Train Vitoria to Belo Horizonte
It was painful having to wake at 04.45. It was too early for the hotel breakfast. The taxi arrived and took me to the Pedro Nolasco station. The train didn't leave until 07.00 but I had to be there an hour beforehand. Once through the ticket checks the carriage was comfortable and spacious, two seats on one side and just one on the other, reclineable with 220 volt charging.
The train and tracks are owned by Vale, a company with worldwide mining interests and had been built principally for the transport of minerals. I would see many trains of 200 fully loaded mineral wagons pulled by two huge diesels. Most of the track was single with sections of double track to allow trains to pass and it was a narrower guage than the UK. The distance between Vitoria and Belo Horizonte is about 500 Kms in a straight line but the line takes a detour to the North passing the city of Governado Valadares making the journey closer to 700 kms.
Shortly after leaving Vitoria, breakfast arrived. Ham omelette, bread and coffee, I was so hungry. For much of the early part the train followed the course of broad, meandering rivers, later climbing into more mountainous areas. The journey, now a blur was 13 hours with frequent ticket inspections but costing only 105 reais, about £21. Lunch was ordered and I chose the fish which I understood would be steamed but arrived with covered in cheese.
Eventually the train pulled into Belo Horizonte just after 20.00. It had been a long journey but a great experience. My host had told me that that her apartment was only 300 metres from the ststion. I didn't fancy trying to find it alone so checked out Uber where the journey was quoted as seven reais. A táxi driver approached me and said the journey would be 20 reais. No way, I waited for Uber.
Nelma's apartment was on the 13th floor with a great view of the city. She had another guest, Ana, from the state of Ceará, Northern Brazil but I found her accent quite difficult to understand.
Fours hours later my body was still moving with the train. I went to bed.
The train and tracks are owned by Vale, a company with worldwide mining interests and had been built principally for the transport of minerals. I would see many trains of 200 fully loaded mineral wagons pulled by two huge diesels. Most of the track was single with sections of double track to allow trains to pass and it was a narrower guage than the UK. The distance between Vitoria and Belo Horizonte is about 500 Kms in a straight line but the line takes a detour to the North passing the city of Governado Valadares making the journey closer to 700 kms.
Shortly after leaving Vitoria, breakfast arrived. Ham omelette, bread and coffee, I was so hungry. For much of the early part the train followed the course of broad, meandering rivers, later climbing into more mountainous areas. The journey, now a blur was 13 hours with frequent ticket inspections but costing only 105 reais, about £21. Lunch was ordered and I chose the fish which I understood would be steamed but arrived with covered in cheese.
Eventually the train pulled into Belo Horizonte just after 20.00. It had been a long journey but a great experience. My host had told me that that her apartment was only 300 metres from the ststion. I didn't fancy trying to find it alone so checked out Uber where the journey was quoted as seven reais. A táxi driver approached me and said the journey would be 20 reais. No way, I waited for Uber.
Nelma's apartment was on the 13th floor with a great view of the city. She had another guest, Ana, from the state of Ceará, Northern Brazil but I found her accent quite difficult to understand.
Fours hours later my body was still moving with the train. I went to bed.
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