The bus system

06. Nov 2009

journal entry:

"I figured out the bus system, yay! after how long? 2 1/2 months?!"

So some more bus tips, in case I haven't said this before:
You get on in the back where there will be a little turny thing like at the bart station that turns once you pay. But there is a person collecting payment sitting in a high chair at the back of the bus with a cashier box.

tips my friend's brazilian cook gave us:

"sometimes if we don't have any more money of we don't want to pay, we get on a bus that goes in the general direction of your destination but stay on the steps until the bus leaves and then say you got on the wrong bus so you don't have to pay and you get off and catch the next bus and do the same thing until you get there...but the thing is it does take forever sometimes."

Itacaré Town

18 October 2009

As I have mentioned before, Itacaré is a really nice town. The people were so hospitable to us, and we actually made a lot of friends. Some artists selling their work on the street, some surfers knew us all but all of them knew my surfer friend Lana*, the lady at the breakfast place because we went by there again to get some sandwiches to go and whenever one of us was missing they'd ask "hey where is your other friend?" They were all really nice, the hostel people too, we hung out with some Israelis and talked for a while. Also some British travelers and we found out that we actually had the same bus home. So when we'd see each other outside the hostel we'd say hi and make small talk. And the workers at the hostel would be joking around with us and we'd converse.
Just everyone was so so nice; we felt like we became part of the community, temporarily anyway but that still counts. Lots of people said they were sad that we were leaving so soon. today is the day we left.

But since we came back around 4 and our bus was leaving at 8PM, we had some time to relax and be in the town a little before leaving.
I went out to take some pictures.
Lana* and Diane* went to surf, and A* went out by herself too, a little at the beach but other things too. Oh and we showered. of course.


Here is one of the main roads. where most of the food and stuff was. And the way to get to the beach too.

This place is called "Favela" But it's a barzinho and people do capeoira at like 7PM every night.

This is the acai place that was always closed! We heard good reviews from the locals, and it's Açaii, becuase it's supposed to be Açaí but Hawaiian style and they have other things too I think. Like sandwiches etc.


This is another side of the town. It's also a fishers town.
People out for a stroll.
A dog and a boy.
Here is Maria's breakfast place, where we had bought several sandwiches and we were back for more for the 8 hr ride back to Salvador.
And we got some more gelato, this time I tried the chocolate one. And it was really really great. I'm so glad I don't get lactose intolerant symptoms here. Or at least not yet..
Then some boys who go around the town holding pieces of palm leaf asking if you want to see some thing cool, came up to us, and this time we're like okay show us. And they make a lot of things out of them. Lana and I got fish, and A* got a rose.
Then we ran back to the hostel to get our bags, which we had put in a closet by the way because you usually are supposed to check out at noon but we had paid for an extra half day to shower but till 8 we weould have to pay 3 nights. So they let us put our bags in the closet with the other British people. So we were making good time according to my watch which you can see in this picture.

We got to the hostel and the British people had apparently already left, but then we ran over to the station with our stuff, and it was like 7:45 when we got there but, the station was empty. And the British people weren't there so we thought that was weird. But the bus wasn't supposed to leave until 8PM. So... we just sat there waiting, and talking about how great this trip was.
Then a taxi driver comes up to us asking if we needed a ride into town, and we're like "no we're waiting for the bus thanks"
"The last bus left like 15 minutes ago"
"No, it's supposed to get here at 8pm"
"yeah, it's 8:10"
us "What!?"
And then we check our phone and we realize oh shiza, my watch is OFF! like 20 minutes.
and that's all we needed to be late, so we were trying to figure out how to do this, this was the last bus leaving Itacare for the day and we missed it. So we'd have to buy tickets again for like 90 reais and pay for the hostel another night, and food for another day, and miss our portuguese exam if we stayed there another night. The taxi guy is like I can get someone to take you to try to catch up with the bus at least in Ilheus. So we were just imagining how much we'd have to pay for a taxi drive all the way to Ilheus. It's like 2 hours away!
But we knew that we had to make a quick decision so we told him "call your guy"
And we were suprisingly keeping our cool very well. But it's also like well what are we gonna do?

So it took a while for the taxi to come actually but he was saying "no we will make it" And I sat in the front, which I was later regretting because this guy was stepping on it mesmo! We were going like 80mph on such a curvy road that was so close to the ocean, I kept thinking we were going to fall of the cliff and die. But it was interesting that I was thinking, 'if I die here, I will die happy'.
But anyway I was talking to the driver and he was also really nice.
He also had lived in Bahia, but he was originally from Rio de Janeiro.

