29 January

After waking Beanie three bunks up with a gentle tug on her sheets and finding that my body was still every bit as sore as the day before. When i reached the second last step or rather what i thought was the last step coming into reception i kind fell locked-leggedly onto the landing....the looks that greeted me read "drunken fool" while i was trying to justify myself by saying that when they advertise caipoera classes they should add ´will be physically incapable for the following however many hours after'!!! So breakfast was a delightful array of amazing bread, fruits and cakes along with spread like 'sweet-milk-crumbly jam' and something with cloves in it. We have concurred on the fact that Brazil possibly has the BEST hostel breakfasts EVER!!!So after packing in our own time without being 'haggled' out of the hostel we took to our walk to the ferry front and back packed and sweating like MJ in the kindy. Paul was already there trying to get his ticket sussed however we boarded unaware of his whereabouts. He eventually arrived and seated himself and 45 minutes after 9 the 9am ferry left. The trip was maybe an hour and a half. We slept or at least tried to between the wails of our favorite travelling companions- SMALL CHILDREN. Spuey of course 'snug as a bug' between the two of us after his stunning performance the night before.. When we finally arrived we were faced with a stunning little island very tropical but also very undulating-( topography conspiracy against Riki!!!!) So we wandered or rather 'muled' our way up and past all the vultures offering anything from docotrs to pousadas- and taxis on an island that has no cars...NONE; taxi = wheelbarrow to take your luggage to your accomodation. After a heavy bead and a man backtracking us and taking us through this weird way- 'local' short-cut we arrived at our hostel dripping but stoked with the rooms, kitchen(with a microwave- finally we can make the popcorn we bought by accident!!!)
The island really is rather beautiful- touristy and full of Spanish speakers, next to hippies that's your biggest indication of mainstreaming!!! We booked in and went in search of açai , advertised everywhere but three misses in a row- one out of stock, one out of bowl and one place that ONLY sells açai out of stock since the weekend. We thought there was no hope until a barman saved the day with açai and mango and at a steal. The three hour wait while he harvested the berries was overshadowed by how good it was and we moved out onto the beach. Full of people and perhaps the best looking bodies yet. Spotted the best located supermarket of my life 200 metre from the the waves...I kid you not. Spent the afternoon enjoying the sunshine the heat and the waves...Looks damn promising!!! Later on we went back to the hostel to find the other kids settled in. Bean and I set to work on washing our clothes- alot of sweaty gear, and showered. In the meantime drinks ingredients had been bought!!!!Kiwi caipirinhas and lime ones were on the cards. Hunting for dinner was a bit tricky as the island is a bit pricey but we found great value in $R8 meal with salad, rice, beans and fish/chicken or meat!!!Happy days were made even happier when we found there was chilli- however for once it was actually hot- infact TOOO hot and we all suffered severe casualities which had to be eased with mango juice. Drinks, Spuey and our hostel crew gathered round a table outside nibbling on coconut delicacies with passionfruit, guava and chocolate!!!! The drinks were fantastic- had our own personal Brazilian barman making them!!(Orlando Bloom type) two other kids in the hostel from Iceland joined the party and even bought out some national liquor for us to try. Vicks and mouthwash more like it..........a few card games and a WHOLE bag of sugar later we were on our merry way to the beach where the party is at...imagine a rugby field bordered with hundred of different stands selling drinks and decorated with beautiful displays of fruits, music and dancing on the inside.
The caipirinha drinks ranged from strawberry, mango, pineapple, acerola (tart cherry like thing), caju (which we have realised is the cashew nut fruit), cacau (the fruit of the cocoa pod), weird white things I think was graviola, kiwi, banana, papaya, and other weird yet wonderful fruit such as umbu (green round thing), and siriguela (tropical plum). After 'Having a Few' (regards to Andrea here) we went and had a groove on the beach dance floor - wonderful soft golden sand to the live band. After removing jandals and hoping we wouldn't lose them we shimmied and shook our tail feathers.
Later on in the evening a 'pastel' was called for and Riki and I enjoyed a tomato cheese and oregano one before Nadine scuttled back to the hostel to sleep.
Riki and Paul end up arriving back at the hostel, but not before a late night swim and a broken shower at the hostel occurs. Ooops.