The drums...never...stop...
Carnaval is Bonkers
2/27/2009 11:54:41 AM - Day 348 - Salvador, Brazil
Carnaval in the old city area or "Pelourino" was full of wandering samba groups.
Carnaval (Carnival to us Gringos) is fucking insanity. I have never been to a party on this scale in my life and I have been to some fucking huge parties. Seven days of complete mayhem on a magnitude I didn't even know was possible. Imagine a four lane freeway back home packed to the brim as far as the eye can see with people, big rig trucks with bands playing from stages set on top of the back of them and cheap alcohol being sold everywhere and you got Carnaval.
Going to Carnaval has been something my friends and I have talked about for years. We would always see shows about it on the television back home, see how much fun everyone was having and how crazy it was and we would all always come to the same assertion. "Someday, we have to all go to Carnaval". Talk is cheap though, and being the poor young adults we were, getting to Carnaval was a pipe dream at best. As we all got better paying jobs however, it became more and more of a reality. Months in advance we began planning (I was already on the road at this point) and for one reason or another, when there was supposed to be a big group of us it ended up being only one of my best friends Reece and myself. Once again, it ended up being only the two of us who were able to hit the open road to rock it for this adventure, and rock it we did!
Most people think about Rio de Janeiro when they think about Carnaval, as did I before heading off on this trip. Traveling, you meet people from all over the world and I met a fair share of Brazilians. Each and every single one said that if I really wanted to party, I should skip Rio and go to Salvador (Salvador, Brazil Review and Travel Information) for Carnaval. The reasoning is that in Rio, the main event is watching the Carnaval parade in the Samba Dome, but not actually participating in it. In Salvador, you actually join in the parade and walk the entire circuit partying like a rock star the whole way thru.
In Salvador they have three Carnaval circuits or areas. There is what many people consider the best one, which is the "Barra" circuit which runs right alongside the beach. The oldest circuit in the city is the "Campo Grande" circuit which is a bit more central. Then there is the "Pelourino" circuit, which is in the old town of the city. This one is very different from the others because it doesn't have the big "Trio Electricos" and isn't as wild as the others with a fewer amount of people. It is still a lot of fun though allowing you to wander around the old city never knowing if you are going to run into a marching group of Samba dancers with accompanying band with a group of Carnaval goers dancing behind them. Reece and I were actually staying in the Pelourino area so I got quite familiar to the sound of the drums from the marching groups from my hotel "Pousada Pais Tropical" (Pousada Pais Tropical Review in Salvador, Brazil). If you really want to get crazy and see the big part of Carnaval, you need to head to the Barra or Campo Grande circuits.
The way it works is that for the nights you want to join the Carnaval parade, you buy what is called a "Bloco" or "Abada", which is a special shirt that identifies the Carnaval group that you are with. Then, the day that your group is headed out, you go to where everyone in your group is setting up at the start of the Carnaval circuit before heading out. Included with the Bloco is a "Trio Electrico" which is a huge big rig truck pulling a giant stage behind it with some type of performer blaring music that everyone in the Bloco dances to. Also, there is a HUGE security detail (I'm talking hundreds and hundreds of people) that has a giant rope that surrounds the entire Bloco (which can be a couple thousand people and a few big rigs) and they keep out anyone who doesn't have on the correct Bloco shirt for the group including a lot of riff-raff which makes for a safer time. You can also be what are called "Popcorn" which is the people who follow along the sides of the Bloco but don't ever join in since they didn't buy a shirt. They are called popcorn since they are jumping around all over the place like cooking popcorn. I was a piece of popcorn one night and it definitely isn't as fun as actually joining in.
My buddy Reece and I joined a Bloco for two of the nights during Carnaval. Both of them were on the Barra circuit (since we heard it was the best) and the one we did the first time was probably the best. Reece wouldn't stop complaining about how much he thought it was going to suck since the night before we went out to the Campo Grande circuit with a group of Aussies and saw some of the crapiest Blocos on the circuit giving him the wrong idea about it. By the end of the night of our first Bloco he changed his tune saying it was "fucking awesome", and awesome it was! Our Bloco was huge! Thousands of people. This Bloco had some Brazilian group we had never heard about as the performers and the only reason we picked it was because the price was in the range we were looking for. The color of our shirts for this Bloco was baby blue so soon a sea of baby blue shirts was parading down the Barra circuit surrounded by a mini army of security guards. Right off the bat, everyone in the Bloco got into the swing of things dancing all over the place and drinking their hearts out picking up drinks from vendors who would follow alongside the Bloco selling drinks at crazy cheap prices. Reece and I didn't get into it right away because this type of Brazilian music really wasn't our thing, but we were soon swept up in the Carnaval fervor and dancing right alongside the Brazilians. The energy in the air is palpable making for an electric atmosphere for everyone inside the Bloco causing one's limbs to inadvertently start rhythmically shaking to the beats blaring from the Trio Electrico. Our Bloco was one of the better ones, everyone was rocking out and plenty of "Popcorn" wanted in causing a couple spectacles of would be trespassers getting their asses beat by security and the hordes of Police that were also patrolling the Carnaval circuit (the police and security don't fuck around). The highlight of the night was when it started pouring rain and nobody in the Bloco skipped a step. The music kept pumping and everyone put their arms in the air as we all danced down the circuit to the cheers of onlookers from the streets and "Camarotes" that line the circuit.