The taxi driver and the jukeboxes
We talked about music and we have a lot in common. He and I both like practically everything except for violent misogynist music. And I don't really enjoy country very much, but then he's like "eu gost de Jack Johnson" and I got sooo excited because I love Jack Johnson too, but I now wonder if he still does because after he said that we all broke out singing.
"Can't you see that it's just raining, there ain't no need to go outside...."which we sang in all its entirety followed by "you win, it's your show now so what's it gonna be...where'd all the good people go, I've been changin' channels I don't see them on the TV show"
And yes we went on "oooohh. ooohhh, do you think that you're not a lone, you really think that you're immune to..it's gonna get the best of you"
I'm like "is that it?" to the taxi driver
him "yeah"
And he was just smiling.
Then we started telling stories, about how one of my friend's on another trip to some rocks and a river or something had told someone to sit on a rock right behind her before she jumped off into the water, and then she got nervous right before jumping in and farted in her face. But she just played it as if it was on purpose because otherwise it would have been more embarassing.
Then she told us some girl scout stories.
I was still so nervous whenever I looked back to the front. and my friend said "close your eyes"
And we broke out into Bealtes again! :
"close your eyes and I'll kiss you, tomorrow I'll miss you, remember I'll always be true, and then while I'm away I'll write home every day and I'll send all my lovin' to you"
Then we came to a hilly and curvy area and when we went over the hill and we all went "weeee" with our arms raised and everything!
Then I told him
"yeah sorry, we don't get out much" and he laughed. So remember that trip that had taken us 2 hours last time...well we got there in 1 hour!
And I was really hopeful that it was still there but who knows if it may have been faster this time. so we had agreed that I would just run out of the taxi without anything but the bus ticket and ask for our bus and then go back and tell them. And i did that. I almost went with my little palm fish and everything.
I got there and there was a bus that said "Salvador" and I'm like "YES!"
And I went up to the guy letting people in and I told him our situation and he looked at the ticket and he's like "Oh, but your bus just left this is another one...but if it doesn't get filled up right now, we'll let you on"
I said thanks a bajillion times, and just crossed my fingers that it wouldn't fill up, because then we were stuck in Ilheus.
But there was room for us in the end.

See this is why it is great to know the langauge before going! I really encourage you to know at least the basics, and how to explain your situation otherwise we wouldn't have been able to get the taxi to come or the bus guy to understand the severity of our situation etc.
But we finally got on the night bus and we were good to go! we slept better this time. I was prepared with my shirt and kanga and blanket and more clothes.

Quotes from two of my friends who went with me:

"Yay!!! uh happy times in one of the best places on earth. but being there with you ladies was the best part of the trip. and prainha!! uh i love that place :)"

"mine was just being with a group of people who were patient and ready for adventure! I also liked canoeing, pretending we were pocahantos (can't spell) and that chocolate place. Everyone was sooo nice!"

The END
MUA!

Praia do Forte (Part I)

Four of my friends and I decided to go down to the Praia do Forte beach. We got together somewhat early and took a taxi to the rodoviária (bus station), got our tickets on the spot as is usually done it seems. Reservations aren't too common. Then we just chilled for a bit. We did get a little nervous though because we didn't see our bus number or time on the television that listed all these departure times. So I asked one of the guys working there, and he's like "oh it'll come" me: "really? it doesn't matter that they aren't showing it on the list?" "yeah, yeah" And it came.

Bus tip*: Count on the bus being late, may be a little more than a little late, like half an hour or so, don't get worried that you missed it because YOU were late. Also, I'm not sure why sometimes they don't show all the departures on there, I guess it makes it seem less official but if you got the ticket from the right place it is usually correct. But asking around doesn't hurt, if you're like me and just wants to make sure and it's always better to ask instead of waiting in uncertainty and getting stressed out. So RELAX.



The bus ride itself was like 2 and a half hours. Another heads-up: Sometimes on buses, even though they're long rides and you have a seat number on your ticket which cost more than a regular bus pass, you aren't guaranteed a seat. The bus driver will keep picking up people until it's too crowded for anyone else to possibly fit in it seems. My friends ended up giving up their seats to elderly people. We were all carrying a bunch of stuff and one of my friends carrying a water bottle lost her balance and spilled water on some other passengers--and didn't notice so she didn't say sorry, it was quite an adventure. One of the ladies for whom my friend had given up her seat actually offered to hold her stuff. We weren't really used to that. It was really a nice offer but at the same time it felt too weird having some stranger hold your stuff, beyond the trust issue though it felt bad making someone hold your stuff like that.

So this is when we got there. As soon as we got there my friend saw an ATM and decided to go now that she had a chance, and the rest of us just waited at a bench under a tree's shade, and without saying anything we all whipped out our packed lunches that our mom's made us. It was so funny, because it was the first thing we did like 3 minutes into Praia do forte and we're all eating already. My mom packed me some fried rice with plantain, and a pineapple lamb chop, and a soy bean and nut salad.

