Once again, our time on land has flown by, but thanks to our self-appointed tour guide, Bruno, we have managed to take in some memorable sights and navigate our way around the city without too many complications. Tracey and I initially met Bruno when we were in Olinda for Carnival. He approached us and began to speak to us in English as many others did, but unlike most others, he could speak English quite well. He explained that he had spent two years in San Diego as a child while his father, a physicist, completed his post-doctoral education. Bruno was a little timid at first but warmed up quickly, and we enjoyed our brief meeting with him. As it turned out, the French crew from S/V RDJ met him the following night in Olinda, and he took them around the backstreets to an extended Carnival celebration. They really appreciated his interest in them and assistance and invited him to a BBQ the following evening. He did not attend but showed up at the yacht club the following morning to express his regrets. As I did not realize that he was the same Bruno who had served as the guide for our French friends, I was pretty surprised to see him there!

Meeting Bruno at Carnival

Ever since that morning, Bruno has been around, translating for us, helping us find the right buses to the various shops that we needed, and suggesting “touristic” activities. For starters, he helped us communicate to the yacht club regarding the outrageous bill we received for our laundry – about $80 for the three of us! Considering that the clothes being washed were those that we had worn on the passage from St. Helena (“passage clothes”), they were hardly worth the cost of the wash! We thought it was a bit unusual that they wanted us to write down each item of clothing when we dropped off the laundry, but we didn’t realize that they charged $1 and $1.5 for each small and large item, respectively. This is but one example of the difficulties that can arise when you don’t speak the same language!

The crew of S/V Pura Vida and RDJ with Bruno (in center) at his house (photo by his very sweet mother)

Yesterday Bruno took the three of us along with three from S/V RDJ to a couple of beaches about an hour and half away. We took two buses and the metro train to get there, so obviously it would have been quite complicated if he weren’t leading the way. The first beach, Porto de Galinhas (called the Port of Chickens because boats that were importing slaves used to say they were carrying chickens), was full of Brazilian families enjoying the beautiful day and hiring lateen rig sailboats to take them out to a small rock enclosure full of small fish. Bruno and I swam out so that I could see what the fuss was about. We arrived at one very shallow spot where there were small sea urchins with sharp spikes to be avoided, but we made it through and entered the enclosure to find hundreds if not thousands of medium-sized (8”) white fish with black vertical stripes. A school of fish approached us immediately in hopes that we would feed them. As they swarmed around us, some friendly Brazilians gave us a handful of little pellets so that we could satisfy the fish. Bruno was happy to have led me to my first aquatic fish-feeding experience (usually we are trying to eat the fish, not feed them). The second beach was Maracaype, a very beautiful surfers’ beach with far fewer people. Dallas donated our surfboard that we haven’t been using to Pierre from S/V RDJ who was keen to repair the dings, and Pierre demonstrated that despite the sloppy conditions, he knew how to use it. We all enjoyed the live reggae music and the awesome vibe before jumping on a very crowded and lively minibus to begin to make our way back to Cabanga.

The busy beach of Porto de Galinhas (the fish pool is in the back on the right)

Tracey enjoys a Caipirinha on Maracaipe Beach

We stopped to get some final provisions on the way back and had our hands full, but again, the Brazilian people were extremely accommodating. People quickly made room for our groceries on the crowded minibus to Bruno’s house, where we had dinner. His brother then gave us a ride to the bus stop, but as we waited, one of Bruno’s friends happened to drive by and gave us a lift all the way back to the yacht club. This is one place where they definitely like gringos! Oh, and I must mention that despite that Carnival ended last week, it seems that the party hasn’t stopped yet. Bruno told us yesterday that yes, it is still a holiday, because it’s the weekend!

In terms of other business, we just received our spinnakers back with patches intact and have filled up our diesel and water in preparation for the long passage through the doldrums to the Caribbean. We had hoped to sail next to Fernando de Noronha, a marine reserve 300 miles from here with noteworthy sea life, but it looks like the light winds that are predicted are going to be coming from that direction, so we may have to give it a miss and head straight for Barbados. It is time to get back to sea, so we have to say good-bye to Tracey and Bruno and the RDJ crew, but we hope to see them all again soon. We also must say a big obrigado (thank you) to them and to Brazil!