Ladell Cruise 2018: Paraty

In Rio, we said goodbye to the passengers that were leaving us after the first segment of the trip and welcomed onboard a new group that joined us for the trip to Cape Town or beyond. 134 passengers disembarked and 150 new passengers came onboard.

Our last stop in Brazil was in the coastal town of Paraty, just south of Rio. This Portuguese colonial town is a getaway spot for people living in the big city of Sao Paulo whose population is 22,000,000. Our ship dropped anchor a good distance away from the pier so we had a long, hot tender ride to the pier. The town is located a bay that is dotted with many tropical islands. Behind the town are tropical forests, mountains and waterfalls. The slips at the pier were occupied by colorful boats offering excursions for fishing, diving, snorkeling or cruising the waterways around the village. We elected to explore this sleepy town of rough cobblestone streets with cafes, art galleries and boutiques housed in old colonial buildings. Many of the artists were at work in their galleries creating and displaying their artwork. It was a very hot day and walking on the old cobblestones was tedious, but it was worth the effort to have experienced this laid back, charming place.

Colorful excursion boats at the pier

Colonial buildings with a mix of residences,
shops, galleries and cafes

Artists at work

We finished up our visit with a stop in a café for a cold beer and a caipirinha before heading back to the ship. As we cooled down, we reflected on all of our stops in Brazil. On this second visit to Brazil we feel that we deepened our understanding of the culture and diversity of this massive country. In addition to our shore visits, onboard ship we attended lectures about Brazil; we enjoyed local entertainment from musicians and dancers from Brazil; and we consumed drinks and meals prepared by guest Brazilian chefs. We've enjoyed a pretty in-depth immersion.