| In Brazil |
| Life Is
A Beach |
| by Robin Sparks |
| I am at Tartaruga
Beach, one of twenty beaches on the Buzios peninsula. In Brazil, going
to the beach is the raison d' etre - everything is planned around it -
and so when in Rome...
The long curved
sliver of sand is lined with chaises, umbrellas, and vendors who stand
with their wares waiting for today's tourists to be unloaded from the boats
pulling into the cove.
I sit at my
laptop placed atop a plastic table under a beach umbrella, and as silly
as this looks, out here where people don't even bring cell phones, I work
anyway, because it beats writing inside.
I look up
suddenly to see a boy emerging from the water carrying half a dozen platter-sized
fish on a hook. |
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| A small boat
bobs just offshore, its blue and red paint faded and peeling; white letters
on its hull spell: Helena Francisca, Buzios. CF. The boy returns to the
sea empty-handed and swims to the boat. I've been fumbling for my camera
all these seconds. He slings himself over the side, a man pulls up the
anchor, and they putter back out to sea. No photos. You'll just have to
take my word on this one.
Vendors approach
and stand aside silently waiting for me to look up. "Would you like
some gems". How about some beach towels, bonbons, necklaces, bracelets,
earrings, bikinis, blankets, rugs, paintings...? I look at each item briefly,
appreciatively and say no obrigada, to which each vendor replies softly,
"No problem", gives me the thumbs up, and a wide smile before moving on.
In this way, Brazil is way different from Bali where vendors hound tourists
relentlessly.
My friend,
Eduardo, an expat in Buzios, from Argentina, greets these beach vendors
day after day.
They are the
people who live in his town, they are his friends. Several are old acquaintances
from Argentina who were hit especially hard by the recent economic crisis. |
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| I watch admiringly
as the vendors approach total strangers in hopes of a sale, and I think
about the fact that they are doing this not so that they can make a payment
on a car, or add to their IRA, but to buy food.
And then I
look at me at my makeshift office on a beach in Brazil thousands of miles
from home, waves rolling in just short of my feet, a sea breeze cooling
my skin, powdery sand cushioning my feet, an aqua blue umbrella over my
head? Remind me please, to never, ever complain again.
The Best
Of Buzios Beaches
Brava
High on a bluff,
windswept, crashing waves, granite cliffs, grassy knolls, superb vistas,
few if any tourists. |
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Offshore
Resources Gallery
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| Argentine
expatriates sun on the grassy knoll above the beach discussing tonight's
River vs. Boca futbol match. One expat tells me jokingly that Brava is
the geriatric beach. Excellent restaurant with fresh fish brochettes, grilled
while you wait and the best fruit sucos in town. A young man gives massages
down on the beach. Surfers ride the waves.
Geriba
A mile long
horseshoe of golden sand. On cloudy days, the gentle waves fill the air
with mist. A line-up of beachside shacks serves up great food and drinks
including one new restaurant called the Fishbone, a classy place, open
to the sea, where parties are held every Thursday night. During high season
this beach is one big family dining room packed with tables surrounded
by friends and loved ones.
Ossos
It's the walk
to this beach that makes it spectacular. Begin at the end of the main harbor
of Buzios, go up the hill where you will pass an old church on your right
built in 1784. |
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| Beyond the
yacht club on your left, you'll see one of the best views of the Buzios
harbor with its dazzling toy boats. Fishermen row in and out of the harbor.
You'll also be able to see the stretch of Orla Bardot (named after Bridget
Bardot who made Buzios famous) with its boutiques and restaurants. As you
continue walking down onto the beach, you'll feel a change - you're no
longer in tourist town, but in Old Buzios with cobblestone lanes and classic
Brazilian houses (and prices to match - one house for sale has an asking
price of $600,000).
Aceda
To get here,
walk the length of Ossos Beach and continue up a steep cobblestone street
past modest cottages alongside massive mansions. Take a left turn down
a
dirt path and there you are. Stunning vistas of diminutive Acedainha Beach
in the distance, the open sea, and Aceda beach below. |
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Offshore
Resources Gallery
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| A rowboat
restaurant, sometimes beached, at other times floating near the shore,
is topped with a tangerine umbrella and serves up savory drinks and snacks.
Patrons wade through shallow water to place their orders. Vendors ply the
beach shouldering sizeable platters of fresh oysters.
Acedainha
Continue walking
the length of Aceda Beach and trek for a dozen yards or so on a dirt path,
past scalloped rocks that melt into the sea, and over a small hill. There
you are - face to face with your own Gilligan?s island paradise. With its
hidden wedge of yellow sand, rocks on which to sun, palm trees swaying
overhead, and calm, clear water for swimming, you'll feel like only you
and three or four other people know about this place. No restaurant here,
but no problem. Waiters hike over from Aceda Beach to take your order and
then come back to deliver. AMAZING!!!
Back On
Tartaruga Beach
I forgot to
mention that when I left the beach, it was with three paintings, one men's
wallet, and a bag of cashews, a headband in a psychedelic print, and several
pairs of earrings. None of which I needed. And all of which I probably
won't have room for in my luggage. But I grew tired of saying "Nao obrigada".
It felt downright good to say, "Yes, I'd like to buy one of those lovely
pairs of earrings." "Maybe I could use a wallet, - and - Wow, let me see
those paintings".
The following
is a list of articles that Robin has written for the magazine:
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Article
Index ~ Brazil
Index ~ |
