Bienvenido a Buenos Aires!

• Buenos Aires has taken time to grow on me.
• Perhaps the problem is that I had such lofty expectations, after Brazil, Colombia and Peru - which have an earthiness to them all.
  
• BA feels to me like Europe, not South America. It lacks (in my humble opinion) the rawness... the realness... the passion... the fire... of the other countries I´ve visited here.
• I`ve heard it descibed as a mix of Paris, Rome and Barcelona. In a way, I suppose it is. The people are more reserved, slightly distant. Then again, that´s how it is in big cities, and I need to remember that.
• It´s also a city that lives strictly at night. All the people here go for dinner between 10 P.M and 1 A.M. After that, they go out dancing until the sun comes. Sleep all day, repeat ad infinitum.
  
• What Buenos Aires DOES have - in abundance - is music, musicians, artists, artisans.
• I´ve had some remarkable nights out dancing!
• There´s a regular Monday night event: "La Bomba de Tiempo", which is a drumming troupe that gets together and performs in a warehouse packed full of people, all dancing to the drums! Afterwards there´s an afterparty at another club which goes on until the morning, where anyone that wants to can get up on stage, get involved, make music.
• There are loads of live music nights, where you can listen to Afro-Cuban music, mambo from the 1950´s, salsa, samba, candombe...
• My favourite thing here has been the San Telmo market, which happens every Sunday. During the day one of the main streets is closed off, and lined with handicrafts, second-hand artifacts, antiques, and other bric-a-brac. As evening dawns, suddenly the drums take over the day! Groups of drummers march down the streets, making music, producing energy, creating MAGIC!
• They start at one end of the street, and walk down, gathering people as they go. There are loads of Brazilians in BA, and it is the amazing Brazilian girls who move like no-one on earth. They both lead the drummers and follow them. People join in as they go, shaking their asses, feeling the passion, getting lost in the moment. It´s ELECTRIC. You can either join a group that you like, and walk with them, or wait on the side of the stret and watch the different groups go by! I was dancing my heart out!!! Driven by the drums, my soul SANG.
• And THAT is what I take away from Buenos Aires with me. That and the giant, juicy delicious steaks. And fantastic red wine.
• Today is my first day in Uruguay, as I needed to escape to the beach for a while. But I´ll be back in Argentina soon to explore it further, beyond the capital city.
  
• Watch this space for more!

Love you all, and wishing you a new year filled with LOVE, LOVE, LOVE. xxx

El Hippimundo :)

• "The Hippy World"
• Ever since I arrived in South America, I've heard the term in passing.
• I believe (from what I can make out) that it refers to a specific brand of people on this continent - hippies, dreamers, philosophers, travelers...
• There is an energy in South America, a call to people who have abandoned the status quo, the norm, the dictates of modern society... a call to explore, and interact, and LIVE.
• There are many travelers here from within South America itself, who make their way through the continent by making things - music, jewelery, handicrafts. It's been absolutely amazing to meet these people, to be encircled by their warmth and openness, to learn from them and have my eyes and heart opened by the interactions.
• In Cuzco, I had just returned from Machu Picchu. I was sitting by the fountains in the Plaza de Almas waiting for an Australian girl that I'd met in the hostel - we had plans to go for lunch together.
• Not far from me, I saw a young rasta - long dreadlocks down to his knees - talking animatedly in Spanish to 2 girls. He gave off a vibe of such warmth, and joy, and fun.
• In no time, he had come over to talk to me, and in my broken Spanish we chatted for a while about life and stuff. He invited me to come and see his band play later (he plays percussion - bongos and tribal drums), and then when my friend came, he immediately invited us to come with him and his 4 girl friends to a traditional Peruvian lunch.
• These 5 lovely individuals took us to a restaurant outside of town, treated us to DELICIOUS local food - ceviche ("Peruvian sushi", as they described it), seafood, and the local purple corn drink... what a meal! What an experience! I smile even now, just thinking about it.
• Then last night was my first night in Buenos Aires. Not knowing anyone here, I asked the guy working at the hostel for a good place to go for steak and wine. This IS Argentina, after all!
• He told me where to go, and also told me that 2 blocks from the restaurant was a square where there are free live tango shows, and music, and people.
• I went past the restaurant, saw people lined up waiting for a table, and thought I'd rather go to the square first.
• Not 2 minutes after I sat down, I was deep in conversation (yes, again in Espanol!) with a 50-year old hippy from Peru.
• He shared his bottle of wine with me, and regaled me with tales of the history of Peru, of Argentina, of astrology, and tarot, and life, and love.
• After about 2 hours, more of his friends started joining us - more free spirits, open and warm and "tranquilo". Some came with little children - toddlers running around laughing anjd giggling. We drank wine, we laughed, we celebrated life...
• What an evening! At about 1 a.m I got hungry, so I took myself for dinner. The restaurant was PACKED (even at this time), dinner was EVERYTHING you would imagine it to be - giant, juicy, delicious steak, with wonderful wine...
• What a night!!!
• Once again, in a very different way, I couldn't help but feel SO VERY FORTUNATE.
• All of these "chance" encounters, with all of these fascinating individuals. I am learning, experiencing, living my dream.