The other Bloco we joined was also fucking awesome, but not as good as the first one. It was two huge techno DJs named Armin van Buuren and David Guetta. I love listening to these two back home and was stoked to see them at Carnaval in a Bloco. The Bloco was almost all foreigners however. It seems that Brazilians aren't as fond of techno as they are of other types of music. They also needed to get a bigger rope because the place was so packed you couldn't even dance, only jump up and down or sway back and forth with the masses of people. Also, my fucking Camera was pick-pocketed! I was so fucking pissed off! Not only was that an awesome little camera but it also had a humongous amount of sentimental value to me. To say I was bummed out would be an understatement and it put a cloud over the whole night (I'm still bothered by it to this day). Add insult to injury because I was pick-pocketed again later in the night for some cash. I was even wearing these special shorts I have that have secret pockets, but in the end, it didn't matter. The next day I heard numerous stories about how other people had been pick-pocketed. If you are going to be in a Bloco make sure to use a money belt of something to hold you money on your body and not in your pockets. I learned that the hard way.
I did see one strange phenomenon at the Blocos and around the parades. I remember all my Brazilian friends telling me how I was going to the "kissing party" when I told them I was headed to Salvador for Carnaval. I didn't really know what they meant and when we went to our first Bloco I remember thinking "I haven't really seen anyone kissing so I wonder what the fuck those Brazilians were talking about?" Then just as the Bloco started heading down the Carnaval route some young Brazilian guy lunged for a girl, put his face right up to hers and started to forcefully try and kiss her (he wasn't restraining her though). She immediately moved her head, pushed him away and stormed off. I stood there in complete shock. "Did I just see what I thought I saw? Why didn't anyone near this guy stop him? What a fucking asshole." A big "WTF" (what the fuck) was still in my mind when the mother fucker tried to do it again! This time I barged over there and knocked him off the girl and told him to get the fuck out of here. The girl was super thankful and soon walked off. I looked around though and a lot of the Brazilian guys had confused looks on their faces, probably similar to what I had the first time I saw the douchey guy try to kiss the girl, except they were all looking at me! "Am I the only sane mother fucker in here!? Is this the 'sexual assault' Bloco? 'WTF' What the fuck?!" Reece told them all to relax and pulled me aside and told me this was what all the Brazilian people we met were talking about when they said we were going to the "kissing party". It seems that it is traditional for guys to simply walk around the Blocos and around the parade shoving their faces into girl's faces or necks trying to force a kiss. As the night went on I noticed that most guys weren't as nearly as aggressive as the first douche bag that I knocked earlier that night, but it was still really strange to behold. All the girls would just push the guys off and keep walking. It seems though that if a girl does let a guy kiss them, then that is the guy that she wants to be with for the whole night. Therefore the guys walk around trying to kiss everything in sight and the girls push off all the contenders waiting for the one special guy she wants to spend all her time with. The whole spectacle was really strange to behold and I know if guys tried to do that kind of shit back home they would get a good ole' fashioned ass whooping. However, it's tradition here during Carnaval in Salvador, and in general, most guys are much more respectful about it then the first guy I saw.
Reece and I also hit up a Camarote one night which is where you go to and hangout at a club on the Carnaval Route and watch the Carnaval Parade pass by. Just like the Blocos, you get a special shirt signifying that you are in that Camarote. A lot of them are "all inclusive" with all drinks and food included. We ended up going to an all inclusive one ourselves. Our Camarote was very nice, had any kind of drink you could want and tons of good food. They even had a couple Sushi chefs preparing hand rolls all night long. It was nice. The only problem was that Reece caught some type of sickness on our last day in Rio after he went out on a wild party and being cooped up with him in a tiny attic of a room in Salvador, I also caught whatever he had and was hit hard on the night of the Camarote. It definitely made the night a lot less enjoyable, but that's how the cookie crumbles. We still had a decent time, however I found the Blocos to be more enjoyable. Camarotes are good if you want to relax a night of Carnival but still go out. One funny thing in the Camarote just like the Bloco with the big DJs, the Brazilians in general were not feeling any music but Samba.
When the two of us weren't partying all over Brazil, we were recovering in our hotel, visiting the local internet café or eating crappy Brazilian food. I love a lot of things about Brazil. The people are amazing, weather is good, there are some amazing beaches and the nightlife is tops. However the food fucking sucks. At first glance the idea of burgers, steakhouses and beer sounds awesome right? However I don't know what they put in the food down here but after a couple of days you feel as if you've been eating at McDonald's Fast Food for a month! That uneasy feeling of "shittyness" one gets after eating too much fast food. Reece was on the same page. In all honesty, we may have simply had bad luck and eaten at the wrong places, but in my personal experience, what I ate wasn't very good. They do have some great fresh fruit juice though and meat kabobs (some of the best I ever had).
I have to say having one of my best friends Reece around for Carnaval definitely made it a better experience. Being on the road alone for so long it gets hard being away from your friends and family. Besides having someone there to watch your back (in case you get in a fight with a forceful kisser and his friends) it's great having someone there to bullshit and joke around with. I'm definitely glad he came and we couldn't stop talking about how cool it would have been to have our entire group of friends with us.
After seven days and nights of hearing the never-ending sound of beating drums ("drums…drums in the deep.") drinking tons of cheap beer, eating shitty food, partying with amazing people, meeting some awesome locals and feeling perpetually hung-over, I am ready to leave. To be honest, I am very happy to be leaving at this point. The Carnaval experience is insanely fun but by the end of it, anyone who parties like we do is going to feel worn and ready to call it a day. I had a blast at Carnaval and now when I see specials on it back home on the television, I'll replace saying "I should do that someday" with "I did it, and it was fucking awesome".
Now I am here in the airport of Sao Paulo (flew here from Salvador) waiting for my connecting flight to Mexico City where I will spend one weekend before I head home. To say I am excited to go home would be an understatement. Some people may not understand why anyone would want to go home from traveling, but that's a topic for a later BLOG. It's not easy being on the open road for close to a year.
