Return to Brazil 2017

A constant fear of mine (in Brazil) will be robbery. Why am I still going? Because the country isn't all bad, I know that from my previous trip. It's about being careful where I go, being observant, not flashing possessions around. My 20 plus year old Seiko watch will be replaced by a Casio LCD or similar. Hiding a DSLR camera won't be easy. I can't put it under a jacket as.I doubt I will be wearing one. Perhaps a cheap.canvas bag and blend in with the locals is the answer. Even so the loss of a camera would be catastrophic so I bought a used model that uses the same batteries, together with another lens.

I thought I had better buy a new larger case. So off I went and bought one. It looked large enough but when I arrived home it was HUGE!  It dwarfed my old case. It was double the capacity which weighed about 16kgs when loaded. As I only have a 23 kgs allowance unless I pay extra I returned it and bought the next size down. However I am having second thoughts. How will I find space for all the tea I have promised people?  Six boxes of 250 teabags 6x5x3 inches. I will have to max out my hand luggage. On BA I don't think it will be a problem but  I am limited to 10 kgs on Brazilian flights. I won't be taking clothes for five weeks, probably 10-14 days as I hope to find someone to take care of my laundry and ironing. And then there's the spare camera....

With eight weeks to go, reading about a shooting (although common in Brazil) in a quieter area was rather unsettling. An English family were looking to buy water and mistakenly entered a favela controlled by drug dealers. They didn't understand the language and the lady was shot twice in the stomach. The location was about 6 Kms from the tourist resort of Angra de Reis which is between Rio and the town of Paraty that I will be visiting.  Paraty is about 100 Kms further south, quite small but according to my friends, quiet and safe.. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-40847751 Last Sunday I went to London to see a Brazilian film "Auto de Compacida". It was a comedy and the sub titles helped. The location was "The Grand" at Clapham Junction, less than 300 meters from where I used to live. An added bonus was a display by the London school of samba complete with an eight piece percussion band.  There are some photos (not mine) on Flickr: https://www.flickr.com/photos/...