La vida es hermosa. Siepmre.

Blessed, blessed, blessed.

• I feel so lucky. I feel so fortunate. I feel so blessed.
  
• I want to embrace the Universe, and thank the stars and the planets and the sun and the moon and nature and everything magical and mystical and wonderful for the gift that I have been given, that is my life.
• I just got back from Machu Picchu. I am feeling completely high on life after the experience.
• Machu Picchu defies description. Completely. It´s inexplicably ethereal, and amazing, and uplifting.
• I woke up at 4 a.m, to get there really early and be one of the 200 people a day permitted to go up Waynapìcchu: a RIDICULOUSLY steep and difficult climb which (luckily only takes about an hour - with MANY breaks! and) culminates in a view over the entire ancient Incan village that is unsurpassed.
• Actually, when I arrived, the whole area was shrouded in clouds and mist. I found a spot high up on the mountain, and for 2 hours watched as the the clouds s-l-o-w-l-y parted to reveal the ruins... bit by bit...
• It was spectacular. Ethereal. Otherwordly.
• I had booked a guide as well, and after the ""grand reveal", I found my guide and he talked me through the whole area, and the history of the Inca people. Then I climbed Waynapicchu and saw it all from on high.
• I was captivated.
• The whole experience has left me so emotional, and almost breathless, and made me thank everything in this Universe yet again for the gift that I have been given!
• When I set out on this adventure, I had a very vague plan of what I wanted to do. All I knew was that I wanted to experience LIFE. The world. And I have. In SO MANY WAYS!!!
• I pinch myself constantly. I try to smile at everyone I meet, be kind to everyone I meet, spread love everywhere I go... It´s the only way I know how to thank the Universe for the amazing gifts that I have been given. I am blessed with an incredible family, incomparable friends, and so much good fortune!!!
  
• Life is SO BEAUTIFUL.
• I am humbled, and overwhelmed.
• Thank you ALL for being a part of the magic. xxx
  

I´m all alooowwwwwwwnnnn...

• Back to being a solo traveller again.
• I´ve forgotten what it feels like to be outside of the warm, comfortable embrace of friends, in a familiar environment, where everything is simple, and routine, and easy to navigate.
• After my month in Colombia, with a group of friends that became like family, restaurants where I knew the menu off by heart, and a hostel that felt like home, being in Peru has been quite an adjustment.
• I landed late at night in Lima, the capital, and was whisked off to my hostel in a taxi right away.
• I was the ONLY PERSON IN THE HOSTEL! There was another guy when I checked in, but he left for a midnight flight a few hours after I arrived.
• So anyway. I spent the next 2 days in Lima wandering around on my own. I forgot how exhilerating it can be to not have a CLUE. About anything.
• Armed with a map provided by the hostel, directions on where the bus passes (there´s no actual Bus Stop, you just stand on the corner and flag it down), and my outstanding command of the Spanish language, I managed to explain to the ticket lady on the bus that I wanted her to tell me when to get off at the Historical Centre.
• And she did. And I did. And it was wonderful. I didn´t see another tourist the whole time I was there, which made me feel very brave, and edgy, and adventurous.
• Lima is quite charming. Peruvian people are very different from the 2 other nations I´ve been to thusfar, although the typical South American warmth and kindness continues to colour every interaction.
• I also stumbled upon (in Moraflores - a more affluent suburb of Lima, on the Peruvian coast) a little park area dedicated to lovers! There was a massive statue overlooking the sea, of a couple in embrace, surrounded by low mosaic walls inlaid with Spanish quotes on love... so very romantic...
• I love finding things by accident! Getting lost when you´re walking around a new, unfamiliar city is great fun. It always leads to wonder. I often get lost intentionally. BUT - I always keep a map with me for aftewards, as ultimatly, I DO want to find my way back again!
  
