On Monday, we finally got a chance to take a trip to the cute beach town of Praia do Forte. We told the kids (Christian and Hyrum) that the trip would be part of their birthday celebration because we couldn't really do a lot of presents that we would have to take home. We decided experiences were better anyway! It is about an hour and 45 minutes from Salvador, so getting there was a bit tricky. We considered renting a car, but driving in Brazil is for the very brave or the very crazy. Jonathon was willing, but we ended up calling our favorite taxi driver, Edson Jacaré, and he was willing to take us! He is one of the only drivers we have found that has a car big enough to hold all five of us, so we call him every Sunday to take us to and from church. We really like him because he is always on time (usually early), drives very safely, and is kind and pleasant to talk to. We have become good friends with him and meeting him really feels like a tender mercy so we didn't have to get two Ubers everywhere we went.
Edson picked us up at 9 am on Monday morning, and due to traffic, we drove the scenic way along the beach for most of the way. I was so happy to be able to see all of the sights along the coast. It was a beautiful drive, and Edson pointed out all of the points of interest.
We arrived in Praia do Forte around 11:00 am and found our hotel, the Eco Atlantico. We paid a little extra for a hotel that was very close to the beach, the village, and the turtle sanctuary so we didn't have to drive anywhere. We also wanted a pool for the boys since that is their favorite part of any vacation! It ended up being a great place to stay. They even allowed us to check in early and gave us connecting rooms. Two thumbs up for their excellent service.
After eating, we went back to the hotel and changed into our swim suits. Low tide was at 2:00 pm, which was perfect for us to go snorkeling. The beaches at Praia do Forte were kind of shallow and rocky. They weren't great for swimming, but they were excellent for snorkeling. We walked along some little rock paths to get out to the deeper natural pool where the fish gathered. In the small space of about 50 feet X 50 feet, we saw tons of cool tropical fish. There were so many, and they were so colorful! I was amazed at how good it was... some of the best snorkeling I have ever done. The fish seemed used to people, so we were able to be super close to them without frightening them away. We snorkeled for about an hour and had a great time!
After the snorkeling, we went back to the hotel and got straight into the pool. It worked out great to not have to change our swim clothes. The weather was lovely, the water temperature was ideal, and we were the only ones in the pool! We all swam for another hour or so before going to get dried off and dressed for dinner.
We headed out to find somewhere to eat and were greeted by an amazingly beautiful evening. The sky was really putting on a show with an array of purples, blues, and pinks. We wandered down the street for a while enjoying the cool breeze and the fun atmosphere. At the end of the main street we found a pizza place that looked delicious. They served individual sized pizzas, so we each got to order our own flavors. We had pepperoni, Portuguesa (boiled eggs, onion, ham, olive), calabresa (mild sausage), frango com catupiry (chicken with a soft cheese sauce), and carne de sol com bananas terra (salted beef with plantains). We split them up so we could try multiple flavors. They were all very yummy. After dinner, we decided to get dessert. Hyrum informed us that he had never had a milkshake before. What bad parents we are! Haha! We found an awesome ice cream shop with tons of unique flavors and toppings that could be made into milkshakes. Hyrum got strawberry/lime, Andrew had ouro branco bon bon, Christian had mint chocolate chip, Jonathon had sonho de valso bon bon. I didn't get a milkshake because I wanted to try several flavors, so I had a small scoop of coconut, dragon's blood, cereja (black cherry), and doce de leite.
When we got back to the hotel, we changed into our pajamas and watched a few episodes of Clone Wars. During our time in Brazil, we have spent a lot of time watching Clone Wars. The boys have wanted me to watch it for a long time now so that I can understand Star Wars better. Over the last two months, we have had a lot of free time, so it was a good opportunity to catch up on SEVEN seasons worth of material. The show is decent, but I can only watch 2-3 episodes before I start to fall asleep. They like to make fun of me for that! I don't LOVE the show, but I do LOVE spending time with my boys, connecting on their level, and watching them get so excited about telling me all the facts and storylines and how they fit together. It has been a tremendous bonding experience!
The next morning, we got to sleep in, which was lovely. Then we went down to eat breakfast. It was a delicious continental breakfast with an incredible spread of Brazilian foods. When we finished eating, we walked down to the Insituto Baleia Jubarte (The Humpback Whale Institue). We weren't expecting much from it because it was very small, but we were pleasantly surprised with how much we learned and how interesting it was. We had a tour guide that spoke English, so we could actually understand things. There were fun sculptures around the park along with a full skeleton. Our guide also showed us real baleen, a sperm whale tooth, and a huge snake in one of the trees. All in all, it was a good way to spend the morning.
For lunch, we stopped at a little street cart and got a coxinha for everyone. The kids said they wanted a small meal so they could have another milkshake. I am the mean parent and wasn't going to let them, but Jonathon thought it would be fun, so we ended up at another milkshake place for dessert. The kids thought they had died and gone to heaven to get milkshakes two days in a row. Jonathon and I got acai bowls (yum!), and the kids tried new milkshake flavors. Hyrum got maracuja/brigadeiro, Andrew had paçoca (a peanut candy), and Christian had oreo. What a bunch of spoiled kids!
When we finished our milkshakes, we walked over to the Tamar Project, a sea turtle sanctuary. It was right along the ocean, so the views were spectacular. Inside the center, there were a bunch of sea turtles of various sizes. There were some very large ones all the way down to brand new baby turtles. The baby ones were so cute! It was mostly about turtles, but there were also some manta rays and a few sharks. It only took about an hour to get through the museum, but we had a nice time.
We finished going through the Tamar Project right when it was time to leave, and just like clockwork, Edson arrived to pick us up and take us home. We grabbed our bags, hopped in his cab, and headed home. It was a great 2 days of stress-free family fun!
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