We took a bus to Praia de Forte for a couple of days of relaxing by the beach. The town is very small with lots of great shops, aimed at tourists. The town is eco-sensitive, home to the TAMAR project which has a protection and breeding program for sea turtles. When we arrived the sun was shining so we took a walk around the many shops and headed for the beach which was really pretty and quiet, lined with palm trees. We then visited the TAMAR turtle reserve...

We flew to Salvador after deciding that a 27 hours bus trip was a bit excessive, even for us! And we love it! Salvador has a huge African influence, which it still strongly retains even nowadays. The old Pelourinho means 'whipping post' and was originally where the slaves were sold and tortured, but now this old quarter is very arty and buzzing with live music and dancing 24 hours a day! They are currently celebrating Sao Joao and have stages all through the c...

We decided to visit the famous Cristo Redentor on Corcovado mountain, which is situated in the Parque Nacional da Tijuca. We had to take a cog train to the top which was really picturesque, going through the rainforest. At the top we did the obligitory photos with Christ the Redeemer and of the surrounding area. We then visited Sugar Loaf Mountain which we had to take 2 cable cars to reach. The first cable car takes you up to 215m to Morro da Urca and then th...

We arrived in Brazil absolutely shattered! So we decided to treat ourselves to a couple of days of nothing...well we did exciting things like laundry and watching the football, but other than that, we did nothing!The atmosphere in Brazil when the football is on is amazing! They are football crazy, even more than in England! We decided to visit the Favelas with a tour recommended by the Lonely Planet and because it supports the local community. The tour actually ...

The next morning we left really early in time to fit in another hike before we left. We took the canoe and paddled upstream. We saw a Giant River Otter, Vultures, Slate Coloured Hawk, Chestnut Woodpecker, Macaws and also an adult Sloth high in the trees. We hiked through to a viewing platform, where we saw a Hoatzin Bird, which looks like a prehistoric bird, with a red mohawk! Holly decided to take a mud bath, on the way back to the boat; she was walking alo...