P.S. 100 BLOGS NOW! WOOHOO!!!
This video gives a first hand overview of your options in Salvador for the week long party of Carnaval. Carnaval (or Carnival) in Salvador, Brazil is considered the largest party on the planet. Given this, you have plenty of choices of what to do, which Carnaval circuit to go to (Barra, Campo Grande or the Pelourino) and whether or not to buy a Bloco to join in the parade, stay at a Camarote or simply be "Popcorn" on the sidelines.
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Not in agreement with the food here.
Wonders in Rio
2/18/2009 10:45:41 AM - Day 339 - Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Top of Corcovado Mountain with the "Christ the Redeemer" statue, one of the "New Seven Wonders of the World".
Rio de Janeiro (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Review and Travel Information) is an amazing city. From the multitudes of beautiful beaches to the warm hospitality of the locals, I can honestly say that Rio de Janeiro has been one of the more enjoyable cities that I have visited on my trip thus far. Of course, Rio isn't perfect, and has its fair share of problems like pollution, being overly crowded and crime. However the worst that I encountered during my visit here has been a headache and nausea after walking around the smoggy streets during the day, and it was definitely worth it to spend some time in the "Marvelous City" (Rio de Janeiro's nickname).
After spending some time partying on the weekends, the weather continued to be completely crap for a couple of days, meaning I spent most of my time indoors at my hostel, Bamboo Rio Hostel (Bamboo Rio Hostel Review in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) getting work done as I wished for sunny weather with my fellow travelers as it rained outside. Finally on Monday the weather was perfect, which meant I was off to the beach to get some sun. I hit up Copacabana again with my best friend Reece this time. We rented an umbrella for a couple dollars from a stand on the beach, I laid down my sarong (all the locals use them at the beach, very thin fabric that you can use as a towel) and caught some rays. It was a good way to spend the day. One thing about Copacabana though and some of the other beaches in Rio is that the city comes right up to the sand on the beach. Meaning there are high rises right on the beachfront that lead directly into busy, congested, smelly city. I like it better when there is a bit of breathing room between the beach and the city, but I suppose it adds a bit of character to Rio de Janeiro.
The next day, Tuesday was my last day in Rio de Janeiro, and I still hadn't seen any of the historic and cultural sites of the city, so I booked a city tour that hit up the highlights of Rio which included a guide. Reece decided to split off to go to a party, so I headed off on my own with some other people from my hostel to see a different side of Rio de Janeiro.
It was one busy day! We visited Sugar Loaf Mountain, Maracana Stadium which is the largest stadium in South America (also where I watched a game on Sunday), the main cathedral of Rio, drove thru a favella (slum area of Rio), went to a Brazilian steak house, saw the Samba dome area where they will be having Carnival at tomorrow and paid a visit to the "Christ the Redeemer" statue, one of the "New Seven Wonders of the World". It was a busy day and I saw and learned a lot about Rio and I really felt that it was a great way to round out my time here in Rio de Janeiro.
Spending more than a week in Rio, I have really come to appreciate how friendly the locals are. They are always smiling, always friendly and super hospitable. I have heard numerous stories from other travelers who have had similar experiences with locals. One Israeli guy even told me that a local who he barely knew loaned him the equivalent of $50 to take a cab home one night and pay for a hotel room. Who the hell does that? I guess some Brazilians do. That's hospitality for you!
The city itself is beautiful. I got some amazing views from the top of Sugar Loaf Mountain. The way that the city melds in with the surrounding hills makes for quite the mix of nature with city. In fact, walking around the "South Zone" area which comprises many of the beaches, you see a cool mixture of city with nature with plenty of tall trees and foliage intermingling with the concrete buildings.
Now I am getting ready to set off for Salvador, Brazil. "But why Mattis? Why are you leaving Rio de Janeiro on the eve of Carnival to go to Salvador, Brazil?" Well my friend, Salvador happens to be where the super fun Carnival is at, at least according to every single Brazilian that I have met on my travels. They told me that in Rio, the Carnival is somewhat geared towards tourists and that you can't really interact with the party, but in Salvador, you can jump right in the mix and start Samba dancing with the locals. I hear it is loads of fun and I am looking forward to it. After Carnival, it is a day of recovery before I head off to Mexico City for the weekend, then back home at around the one year mark of my traveling to visit with friends and family for two weeks before I head off again to Japan for five weeks (a year already, holy moley). I'm counting the days because I miss everyone and everything about home very, very much. I'll keep you all posted!
Botafogo vs Flamengo Soccer Match at Macarana Stadium, largest stadium in South America in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. This video is mostly of the fans and how crazy they get into the game.
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It's good to be with friends again.
Rio de Janeiro Rocks
2/14/2009 10:42:35 PM - Day 335 - Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Partying in Lapa with my best bud Reece and a bunch of people from all over the world.
Being in Rio de Janeiro has been like a breath of fresh air. No more high prices for accommodation, I've been able to hang out with fellow travelers and I'm finally somewhere for more than only a couple of days. It has been great to relax here in Rio, drink some beers and enjoy the "carioca" lifestyle (term that refers to Rio de Janeiro).
