Buzios Weekend

Megan, one of my student teaching friends, and I left for Buzios Friday after school. We were not able to catch the bus until 6:15 because there were many other travelers. About four hours later we reached our destination. At first we were a little worried because surrounding the rodoviaria was deserted. Luckily our hot bus buddy, Aaron (sp?) from Chile helped us out. He took a cab with us to find a pousada. Our new friend even ended up staying in the room next door. That night we quick showered and headed out on the beach town. We walked to the main street where there was lots of live music, people, and fun. We walked around for a bit to get a sense of the area and then found a quaint bar at which to have caipirina. After a few drinks Aaron and I walked Megan back to the posudad (she was feeling under the weather) and then the two of us headed out for a night of dancing. We ended up dancing at a Mexican bar that was playing techno and hip-hop… luckily for me there were no dance lessons involved this time. We returned to our pousada around 4. The next morning we woke up and were finished eating breakfast by about 10:30 so we headed to the beach. It was so much different seeing the town by day. It was gorgeous. The main walkway is right along the shoreline. We followed this in the opposite direction of the main street and came across numerous beaches. We finally decided on one and set up camp. Here we ooed and awed at the view and laid in the sun all day. Next to us was a boat full of refreshments (see picture) where they can whip up any type of drink you desire. Also in front of us was a grill where chicken, beef, and cheese were being cooked. People came to the same beach from all directions (by foot or by water taxi!) and soon the beach was quite the place to be. Megan and I also went for a walk to beaches that were further past ours for more stunning views. We headed back around 4, took a nap, showered, and got ready to go out. After walking around the main street and plaza we did some shopping, watched traditional dancing (capoeira), a concert, and finally found a place to eat. After more window gazing and some great ice cream (passion fruit and chocolate) we decided to call it a night. One forgets how much energy the sun takes out of you. We got back to our pousada around 11:30 found a movie playing in English and went to sleep! The next morning we were up early because we had a trolley ride to catch at 9. This gave us a great overview of Buzios and its beaches and neighborhoods. We visited over 12 beaches, all with extraordinary views. We returned to our posada, checked out, Megan headed for the bus station (since she had to catch a flight from Rio) and I stayed another two hours and just sat on the beach and did some quality people watching. On my three hour bus ride back to Rio a man from Santa Teresa (a place in Rio) sat next to me and wanted to have a three-hour English lesson…. So much for my anticipated nap. Overall, it was another outstanding weekend. This is my last week of teaching at EARJ (this week I am just observing in different ES and MS classrooms and interviewing both principals) and then I head out on my travels… the fun and excitement is just about to begin!