Los Cabos Mexico, March 2019

 

 
These are emails I sent from Mexico.

Sunday, March 3, 2019
Corona time!
We arrived intact in Los Cabos, Mexico, at noon. About 85 degrees, a far cry from our snowy  Glide. By the way, we got email confirmation today that power was restored. Who cares?!
We did some walking exploration around Cabo San Lucas, drank our Coronas, had fish tacos, nachos, & tres leches cake (OMG!!!). We meet at 6am tomorrow with our guide & others for a morning & evening bird watching. The afternoon is ours, & the gorgeous pool calls to us!

Monday March 4
Day 2 in Cabo
We met our guide, Maria Elena, at 6am when she picked us up. She is about 40 & highly educated. She got her education as a cultural guide. She took many additional courses in subjects ranging from astronomy to geology. She switched to guiding, mainly birding, due to her passion for the environment. This area has expanded from 30,000 to 400,000 population in less than 15 years. The vital environmental feature of Los Cabos area is a fresh water estuary that has drastically shrunk in size. Partially due to a massive hurricane a few years ago, invasive plants that literally suck up water, & human development in the form of a marina. Anyway, it is a critical area that has the ability to draw a certain tourist group, namely us birders. There are some endemic species (not found anywhere else).

Estuary in Cabo San lucas

Maria Elena

Living expenses for the locals are expenses extremely high, Mexicans really need tourist tips. For today's estuary walk we had another couple with us, young & athletic & gorgeous. They were staying at an all-inclusive resort ( they have a butler!). Come to find out, they are from Eugene, now in Reno. Plus he has grandparents in WI. Both are surgeons with their own practice, wow! We hiked around the estuary for 3 hours, saw our target species. Had lunch at a local “pancake house” that had fabulous food. Here is a photo of my breakfast, chiliqueles with chorizo. Ron had “tostados Aztecas” which he said was delicious.

We came back to our hotel & swam & vegged out. Maria is picking us up for dinner at 6, then 3 hours of night birding.

March 5
Tuesday on the Ocean

Howdy,
Last night our guide, Maria, picked us up for dinner at 6. We enjoyed a great meal at a local restaurant. We had grilled fish, enchiladas, & Corona.  Tortillas handmade right next to our table. Then we picked up another couple from Winnipeg. He is a semi-retired duck hunting guide. This was a two hour hunt for night birds up a sandy road in a canyon. There was rivulets of water that she claimed was residual from the 2009 Hurricane Odille. It was a spectacularly clear night with all of the constellations in view. She has a green laser pointer that shows up great on the night sky. We learned all about Orion, Cassiopeia, Gemini & the Pleiades. We are at 22 degrees latitude, south of the Tropic of Cancer. We saw 4 great horned owls (the same one four times??). We returned at 9:30 after a short stop at very modern grocery store for Mezcal (tequila made from the heart of agave), Pepsi, & a gallon of drinking water.

This morning we spent 4 hours in a small fishing boat whale watching & pelagic birding. Our boat captain is from generations of fishermen. Maria is training 4 different captains to spot birds, be able to keep the boat on the birds, “chum” (toss out gross oily fish guts, etc. to attract birds to the boat). Most of these guys are old-school die-hard fishermen who do not understand birding.

We returned to the same restaurant as yesterday morning for brunch. I loved it & asked if we could go back. She was very agreeable. She had thought we might like a sushi place that also specializes in ceviche (gag me!)
This afternoon we relaxed by the pool. We also had some Mezcal. Walked to a restaurant a few blocks away for a late dinner. So far we are more than satisfied with two meals a day. Ron had pork mole & I had a pork dish with green salsa & black beans. We meet again tomorrow morning at 5:30 for a long day of hiking & birding in the Sierra Laguna Biosphere, a National Park at about 3000’. We get coffee on the way (we were instructed to bring a mug), breakfast & lunch. Return at 4.


Wednesday March 6
Sierra la Laguna, tamales & lost binoculars

Loved today!!!
We started the day with the most beautiful sunrise.

We drove around the bottom of the peninsula to the road that leads up into the Sierra la Laguna mountains. Our first stop was at the Tropic of Cancer landmark & rest area. We saw our first lifer of the day, grey thrasher.

