Cave Paintings and Big Rocks in the Sertão

Being beach people, we spend a lot of time checking out the various beaches in Brazil.  But there's a lot more to see.  We headed inland one weekend to check out the sertão - it's the inland area of the northeast - arid and dry.  We were lucky to be able to go with friends of ours who are not only scientists, but professors as well.  They explained and taught us so much - it was like having your very own interactive Internet professor with you - just awesome!







The place we went was called Lajedo Pai Mateus.  It is inland in the state of Paraiba.  The drive there is about 4 hours.  We first drove north from Recife and then cut inland to the west.  We passed through some small towns

and farmland.  There were the usual sugar cane fields, but also some other crops that we hadn't seen before.  We passed one farm that was growing rows of cacti.  At first we thought - tequila!!!!  But, never seeing tequila in Brazil, we then thought perhaps not.  When we met up with our professor friends we learned that the cacti don't have spines and they are grown as a water source when it gets really dry. Very interesting.




Heading west we passed the home of Havianas - Campina Grande. Shortly after that we turned south for a bit.  Eventually we turned off onto a dirt road for about 20 kilometers heading towards the town of Cabaceiras.





Along the road we passed some interesting birds















and saw lots of beautiful cacti and other trees.

There were cows, and lots of goats with bells on.

Eventually we got to the fazenda - lots of little cabins,

a big open patio, a pool,















and a wonderful shaded area with lots of hammocks.  Just the place for a nice weekend.

The construction of the hammock place was just like the mud huts that we'd seen on our trip to Maceio.

The cattle guards were very interesting and effective.  The spaces between the granite were quite wide.  

The next morning we went on a great hike.

Along the way, our friends found some cactus fruit for us to sample - yummy and so beautiful.



O. just loved this fruit!

They pointed out bushes to stay away from - lots of spikes.  Humming birds like to build their nests in these bushes as they are fairly safe with all the spikes.

And they showed us the plant with the exploding seed bombs. These aren't quite ready to pop . . .

There were big boulders along the way. Apparently this region is really ancient. Many, many years ago it was still above water when most of the Amazon region was part of the ocean.

Eventually we came to the really special part. First there was a hut that marked the entrance to the truly ancient area.

And then we crossed a dam.

On the other side, the rocks and terrain changed.  It was all ancient rock - and a different ecosystem.

We climbed a big granite hill that had large boulders.

The boulders were all so cool - like being in the town of Bedrock.

Up on top the views were amazing - you could see for miles around!




And the rocks were covered with beautiful lichen.

It's such an ancient place.

The rocks had their own special ecosystem with ponds and

dragonfly larvae.

The rocks formed different shapes - probably from glaciers and / or wind.

We found the place where the hermit had lived.

And also saw the cave paintings.

Lots of hand prints! 

It was a great trip!

Surfing with Dolphins

Over Memorial Day weekend, we had a chance to visit a town and beach that I've been wanting to visit for a long time.  Pipa is a small beach town two states to the north - in Rio Grande del Norte.  It's about 4 hours north of Recife.

Driving through the states of Paraiba and Rio Grande del Norte was just beautiful.  We passed lots of rolling hills with sugar cane,  rainforest (Mata Atlantica) as well as all the new factories that are being built for the booming northeast.  Eventually we came to the turn off town and headed over to the coast to Pipa.









Pipa's a small surfing village.  The primary industry is tourism so there are lots of little restaurants and art shops.

It attracts an international crowd so the restaurants have a wider variety of cuisines.  We were excited because we'd heard there was a Mexican restaurant, and a Japanese noodle place.  We tried them both and they were just fine.













Our hotel was great - right on the cliffs with great views of the ocean.

And wonderful beds to view the ocean, or the stars at night!














Pipa has 4 main beaches and we tried them all.  Our hotel was on a cliff above Praia do Amor.  It's the big surfing beach - lots of great waves and a whole crowd of surfers from the early morning on.

Our hotel had a long staircase down to the beach.















Our first morning we took a nice walk along the beach.

O. found some great climbing rocks.

And N. practiced her "crab dance"!















We checked out Praia do Madeiro - it's north of town and is in an ecological reserve.  It became our favorite beach - lovely waves just the right size, nice restaurants on the beach to get lunch and agua do coco, and dolphins!  When we were playing in the waves, we saw dolphins playing in the waves nearby.

We also took a surfing lesson!  Our instructor was Jean-Carlos and he was very patient and helpful.














We all were able to get up and surf a bit - although N. and O. got up the most.  Everyone loved it!  And, while we were out there surfing, the dolphins came over to check it out. They were playing in the waves about 20 yards from us.

The next day we checked out Baia dos Golfinhos (Bay of the Dolphins).  It's supposed to be the beach with all the dolphins, but we didn't see any - seems they were all over at Praia do Madeiro.










Baia dos Golfinhos has very, very calm waves and only a beverage guy - no food.  It's beautiful, but not as accessible as the other beaches.

To get there you have to walk around the point from the main beach - Praia do Pipa.  It's a nice walk, but you have to be aware of the tide schedule as the beach along the point disappears at high tide.







Praia do Pipa is the main beach in town - it has lots of restaurants and gets pretty crowded. The tide goes way out and exposes lots of natural pools.  It's nice, but a lot more crowded and touristy.