Itaparica Island

Ouf! Not sure we are very welcome. They look at us up and down as if they are trying to figure out what they can take from us. They are not smiling either. It’s not very Brazilian! We learned later that this Island had it’s moment of glory in the 1970’s when everybody including Mick Jagger had a secondary residence overlooking the water. Since then it has become a hiding place for thieves. As a matter of fact, a French couple had their backpack and camera stolen while walking on the beach the same day we arrived. However, there is a police office in the same building as the marina so that area is safer. As always, we need to be careful. We would go and have a drink in the restaurant area with other boat people every evening and no other serious events took place. Although, one night I found that the capairina was moving a bit more than usual. I assumed that the ants had invaded the restaurants supply of cane sugar and that’s how it ended up in our drinks. Since I was the only one around the table who was still young enough to see them and we were all on our second glass, we just kept on drinking. If our stomach wasn’t used to Brazilian microbes before, it was after this! We met the crew of quite a few boats like Grainedo, Ercolausa, Motu, Cachouera and Vahiné while anchored here. We will cross paths with them again later on in the same bay or even in other countries. The anchorage is good as long as the wind is not coming from the south-ouest. If it does, a swell will built big enough to give everyone on board sea sickness and the anchor might not hold. It’s a good place to fill up the boat with water and food while visiting the rest of the bay. There is a stream of mineral water that stops at the marina and the taps are connected to it. It’s also easy to take a mini-bus to get to the grocery store on the other side of the Island. It is one of the rare places where the visibility in the water is a few feet. Not clear but clearer. Enough to clean the shells of the boat. Other than the anchorage in front of the marina, we went to the east end of the Island. The guide says that there is a waterfall. It’s more like a small stream of water and that is only if it rained recently. It is however a nice quiet natural site. When the tide is high, it’s ideal to take a swim in the salt water followed by a fresh water shower.