Water break

50 days of travelling and moving and moving and moving! I need a break…and I need it NOW! So, this is what we did. After leaving the southern part of the Pantanal, we made our way to an area called Chapada dos Gumaraes, the geographic centre of the whole of South America (the middle point between south and north and west and east) and the oldest plateaux on earth!! WOW!! The views stretched for miles on end, and you could see the whole of the Pantanal lying sleepily in front of you. At one of the viewpoints, I loved it when Dan let us on a rock that was hanging over the edge (obviously, Ioanna had to be persuaded to let us go on it).

We spent four days going to beautiful waterfalls and swimming in 5 of them. You really needed the cool water to refresh you from the merciless heat. One of the waterfalls that we didn’t swim in was called the Veil of the Bride but looked more like a coati’s tongue to me.

We also went to a place where we saw a stunning sunset, and even though we tried our best to photograph it for you, it was impossible to capture how beautiful it was.

But as they say in Brazil, we closed the door with a golden key, meaning we left the best for last! On our last day, we visited the area’s national park and walked across the ancient plateau offering views to red sandstone cliffs and the forest and the rivers down below. From up above, you could see macaws’ nests dug into the cliffs and stunning rock formations like ancient doors cut into the rock. From a high perch on the plateau, you could see the forest and the rivers which we were about to descend into. It was really wild and very beautiful.

But the very last thing we did was truly special: we went for a swim to Rio Claro (the clear river) which sprang fresh from the Guarani aquifer. We put on snorkels and masks and let the strong current whisk us along the clear water that twisted through the undergrowth of the cerrado forest. As we were carried along the rapid river, we had to dodge the roots of submerged undergrowth or climb over fallen trees. We barely had to swim to move other than steer!! The adventure really went out with with a bang, or in our case, in a splash!

 

Off to the Pantanal tomorrow for a week of safari to celebrate Dan’s 50^th birthday. As a present, he has asked for a jaguar sighting but I’ll be happy if we see an ocelot. Wish us luck...