Rio de Janerio: The end of an epic journey!

Finally we had timed our arrival correctly, as we arrived in Rio in time for the weekend and were even treated to a spot of good weather! Wanting to see what all the fuss was about, we made our way up to Christ the Redeemer. We chose possibly the busiest day in history and it took us a solid three hours to make our way up. However, from the top we were spoilt with incredible views over the city and had our chance to pose in front of the massive statue.

Hey Christ

Alright Rio

As it was a Friday, it was time for the Lapa Street party. We had chosen our hostel wisely and were literally around the corner from the action. Everyone had told us how great it was but it exceeded all expectations with samba music booming, people dancing everywhere and caipirinhas for a bargain price. Bumping into some old travel friends, we all made our way to a club (free for ladies...WIN), where we boogied the night away.

Street samba

Caipirinhas of death

Irish buds

Bottoms up

The next day was pretty fine weather again, so we went to Ipanema beach, after stopping off at the famous Lapa steps and the Lapa Arches. It seemed that the whole of Rio had the same idea but we managed to find a slot on the beach. Imy got herself some pretty avid admirers in the form of eight little boys, who wouldn't leave us alone and kept talking to us in Portuguese.

Lapa arches

Lapa steps

Imy and her mates

Kat and her mates

Two Blondes

On Sunday we hit up the hippy market in Ipanema but it transpired that we couldn't afford a sausage so we went to the beach again. We were having a lovely time, minding our own business, when suddenly everyone went running out of the sea, grabbing their stuff and up to the road. Without a clue as to what was going on, we quickly followed suit and saw three boys sat down on steps, surrounded by police. It turns out that one of the boys had pulled a gun on one of the other boys and a chase through Rio had ensued. There were crowds of people swarming the scene and cameras everywhere. We hastily retreated back to the hostel.

On another aimless wander, we explored a bit of Centro and ended up in a very strange pyramid-shaped cathedral. It wasn't much to look at but had some cool stained-glass windows. We also had another night out at a samba bar, which was amazing. The live band kept trying to help us get the rhythm but we fear we were a wasted cause. It didn't stop us giving it a good bash though.

Church windows

Imy was bed-ridden for most of the day, leaving Kat to venture out in search of football tickets. After a bit of a kafuffle, she finally returned three hours later, with tickets in hand. It was a derby between Botafogo and Flamengo, so promised to be an eventful match. The atmosphere was brilliant but the match was a bit naff. It didn't dampen the supporters' spirit though, as they all jumped in time to the beat of the drums for a solid 90 minutes. The final score was 1-1. It's just a shame there wasn't more goals and less rolling around on the floor!

Mental fans

Getting into the spirit

Cooome on Flamengos

Goooooaaaaalllllllll

Ending on a high

Alas, the end is nigh and it's time for the tale of these two blondes to come to an end...

WE'RE COMING HOME BBAAAAAAABBBBBYYYYYY!!!!!!

Brazil: Paraty

When we got off the bus in Sao Paulo, we felt like whooping with delight, having just completed the final night bus of our trip. The excitement was shortlived, however, as we soon realised that we would have to wait for three hours before our next bus to Paraty, and that the bus would actually take seven hours, as opposed to the three that we had anticipated.

We finally arrived in Paraty and a nice Polish boy, who is building his a house in the jungle that surrounds Paraty, showed us to our hostel. The owner greeted us with beer and his mum's homemade empanadas! Officially the best greeting ever. We spent some time on the beach before calling it a night, hoping that the next day would bring better weather.

Morning dawned and we were greeted by another drizzly day but we were determined to make the most of the short time we had left, so hopped on a local bus to Trindade beach. The beach was stunning and we had a bit of a photo shoot, but after an hour of sitting in the cold we decided enough was enough and headed back to Paraty.

Seems to be a fave pose lately

Trindade

Ooohh fancy

Rock climbing

Hi

We wandered around the stunning little town, almost breaking our ankles on the cobbled streets and hardly taking our eyes off the ground. That evening the hostel owner treated us to our first caipirinhas and even taught Kat how to make them! The night was then filled with an abundance of caipirinhas and we went to bed a little tipsy.

Beaut

Spot Kat's pea head

Deathly cobbles

Free drinks ahoy

Next (and final) stop: Rio de Janeiro

Iguazú Falls

For the first time ever, we were literally the only people on the bus, meaning we could fully recline without even a hint of guilt. 

