Paraty

We are slowly making our way down the coast from Rio towards Sao Paolo and have stopped for a few days at Paraty, a small coastal village surrounded by fantastic white sand beaches and a gulf of small islands. It is a very old village with a historic section of cobblestoned streets, lots of small churches, whitewashed buildings and no cars. It was an important place during the days of Brazil's gold trade, since it served as the port from which much of the gold was shipped to other parts of the world (especially Portugal!).

We spent our first day here by taking a public bus a little further down the coast to an area where there are many secluded beaches. Some are accessible only by hiking trail or boat, so we chose the hiking option and, after just an hour or so, found ourselves on a pristine beach with barely a handful of other beachgoers and a few vendors selling drinks and snacks. We hiked still further to a beach which is even more remote - the occasional surfer and no vendors at all. A complete step change from the Rio's bustling main beaches. The day was very warm but the water was refreshing. Just what we needed.

Simon