Well what a week we had last week! It seems that events are rather like buses – nothing for ages and then 3 come along together!!!
Wedesday
Late on Monday afternoon Francis (one of the marina owners) come up to me as I was on the way to the shower and told me that he had arranged a tour to the Volupia factory and surrounding area. This trip had been arranged before when we first arrived but we couldn’t fit it in so I was really pleased that there were enough people around to make it viable again. The down-side was the bus was leaving at 7.00 am!
Wedesday
Late on Monday afternoon Francis (one of the marina owners) come up to me as I was on the way to the shower and told me that he had arranged a tour to the Volupia factory and surrounding area. This trip had been arranged before when we first arrived but we couldn’t fit it in so I was really pleased that there were enough people around to make it viable again. The down-side was the bus was leaving at 7.00 am!
We all piled on to the 20-seater minibus at 7.00 o’clock and settled down to a journey I thought was going to be about 2 hours. (The distances in Brazil are always so long 2 hours is virtually next door!!) However after about 40 minutes we stopped at a roadside stall where we tried their ripe pineapples – LOVELY and another fruit I’ve forgotten the name of (I’ll check it out!) that looked rather like an overgrown artichoke and was not quite so lovely but I thought OK!
Back on the bus again for another 15 minutes and stopped again for tapioca and coffee. The café was meant to serve the best tapioca around and it was like a thick pancake made only of tapioca flour with a little bit of salt – no fat - and you could have everything in it from chicken to cheese to hocolate; together with a lot of other things I couldn’t understand! I had cheese and bacon while Chris had chicken, cheese and bacon. Boy, were they filling! I thought it was quite nice but Chris was not so keen. In most cafés here the coffee is served already sweetened and it can be quite difficult to get one without sugar so I’m beginning to think of it as another type of drink- one that’s sweet and hot and vaguely coffee tasting!
On the bus again and this time we arrived at the factory. Volupia is a brand of cachaça (ca-cha-sa) which is the alcoholic ingredient of the national drink – caipirnha made from crushed lime, crushed ice, sugar and cachaça. I think it’s lovely and really refreshing. (Surprise surprise!) We were having lunch here and as it was quite a small restaurant (with hammocks for a post dinner snooze!) and we were quite a big party, we ordered our food ( and drinks!) before our tour.
The factory was not quite as I’d expected – the different processes all took place in different buildings set in a nice grassy area! The sugar cane is only harvested between October and March/April and is crushed to a liquid and then distilled (both processes in British made machinery!). It is then passed into vats for the fermentation to take place which must be at a constant temperature of 25* - not an easy feat in hot Brazil so sprinklers are installed! It’s then aged in oak vats and finally bottled. Volupia has won a number of awards as the best cachaça in Brazil.
It was then lunch time with caipirinhas first and delicious food to follow.
At the end of our meal we realised that we had an observer, well in fact two, sitting on the fence and bushes nearby looking at us eating, were two small monkeys – mother and young we think – our first Brazilian wildlife!
So then a brief rest and shop (!) and off we went again.
At the end of our meal we realised that we had an observer, well in fact two, sitting on the fence and bushes nearby looking at us eating, were two small monkeys – mother and young we think – our first Brazilian wildlife!
So then a brief rest and shop (!) and off we went again.
We had another stop in a nearby town - Areia on the way home. There is an old slave house here with cells but unfortunately we arrived a little late and could not go in but it was a pretty town so we wandered round and then it was time to go getting back to the marina after a brilliant day out at about 7.30pm.
In addition to having seen some interior towns in Paraiba and the factory, it was really good to get to know some of the other people in the marina; 3 or 4 couples had only arrived in the last week or so and 2 couples were not French and could not speak any more French than we can! Luckily there were some really good English-speaking people on the trip who interpreted things for us.
Friday
At the same time as arranging the first trip Francis also arranged an evening trip to Campina Grande to see part of the festival of Sao Joao which combines with the Fiestas Juinhas, a celebration of 3 saints; St Anthony St John & St Peter.
Much the same group as Wednesday set off again in the minibus at 4.00 pm and with only a short beak for coffee (sweet again, of course) we arrived in Campina Grande. Our first stop was at a craft fair with loads of stalls selling local wares; leather goods, toys, ornaments and other items fashioned out of wood and metal, jewellery, home-made biscuits and many stalls of crochet, lace and embroidery and yes, I did buy somethings!
