Prainha, called Little Beach in English

One last stop before heading home, was at one of the pristine Grumari beaches. This area is surrounded by ecological protected lands, and is thus said to have the least polluted waters. The waves are big, not ideal for bathers, but excellent for surfers - and there were out by the dozens in the afternoon.

Notice, the absence of beach kiosks and restaurants, and the presences of red flags indicating "danger."

Point de Grumari - Lunch

We had lunch atop a mountain with a great view over looking a beach and swamp lands -- much like the Florida everglades. Everybody shared a fish stew with shrimp and a great sauce which was eaten with rice or sopped with pieces of bread. I had a hearts of palm salad, and of course we started with three different types of "pasties".

jj

Casa do Pontal - Puppet Museum

Our second stop Saturday morning was at a puppet museum. The first section that included clay figurines portraying various professions and scenes from everyday lives was my favorite.

This one is for mama...

 This one for Priscialla...

This one for my school girl friends...

This one for all who grew up in India, 50 or more years ago...

The circus scenes were reminiscent of many childhood visits to the circus, complete with depictions of animals diving through rings of fire, a woman in a canon ready for blast off, another woman being sawed in half, and yet another mounted on a board amidst daggers from a sword thrower.

Sitio Roberto Burle Marx - Cultural Center

We were on the road barely past 7 am to visit the house and gardens of a Brazilian landscape architect. Visitors can only visit the center  by appointment, and we had 9:30 am appointments. It would take us at least and hour and a half, but not being able to predict traffic conditions, we left early. Cilene, Arturo, Aldo and Julia met us there (her dad and niece were visiting from Braslia.)

 In addition to his landscaping accomplishments, Burle Marx (August 4, 1909 – June 4, 1994) was also a painter, print maker, ecologist, naturalist,artist and musician) whose designs of parks and gardens made him world famous.He also designed fabrics, jewellery and stage sets. In 1949, he and his brother purchased the house and garden that was later donated to the government. The beautifully landscaped gardens houses over 3,500 species of plants.

This event was one truly one of the highlights of my trip. Here are a few more pictures.

Little Landscaping Improvements

Friday, I spent a good few hours improving a little corner at Andrew's home that needed attention. He has an enclosed covered front verandah that has a strip of dirt along one side wall that was -- well just dirt.

We went to the nursery and purchased some plants that would do well in shade, along with a couple large bags of potting soil and fertilizer.

Here are "before" and "after" pictures. Mom, you would be impressed with my work!

In the evening we went out to the Naval Club for a swim and light refreshments.

Mostaro Restaurant and Craft Brewery

Dinner with a new friend Dalmo. The vegetarian pizza was delicious. Eggplant, zucchini, spinach.  Dalmo is the one with the collection of Brazillian songbirds and bulldogs.

Women's Day Out.

Pão de Açucar ( Sugar Loaf ) Hike: Sugar Loaf is a landmark and top attraction in Rio. On Saturday, Cilene, Luiza and I hiked up the first mountain of Sugar Loaf -- Morro da Urca. The second hill is accessible by cable car, or with professional rock climbers. The trail was steep and took us 40 minutes to climb. At the top we relaxed on the shady lawns, ate banana, biscuits and chocolate, and browsed the stores. The 360 degree views were fantastic.

Santa Teresa Arty Neighborhood: In the afternoon we visited Santa Teresa, a neighborhood located on top of the Santa Teresa hill, by the centre of Rio; it is famous for its winding, narrow streets which are a favourite spot for artists and tourists. We had dinner at a restaurant that served cuisine of the Amazon. I can't even begin to describe or name the dishes we had as the names are strange to my tongue. 

Anyway, I had this drink made from a fruit called graviola (in English soursop). The fruit is promoted as a cancer cure. The drink is prepared with a hint of garlic -- hardly noticeable until pointed out to me.

Graviola fruit ... milky white color juice.

Taperaba fruit...mango yellowish color juice.


Samba House: The highlight of the evening was visiting a real samba house. Before heading out to the Lapa district in Rio, we had banana upside-down cake that Luiza had bought from a street vendor while in Santa Teresa. We got to Carioca da Gema around 10:30 pm. A lively band of seven male members kept the crowd of dancing nonstop. Carioca da Gema is a genuine samba house - most of the people were locals - everyone sings along with the band and dances samba. The place is known among locals for having high-quality musicians. The entrance fee (no drinks included) was R$30 per person. The place was small and packed. I'm going to guess there were around 70-80 people in there. It was altogether a fun night. We left the house at 2 a.m. The streets were full of revelers and it felt like carnival. Music and people spilling out of restaurants and sidewalk cafes.

Mambucaba

The beach at Mambucaba seemed to be waiting just for us. It was long and wide, with soft white sand, I walked to the far rocky end with not a soul in sight. We stopped there at mid-day and ate our sandwiches under a young coconut palm. You will love the pictures.

Praia Grande

On the drive back from Paraty, we stopped at a number of places by the water. This little beach shack had the freshest pineapple juice and a cozy hammock. We had the beach to ourselves.

Paraty, Brazil - part 3

Early morning walk through town.