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Getting Ready to Hit the Road Once Again

By Witt on September 16, 2015

On the day after we went for our hike we had another beautiful sunny day, so we decided to take one of the many “pirate” boat tours on offer. The highlight was a visit to a colonial fort on an island.

It was a part boat with a couple of people dressed up as pirates trying to get people to do the limbo without spilling their caipirinhas.

It was a party boat with a couple of people dressed up as pirates trying to get people to do the limbo without spilling their caipirinhas.

We stopped for lunch at a restaurant in a small fishing village.

We’ve had a lot of rain over the past couple of weeks, but we did get to enjoy some nice sunsets on the beach.

Ever since we entered Brazil, we’ve been seeing signs for a place called Beto Carrero World. Quinn first spotted one on our way into Sao Paulo, and we’ve been telling him that we’d try to find out where it is and go. It turns out it’s about 100km north of where we’re staying, so last Wednesday we got in the van and drove to the park.

The drive up was slow, with road construction turning what should have been a 2 hour drive into 3 hours of stop and go. But we made it, and now Quinn has decided that it’s best thing we’ve done on our whole big-big trip.

At the park entrance. Being there on a Wednesday in the off season meant we didn’t have to wait in lines all day.

Want to ride the same roller coaster over and over again? Okay!

They even had an authentic looking steam train that took us past various cowboy and dinosaur themed attractions.

At one point the train stopped and a couple of gauchos rode up on horseback to rob the train!

Random Christmas scene anyone? This was just after we left the scary dinosaur tunnel.

There were electric cars for Quinn to drive…

… and the bumper cars were a big hit too.

That’s about it from Florianopolis. This morning we leave to head South once again. We have another week exploring Southern Brazil, then we’ll be heading through Uruguay and back into Argentina. Thanks for reading!

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More fun in Brazil — Caves, trains and beaches

By Witt on September 10, 2015

With a week left before we were due at an Airbnb rental in Florianópolis, we had a few stops left to make.

On our way south to our rental in Florianópolis we stopped to see the Caverna do Diabo (Devil’s Cavern)

The caves are situated in the Atlantic rain forest, and we had a nice short hike from the parking lot to the entrance to the caves.

Next we drove to Curitiba, where we were able to get tickets on a tourist train from there down to the coast. We got up early to catch the train and enjoyed a full day on the train
and
exploring a couple of tranquil port towns.

A train ride always guarantees a smile.

A church in the seaside town of Antonina.

Quinn was captivated by this quick-working street artist, so we had him paint a train picture. Hope it survives the journey home!

Wait, are we back in the USA already?

Terry, Sandy, and Jack of Adventure Trio were able to join us once more for a couple of days of beach fun in Florianópolis

Quinn on the beach

Jack and Quinn shortly before Jack and his family headed for Buenos Aires.

Quinn made the awesome train out of Legos. Check out the smoke!

We visited a sea turtle rescue center near our apartment and got to see lots of turtles, including this baby turtle who looks surprisingly like Quinn

It’s off season here (winter) so Jen and Quinn have occupied some of the rainy days making apple crisp. Yum!

We got a nice sunny weekend to hike to a secluded beach at the southern end of Santa Catarina Island.

With the second year of our trip under our belts, we’ve decided it’s soon time to head home for awhile. This is mostly because we feel that it’s time that Quinn was able to make some friends and have a normal, stable life for awhile. Witt’s parents have generously agreed to oversee the construction of a house in Montrose for us, so that’s where we’ll be living. when we return.

We have already bought airline tickets for ourselves, and are working on arranging to ship the van back to the US. We’ll be in the Philadelphia area visiting Jen’s family over the holidays, and depending on how long it takes our van to arrive, we should be back home in Colorado sometime in January.

This trip has grown into a lifestyle, and it feels strange to know that soon we’ll be living in one place for who knows how long. Quinn is really looking forward to having a house, especially since he’ll be able to have his own model train table.

That leaves us about 3 months left to finish our exploration of South America. Currently we’re staying in an apartment in Florianópolis, Brazil, while Witt works. When we leave here next week, we’ll head south to Peninsula Valdez in Argentina, then across to Chiloé Island in Chile and onward to Bariloche and Mendoza, Argentina, before heading back to Buenos Aires to ship the van.

We’re really looking forward to seeing friends and family for the holidays. Until then we have lots left to explore!

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Worldschooling is not just for kids

By Jennifer Sparks on August 25, 2015

There is talk in some travel circles about “worldschooling” or learning from the world around you.

These lessons often involve so much more than learning a foreign language, about the intricacies of a foreign culture or how to use a foreign currency correctly. We often like to pass on helpful tips to others so they too can benefit from what we have learned.

Thus here is one example of how worldschooling is not just for kids:

How to buy chili powder in the U.S.

