Brazilian Babymoon III

W 7.17.13

• "geez...how many Brazilian Babymoon posts does this lady have?"
• just one more after this one...PROMISE!...4 parts in total

• this morning was another delicious breakfast...I particularly enjoyed today's fresh flowers

• today was boat excursion day...and lucky for us, the weather was looking much better than yesterday!
• after breakfast, we walked over to the pier for our 10am start...the boat excursion was about 5 hours total

• we went with a company recommended by John, and everything ended up going really well...the staff was friendly, spoke English, and catered to our drink and meal needs perfectly...
• only complaint is that I could've used more sun-time, either on the boat (an awning covered most of it, blocking the sun) or on the beaches (we stopped at two, but for only 45 minutes at one and 20 minutes at the other

• before out first stop, we toured around to different little islands where the guide shared information and history about each

• the first stop was just for a quick dip and a bit of snorkeling if you wanted...we did a little of each

• the second stop was the 45 minute beach stop...I took a nap...it was glorious

• then it was back on board for lunch...I got the chicken, rice, and veggies

• and Jake got the seafood risotto with a small side salad

• the next stop was so quick...we both decided to swim to the island rather than being rafted in
• then it was back on board to head back to Paraty

• on the way back, we were given complimentary coffee, tea, and little cookies
• check out the tiny shots of coffee! haha...the cookies were so good, we ended up hunting down a bag of them at the supermarket to bring home with us (made with sweetened condensed milk...melt-in-your-mouth type of cookie)

• this is where I hung out the majority of the ride...at the front of the boat, the only uncovered part...so I could nap and read while getting some Vitamin D

• here's a view of our super sweet tour guide (striped red and white shirt) and some of the other tourists...sitting under the awning of the boat

we bought a wooden boat that looked like these that a man was carving/paitning/selling on the pier...nice little souvenir

• with a couple hours before sundown, we decided to chill on the small beach by the pier and read a little more before heading into town
• that's where we spotted this sweet green bug...can't you picture us cruising around in this little guy? with a surfboard on top?

• we then winded through the colonial town to see what it was like in daylight
• took a few artsy photos with all the fun pops of color

same building as above, but drawing out the yellow instead

• because someone in our group always has to go to the bathroom now (not naming names) we stopped in at Cafe Pingado for an acai smoothie of sorts (and to use their facilities)

• then it was back to the B&B to freshen up for dinner

• John had been recommending Caminho do Ouro for dinner, as he knows the owners and frequents there himself on a regular basis, so we definitely wanted to try it before leaving...tonight was our last night
• we started with an appetizer of hummus, herb butter, and a creamy cheese with various warm dipping breads (oh how I miss hummus!)

• we also asked for a half-order of grilled hearts of palm with pesto, as John said we had to try them...especially because our experience with this food usually involved something out of a can
• I'm still not sure I get palm hearts...but these definitely did taste better than what we've ever had

• and for some reason, after seeing lobster on the menu, I couldn't get my mind off it...I've never even had lobster...so we decided to splurge and split the dish

• this enormous lobster tail came with a side of perfectly cooked sautéed vegetables and creamy coconut rice with chunks of coconut in it...I wished the portion was double in size!

• we were warned about the delectable desserts offered here, which we saw alluringly displayed in the window as we walked in...think homemade little tarts, cupcakes, chocolates...
• but tonight was a busy night...we even had to wait a bit for a table, so between the large group of eight, the family of four, and the little girls who stopped in with a to-go order, there were limited dulces left when our dessert time rolled around...luckily we got to sample one little tart, then went to the self-serve ice cream place next door to finish satisfying our sweet tooths (teeth?)
• look at all those candy toppings!!!

• on our walk back to the hotel, we walked through a plaza that had different food booths set up with tables in the middle
• this guy was stirring what looks to be coconut...

• ...to likely be made into these sweet:

• this cart was offering potato chips or churros...a strange pairing

• tonight's movie pick was The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (another John recommendation) and although it seems to be a good movie, and we were enjoying it, both of us passed out before finishing...

Th 7.18.13

"...gosh, I'm even going to miss these orchids!"

• our third and final paradise breakfast! so bittersweet! I was really getting used to the delicious fresh breakfast, the flowers, the service the view! ...we'll have to recreate this at home on our terrace...taking notes

• this morning's fresh juice was papaya banana...ironically, thebump.com says our baby is about the size of a papaya this week (week 22)
• so I asked John if he had a papaya I could take a picture with
• he laughed, first at the idea of comparing our baby to fruit (I know, it's kind of funny, huh?), but also when bringing out the kind of papayas grown in Paraty...they're SUPER big and heavy in comparison to what you'd normally get
• so we just had him hold it up to show it's size...not sure if you can really tell by the photo, but I hope my baby isn't that big yet! maybe by the time it's born!

• we quickly finished up our breakfast...

• ...packed up our bags, and said goodbye to the ladies, and to John...

• thanks for the wonderful stay! we love you Paraty and Vivenda Paraty!!!  maybe we'll be back someday!
• we were happy to have previously purchased our tickets for the 9:10am bus back to Rio...we nestled into our seats...and napped/read our way back to Rio for a day of more sightseeing...coming soon in the 4th and final part of Brazilian Babymoon ;)