Home»South America Day 20

We had two normal days at sea - just how cruises should be.  This morning we woke at 6.00 a.m. just in time to see Sugar Loaf Mountain and Copacabana Beach and docked in sight of Christ the Redeemer statue.  After a frustrating delay to get off the ship which should have been 9.15 but was 10.45, our taxi took us to a hotel at Copacabana Beach.  We got there at 12.10 and our driver was already there to take us to Paraty.  The drive out of Rio was chaos - some roads were closed due to Carnival and once we had to stop for one of the huge floats which was being moved to the starting location.  We then drove past one shanty town after another for over an hour until suddenly our surroundings changed - we were in beautiful countryside.  Unfortunately, after another 30 minutes or so it took an hour to drive one kilometer due to the three lanes going down to one and too many cars being on the road at the same time all because of Carnival.  After stopping for a quick lunch the rest of the ride was by the coast and we passed many beaches all packed with holiday-makers.  On the other side of the road were lush fields and a mountain range – all very beautiful.

We arrived at Parity an hour and a half later than anticipated at 6pm and checked into our hotel.  We are very happy with our choice, the public rooms are filled with interesting antiques and our room is large and has a fridge and a quiet and efficient air conditioner.

I asked one of the guests who spoke English when the parade starts and was told 3.00 a.m.  I repeated myself as I thought he`d misunderstood my question but the answer was right the first time and as he said this is Carnival.  We walked around the square and found an Italian restaurant.  The music had already started and everyone was in a party mood, but we were both exhausted after our early start and drive down so that we went to bed soon after.

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