The end of an era

January 09, 2019

The end of an era

I’m currently in the midst of a packing nightmare, so I’ve decided to take a break and write this blog. It feels strange that this will be the last blog I’ll write in Brazil. The last six months have flown by, and tomorrow I’m embarking on my next adventure - 8 weeks of travelling, starting in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and working my way up to Lima, Peru. To say I’m excited would be an understatement.

The last few weeks have been a bit strange for me, as a week after Lewis left, Will and Tilly also headed home to England. At first, inevitably, I struggled without them here, as I spent most of my time with the three of them, but after a few days I got used to them not being around. For weeks before, I’d been dreading the Christmas period a little bit, because it was my first Christmas away from my family and I knew that I was going to find that difficult. However, as I’ve mentioned before, I’m lucky enough to have an amazing Brazilian surrogate family here in the form of Gabi’s family, and they invited me to spend Christmas with them. It turned out to be a really enjoyable couple of days, and I felt far less homesick than I had expected to, which was nice. As with any Christmas celebration, there was a lot of food (three different meats!) and a lot of drink, and it was great to spend time with such good company. A big thank you goes to all of them for making me feel so welcome in their family, not just during the Christmas period, but throughout my whole time here.

Christmas Eve with my Brazilian family

After the fun of Christmas, I had a few days to relax at home before I went to Rio to spend New Years with Meg and Francesco there. In Rio we did a couple of hikes, one to Pedra do Telégrafo, which was almost unbearable as I was nursing a hangover (turns out hikes help cure hangovers... after a lot of suffering anyway), and another to Pico da Tijuca, both of which offered spectacular views of Rio. New Year’s Eve itself was incredible. We spent it on Copacabana beach, at a bar run by a friend of Meg’s flatmate’s, and I’ve honestly never had a better NYE. The fireworks were breathtaking, and spirits were high as we saw in the new year. New Year’s Eve on Copacabana is definitely something that should be on everyone’s bucket list.

NYE on Copacabana

Now, as I said, this is my last blog in Brazil. Brazil will always hold a special place in my heart, in particular São Paulo. I’ve had the best experiences here with the most amazing people, and I couldn’t be more grateful. Six months ago, I’d only left Europe once, for a day, to go to Tunisia as part of a cruise. Fast forward to now, and I’ve lived in this beautiful tropical country, away from everything I was used to, for six months. I would never have guessed that would be the case, and I’m so proud of myself for having the courage to move across the world for a year. So far, it’s been one of the best experiences I’ve ever had, and I hope it continues to be. I feel so lucky to have been able to get to know this stunning country, and I know for sure that I’ll be back in the future. Spanish America has a lot to live up to.