Then we stopped for takeaway breakfast quesadillas & burritos. Not the overblown vulgar Americanized version, but small delicious ones. There we saw another lifer, Xantus hummer, sucking the nectar of trumpet flowers.

outdoor sink

We walked up a wash that had trickling water, saw a few more lifers, including San Lucas robin. After some more walks we returned to that morning’s cafe for a lunch special of beef stew. Not your ordinary idea of stew, just a savory blend of beef, salsa-like gravy, homemade tortillas, refried beans. Our dessert was barrel cactus candy. Yummy! I bought a bag of local Mexican oregano & sweet empanadas (lightly stuffed with cream cheese & brown sugar).

fig tree growing out of the rock

Sierra la Laguna vista

Ron & Maria in the wash

barrel cactus growing horizontally out of the bank

a lone hardy bloom in the wash

It was a heavy photography day. Since it was a long drive we got to know each other. Elena is divorced, because her husband is a typical Spanish male, & he didn’t understand her career as a guide who spent so much time away from home. Her neighbors gossip about her clothing (gasp! She wears hiking boots, technical clothing, binoculars, packs).
After parting ways, we swam at our hotel. For dinner we ate homemade tamales Maria brought for us. She kept them warm using two hot water bottles inside a cooler!
As I was packing my gear for tomorrow I realized I don’t have my binoculars. I think I left them in her car, which just happens to be a rental for the day. Hope she checked the car before turning it in!

Thursday, Mar 7, 2019
Todos Santos, carnitas, & binocs

First, my binoculars were found in the rental car by Enterprise & we picked them up this afternoon. I used a loaner pair for our excursion to the area around Todos Santos, NW of Cabo San Lucas. Beautiful sunrise over the whole area. We had 3 additional people today. Semi-birders & photographers. We walked down a private road where Maria has permission (her cousin lives there). Many of the endemic birds, all cooperating for the cameras. Next, we headed to a desert walking/biking trail. It was so beautiful as there were blooming aloe vera plants lining both sides of the trail.

morning inland fog

organ pipe cactus

 

barrel cactus blooms

bougainvillea

 

trumpet flowers favored by Xantus hummer

fan palm

faded glory

century plant

decorative painted skull at restaurant

We ate at a local carnitas restaurant, barbecued pork & tortillas & “salsa buffet”, about a dozen bowls of veggies & salsas.

tortilla maker

salsa bar

 The afternoon consisted of swimming, tequila, & siesta.

 
Friday, Mar 8
 La Paz & Pizza

Today was the last day of our tour. We had 3 other people, a guy from Gig Harbor, WA, who’s wife is on a women’s yoga, wine, & whale watching trip with 8 other female friends. One French-Canadian woman, part of a family group staying at an Airbnb, & the other one from yesterday. Ron was the only serious birder. Maria isn’t as strong on her water birds so she learned a lot from Ron. We were in La Paz, on the Sea of Cortez. It was a two & a half hour drive, we stopped for some birding & breakfast. Our choices were quesadilla, empanadas, or tamales. Ron loved the fluffy savory empanada. We had a driver, Ivan, who turns out to be a dive master & dive instructor who is self employed. He is the guide for any water trips, which include kayaking, snorkeling with whale sharks. Super nice cute guy. By the way, he also teaches diving in Alaska!

Sea of Cortez, La Paz

Maria Elena scoping

We ate local fish tacos for lunch.  Maria explained about all the mixed cultures in this region.  Fish tacos are prepared with temupra batter in the Japanese tradition.  There was an extensive salad bar including  tempura onion rings and jalapeno poppers.  We stopped at a working ranch for a bird walk. We  turned back after a short distance due to heavy equipment working the fields, disturbing bird activity.

Ron left his binoculars in the van this afternoon. Can’t believe it!! We put in a call to Maria, she said she found them already. We had a farewell dinner with her this evening & she brought them along. She took us to a pizza place in a residential neighborhood. She knows the owner. “Long story short” (her favorite phrase!) he is a local young man who was put through culinary school 5 years ago. He now owns 4 restaurants. It is built in his grandparents home, but it is so beautiful. Very rustic, wood burning (mesquite) oven, hand-hewn tables copied after his original pallet furniture.  Upholstered stools, trees growing along the outside walls, except on the inside.  The walls have wooden slats displaying many empty wine bottles, festive lights draped on every ceiling surface.  There were four pizza/pasta chefs in pristine white uniforms.  We had custom-made thin crust pepperoni pizza, Alfredo sauce & homemade pasta, & incredibly delicious salad (almonds, goat cheese, berries, romaine) & beer.   Everything was first class.