First off, I want to talk a little bit about the "Guianas" which is the name for a less visited part of the world in Northeastern South America that I have just left comprising of Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana. There aren't a ton of tourists in that part of the world because viable budget accommodations and flights in and out of that area is virtually non-existent. There also isn't much to see in that part of the world in terms of historical sites. However, the Guianas have some of the most pristine rainforests in the world due to the lack of development making it a very desirable destination for eco-tourists. Visiting the Guianas also gives you a chance to see a part of South American culture most people never get to experience consisting of a unique mixture of African, East Indian, Dutch, English and French cultures. On top of that, the people in all three of those countries in general are super friendly and quite easy to get along with. However, if I had a tighter budget and timeframe to work with, I would have opted to visit the other parts of South America like Peru, Chile and Argentina because of the amount of budget accommodations and transport available. There are also more historical sites I'm interested in, in that part of the world. However, thanks to the fact that I am working as I travel as a web developer, I have more freedom financially and temporally giving me the chance to see this interesting part of the world. I was happy to visit the Guianas, but it definitely put a pinch on my bank account.
Getting to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil from Cayenne, French Guiana was a mission. The journey consisted of four separate flights starting in Cayenne, to Macapa, Brazil, to Belem, Fortaleza and finally landing in Rio de Janeiro the following day at 5:00am. It took up an entire day and I didn't get any sleep. I met a cool Dutch guy named Rick who was leaving French Guiana himself to meet his dad in Argentina. Rick flew to Guyana with only 300 Euros to his name along with some friends. Finding work along the way in bars and farms, he was able to fund his trip and spent three months traveling Northeastern South America and the Caribbean. It just goes to show you that where there is a will, there is a way. Rick traveled for three months in an expensive part of the world with the equivalent of around $400 in his bank account on arrival.
I was sweaty, tired and smelly after all the traveling and having not washed my clothes for a month so I did what any sane person would have done upon arriving in Rio under those circumstances, I went to the beach! I'm staying at Copacabana Beach, and it is somewhat nice. There are a lot of touts selling stuff to you on the beaches, but they are generally respectful. All the girls on the beach are wearing Brazilian thongs and the guys are wearing tiny ass shorts only a little bigger than a Speedo called "sungas" (I bought a pair myself because I figured I might as well try to fit in). Also, many of the people down here in Copacabana are in decent to fantastic shape, guys and girls. In the morning I saw TONS of people exercising on the beach's boardwalk by running, walking and cycling. Also, they have a lot of pull up bars on the beach that everyone uses. I honestly haven't been anywhere in the world where people are as concerned with their physical fitness as they are here in Rio except for back home in Southern California.
The following afternoon as I was working on my computer I heard a familiar voice. It was one of my best friends named Reece. He and I had been planning on meeting up on our travels for months now, and what better place to meet up at than Rio de Janeiro? He dumped off his stuff and we went to catch up on the past year at a local Brazilian diner over some local food and a couple of beers. It has been awesome having a friend here with me on my travels for once. Traveling alone has its benefits, but being alone for as long as I have been on the road has definitely worn on me and having Reece around to talk and hang out with has been awesome. I have met a ton of cool people on the road, but when you are constantly on the move (as are they), it is close to impossible to build the same rapport that you have with your good friends back home. This was part of the reason why my first trip to Europe was so amazing. I was with five other close friends whom all got along with one another very well making for one amazing trip. Having Reece here to travel with has been refreshing and so far the two of us have been having a blast.
That night was one hell of a party. I met a Brazilian guy named Luciano when I was in Moscow, Russia. He told me to stay in contact with him when I got to Rio where he would put me into contact with a good friend of his named Raphael who runs a lot of nightlife events here. I called Raphael and he told us to meet him at a club he threw a lot of events at named "Melt". I wasn't too sure what to expect considering I have never met Raphael, and I only knew Luciano briefly from my traveling. However, when I got to the club the bouncer had a phone ready to call Raphael so he could come get Reece and I and pull us past the line and get us in for free. Raphael also hooked Reece and I up with wristbands for the VIP section, and his brother introduced us to a bunch of their friends in the club. I was blown away by how hospitable everyone was. I've come to learn that Brazilians in general are super hospitable and welcoming. Having been to a lot of places where it is hard to trust people, I was a bit on guard upon arriving in Brazil because normally when a stranger is nice to you, it is because they want something. Here in Brazil though, they typically are just being nice for the sake of being nice. It's fucking awesome. That night at the club was great. Thanks to Luciano and Raphael for hooking us up!
Reece got way more wasted then myself having gotten close to no sleep from the past day of traveling to get to Rio, so we left the club to get some of the worst pizza I've ever had in my life and call it a night at the hostel. The next day was spent nursing hangovers and getting work done on the computer. I was planning on heading out to some of the sites in the city the following day, but the weather became super rainy so that wasn't a possibility anymore. Therefore it was another day spent inside the hostel relaxing before heading out to do some partying in Brazil.
We amassed a huge group of fellow travelers with people from all over the world for a Friday night out in Rio. People from Australia, England, America, Germany, Holland, Israel, etc. Tons of places! We went out to an old neighborhood in the central part of Rio named "Lapa" which is known for its old architecture and great nightlife. When we arrived I was amazed at the scene there. The streets were packed with people. Street vendors were everywhere selling beers and drinks since you are allowed to drink on the streets in Rio (at least in Lapa you are). The crowd in Lapa ran the whole gamut of Brazilians dressed to the nines in fancy clothes to tons of guys running around shirtless in board shorts and shoes. This place would have been perfect for my friends and I some years ago when we used to get drunk and run around with our shirts off at parties like a bunch of idiots. There are a ton of bars and clubs in Lapa to visit as well as DJ stands and impromptu Samba bands playing in the streets. People were drinking and dancing anywhere and everywhere. Besides being super friendly and hospitable, Brazilians love to dance and party. They are super outgoing and have no inhibitions to let it all out, grab a beer and start dancing in the middle of the street. Needless to say, I'm fast becoming a big fan of the lifestyle here in Rio and can only hope it is the same in Salvador when I visit for Carnival.
