Florianopolis, Brazil

So the 12th hour came and went, as we sat waiting in a bug infested immigration office. I had made the decision to leave the restaurant in Chuy, feeling we had more than outstayed our welcome after ordering almost everything on the menu, twice. Back in the immigration office, a nice chap assured us our bus was coming but had been delayed by 2 hours for some unknown reason. He hooked us up with some water and a power socket and we sat tight, resisting the urge to sleep. Finally the bus arrived outside and we did a victory dance and settled into our comfy reclining seats. We were finally on the road again and headed for Brazil!!

After a quick and speedy connection in Porto Alegre early the next morning, we were soon en route to Florianopolis, or as the locals say Floripa! We arrived a little later than expected although it was still baking hot at 5pm. For those who haven’t seen a map of Floripa, the city itself is essentially a gateway to the beautiful Ilha de Santa Catarina connecting via a short bridge to mainland Brazil.

After taking our 6th bus in 36 hours, we arrived at Geckos, a very charming and well equipped hostel in Lagoa de Conçeiao, the main and most central town on the island. It was a great setup with a nice pool -we jumped in as soon as the bags were off. After a long shower we headed out for some grub and most importantly ordered our first caipirinhas in Brazil. Safe to say they were just what the doctor ordered and after sinking a few more we headed home for some much needed sleep.

Whilst in Uruguay we had looked in disappointment at the weather forecast for Floripa, mostly thunderstorms and showers throughout our stay there. Surprisingly we had arrived the previous day in sunshine and woke the next morning to blue skies. After each buying a customary pair of havaianas, the sun sank behind the clouds and our first trip to the Brazilian beach was a grey and foggy one. That night we ate at a good Mexican and promised we would get up early and off to the beach in case we had a repeat of the same weather.

We jumped on a bus the next morning and made our way to Joaquína, arguably the most famous surf beach on the island. I hired a board and wetsuit then paddled out back to catch some waves. They were the biggest I had ever surfed, easily overhead and very powerful. Having not surfed for over 2 years, I was a little out of practice and took a few pretty good bails but I had a great time and the standard of the other surfers was insane. The weather was improving and by lunchtime, it was blisteringly hot. We had picked a good spot on beach which happened to have waiter service. Our waiter kindly brought us caiprinhas one after the other as well as a fresh coconut complete with a hole and straw. The caip’s were in fact pints and we were soon feeling merry, forgetting about the sun and our precious skin!! Before leaving the beach, we made our way up to the rocky headland and spent a while watching the waves pound the rocks. Taking the bus back home, we stopped off at the Lagoa itself, a huge mass of water which runs down the middle of the island. We tried our hand at stand up paddle boarding which was pretty fun, if a bit tame without the waves. Back at the hostel, I had a few more beers and Claire nursed her sunburnt head. We had some food but I was a bit sloshed by this point and was glad when I finally got to bed. A great day by all accounts.

We slept terribly and both woke with stinking headaches and pink sore faces. We bought a hat for Claire and caught the bus to Barra do Lagoa, another beach which had slightly calmer waves, some more cafes and lots of beach vendors. We had lunch with our feet in the sand and then walked down the beach. Thankfully the sun went behind the cloud a bit and Claire took a nap whilst I watched the surfers and listened to the portable cocktail bars go past. After a horrible start to the day, everything had turned out ok!

The next day we got up early and took a taxi to Campeche beach. Here, we paid a guy who took us on a speedboat into the surf and out to a beautiful secluded island called Isla do Campeche. It was an amazing sight; crystal clear waters and white sand backed by tropical forest. There were also little badger type creatures who were looking to steal our food and some rather nippy crabs which we enjoyed chasing. Several hundred photos later we jumped back on the boat and made our way to our new hotel, a swanky 5 star jobby!

After checking in we made our way to the hotels infinity pool which had the most incredible sweeping view across the bay. The weather stayed clear and we spent the day sat by the pool and that night had room service steaks. It was delightful and a rare treat. It was also our best sleep of the trip.

The next day, more of the same as we waited for our bus to São Paulo. Before we left, we thought it’d be rude if we didn’t try the spa so we enjoyed an hour or so in the bubbling hot tub with a nice bottle of fizz. It was time to leave, so we grabbed our bags and said farewell to Floripa – a truly beautiful place.