Too tired to do photos tonight

Saturday-Monday, March 9-11

Holiday Inn, San Jose del Cabo

We are on the last three day phase of the trip. We used Uber to drive us here. We found out this is an all-inclusive resort. It is on the beach, right next to the estuary that we visited last Monday. Had to wait two & a half hours until we could get into our room. We sat by one of the three pools & did some people watching. Ate lunch on the terrace, freshly grilled burgers. Then watched water aerobics, then a 90-minute dance show by the pool. Finally got into our room. Now we are relaxing at the other pool. Getting ready for a pretty sunset.

sunset view from our balcony

The start of a most beautiful day

This has been such a wonderful trip. The birds were beautiful, maybe 5 lifers. Many birds are our friends we know from the US. My favorite is the magnificent frigate bird. We’ve seen them before but they are really cool. Lots of great food, the local places were our favorites. How can such simple dishes be so flavorful? Quesadillas made with small corn tortillas, a tiny amount of smooth creamy cheese, & maybe a tablespoon of frijoles: my new go-to breakfast! Today there was a weather change, very breezy & a bit cooler. Like maybe 78 instead of 82! I had a margarita before noon poolside. Is this the life or what?! We are packed & ready for our 2pm flight out tomorrow. We’ll use Uber again to the airport around 11:30. After our last breakfast buffet of course!
And we have triple-checked every nook & cranny for forgotten items! Double-checked flights!
 R&P

BRAZIL OCTOBER 2018

October 9 Tuesday The beginning of our adventure!  We flew out of Eugene to LA, via Portland.  Everything went smoothly.  We did encounter a very surly taxi driver in LA, but did not let that deter us from our excitement.  We stayed at Super 8, a nice hotel in a creepy neighborhood.  But, let's face it, virtually ALL of LA is creepy.  Around midnight, we were woken up by banging at our door.  Ron peeked out the window and saw some kind of delivery guy.  We ignored it.  Creepy, right?
 October 10 Wednesday  We flew to Miami on a five hour flight, very smooth.  We had worried about Hurricane Michael,  the category 4 storm, due to hit Florida this day.  The captain assured us that we were outside of the storm vicinity.  In fact, we were treated to a beautiful  sunset, all lavender and pink.

After a two hour layover, we got into our very cramped seats, ready but not looking forward to the eight hour flight.  We ended up sitting in the plane for two hours before it even left the gate area.  So, our flight actually amounted to ten hours.
October 11 Thursday  We landed in Rio de Janiero at 8am.  Even through a blinding rainstorm on the runway Ron spotted a southern lapwing, our first Brazilian bird.  Customs was easy to navigate.  The taxi personnel inside the airport were quite aggressive, one girl practically leaping over the counter to get our business.  Our taxi ride to the hotel was wild!  We went across the city, passing and beeping and cutting across lanes.  The Windsor Plaza hotel is an oasis in the madness of throngs of people and heavy traffic.  Guards manned the doors, the staff were all professional, and the bellhop was dressed up in all his garb, including a little cap.  After exploring the hotel and rooftop pool and patio, we showered and napped for about two hours before venturing out. There was hammering in the walls all afternoon.   We walked the two blocks to Copacabana beach.  Too cool for beach goers so it was mostly empty.  We ate at a tiny open restaurant called El Cid.  Ordered risotto, which turned out to be loaded with chicken (Portuguese: frango) and veggies, a dish big enough for two.  Ron ordered fried cod balls, like round crab cakes.  Our appetizer dish contained olives, fresh-baked rolls, and quail eggs.  Once back in our room we rearranged the contents of our luggage and decompressed.  