Go to the grocery store
Find spice aisle
Locate bottles of chili powder
Choose one to put in your basket
Go to the checkout line to pay for it
Go home
Start cooking

How to buy chili powder in Brazil

Go to the grocery store
Find spice aisle
Search for bottles of chili powder
Realize that you don’t know how to translate “chili powder” into Portuguese
Grab smart phone (hopefully you already have a SIM card and data plan for Brazil)
Use an app to translate it
Realize that the app doesn’t really translate the words correctly
Look again at the shelves
Realize that the store probably doesn’t carry chili powder anyway (since it’s a special blend and not part of the local culture)
Debate whether to cook something different that doesn’t require it
Decide to use smart phone to see if there is an easy substitute for chili powder
Find a simple recipe on the Internet for chili powder that uses 5 easily obtainable ingredients (paprika, cayenne pepper, oregano, cumin and garlic powder)
Use translation app to find the Portuguese word for each of these spices
Search the shelves for each of the spices
Locate all the spices except for garlic powder
Find garlic flakes instead of garlic powder
Put each of these spices in your basket
Go to the register to pay for them
Go home (in our case, back to our AirBnb rental apartment)
Get a bowl and a spoon out
Measure out all the ingredients
Use a mortar and pestle to grind up the garlic flakes into powder
Mix all the ingredients
Pour into your empty chili powder bottle (whose factory label helpfully lists “spices” and “salt” as the ingredients)
Decide to mix up enough batches of the chili powder recipe to fill the bottle (so as not to waste ingredients and to have more chili powder for next time)
Clean up your mess
Start cooking!

Guess how I spent my afternoon? ????

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Two Amazing Weeks in Brazil

By Witt on August 12, 2015

After leaving the Pantanal we drove 900 kms to the town of Atibaia near the city of São Paulo. It took us two full days to make the drive through the agricultural heartland of Brazil. There are no campgrounds along that route, but there are truck stops (called “Postos”) that offer all of the services provided by their American counterparts. We spent two nights at postos during our journey, and got lots of looks from the Brazilian truck drivers staying there.

We first met (and last saw) Robert and Grace more than 10 years ago when our paths crossed in Malawi. We only spent one night with them all those years ago, but we’ve kept in contact, and visiting them was one of the things we had to do during our travels in South America.

We were so young then!

Rob and Grace welcomed us to their beautiful home and spent the weekend showing us around the area.

They took us to a restaurant near their house for traditional Brazilian feijoada, a rich stew based on black beans.

Robert cooked a us lots of great food at the house too, including this BBQ at which Quinn discovered that he loves chicken hearts!

We drove to a mountaintop near their house where we got to watch hang gliders launching into the sky.

Quinn spent some quality train time with his electric train set.

After reluctant goodbyes, we left Atibaia. Rob and Grace had convinced us that we had to see Rio, and it didn’t disappoint. Even though we only spent 2 days in the city, we got a feeling for why it’s so well known around the world. We didn’t know of anywhere we could park the van in the city, so we went to a campground outside of town and braved the two hour bus ride to an Airbnb apartment we rented near Ipanema beach. We stayed in the apartment for two nights and saw as much as we could.

The first night in the city we rode a cable car up to Sugarloaf Mountain for sunset and views of the city.

The two-stage cable car deposits you atop the sheer-faced Sugarloaf Mountain. For the more adventurous, you can rope up and climb.

The view from the top makes it obvious why Rio is considered one of the world’s most beautiful cities.

The next day we went to the famous statue of Christ the Redeemer. The views were equally stunning.

I could have put in a picture of the statue, but I thought it would be more fun to capture some of the people taking pictures of themselves with the statue.

Sand artists line the Rio beaches.

Rio is still a big city, and although the beaches look nice, we were advised not to swim because of poor water quality.

On our way out of the city we met up again with Adventure Trio. Together we headed southwest along the Brazilian coastline, eventually landing in the tiny beach town of Trinidade. Two nights turned into four, and we had a great time playing on the beach and sharing meals.

The quiet beach at Trinidade was very relaxing after the hustle and bustle of Rio.

Jack was like an older brother to Quinn, and they had a great time together.

Our campsite on the beach

An evening jam session

Time for lunch!

Getting towed around on the boogie board was Quinn’s favorite pastime.

This entry is filed under Brazil. | 5 Comments

Iguazu Falls and the Brazilian Pantanal

By Witt on August 3, 2015

Iguazu falls straddles the border between Argentina and Brazil, and everyone told us that it was worthwhile to see both sides. So two days after we went to the Brazilian side, we decided to cross into Argentina to visit the falls from that side of the border. We booked transport in a minibus to avoid the hassle of completing import paperwork for the van.

As luck would have it, Adventure Trio showed up at the hostel we were staying at the day before we were to go and decided to come along.

For Quinn, the highlight of the day was the train between the park entrance and the falls.

A walkway allowed us to walk across a kilometer of river to view the Devil’s Throat, the heart of the falls.

The roar and power of the falls is difficult to capture in photos.

The roar and power the falls is difficult to capture in photos.

The park featured spectacular bird life.

A rare photo of all three members of the Sparks clan.

Another view of the falls

After leaving the falls we planned to visit the Pantanal region of Brazil. This remote area is unique in that it floods to a depth of up to 3 meters during the rainy season, leaving it mostly inaccessible except for the few all-season roads that run through the area. July is the dry season, making it more easily accessible. We stayed at Fazenda (ranch) Santa Clara and went on African-style wildlife drives and treks.

Quinn looking at macaws on the way to the Pantanal.

Even the all-season roads are somewhat primitive.

Parrots were everywhere.

An anaconda had eaten a chicken and taken up residence in a local barn to digest its meal.

The bird life was spectacular.

Witt and Quinn relax during a boat trip along the Miranda River.

A cormorant takes flight as the boat approaches.

Caymens were in abundance.

After leaving the Pantanal, we made a side trip to the touristy town of Bonita which is famous for its rivers of crystal clear water. We didn’t spend much time there, but we did find a couple of swimming holes to enjoy.