Then we finally trekked out into the little town. It was touristy like Morro de Sao Paulo, but not that extreme. People actually live here! It's pretty interesting how there's this little colony (above) of little shops and restaurants but right next to it and all around there are houses, like normal neighborhood, resident type stuff.

So my 1st hostel! It was pretty nice actually, I think it is in a chain of youth hostels. It has nice rooms, ours had three bunkbeds but since we were only 5 one bed was unoccupied (much to the distress of one of my friends' who has a bigger indecision issues than I do; she couldn't decide whether she wanted the top or bottom).

We got these little bands for our wrists for the rest of our stay for easy entrance etc. I'll talk more about the Albergue (hostel) later. But the first thing we do once leaving the hostel:
We are enthusiastic eaters. What can I say? I know how I'm going to choose friends from now on; we seem to go well with each other. This is a local sorveteria (ice cream shop) and what I loved about it, is that I can choose exactly what I want--because I usually want a little bit of everything but at most places (in general not just Brasil) they're like "no, you can't have half a scoop of this flavor and half of that one. choose only one or have two large scoops of different things" But in this magical place, I could test every single of the like 30 different flavors AND I could get as much or as little of whatever I wanted, plus I could serve myself whatever of the condiments pictured above, and then pay just according to the weight. 1 pound of ice cream would have been the same as 1 pound of rum syrup and melted marshmallows.
yes ice cream tends to melt rather quickly in Bahia.

This one is mine! See, thanks to this sorveteria's system I was able to get something that I was craving (cookies n' cream) without having to feel bad about not getting something local that I couldn't easily get anywhere in the states, so I also got a scoop of açai, ginger (super rad), and pavê*, that tradition layerd cake I've mentioned before that usually has some kind of cookie and cream involved and can include different fruits. To top, some rum syrup, chocolate sprinkles, and some green and yellow to show my Brazilian patriotism.
* http://soniabrazilmorethanahottouristspot.blogspot.com/2009/10/first-meals.html
Then we were off, in search of a private little area to swim and tan. So we walked, and walked along the beach.
There were little natural coral pools containing crystal clear water and little fish, crabs, sea plants (I should ask my marine biologist friends I don't know what they are)
My toe is still healing, as you can see I wore 1 havaiana in attempt to keep the sand out of the hole in my toe, but I wasn't very successful in case you were wondering.
So we walked for I think a little over half an hour because once there were no more people around there was all this coral in the water and so it was inadequate and painful to hang out there, so we continued our quest for some sand to stand in. And finally we found a desserted spot with sand in the water! Shortly after some fishers came and we weren't alone anymore--and then we realized that right behind us there was a sign that read "No swimming, dangerous waters"
But we were like whatever, we've walked all this way. We'd already laid our kangas (sarongs but brazilian) we weren't moving. But then much to our dismay the sun went away for a while because by then it was like later afternoon but we still laid out with my friend's Hawaiian sun tan lotion slathered all over us.

After "tanning" we had a photo shoot. It was fun, but yes we hecka did the tourist thing. It was fun though, we had a water fight and built a sand structure (I can't say it looked very much like a castle) but oh well. Then we decided to go back and shower to go out to dinner because we were hungry again.

The famouse lighthouse of Praia do Forte

There was some really cool gate type thing made of glass or plastic with a lot of paintings on them.
Dinner at the Ogum restaurant. Ogum to remind you is the name of an Orixá that presides over fire, iron, hunting, politics, and war. It was a really good dinner, oh by the way everywhere we went Brazilians assumed we were sisters because we were usually the only brown people in our group, and so they'd assume I was Hawaiian when we'd say that we, as a group, were from California and Hawaii. Of course I took them as compliments.
Mmmmmm, I still remember this meal, and perhaps dream about it occasionally too. This was the baked potatoes with melted cheese on top, broccoli rice, and Salmon in a maracujá (passionfruit) sauce! This was another 1st time ever thing. I had never had maracujá and salmon together, but they make a great couple.

And a few of us were STILL hungry after that so here we are with a Baiana making some acarajé.
Then I just relaxed at the hostel, because I was sooo tired, but a few of my friends went out to a dance. There are dances like every night, no joke. It's great excercise I just get really tired and I have never been the type to be in a sweaty crowded room with some people possibly wanting to dance with me, and touch me. So I don't go to clubs in the states, and I know that it's really great for some people but I've never liked that kind of thing. I'm like an old lady, in various ways one: I get tired early--especially in Brasil! The monoscare is gone, but I am still sleepy by like 8pm. I don't know why.
GReat day!

*http://www.maria-brazil.org/pave.htm