the menu hurt. Prices in Brazil are quite high and even more so at the beach. Since we didn't have any snacks with us, we had no choice but to eat there. We chose the cheapest dishes and Emi had to do without her long-awaited shrimp as they were almost unaffordable!

In the afternoon, due to the insects, we moved to the neighboring beach, the slightly larger but less crowded 'Praia Grande'. There, I finally set up my travel hammock and enjoyed the rest of the day and the view. On the way back, we stopped at a pharmacy to buy an effective remedy (a Chilean couple in our hostel recommended citronella oil as a miracle cure) against the annoying biting flies. And due to the restaurant prices, we decided to cook for ourselves again after a long time. Unfortunately, the product selection in the supermarket and the equipment in the hostel kitchen were far from optimal, but the humble dinner was still enjoyable! :)

The next morning, we found that Emi's bites on her legs had become uncomfortably inflamed. Almost all the bite spots were swollen and had formed unsightly blisters that were also terribly itchy. Moreover, the weather was not ideal for a classic day at the beach. So we just strolled around. We walked along the main road by the sea and eventually took a refreshing break with fresh coconut and cold beer at one of the many beach bars. From there, we took the next bus and went further north, where we found the nice and almost deserted 'Praia do Pinto'. Shortly after we settled in, the sun even peeked out. So we took advantage of the welcome sunshine and refreshed ourselves in the water.

Unfortunately, the idyll didn't last very long. The sky darkened again and the black flies started buzzing around our feet. Since Emi was already struggling with the bites she had already received all day, she didn't want to take any risks despite the citronella oil. So we packed up and started heading back. Just in time, as it started pouring rain as soon as we got on the bus.

In the evening, we walked back to the city center on foot, enjoyed dinner, and went to the open-air pub 'The Old Jack' to taste some craft beer. Eventually, the rain started pouring so heavily again that it was impossible to walk back to the hostel. We asked a guy to order a taxi for us, but for some reason, no taxis were available. The helpful guy at the table was one of the pub owners and offered to drive us to the hostel after another beer. Grateful and relieved by this offer, we ordered another round. Some time later, already quite tipsy, we were chauffeured home. We ran the short distance in pouring rain to the entrance of the hostel and intended to go straight to our room. But to our surprise, the entire hostel - owner, volunteers, and guests - greeted us enthusiastically and immediately invited us to a party in the old town. I wanted to politely decline, but Emi was in the mood for going out and promptly agreed. So, less than 5 minutes after arriving at the hostel, we went back to the bus stop. At least this time equipped with an umbrella...

We went to a rather unspectacular establishment with a large dance floor and a small stage where a band was setting up their instruments. When we arrived, it was still very quiet. We took advantage of the opportunity and visited the bar to order the first round of Caipirinhas. Eventually, the place filled up mainly with locals who danced up a storm on the dance floor. Apparently, we stumbled upon a dance party. Seeing our surprised expressions, the hostel owner explained that it was a 'Forró' party. Forró is a popular Portuguese partner dance that is danced to various types of music. Occasionally, people from our hostel tried to learn a few basic steps and we also tried our luck. However, our coordination was heavily impaired and we didn't really feel like embarrassing ourselves in the midst of Brazilians. It would have been easier if someone had shown us at least the basics, but no one really felt compelled to do so. So we preferred to focus on drinking Caipirinhas and watching the dancing couples. When watching eventually became boring and tiredness overwhelmed us, we left with our buzz. Fortunately, a bus came right away and took us back to the hostel.

Unfortunately, there's not much to report about our last day on the island. The combination of fear of new fly bites, rainy weather, and the aftermath of the previous evening led us to stay in our air-conditioned room and indulge in a Netflix marathon...

Conclusion:

The 'Beauty' - Ilhabela - lives up to its name, but also has a few not-so-beautiful sides. The island is covered in dense rainforest and offers numerous beaches. However, neither hiking nor lying on the beach is enjoyable when the weather is bad. And where there is a lot of green, it often rains - just like here. Going to the beach is simply not fun in the rain. The biting black flies are another factor that made our stay quite difficult. Those who react as sensitively as Emi to the bites should either skip this island or start applying citronella oil from the beginning.

Traveling Brazil is a bit more challenging for backpackers. It is mainly Brazilian tourists traveling by car, and the restaurants are more geared towards affluent guests. The bus system is also more cumbersome, so renting a car is definitely recommended. Fortunately, we have already reserved one for our next stop! :)

Hasta pronto!

E&L

>> Next stop: Ubatuba <<