Today was once again spent nursing hangovers and staying in due to shitty weather. I think I might stay in again tonight because to be honest, I'm a bit tired and I have an entire week of partying coming up for Carnival in Salvador. I've got a couple more days here in Rio before I fly out to Salvador a day before Carnival. It has been fucking awesome having Reece here to travel with, Rio so far has been a blast, Brazilians are super friendly and the prices here are pretty reasonable. Needless to say, I am glad to be here in Brazil where I can finally relax for a bit.
Partying in Lapa. Lapa is an old part of central Rio de Janeiro that is known for many things, one of which is the great party nightlife in the area. The streets are completely crowded with party goers drinking beers that are sold from many street vendors, taking shots of tequila or dancing in the streets. There are also many bars and clubs in the area that you can check out while there. It is a very fun area. I was there and decided to take a video as I walked the streets of Lapa on a Friday night.
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Don't taze me bro!
Back in France...Sort of
2/8/2009 12:54:46 PM - Day 329 - Cayenne, French Guiana
Walking the streets of French Guiana.
There's never a dull moment on this trip!
Getting to Cayenne, the capital of French Guiana from Paramaribo, Suriname wasn't that difficult, but it involved a lot of steps. I had to take a shared taxi to the border, where I got stamped out by Suriname's immigration and hired a small dugout canoe to ferry me across the river that separates the two countries where I got stamped in by the French Guiana immigration, took a taxi to the central part of that city where I waited around for three hours for a taxi to fill up with enough people to share to Cayenne, the capital of French Guiana. Phew! I left Paramaribo around 6am and arrived in Cayenne at about 4pm, covering a total distance of about 150 miles.
Getting out of Suriname and into French Guiana was pretty easy as far as immigration was concerned. At both immigration offices, they only looked at my passport for a minute, and then gave me my stamp and I was on my way. No forms to fill out, fees to pay, nothing! They didn't even search my bags! I'm guessing it is so lax because they don't really seem to have a hold on the border there with people seemingly going back and forth at will in dugout canoes. There was an entire family perched up by the dugout canoe that I got. Since it was early morning everyone was washing up in the river. This included the adult women who were walking around naked washing off. At first I had to do a "double take" to make sure I wasn't imagining things, but then I remembered I was in a foreign country and things might be different than what I'm used to.
After the grueling day of traveling, my taxi arrived in Cayenne, and we began to drop off one of the passengers, and older French Guianese lady. I got out of the taxi so that she could get out, and her little kids came running out yelling "mama" much to the older mother's joy. It was a pretty sweet scene to behold and put a smile on my face. No sooner did this end when armed men came running out of nowhere and surrounded us yelling "police, police". I was a little shocked as where the other passengers. The plain clothes police officers then showed off their badges. At this point, they had everyone get out of the taxi so that they could search all of our bags and the taxi itself. One second I am smiling watching a mother reunite with her children and the next second I got French Guianese police appearing out of nowhere like ninjas yelling at everyone to get out of the car. What a turn of events!
After searching everyone's bags, and realizing that whomever this sting was intended for wasn't here, did we get some more information as to what was going on. It seems that they had been trailing our taxi since maybe a half hour before we had stopped to drop the mother off. The police were looking for some lady who was smuggling a lot of drugs. The police officers who went thru my stuff were pretty thorough and had quite a few questions for me, but of course they didn't find anything. I also have to say that the police were very polite and they even made an effort to put my stuff back in my bag as it was before they searched thru it all. I didn't really mind being the subject of a police sting operation since the police officers seemed like good enough guys about the whole situation and weren't treating us as if we were criminals, they were simply doing their jobs and were professional about it. Besides that, it added some excitement to the long day of traveling! Shortly after they had cleared us, I got back in my taxi and was dropped off at the aptly named "Central Hotel" (Central Hotel Review in Cayenne, French Guiana).
French Guiana is a former colony of France, which has now become a "department" of France. Technically, what this means is that French Guiana is a part of France, or in essence, when I entered French Guiana I had entered France. Due to this, French Guiana is actually part of the European Union (EU) and uses the Euro as its currency. This makes French Guiana the most well developed of the Guianas, and also the safest. With the infrastructure though, you also get the high prices of an EU country. Traveling here is fucking expensive! There are virtually no viable budget accommodations to choose from, so you have to stay in somewhat nice hotels. On top of that, you're paying for everything with Euros so prices can really stick you. Thanks to the higher standard of living, there are tons of people trying to illegally immigrate here from neighboring Suriname and Brazil.
Also, French is the official language here so if you know it, it'll really help you out if you ever plan on traveling here. I don't, so I can only hope that people I deal with speak English or Spanish, but on the whole, like other foreign countries I have visited, if you can't talk to someone you can normally communicate with hand gestures and a little inventiveness.
The first day I arrived, I was exhausted from the long time spent traveling so I did some work and called it a night with a bottle of cheap wine to put me to sleep. I figured being in "France" I had to have some cheap wine! Suffice it to say, the cheap wine in France is much better than the cheap wine here in French Guiana. Today I got up early to see the town. There isn't much to see or do in Cayenne. I was able to see all the major sites within a couple of hours. My guidebook had mentioned that a day is all you need to see Cayenne. The city was nice and much more developed than cities in the other Guianas. The sights weren't as cool though. It was a nice walk though and the idea of being back in the EU here in South America was interesting. After checking out the city, I had some pizza and headed back to my hotel since the weather had been rainy all day long.
