Rosie & Nick Sail Round The World (RTW)

Pushing on to Grenada -

One last long leg - only 2500 miles , crossing the equator  , and we will be back in the Caribbean - today we leave Brazil and head north , if all goes to plan we will stop at Tobago en route before arriving in Grenada  in time for St Patrick's day . Yes we are still stacked up with books and DVD's , and lots to do  -  who knows when we'll next do a long ocean passage - the distance is about the same as an Atlantic crossing from the Canaries.

After that we have circa 2 weeks gentle cruising up through the islands to arrive in St Lucia on the 28th March for a huge parade of sail - and a quiet little drink to celebrate our circumnavigation . After that it is back to yacht racing - more of that later .

For now bring on the warm blue waters of the Caribbean and the shocking prices , as a result of the $ £ conversion!  :-) - and then a short  family holiday -  when lots of O'Donnells seem to be decending on Antugia !

Crazy Carnival in Brazil

Well we survived - didn't get robbed , didn't get too drunk , and partied non stop for 5 days - In the UK they have pancake Tuesday  -  in Brazil they have a 5 day Carnival with over 1.5 million people taking to the streets - Boy could Notting Hill learn a ting or 2 . 

Each day and night is very different  -  from been right in with the masses - on a massive street party , where the crush of the crowd can be frightening  - and the huge floats amazing . The nights on the street are even more crazy with several stages spread across the old town , each with great Brazilian bands  -  think a Brass section with over 70  people in it !

Then to Olinda where the tiny streets are filled with all the huge dolls , and we were lucky enough to have a very cool set up in a small hotel over looking all the action , with the ability to come and go as we pleased.

For the day time outings as we went in a group with fellow RTW sailors  -  we were escorted most of the time by armed Police and bodyguards  -  which seems very strange  - but you don't see any otherr groups of foreignn tourists -    (I guess they choose to go to Rio - their loss )

Of course we dressed up , it is all part of the fun  , we danced and partied with the locals late into the night - most nights .

Sadly the Yacht club where we were based  - was something of a cess pit  -  while the staff were very friendly, the marina was filthy , smelly and a place we wont be going back to ....ever ! But it is the smartest in Recife  -  and every cab driver knew how to get you home - so it wasn't all bad .

 

Lots more bright photos uploaded today  -  look at them and share in the fun !  

Beautiful Brazil

 

What a lovely country so many contrasts - from the hustle and bussell of Salvador - where the "muzica muzica" played very loudly never seems to stop and the streets are teaming with people of every age to the remote islands of "Ilha Boipeba" where there are no cars and the streets are all paved with sand.

 

The food has been interesting to say the least - anything with palm olive oil- is in effect a laxative - and they seem to have a lot of dishes for sharing - the sights of Brazilian breaches with skimpy beach wear have kept the boys amused for hours and the girls looking for the local cosmetic surgeries !! The lack of cloth on some of the natives wear is a sight to behold. We both need to loose a few pounds before we start adopting these beach styles!

 

The remote islands are full of different surprises, at time friendly locals, on others we have witnessed one bar fight, rock throwing and the like, one island we decided to avoid based on its reputation for being a little rough  -  the night we would have been there a skipper of a visiting yacht was shot by burglars as they were robbing his boat .

 

 

 

 

Winners are Grinners ...

Sorry about the long delay in updating the blog - we have simply been having too much fun. After the long crossing of the south Atlantic - we were delighted to awarded line honours (1st) in the Heineken Cape to Bahia race (cruising division) a podium place we shared with ICAP Leopard -- who got line honours in the racing division - now at 3931 miles we think this is the longest race an Oyster has ever taken part in - let alone won.

Brazil is a hot country in every way imaginable - the warm welcome of the locals even the muggers came out in force to greet the arriving yachts ( thank fully no one on board K8 was a victim) - but the music never seems to stop and the humidity never goes down . The marching drum bands are a sight to see as well as to listen to. The swimming pool at the yacht club surrounded by what everyone would recognise as Brazilian beauties, in the smallest bikini's you have ever seen, still it kept us amused.

Taking line honours wasn't the only prize we won - we also did very well in the beard growing competition (now thankfully over) - which after 31 days of growth was turning into an itchy affair.

Winning Port & Starboard Beards

Blind Judging of Beards

With all on board keen to escape the heat of Salvador - as soon as the prize giving was over we headed off for some little island cruising in the bay Santos - where there are 100's of little islands and rivers to explore - on board we have been joined by Zach and Cody from Strega who needed to escape the heat, and on the water by Talulah Ruby who keep us entertained all the time.

Suffice to say we have only been at the centre of one local bar room fight - with the locals very keen to defend the visiting yachties form one very drunk bar owner - who was eventually put in prison for the night! The police came out next day to take passport numbers off us, to apologise and ask us back into the bay, the restaurant owner offering us lunch on the house, alas we had already made our plans to move on.