• Now I´m in Cuzco, which is simply divine. What a quaint, charming little place indeed! But more on that next time.

Until then - muchos besitos de Perú!!! xxxxxxxx

Captivated by Colombia

• My heart breaks as I write this.
• After a month in the wonder that is Colombia, it is time to move on.
• I shall forever cherish the magic of the past month.
• I started in Bogota, the capital city, which is BEAUTIFUL Set high up in the mountains, the student area where I stayed in is a slice of exquisite colonial architecture, surrounding by lush green mountains, fresh air, and a general atmosphere of welcoming, warmth and loveliness.
• After that, I moved up north to Cartagena, a romantic and magical Spanish colonial city on the Carribean coast.
• Ostensibly, I thought I´d base myself somewhere fabulous where I could stop and learn Spanish - not being able to communicate has been driving me crazy, as you can all imagine!
• But my lessons lasted only about a week, after which I decided I had enough basic vocab down to throw myself into conversations and bumble my way through, learning as I go.
• While on the coast, I travelled around a bit - the highlight of which was Playa Blanca, a glorious Carribean island with no running water, no electricity, hammocks for beds, and delicious fresh fruit, fish and seafood for every meal.
• It´s so hard to encapsulate the incredible month that I´ve just had! The Carribean coast is wonderful - people here are SO FRIENDLY! Warm and kind and laid-back and chatty... there seems to always be a fiesta happening somewhere, dancing in the streets, drinking and laughing everywhere...
• I have also been blessed with my Cartagena family - travellers and Colombians alike - all of us reconnecting time and time again in a hostel that became like a home.
• I shall miss Señor Everything and Super Mario, who hung out on the street corner daily and nightly, somehow learned my name, and were always full of smiles and bargain-offers... :)
• I shall miss the set lunch and dinner menus - a choice of fish, chicken or beef soup, followed by fish, chicken or beef done in about 10 different ways, with rice, beans, salad and a drink - all for under $3.
  
• I shall miss the casino across the street, with loud music and happy people milling about outside all day and all night...
• I shall miss the Historical City Centre, with its 500 year-old Fortress walls, its balconies overflowing with bougainvillias, its colourful and beautiful homes - alive with life and concerts and people and salsa music...
  
• I shall miss the Plaza up the street, where you can get beers, delicious street food, fresh fruit juices and cocktails until the wee hours...
• I shall miss the heat, the daily sunshine, the evening breeze, the sounds of laughter everywhere...
• I love Colombia. I feel like I have left a part of me there... forever.
  

Part(1)ing Thoughts: Brazil

• I may have mentioned this before, but just to recap: I LOVE LOVE LOVE Brazil!!!
• I´ll be heading back for Carnaval in February, but I wanted to get down some of my feelings on Brazil thusfar:
• I think everyone should visit Brazil at least once in their lives.
• Brazilians are AMAZING. So warm, so friendly, so kind, and happy and FUN!
• Brazilian Portugeuse is gorgeous. It sounds like singing. The language is literally spoken melodically, which is lovely. But it´s hard to understand, and learn, and read. A "d" is pronounced like a "j"... sometimes. A "t" is pronounced like a "ch"... sometimes. An "r" is pronounced like an "h"... sometimes. Other times it´s rolled, or it can also be pronounced like an English "r"... You get the point.
• Brazilians love to dance. And BOY, can they dance!!! I have never seen so many men and women with so much rhythm in my life! Samba is huge there, and it´s SO MUCH FUN!!! I picked it up quite easliy, and spent many a night dancing and delighting until the wee hours.
• Brazil is HUMONGOUS. It takes ages to get around, and there´s so much to see! So much variety, so much beauty, so much nature, so many options!
• The Amazon is inconceivably massive, and has loads of bugs. I left covered in bites of all sizes, shapes, and varieties. It´s pretty gross. Avoid if squeamish.
• There are dolphins in the Amazon River and it´s tributaries!!! Grey ones and big pink ones! They´re so cute, and so playful!
• There´s no such thing as a "Brazilian look". The people here are so mixed, and it´s gorgeous. But I did find that the stereotype of bootyliciousness is warranted, for the most part. And the women here love themselves. It´s such a healthy way to be. No ridiculous eating disorders or crazy gym freaks. Just women comfortabe in their natural shapes. The rest of the world really should learn from them.
• People sleep in hammocks all the time. They´re really fun to sleep in! The secret is to lie diagonally. Ta da!
• Traditional Brazilian breakfast (which most of the hostels provide for free) consists of rolls with cheese and ham, fresh fruit, coffee, fruit juice, and cake. Cake for breakfast! How fabulous!
• Brazilians eat a lot of meat. A lot. And it´s TASTY. And cheap. I loved the food in Brazil.
• Brazilians will speak to you even if you tell them you don´t speak the language, and don´t understand them. They´ll continue speaking to you, making huge efforts to explain what they mean. Unfortunately, this explanation is also in Portuguese. :) But they smile a lot, and gesticulate, and even if you have no idea what´s going on, you still end up laughing together at the end.
• Brazil is an amazing, amazing country. I feel so blessed to have spent 6 weeks there. I am SO EXCITED to go back in a few months!!! For the Carnaval, no less!!! It´s going to be BRILLIANT!!!