That's one thing I still trip out on. 150 miles away in Suriname, it was the "Dry Season", yet here in French Guiana, it is still the "Rainy Season". That's almost the same distance between Los Angeles and San Diego. I remember experiencing the same thing in Central America. One coast of Costa Rica was in the Dry Season and the other one was in the Rainy Season. It is boggling to think that between such short distances the seasons can be completely different.
Tomorrow I have a hell of a day of traveling. Getting out of Cayenne into Brazil doesn't present many options with only two flights a week. I need to be in Rio de Janeiro to meet my best friend Reece on the 11th of February. In order to do that, it worked out that I was going to be flying out of here tomorrow around 230pm and eventually will be in Rio at around 5am the next day spending a lot of time in between flights at airports. To be honest though, all the travel time doesn't bother me so much anymore. What does bother me however are the costs of flights in South America. Unless you can find a deal, be prepared to spend a pretty penny when flying in South America. That's life on the road though! I only hope that I am not the subject of anymore police sting operations!
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For those of you traveling in the area.
How to Get from Paramaribo, Suriname to Cayenne, French Guiana
2/7/2009 12:33:43 PM - Day 328 - Cayenne, French Guiana
The immigration office on the Suriname side looking over the river to French Guiana.
In order to get to French Guiana from Suriname, you have to go overland since currently there are no flight connections between the two countries. I found very little information about how to get from Suriname to French Guiana online, so here is a rundown of how I did it.
In Paramaribo, Suriname, there are shared taxis leaving from the "Waterkant" area that leave when full to Albina, the city that is on the border with French Guiana. They are fairly cheap. The best time to get there is in the early morning (6am), otherwise you can find yourself waiting for quite some time for a taxi to fill up, in which case you might have to ante up to pay for the empty seats if you still want to leave that day. Be prepared to be bombarded by taxi drivers when you get there, try to get in one that only needs one more person to leave.
Once at Albina, tell your driver that you need to go to immigration to get your passport stamped. Once stamped, you have two options for getting to the French Guiana side. Since there is a river between Albina and French Guiana, you need to take a boat across. You can either take the ferry that goes to the immigration area twice a day, and once on Saturday. Or, do what most people do and take a small, motorized dugout canoe. There are loads of them all up the river bank, and sometimes there are some directly in front of the immigration office in Suriname. They are fairly cheap and much faster than the ferry. Make sure to tell the canoe driver you need to go to immigration on the French Guiana side, and ask if he'll wait for you to take you to the area up the river where all the taxis are. If not, it is a short walk there from immigration along the river.
At the taxi area on the French Guiana side, you need to get to an area named "Gow-Chew" taxi area (that's what it sounds like, I don't know the correct spelling). It is about a mile or so from the taxi area and a ride there is pretty cheap. Once there, you can find a shared taxi leaving for Cayenne. Once again, it pays to leave early from Suriname because you don't want to get to this taxi stand too late either, otherwise you could be waiting for a very long time. I got there at 9am and didn't leave until noon. This taxi is a bit pricey so make sure to have some Euros on you to pay with. Everything in French Guiana is expensive.
This taxi will take you to Cayenne and should drop you off in front of your hotel.
Travel times:
Paramaribo to Albina - 2 hours
Albina river crossing - 5 minutes
From French Guiana border to Cayenne - 2 ½ to 3 hours (not to mention the time spent waiting for a taxi to fill up)
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The Dutch traded New York for Suriname to the English.
Former Dutch Colony of Suriname
2/6/2009 4:14:28 PM - Day 327 - Paramaribo, Suriname
Walking down the "Waterkant" or Waterfront was like walking back thru the pages of a 17th Century story book.
I woke up super early to catch my flight out of Georgetown to the capital of Suriname, Paramaribo. It seems that the only airline that offers a direct flight between the two is a company called "Blue Wing Airlines". Getting to the airport was easy enough, and for any of you who plan on visiting Guyana make sure to bring about $30 US dollars worth of money for the departure tax when you leave since there aren't any ATMs in the airport currently. Luckily I had just enough.
Upon arriving in Paramaribo, Suriname, my first impression was that it was more developed than Georgetown. One indicator, as weird as it might sound, is how many chain restaurants, stores and fast food places you see in the city. You normally only find them in more developed cities because people usually can't setup a "Pizza Hut" or "Radio Shack" (although I have seen a "Radeo Shack") out in the middle of nowhere for whatever reason. Also, the colonial architecture of the buildings in the central area of Paramaribo and along the Waterfront (locally known as the "Waterkant") was stunning! They have done a lot to keep up the old buildings and some of the areas simply look amazing. Like Georgetown, the streets of central Paramaribo looked like something out of a 17th century colonial story book. Shortly after the scenic ride, I arrived at my lodging named "Hotel AaBeCe" (Hotel AaBeCe Review in Paramaribo, Suriname).
The first day I arrived I was exhausted from the early morning wake up and the traveling, so I decided to take it easy, figure out how I was going to get to my next destination, French Guiana since there are zero flights between the two countries, and take it easy. I tried to get some help from the lady working at the hotel, but besides the fact that she was clueless, I ran into some roadblocks with her linguistically. Here in Suriname, the local language is Dutch owing to their Dutch colonial past. I had forgotten what it was like not being able to communicate with people having traveled thru areas where English and Spanish (I know a decent amount of Spanish) where the spoken languages or at least readily known.
