Her name was Lola, she was a showgirl... Hola from Copacabana, Rio!

What a difference a day makes - I woke up this morning in my spacious, peaceful bungalow on gorgeously peaceful Ilha Grande, and I'll go to bed tonight in bustling Rio de Janeiro. I loved Ilha Grande, we went to the famous Lopez Mendes beach yesterday (another boat journey) which was beautiful - miles of white beach (with squeaky, fluffy sand). It looks a bit like beaches in Sydney, lots of waves and white surf - and sand almost too hot to walk on. Had seafood for dinner last night right on the beach - lovely. Oh, the night before I saw a shooting star! Was wandering along the beach towards a party, looking up at the Milky Way glittering above, and there it was! Just lovely.

My tour group travelled to Rio today, and it was my last boat - hurrah! For the foreseeable future I will be on the mainland, what a relief. Our hotel is in Copacabana, famous for Barry Manilow's song and thongs. Wow, they love thongs here. A trip to the beach revealed a lot more flesh than we see in England (I have to say, I really wish they weren't so loud and proud - have seen some truly horrific sights that make me want to only eat salad for the rest of my days. Will try to find the beaches where the beautiful people hang out).

The tour ends tomorrow and we all go our seperate ways, so we're headed out for one last dinner together tonight. No more hotels, Portuguese-speaking tour guide or being shunted around without having to think for myself.. yikes. I've made some great friends so have lots of people to party with while I'm here. For the next fortnight I'll be living in a 6 bed dorm in a hostel in Copacabana, during carnaval. Madness.

x