Love, love, love until next time! xox

Whimsical Wanderings...

• I love travelling!
• I love backpacking!
• I love the spontaneity that travelling in South America entails!
• I love being able to simply do things on a whim, and having them work out beautifully!
• Yesterday I actually made a plan for the first time, since arriving in Brazil 6 weeks ago - and that was to fly to Bogota, the capital of Colombia.
• To date, my trip has seen me calmly and happily riding waves from adventure to adventure.
• A brief summary:
• I landed in Sao Paulo originally, and decided immediately that I needed to be OUT of big cities, and near the beach rather. At breakfast, 10 minutes after arriving, I met a guy at the hostel who was heading to a gorgeous beach town, Paraty. Within minutes, we were going together!
• After a few days in Paraty, the people working at the hostel recommended an idyllic island not far away, so me and a couple that I'd met took a bus and then a ferry to paradise, also known as Isla Grande.
• Next, a group of 5 of us decided that since we were so close to Rio, it was time to head there next... and so we did.
• After a CRAZY (excellent!) week in Rio, I thought to go to Bolivia next. But on the way, there is the Pantanal, the largest flooplain on earth, known for its abundant wildlife, birds, plants. So I went into the Pantanal instead.
• There, I met a Canadian guy who was taking a boat up the Amazon for 4 days. Normally, I would never have considered such a plan, as a woman travelling on my own, taking a boat alone for 4 days is not really advisable. But here was a brilliant opportunity at a once-in-a-lifetime adventure! So off we went!
• Once we arrived in Manaus, I met up again with a surfer from California and a Brazilian who owns a campsite at the Brazilian-Venezuelan border (we'd met at the Port, they were on a different boat). These 2 were taking a road-trip through the Amazon, through an indigenous reserve, and across the Equator to get to the Northern Hemisphere... so off I went! This adventure was epic: we slept in hammocks, in tents, under the stars, in the mountains, in the Amazon.
• Now I'm back in Manaus, and on my way to the airport. I'm SO EXCITED to get to Colombia!!! I've heard it's AMAZING - the people, the culture, the energy, the nightlife...
• So there you have it! Never plan too much. Life falls into place so beautifully when you don't. Let that be the Thought For The Day! :)

Until next time from Colombia - love and kisses to you all! xxxxxx

We are all ALIENS here!

• Just got back from 4 days in the Pantanal, Brazil - the largest floodplain on earth! We went walking for hours through the underbrush, did boat trips every morning and night, horse-back riding, fishing...
  
• Saw so many amazing plants, birds, and wildlife: storks, emu, capybara, frogs, hawks, monkeys, nose-bears, butterflies, tortoises, frogs, snakes...!
• Went fishing for piranha (hooked 2 but they were little, so threw them back)
• Went on a night cruise to check out Cayman crocs - ended up getting into the boat about 3 metres away from one! SO AWESOME! (They´re little, and don´t eat humans, so no danger. Apparently. Hee hee.)
• All I kept thinking as we went on 3-hour walks through the thick, lush green vegetation, and learned about how all the plants and animals and birds and fish co-exist, is how there is such a BEAUTIFUL balance in nature. Every creature has a predator, every creature has its prey. The cycle is perfect. We - humans - mess it all up. We don´t belong! We come in, destroy, ruin the cycle, build unnatural things out of unnatural materials, pollute water and air, disturb the entire system... how are we even here?!?! We so clearly DO NOT BELONG HERE! Think about it.
  
