(Roberta can tell you who sang this one!)
Up with the sun shining through the little stained-glass window just above my head. Could hear the clink of breakfast dishes. Walked carefully down the spiral staircase from my room onto the patio, and sat down at a long wooden table, beautifully laden with a spectacular breakfast. What a change from the paucity we turned out noses up at at Studio do Carmen! I sat at the end of the table, and was soon joined by a women from England and her daughter, and a little later, a couple from Rio. Pizza (very popular here), tamales, tomatoes and mozzerella, eggs, fresh breads and assorted jams, fruit from Mexico sliced, then also in a puree served in a dish (brith purpley pink), a fruit smoothie with fruit picked from the tree on the patio, a fruit salad filled with jackfruit and little quiches. Alcino hovered and made sure everyone had fresh brewed coffee, frothed up the milk himself, and I actually, finally, had some good tea. I retired to the chair in the corner, caught up on emails, then headed to my room to get ready for the day. The gentleman from Rio drew me a map of an easy hike for the first day, along the river, across rocks, to a couple of waterfalls and back down.
Packed up my backpack and headed to the “trailhead” as it were. My first trip into town, and it is SOOOOO cute. Again with the pastel-colored buildings, and little signs hanging over the front of the doors to announce what was being sold behind its doors.
About half of the shops were closed (mostly restaurants and snack shops), but I stopped in a couple of stores to pick up something to eat while hiking. Headed past the police station and water tanks and onto the stone and dirt path. I hiked for about 15 minutes, then came to the river, which was flowing swiftly across and under a huge stone and rock formation. There were people sitting in the pools in their bathing suits and a couple of vendors under umbrellas selling cold water.
Well whaddya know, it’s Joe, the guy from the bus last night. He’s hiking with a few limeys and I’m hiking in their shadow. We make it up to a little waterfall and pool and I strip down to my suit and slowly get into the water. Man, it’s not so bad that it’s so hot out when you can cool off every 15 minutes like this! The river runs among and through rock formations everywhere. Really beautiful.
From there, we hike further up still, looking for the Primavera waterfall. Found it! Amongst some Boulders and rocks that make me understand why Paolo said at breakfast that Brazil, Colorado and California were his favorite places to climb. I said goodbye to the guys and headed down on the other side of the river. Really a lot of hopping around rocks. Passing by a large boulder when a Michael Franti song comes one (shake it from the most recent CD) and I perch myself on the boulder, with an almost 360 degree view (up to highlands I just came from and over to the town, perched in the hills in the other direction) and dance!
Thank goodness Christine has helped me gain some balance when I walk! The water turned a rusty color because of the something-or-other oxide that is running through the water. I find a shady spot to cool my tootsies and read for a while.
On the move again as I navigate the rocks down to town. Pass by people washing in the running river – a very common sight:
Parched and empty after the hot, hot hike. Stopped into town for a new favorite snack: acai de tigela tradicional:
As it happened, Joe stopped in for one as well. We chatted and as he told me about his much cooler sister – he~s an engineer and I said I kind of guessed that from his whole gestalt – who has her own independent music blog and is in the music industry, started with an unpaid internship and lives in Brooklyn. What’s a mother to do? The internet introduction, of course! Oh, Michael, please forgive.
Back to hotel for a shower to cool down. After that hike, I don’t really mind the fact that Valerie and I came to learn the hard way: no hot showers in Brazil. Not even warm, really. But it works. Stopped at the Chapada Adventure tour office and signed up for a 5 hour roundtrip hike to the top of the Smokey Falls, so called because it’s the tallest falls in the park and at 420 meters, the waters evaporates to a smoky mist before reaching bottom. Then off to dinner. Something else Valerie and I learned: ordering for one person means you will have enough for two and ordering for two gives you enough for 3 or 4! Back to Alcino’s to update you here and now off to bed for my early pick up. Ciao!