The next day I caught one ride to the highway then another to the state line where all of the semi-trucks were required to stop. I thought I could find something there, but it was more wait and hassle than it was worth so I caught a bus to the next big city, and then another to the turnoff for the small town of Lencois. I got to the Lencois junction in the middle of the night and there was nothing around so I camped at the turnoff, woke up early the next morning, then caught a ride the last 10 miles into town. The only vehicle that passed was a full gas truck so it made for a fun ride on top of the tanks!
The reason for stopping in Lencois was that it was the closest town to a picturesque part of Brazil called Chapada de Diamantina. I knew the town was supposed to be nice but I was surprised to see that it was actually a beautiful town, and that I had arrived in the middle of their week long celebration of Sao Joao! The town was beautifully decorated with party banners strung across the cobble stone streets and beautiful plazas.
After walking around the town I decided hike one of the many trails around Lencois. There are dozens of hikes around the town but I was only staying a couple days so only saw a few of the many natural sights. Apparently there are lots of caves, waterfalls, and mountains all throughout the area.
On my way out of town there was a good view of the city and about there I ran into a local teenager that was was wearing an Obama shirt. There are certain things that stand out about places and Obama's popularity in all of Latin America, and especially in Brazil, is one of them. Despite any political preferences it can't be denied how much Obama's presidency has restored Latin America's faith in the United States politics. I've been asked so many times about US politics and it has been amazing how excited people outside of the US are about Obama. It's amazing how one person and their administration can change how so many people feel about an entire country.
Continuing on to the trail I made it to a number of pools and water falls. People were hanging enjoying the water and having a great time. I made it to a nice lookout to Lencois in the distance, then ran into some people staying at same guest house was camping at.
Later that night there was a huge party with all kinds of things going on. Kids were lighting fireworks and very loud firecrackers, bonfires were lit in the streets, there was some crazy personified bull dance, lots of great food to be had, and then later there was a big dance under a tent on the main square.
Under the tent on the big square there were a couple of cute kids dancing with each other, then there was a folkloric dance that was a lot of fun. At one point I met another kid who may be a budding photographer and got a big kick out taking photos with my camera. After the folkloric dance show there was a dance party the whole night until sunrise. Yes, Brazilians know how to party!
The next day I went with Daniela, a woman I met the night before, on a beautiful hike to a natural water slide. At the falls we met up with her brother and sister. We had so much fun sliding down the slippery falls to the pools below!
The next night was another great party!
The next day I left to continue toward Fortaleza and made sure to stop by the most picturesque part of the Chapada Diamantina. I hitch-hiked back out of town and caught a ride down the main highway towards Seabra. I got out to hike up the most accessible of the table top mountains in Chapada de Diamantina. It was an absolutely gorgeous view from up top!
From what felt like the top of the world I hiked back down to the highway and caught one more very slow ride back to the city of Seabra where I planned to catch a bus to Fortaleza early the next morning.
Obama in Brazil
Posts
1 comment:
Just telling you we are still reading your blog, seems you're having a great time! Keep us updated!
Post a Comment