The Brazilian island dream! - Ilha Grande

17/03 - 22/03

Before venturing into the urban jungle of Rio de Janeiro, it was time for pure nature and Brazilian island life one last time. From Paraty, there was a suitable transportation option for backpackers, a minibus and a boat, at a reasonable price...

We had just finished our breakfast and coffee when a minivan arrived at our hostel to pick us up. Before heading to Ilha Grande, we took a few rounds in Paraty to pick up other travelers. Then we drove for about three hours, in the rain, along the coast to a very small harbor. Once there, we switched from the minivan to a boat and crossed over to Ilha Grande in a rocky hour. It is a very popular destination for Brazilians and the largest island in the state of Rio de Janeiro. I had assumed that it probably has good infrastructure and a dense population due to its size, but I was proven wrong. The island is mainly made up of tropical rainforest and countless beautiful sandy beaches. In addition, there are no motorized vehicles on the entire island, making it quiet and requiring only boats or walking for transportation.

The boat docked in the small town of 'Abraão' and we walked in the pouring rain from the docks to our accommodation. There, we were greeted by a rather indifferent young Brazilian. He did not speak a word of English and had a significant speech impediment, making it very difficult for us to understand what he was explaining during check-in. Emi couldn't help but laugh when he said the Wi-Fi password, his answer sounded more like a strange animal sound than a spoken word. Luckily, he wrote it down for us: Ramos2018. Not much happened for the rest of the day, we took care of mundane things like laundry and finding a suitable restaurant for dinner. We found a small but very nice bar that offered delicious empanadas in all sorts of variations. The only downside was the long wait with a growling stomach. However, this evening was not the only one where we ended our day there.

The next day, we set off relatively early. Right after breakfast, we started walking to 'Dois Rios', a small town on the other side of the island. The path led us steeply through dense jungle. At times, the trees, bushes, and shrubs were so close together that the trail was barely visible. Due to the recent rain, the ascent was muddy and slippery. It didn't take long before we were followed by a swarm of mosquitos. We immediately took out our citronella oil and greased our entire bodies. Fortunately, it worked immediately and we were spared from the annoying mosquitoes.

After about half an hour, we reached an unpaved road from the jungle path, where it was much more comfortable to walk. We followed the road for another 1.5 hours and after a short but exciting encounter with a small snake, we arrived at our destination. In Dois Rios, it felt like a ghost town: the place looked very neglected, there were hardly any people, and the houses seemed abandoned.

We walked through the town to the old prison, which I wanted to take a closer look at. Unfortunately, the original prison cells had been converted into a small museum, where all exhibits and pictures were labeled in Portuguese only. We took a short walk and soon left disappointed. We headed to the Dois Rios beach and found a nice shady spot. When we arrived, the cloud cover cleared and the sun showed itself in all its glory. It was 11 o'clock and there were hardly any other people there at that time. Only later in the day did a few other tourists arrive. But with the spaciousness of the beach, it wasn't a problem for us! :)

We spent a few pleasantly relaxed hours in the sun, taking refreshing dips in the sea. Then, at around 3 PM, we started our return journey. After all, we had to cover the almost 8-kilometer trek through the jungle again, and the sun was already setting at 6:30 PM. Back in Abraão, we freshened up briefly and went to a simple restaurant nearby to have fish for dinner. After dinner, we were quite exhausted and fell into bed tired but satisfied.

The next day started very similar to the previous one: breakfast and departure to the next destination - 'Lopes Mendes'. This beach is probably the most popular and beautiful on the entire island. And there are a total of 86 beaches! We had the choice between a rather expensive but short boat ride or a free but two-hour hike over mountains and through the rainforest. We didn't have to think long and decided once again for the sporty option. The weather couldn't have been better that day, and as we started walking from Abraão, the sun was already brightly but mercilessly shining down on us. After walking through the town, we switched to the shady jungle, but it was just as humid there. My physical aftermath from the previous day's hike wasn't very helpful. At least the view along the way distracted me from my discomfort a little bit.

We skipped two beautiful and chill beaches that would have invited us to take a short break, and we used our last motivation to reach our declared destination. At the first beach, a cute dog joined our hiking group and accompanied us to the second beach.

After more than two hours, we reached the most beautiful beach we had seen on our entire trip, and we have spent quite some time on beautiful beaches. Although we were by no means the only visitors, the vastness of the 2.5 km long beach made it feel like we had it all to ourselves. We found a shady spot, I immediately set up my hammock, and we tried to comprehend the incredible beauty of this place. Everything just seemed perfect at this beach: the seclusion, the green surroundings, the white sandy beach, the almost transparent water, and the small waves inviting us to splash around.

We enjoyed this fantastic place for the next four to five hours. While Emi read her book and cooled off in the crystal-clear water every few minutes, I mostly lay in the hammock and admired the Brazilian soccer players, making time pass far too quickly. We could have definitely stayed at Lopes Mendes for even longer...

We couldn't motivate ourselves for the return journey and treated ourselves to a taxi boat. We didn't regret it because it was probably the most beautiful taxi ride of our lives. The low-hanging sun and the sparkling sea gave the green, untouched island even more charm than it already had. The Caipirinhas tasted even better at dinner, but that was probably due to the joy of this wonderful day!

We continued with Caipirinhas on the next day as well. Since we had such a positive experience with a Caipi boat tour in Paraty and Emi wanted to improve her Caipi statistics, we boarded a rather rundown wooden ship in the morning. They served the favorite drink of Brazilians the entire time. The first stop of the tour was at 'Lago Azul' - the blue lagoon. As you can imagine, it is one of the top spots for tourists on the island due to its turquoise waters and great visibility of fish. Therefore, it was not surprising that our boat was not the only one stopping there. Soon, more and more boats and ships arrived at the lagoon, turning it into a completely overcrowded tourist aquarium. Some of the boats were so crowded with people that they reminded us of animal transports - there was no talk of appropriate housing. The tourists were unloaded into the sea with life jackets or other swimming aids and snorkeling equipment. It was a slightly peculiar sight that somehow reminded me of Asia...

Our second stop seemed somewhat arbitrary in the middle of nowhere, but we still had fun and jumped into the sea several times from the boat or just floated around with a pool noodle. The landscape around us was a fitting backdrop. Finally, we stopped at a restaurant where we ate rather mediocre fish at an expensive price. On the way back to Abraão, we observed the same phenomenon as on the Caipirinha tour in Paraty: a small group of highly motivated backpackers wanted to make the most of every second to empty as many free Caipirinha jugs as possible. Limes and ice cubes were simply thrown into the sea to make more room for the essential in the cup. We took it much more relaxed, but it was interesting to watch how drunker the people became! Although the boat tour was not particularly exciting in terms of stops, it was still nice to sail around the area.

The last day on Ilha Grande was unfortunately marked by recurring rain showers. But since we had already had a varied program in the past few days, we decided to spend the day in our room or in the town. Our final dinner also fell, quite literally, in the water - we ate fish stew under a not completely waterproof umbrella...:)

Conclusion:

Ilha Grande is the perfect contrast to Rio de Janeiro. For those who visit the metropolis, they have the opportunity to visit a true natural paradise at a very short distance. Beach lovers, in particular, will get their money's worth, although in Brazil, it's unnecessary to mention. The few inhabited places on the island are very touristy, but due to the size of the island, it is relatively easy to escape the hustle and bustle during the day. On sunny days, there is almost only one destination that can be visited for several days in a row without ever ceasing to be amazed: Lopes Mendes!

Hasta pronto!

E&L

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