• Don´t panic. I haven´t lost my mind. Just dealing with greater existential and spiritual and philosophical issues. It´s a glorious gift to be able to philosophise, and contemplate, and piece it all together. Or attempt to, at least. ;-)
• I am having the most amazing time in South America - Brazil specifically. I´ve gone from sleepy beach towns, to magnificent quiet islands, to fabulous wild Rio, to the ecological heart of the continent. And tomorrow... *drumroll please*...
• I´m heading to the Amazon!!!
• That´s right! I take a 24-hour bus, then a 4-day boat all the way up to Manaus, the very centre of the Amazon Basin!
• HOORAY FOR BIG ADVENTURES!!!
• In truth, my plans have been changing daily. It´s so much more fun that way! I love being this spontaneous! And I´ve been making wonderful friends along the way, so I find myself travelling with good people all the time.
• So... au revoir, dear readers! I´ll be back again soon with more MAD ADVENTURES!!!

HUGE love!!! xoxox

Rio, eu te amo!

• RIO IS AMAZING, AMAZING, AMAZING!!!
• What a city! Natural beauty everywhere in the form of mountains and sea and forests, incredibly warm and friendly people, dance clubs with the energy of a carnival that go on all night until the sun comes up, cheap and delicious caipirinhas and food... and Christ the Redeemer overseeing the whole thing!
• To be perfectly honest, I get a real kick out of the statue of Jesus. I can't explain it. It's obviously not a religious thing for me, but there's something quite magical about seeing the clouds part over the mountains to reveal the outstretched arms of a protective, benevolent figure. And at night it's lit up! So in the black sky, there's a bright white statue floating in the air, symbolising love. At least - that's how I interpret it. And it makes me happy.
  
• I went on a favela tour yesterday, which was fascinating too. Felt perfectly safe, pefectly comfortable, and the sociologist in me absolutely loved fitting the information into the little book that's being written in my head... There's almost no petty crime in the favelas, as the drug lords that run them put the word out on the streets to avoid unnecessary police attention. In effect, it's safer to walk around in the biggest slum in Rio than it is on Copacabana Beach! Or maybe not. ;-)
  
• Have I mentioned that I love Rio?
• So far I have been to 2 dance clubs, both of which have been filled with young people dancing to all kinds of Brazilian and Latin music - and it's been AMAZING. Everyone here can dance! Really, really well! It's so much fun! People sing along to the music at the top of their lungs, laugh, play, make trains through the dance-floor, smile - it´s so much fun! The highlight so far: Being told that I dance like a Brazilian. Yeah baby!!!
• I could continue gushing indefinitely about this wonderful city. It's truly deserving of all the hype. But I shan't - I have to go out dancing now!
  

Amor e beijos!!!

Happiness is...

• So here I am, in Ilha Grande, an island paradise a few hours away from Rio. It´s GLORIOUS. Lush, green, beautiful, wild, wonderful.
• There are no vehicles on this island. Only boats, and people. And beaches, and mountains, and beautiful amazingness EVERYWHERE.
• Today was the first day of sunshine since we arrived 4 days ago, but I have met some amazing people in the hostel I´m staying in, and it´s been good to just chill out and hang around indoors - reading, chatting, sleeping, chilling...
• The travelers that come to South America seem to be a different breed: more mature, more grown-up, more well-travelled, more relaxed. There´s been a very communal atmosphere in all 3 hostels that I´ve stayed at in Brazil so far, and the one I´m in now feels like being in someone´s home! There are only 10 of us staying here, and the rainy weather has caused us to huddle up indoors in the communal area downstairs. We´ve been learning Portuguese together, cooking communal dinners, doing sudoku puzzles, having guitar sing-alongs, making caipirinhas together, hanging out. It´s been wonderful. I SO needed some down-time after Europe!
• And then today... THE SUN CAME OUT TO PLAY!
• We did a 3-hour hike up and down a mountain to the other side of the island, through lush, thick green vegetation to Lopez Mendez beach, apparently considered one of the most beautiful beaches in the world.
• And it IS. WOW WOW WOW. Powder-white sand, turquoise waters, green-green-green mountains all around. Just breathtaking.
• I love it here. I love Brazil. I love South America. Life is SO SWEET. I feel blessed and grateful.

Love you all. xox

Tribute to the Original Wild Child

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY DEAREST, DARLING MUMSIE-PIE!!!