Today I was up bright and early to hit the city. I caught a cab to the Central Market and decided to work my way back to my hotel from there. The central market was like many others I have visited. Busy, crowded, smelly in some parts and chaotic, and as usual, it's always an entertaining time to wander around for a bit. Of course, doing so I got the requisite offers for drugs and other illicit goods, but I've gotten used to that in some areas. After that I headed to the central part of the city with all the old colonial buildings as well as to the "Waterkant" or Waterfront, where a good deal of old buildings were as well. The houses were amazing and I felt like I was walking along a Hollywood movie set for some swashbuckling 17th century tale. After that I visited a non-descript fort, and had a great lunch consisting of a common local dish, chicken and rice! I also had something called "Poms" or something like that. It is a cooked tuber plant with meat in the middle, and very tasty.
One thing I noticed was that unlike Georgetown, there were a lot of white people wandering around. It seems that plenty of Dutch people visit Suriname for whatever reason, and it also probably helps that there are direct flights from Amsterdam to Paramaribo. It was kind of nice because it helped me not stick out so much. Opposite my huge appetite for attention back home, while I travel, I try to stay as low key and non-descript as possible. I've found that to work in my favor in a lot of ways. Blending in with the locals is usually a plus, but in places like my last destination in Georgetown where I was the only white person in a five mile radius, fitting in isn't very easy.
I've tried to get some work done tonight but thanks to the bad internet connection I have here, I barely got anything finished. Now I am getting ready to go to sleep since I have to be up super early again tomorrow to catch a minivan to Albina, a city on the border with French Guiana, where I have to take a ferry across to French Guiana and catch another minivan to Cayenne, the capital of French Guiana. That's life for you on the road!
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Off the beaten path...
Wow, I'm in Guyana!
2/4/2009 9:16:28 PM - Day 325 - Georgetown, Guyana
The second tallest solid wood structure in the world. St George's Angelican Cathedral in Georgetown, Guyana.
After hopping a couple of Caribbean islands, dealing with canceled flights and flight delays, numerous immigration and custom officials and generally having one amazing time, I am now finally in the destination that I had intended to go to originally when visiting this region of the world, Guyana. The only bad thing was that after having to deal with all of the above (and then some), my time here and the neighboring countries has been cut quite short. I'm a little bummed out by this, but I am going to make the most of the short amount of time that I have in this rarely visited part of the world.
Most people don't have a fucking clue where Guyana is, so for those of you that are wondering, Guyana is in the Northeastern part of South America on the Caribbean ocean, bordered to the West by Venezuela and the East by Suriname. A lot of times when I was telling people I was headed here they thought I was going to Africa, or didn't have a clue what I was talking about at all. Most people travel the west coast of South America because there is a good tourist infrastructure there and plenty of sights to see. There are some amazing sights here in Guyana as well, but the infrastructure is lacking in terms of ways to get in and out and there is also a shortage of good budget accommodation. I ended up staying at a midrange hotel named "Hotel Ariantze" (Hotel Ariantze Review in Georgetown, Guyana). All of this makes traveling thru this region of the world somewhat expensive. I think all of those factors contribute to the low number of tourists in the region, however wanting to see something different, I decided to head thru this part of the world on my way to Brazil.
Guyana isn't anything like what most people imagine South America to be. The culture here is much more Caribbean and British than it is Spanish and Amerindian. They don't speak Spanish, they speak English. Cricket is the number one sport here. You barely see any Mestizos around (Spanish and Amerindian mixes that make up most of South and Central America), almost everyone is Black or East Indian. In fact, the culture here reminded me a lot of other Caribbean islands I have been to, especially Trinidad and Tobago. A large part of why the culture in Guyana is like this owes to its colonial past. Where most of South and Central America was colonized by Spain, Guyana was a colony of Great Britain.
Arriving at the airport I was relieved to again be somewhere that English was the primary language. Getting around was easy, and I was soon at my hotel after a thirty minute drive from the airport. I was able to chit chat with the driver a bit and one thing I noticed from him and some other Guyanese that I have met is that although there is a problem with crime here, they are quick to point out that things are getting better and that these problems can be found in many countries of the world. I thought it was cool that they showed a direct interest in the crime problem. We also passed a rum distillery on the way and let me tell you, I smelled the most putrid, eye watering stench I have ever smelled in my entire life. The rum they were making there was called "El Dorado Rum" and it is actually really good, much better than anything I have had in the states. I still think the best though is "One Barrel" rum from Belize. One thing is for certain, they sure do know there rum in the Caribbean.
My first order of business when I got here was to go purchase my ticket from Georgetown, Guyana to Paramaribo, Suriname. The only company in the world that I could find that flies direct between the two cities is one called "Blue Wing Airways". You have to buy the ticket in person, and I barely made it there in the evening before they closed to do so.
That night I relaxed and got some work done. They were also playing an old Jon Wayne western cowboy movie in the bar downstairs that I watched for a bit. After talking to a couple locals, it seems that old Westerns and that entire old cowboy culture are somewhat popular down here.
Today I woke up early to hit up the city and see some of the sights. The central part of Georgetown is pretty chaotic with people milling about everywhere, jam-packed with passenger cars and minivan buses with all kinds of crazy decorations on them that people use for public transport and tons of crazy bums all over the place. I saw one guy with a towel wrapped around his waist and underwear tied around his head, sitting on the sidewalk as he smiled and drew pictures of something he was looking at in the distance.
Although I heard it can be a bit of a sketchy place, I went to go check out the main market of Georgetown also known as "Stabroek Market". I guess the main risk here is pickpockets and jewelry snatchers, so as long as you don't have on any valuables, you should be fine. The area out front acts as a bus terminal and taxi stand of sorts with drivers trying to get customers all over the place. In front of the entrance to the main market are tons of "Rasta" black guys selling all sorts of trinkets. As you walk in your hit by the pungent smell of raw meat from all the butchers set up near the entrance. Walking around I didn't see anything being sold that was unusual with most of the items being similar to what you would find at any "swap meet" or "flea market". In the far back near the docks however, the area was super desolate and dark, maybe they got some crazy stuff for sale back there?