Lazza on the bus

Our hostel was next door to the bus station, which was perfect because it meant we could dump our bags and head straight out for the falls without wasting a second. The small train to the waterfall from the entrance was included in the price, so we thought it would be silly to walk any more that strictly necessary, and took the train. Unfortunately it broke down and those that walked arrived at the falls before us. Bummer. 

Lazies on the train

Despite it being a rather dreary day, the falls looked amazing and we couldn't get over the sheer volume of water cascading down. Being suckers for all things fun, we couldn't resist getting the boat ride, which takes you right under the waterfall. For once we were prepared and had brought our 'waterproofs' but the falls had another idea, and we got completely soaked through. It was so cool and crazy to be up that close and personal that we didn't care. 

Before the soaking

After the soaking

Corker

Love

We took a number of walking routes around the area, which gave us different views of Iguazú. The highlight came when we reached the Devil's Throat (Garganta del diablo), where you are literally stood on top of the falls, inches away from the plummeting water and praying that the rooky steel structure will hold up.

The Devil's Throat

Thumbs up for Iguazú

We also saw some amazing wildlife in the form of angry raccoons, snarling monkeys and our first ever toucan!

Radgy racoons

Smiley monkey

Next stop: Brazil!!

Argentina: Buenos Aires

Two night buses and 48 hours later, we finally arrived in Buenos Aires and immediately fell in love with the city. But first things first, these smelly girls had to hit the showers pronto; five days of no showering really took its toll. So feeling human again and in the home of great steak and all night parties...we cooked super noodles and went to bed.

The next day was a rather busy affair sorting out some money and what not. They have a rather "blue" system over here that allows you to get a much better exchange rate on the street, rather than using banks. We then hit up a four-hour bike tour around the south of the city, lapping up the history of La Boca and the Argentine tango. It has a fairly interesting story as it goes: it used to be a foreplay dance between prostitutes and their customers. We also saw the Boca Juniors football stadium, which is the team that Maradona used to play for. Unfortunately, there wasn't any matches on while we were there but it was still cool to see the stadium.

Plaza de Mayo

Biking on the port

La Boca

Boca Junior's stadium

Just to add to our super Argentinian day, we joined in with the hostel's free tango lesson that evening. Imy was a rather reluctant participant, which only spurred the teachers on to use her as an example continually. "Peeved" is an understatement for her reaction. We intended to have a big night in Buenos Aires but Kat is still incapable of holding her alcohol and after a very tiring day, found herself in bed by 2am, having not left the hostel.

Imy hating life..Peruvian guy loving life.

After a whole day nursing our hangovers, we managed to tear ourselves away from bed to go to Siga la Vaca - a restaurant whose title translates as 'follow the cow'. And we did just that. It is an all-you-can-eat restaurant, and for a measly 10 pounds, we stuffed ourselves with insanely good steak, chicken, ribs and pork, accompanied by a bottle of wine each (fanta for Kat) and desert. One of the best nights of our lives.

Siga La Vaca...heaven

Meat

Having heard great things about Recoleta Cemetery, we decided to explore, unsure of what to expect. We certainly weren't expecting to find monuments the size of small houses commemorating the dead. It turns out that Argentinians are just as opulent with their celebration of the deceased as they are in their day-to-day celebration of life. Thanks to the hoard of tourists surrounding her grave, we even managed to find Evita's grave and paid our respects to the First Lady of Argentina.

Recoleta cemetry

Evita's quite modest grave

A not so modest grave

It was a rather drizzly day in BA, so we hopped in a cab and trundled off to Palermo; a fancy area with really nice boutique shops and great bars. After a wander around and a white chocolate latte, we got the bus back to the hostel, with enough time to get ready for our tango show. The show was in a really old cafe called Tortoni and included some amazing dancing, singing and a traditional drum show. Yet again, we couldn't resist the steak and indulged in dinner while we watched. After the show, we met back up with some pals and this time managed to make it out of the hostel. We went to Club 69, where there was an outrageous transvestite show as entertainment. We returned back in the early hours and spent the following day nursing yet another hangover.

White choco-latte

Drum man

Tango-tastic

Pals

Taxi party

We couldn't leave Buenos Aires without experiencing the joys of La Cabrera. It was everything we could have hoped for and more. Steak cooked to perfection, more sides than an octagon, and wine to wash it all down. Plus the happy hour meant we got 40% off our bill! Win win.

Stuffed

Beefy deliciousness

Buenos Aires was a dream come true. Next stop: Iguazú Falls.