• My mum is amazing. Any of you that have met her will agree. Those of you who have not, you may agree too! :) A true original. Ain´t no-one like her in the world.
• To the woman who spawned Wild Honey: I love you SO VERY MUCH!!!!!!!!
• My mum is the voice that I often hear ringing in my ears, proclaiming loudly in her Russian-Israeli-Italian-SouthAfrican accent: "Screw dem all!!!" It is she who has taught me to be free, to be fearless, to revel in the world, to enjoy every moment, to dance and laugh and sing with all of my heart as much as I can, whenever I can.
• My mom is the person who taught me to be kind to people, to always say something positive and make someone smile, to love with all of my heart, to believe in people.
• My mom has not had an easy life. She has had to bear burdens that other people could never imagine. She has literally come back from the dead. She is a survivor, a fighter, an inspiration.
• I hope that when I have children one day, I too will love them as she has loved my brother and I - unconditionally, always FULLY supportive, always encouraging us in every way, and bending over backwards to make sure we fulfill our dreams.
• I just got to Ilha Grande this evening - the most gorgeous Brazilian island - and I went out right away and bought some delicious Argentinian wine, which everyone at the hostel is now drinking in your honour, mummy.
• I love you very much, Mamulinka, and on this day of your birth, the 9th of October (every year! :) ), I dedicate my blog to wishing YOU - you glamorous, wonderful, warm, loving, strong and amazing woman - a FABULOUS year ahead!!!

MMMMMMMMMMWWWWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!

What´s in a name...?

• Some of you have commended my choice of name and web-address for this blog. As with most things in my life, they came to me on a whim, and seem to work perfectly.
• "Wild Honey" - the blog title - is a shade of lipstick that was amongst the prizes that I once won in a beauty contest when I was about 12 years old (Yes, I did partake in such silly things once. I grew up in a small town. You find ways to entertain yourself.) Anyway, I loved the name, loved the spirit of what it evoked, and always thought it would come in handy for something one day. Et voila!
• "Hurricane Honi" - the web address - is a name that I seem to have picked up along my travels. Go figure! Originally coined one drunken, debaucherous dinner-party night at the Bachelor Pad in London (my home away from home, where 3 of my favourite boys reside), I liked the ring it had to it. Shortly thereafter I met, and travelled with, a divine Japanese girl in Naples, and she started calling me Hurricane Honi out of the blue too! It appears to be a recurring theme. :)
• Onto other things: the weather seems to be changing. So tomorrow we're moving to Ilha Grande, which is supposed to be gorgeous. I´m currently travelling with a wonderfully sweet and chilled young English couple, and an uber-cool Californian guy. We all met in a hostel in Sao Paulo, and have been hanging together in Paraty, and tomorrow we all taxi-bus-ferry together to the next place. FUN!!!
• Finally, I`m obviously really new to this whole blogging thing. Any and all feedback will be HIGHLY appreciated. Let me know what you think, sign up, become a follower, give me some suggestions, sing my praises! ;-)
• Parting thought: there are few things as amazing as moments of raw, pure, beautiful human connection. Last night, while sitting in a tiny beach-hut to get shelter from the rain, and listening to the waves break on the shore, over red wine and honest conversation, my new friend turned to me and said "You know why I like talking to you? Because you make me feel like I´m not alone in this world." Wow, right? I love this world.
• And with that, I shall sign off.

As always, love and kisses to you all. x

WOOHOO!!! WELCOME!!!

Hello darlings!

I´ve finally done it! After months of thinking what a good idea it would be to start a blog, I have finally got my ass into gear and prepared a blog in which to record my adventures!

So... here we go!

On the 1st of October, I boarded a plane to Brazil. The South American adventure begins!

After landing in Sao Paulo, I realized right away that what I need more than ANYTHING at this point in my life, is... BEACH.

I made friends at the hostel right away, and a day later found myself on a 6-hour bus-ride to a little slice of heaven called Paraty. It lies between Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, and it is MAGIC here.

Exactly what I needed after the CRAZY month of September, which saw me race through London, Paris, Milan, Venice, Rome, Florence, Naples, Barcelona and Ibiza. WHOOP!!! What a month!

So here I am. "Tranquillo". It´s my new favourite word.

I´m hanging out with some awesome people, travellers and backpackers and people working in the hostel... Americans, Brits, Swedes, Argentinians, Italians, Kiwis, Irish, Portuguese... the whole spectrum.

Today we took a boat-trip around the bay. Islands and beaches, jungle vegetation, fresh seafood, blue skies, sunshine, good people... HEAVEN.

I feel blessed... happy... TRANQUILLO... :)

Love and kisses to you all. xxxxxxx