I walked around town a bit more and checked out some of the other sights. One really cool one was St George's Cathedral which is the tallest wooden building in the world. It was pretty impressive. As for wooden buildings, I've noticed that in Georgetown it seems like all the buildings are made out of solid wood. In that regard, walking around the city felt like you were walking back in time down the streets of a 17th century port city. It was really cool.
One of the funny things I noticed was that a lot of the people around here name their cars all kinds of funny names like "Too many girls, not enough time", "Mo Power" and there were many religious themed names such as "Christian Soldier" or "God's Child".
Tonight I have some work to do before heading to Suriname tomorrow. I've also been finalizing plans for Brazil where I plan to spend a couple weeks relaxing in Rio and Salvador. All in all, Georgetown has been an alright place with some cool looking wooden buildings and friendly people (and some of the best hot sauce ever named "Pepper Sauce"). Next stop, Paramaribo, Suriname.
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Blue 22! Blue 22!
"Liming in Trini"
2/3/2009 12:31:46 PM - Day 324 - Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago
The "Red House", which is the Parliament building of Trinidad and Tobago.
Port of Spain was another originally unscheduled stop on my trip. My main destination was the Northeastern portion of South America which nobody ever seems to go to. Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana. Most people don't even know those counties exist, and because of the lack of tourism, getting into that area of the world doesn't present a lot of options. There isn't a legal land border crossing from Venezuela into Guyana, so you have to fly in (you can go overland from Brazil into Guyana, but I'm headed in the opposite direction and ending my leg in South America in Brazil). The only flights into Guyana all seem to have connections in Port of Spain, Trinidad. I also need to get a Visa to enter Suriname, and there is a consulate in Port of Spain which I read processes Suriname Visas quickly and easily. Therefore, I figured if I am going to be stopping in Trinidad, I might as well check the place out for a couple of days and get my visa for Suriname as well.
Trinidad and Tobago are two islands that comprise one country in the Caribbean Ocean just north of the Eastern Coast of Venezuela. Once being a British Colony part of the "British West Indies", Trinidad and Tobago retains a lot of British culture like English, a fanatic love for cricket and driving on the left side of the road (and not the "right" side ha-ha). Also, being a colony for awhile, it was filled with slaves from Africa and then indentured servants from India after slavery was abolished in the late 1800's. Therefore you have a lively and interesting mix of Creole and East Indian culture with a coating of "Britishness" (luckily not the food).
The locals refer to Trinidad as "Trini" and themselves as "Trinis". The Trinis I met all seemed super happy, lively and friendly. It seemed like a very welcoming culture down here in Trinidad and Tobago. They also have a very thick Caribbean English accent, exactly what people imagine Jamaican (also an ex-British colony) to be like. A couple of the locals had such thick accents that I had trouble understanding them myself! It was fun figuring it out though! They have a ton of slang down here that I have never heard. An example of some slang is to "Lime" or "Liming", which is what you call it when you go hangout with your friends somewhere, say at a bar or restaurant drinking.
I flew into Port of Spain on a Sunday from Curacao. The airport in Port of Spain was very nice and I was soon in a cab on my way to my hotel named "Forty Winks Inn" (Forty Winks Inn Review in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago). I settled in and started talking with a fellow American there. He asked what I had planned that night and said I should go to a bar down the street. I told him I was probably going to pass since it was Sunday, and he then looked surprised and asked if I wasn't planning on watching the Super Bowl. "The Super Bowl!? Oh shit, that's right!" I totally forgot that the Super Bowl was that night. Hell, I couldn't miss out on that. I walked down to the bar, had a good dinner and a few beers. The place was really nice and I met some cool people there. It seems that this bar is frequented by westerners (mostly Americans) who work in Trinidad on business, mostly in the oil industry which happens to be huge in Trinidad. It was also the first time that I was able to hear the national anthem of America since leaving, and it was nice to finally be somewhere where people actually cheered America on (coincidentally because most of the bar's patrons were Americans). Namely, it was nice being in a familiar setting having been gone from home for so long. It was a good game, I was definitely buzzed by the time I made it back to the hotel and I ended up having a great time with some awesome people.
The next day I woke up early somewhat hung-over, but due to the short amount of time I had here, I needed to get on the move. First order of business was to go to the Surinam Embassy which happened to be right down the street. Applying for the Visa for Suriname in Trinidad was super easy! They didn't even ask to see the proof of departure (flight out of Suriname) or a bank statement. All they had me do was fill out an application form, submit a passport sized photo and pay the $110 fee (ouch). A couple hours later they had my Visa ready and they even gave me a multiple entry Visa valid for five years! I don't plan on staying in Suriname that long but it's nice to have the freedom because you never know when you might need it.
When I got back to my hotel I decided to walk around town a bit and see a couple of the sights. Port of Spain isn't known for its sightseeing but there were a couple cool things here and there. It seems that most people come here for business while tourists normally go to Tobago. One thing I noticed was that some of the buildings and churches had a distinct English influence in their architecture which I thought was pretty interesting.
It was raining intermittingly throughout the day and ended up raining hard that night, so when I got back during the late afternoon, I decided to stay in and get some work done. This morning I woke up bright and early for a flight which ended up being delayed a couple hours. Now I'm sitting in the terminal as they are getting ready to board my delayed flight that leaves for Georgetown, Guyana. I had a good time here in Trinidad and I can see myself coming back someday.
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