At the same time as arranging the first trip Francis also arranged an evening trip to Campina Grande to see part of the festival of Sao Joao which combines with the Fiestas Juinhas, a celebration of 3 saints; St Anthony St John & St Peter.
Much the same group as Wednesday set off again in the minibus at 4.00 pm and with only a short beak for coffee (sweet again, of course) we arrived in Campina Grande. Our first stop was at a craft fair with loads of stalls selling local wares; leather goods, toys, ornaments and other items fashioned out of wood and metal, jewellery, home-made biscuits and many stalls of crochet, lace and embroidery and yes, I did buy somethings!
Off again to another area of the city which had been closed off with a main arena and quite a number of smaller stages together with restaurants, bars and a few sideshows. It was quite interesting as a LARGE group wedding (probably 50 or so couples!) was held in the main arena and then the forro band came on. Forro is a traditional form of music and on the way there we had stopped for coffee (sweet again, of course) where a rather elderly trio were performing with an accordion, flat drum and a triangle which was really good but in the main arena the music was much more modern for a young modern audience. The other stages were a bit of a combination though and some of the dancers there were obviously dancing in the traditional way – very closely with their legs entwined!! I will try to upload a video in the next couple of days!! On the bus at 1.00 and home shortly after 3.00am!! |
I had thought that there would be more of a spectacle with costumes and a bit of display dancing to encourage everyone to join in but in fact it was more like a street music festival. Unfortunately we missed (we weren’t in the right place at the right time for an invite) a party held at the local yacht club where there was exactly what I’d been hoping for! Ah well, perhaps another will come up later in the month!
Sunday
On Thursday we had gone down to Brian’s to collect the gas bottle he had filled for us and he invited us to go with him and possibly a couple of others we knew from his BBQ, on Sunday to a place near(ish) Natal as he was going up there to fit the proto-type of his wind vane steering and autopilot adaption he had made to a sailing yacht there. Sounded good so we agreed and then asked what time – 5.45 am he said!!!! He wanted to catch the 6.00 o’clock ferry from Cabedelo across the river rather than going through Joao Pessoa (doesn’t save much time as it means travelling on lesser roads but a 20 minute ferry ride is a pleasant way to start a journey).
On Thursday we had gone down to Brian’s to collect the gas bottle he had filled for us and he invited us to go with him and possibly a couple of others we knew from his BBQ, on Sunday to a place near(ish) Natal as he was going up there to fit the proto-type of his wind vane steering and autopilot adaption he had made to a sailing yacht there. Sounded good so we agreed and then asked what time – 5.45 am he said!!!! He wanted to catch the 6.00 o’clock ferry from Cabedelo across the river rather than going through Joao Pessoa (doesn’t save much time as it means travelling on lesser roads but a 20 minute ferry ride is a pleasant way to start a journey).
We managed it in time and had a good journey up in his 4 x 4 with Michael (who HAD gone to the party above arggg!!!), a quick stop for breakfast –sweet coffee again and we arrived in Barra do Cuhnau (I think!) - about 2½ hours! It was a lovely riverside small town just on the mouth of a river with rocks and a sand bar at the mouth and sand dunes on the opposite bank. Our hosts Edda (m) and Edna (f) were really lovely and although Edna’s English is only slightly better than my Portuguese with the help of my handy phrase book we chatted away quite happily. |
Brian & Michael fitted the equipment with Chris looking on and we went for a test drive up the river before lunch. Unfortunately, this took quite a lot longer than Brain had hoped as it would not work properly so we had our lunch quite late!
Lunch was, however, delicious and after we walked back along the beach to where the boat was anchored. Brian had decided he needed to take the equipment back to his workshop so he and Michael dismantled it while we watched from the shore and helped carry it back to the car. Saying good bye to Edda and Edna we left at about 5.00pm. |
We were calling in to Brains daughter’s apartment on the way back and his wife Sylvia was there and we were invited in for a cup of English tea – lovely. Brazil against Peru (football) was on the TV in the first round of the America Cup so we had tea and then left at half time so Brian could see most of the second half once he was home!
We were back on board at about 7.45 after another really lovely day out.
We were back on board at about 7.45 after another really lovely day out.