Copacabana Beach

View from our rooftop patio, looking out to Copacabana Beach

 October 12 Friday   Despite noise from hallway and adjoining room  we slept well. The 7am breakfast buffet was so bountiful and beautifully presented.  After eating, we spent some time up on the rooftop patio, birding and looking out over the rooftops to the ocean.    The front desk called and said our driver was here, about 45 minutes early. Fortunately, we were packed and ready to go.  Our driver spoke only Portuguese, but you could tell he was a real character who loved his job.  He started communicating with me (as I was sitting next to him in the front seat) via Google Translate app on his phone.  I cringed at the idea of texting  while driving, but it actually worked out.  He explained that all of the families lining the freeways, roads, and streets turned out for National Children's Day, a national holiday.  Drivers would stop and hand out bags of candy and maybe some toys or money to the kids. We met up with Thomas who drove us the final five miles to the lodge.    REGUA ( Reserva Ecolo'gica de Guapiacu)  is  "the premier bird watching site in the Atlantic forest– one of South America’s most bio-diverse and endemic-rich biomes."   Thomas, the owner's son and hotel manager, showed us around the lodge, then hefted both of our duffel bags up to the second floor.  We had the best room in the lodge, with our own private balcony overlooking the pool.  Lunch,  served buffet-style, had about five dishes of local  foods. We were introduced to manioc, a  yam-like vegetable that is shredded, dried, and cooked with plantain chunks.  It basically looks and tastes like panko bread crumbs.  Cassava flour is also made from manioc.

Buffet table at REGUA

SE Atlantic Forest of Brazil, typical view

Rusty-margined guan

Tufted marmoset

Masked water tyrant

Common potoo

Rufus-collared sparrow

Hibiscus

Blue dacnis

Cocoi heron

Blond-crested woodpecker

Wanda & Denise

 We met a German couple, Helmut and Marie, who were staying as guests of the owners.  Helmut is 83, and his passion is studying orchids.  He and Nicholas (owner, and Thomas' father) traipsed the mountains around the Reserve  looking for new orchids.

That afternoon we swam in the pool, a beautiful gem.  The water looked crystal clear and inviting....except for the layer of "angel hair" green algae on the bottom!  We tried to not stir it up, but jumped  out  as soon as  it floated all through the water.  Even though our swim was cut short, it was so refreshing.  We must have been the only swimmers in a long time, because right after we left the pool area, one of the workers was right there cleaning it, performing a vacuuming and skimming miracle.  We were entranced by the two hummers defending their feeders: black jacobin versus swallowtail hummingbirds..    Kiskedees  talked all day long.

Great kiskadee

Brazilian tapir

 The property around the lodge supports five "wild" Brazilian tapirs.  The purpose is to reintroduce them into the wild, but the all-around feeling is that they are unlikely to  leave.  They have a good life right there!  Ron spent the afternoon on our balcony watching and listening to all the birds in the trees.  We were late for "Caipirinha Hour", a mistake we would not repeat!  When we got to the dining room, everyone else was almost done eating, there wasn't even table settings for us.  We ended up eating on the outdoor table, which was actually really nice.  Thomas served us our drinks, which are delicious.  Caipirinha is the national alcoholic drink.  This is a simple drink made with tiny lime wedges, very fine white sugar, served over lots of ice cubes and cachaca, a Brazilian take on rum that distills fresh sugar cane juice rather than molasses.  Ron did not care for it so I got to drink his share, too.  Yum!  The air conditioner in our room did not work, so Thomas found a powerful fan to use tonight..  I have the usual Chinese laundry spread all over the room and porch.  We are on our own for birding and exploring tomorrow.
October 13, Saturday  Breakfast served at seven, the usual buffet-style of all the meals served here.  Most breakfasts are basically the same:  a platter of tightly rolled ham and cheese slices, bread, some kind of sweet baked goods, cereal,fresh unknown fruit juice. Sometimes a plate of scrambled eggs and bacon brought out as an afterthought when everyone is almost done eating.  And the best coffee!
We always fill our water bottles from the never-empty five-gallon water dispenser in the dining room.  We got ourselves all geared up for a forest hike.  Long sleeves, long pants tucked into socks, hiking boots.  We started out on the "yellow trail", or wetlands trail.  We spent three hours in the bird blind (hide).  Everything we saw was new and exciting!  There were caiman and capybaras, the largest rodent in the world, about the size of a huge dog with webbed feet and no tail!  Red dragonflies, large yellow butterflies, and orchids falling out of trees.  The birds were quite spectacular, too!

Neotropic cormorant

Caiman

Capybara

Striated heron

 

 Ron was in heaven photographing and scoping the large pond.  It was quite hot and very sunny today.  When we returned to the lodge, the pool was sparkling and inviting.  Our air conditioner was working and we still had the fan.  After a huge thunder and lightning storm right over the lodge we slept very well.
October 14, Sunday  Noticed first thing that the pool is once again filled with debris from the storm!  We spent the morning at the lodge, relaxing and birding right from our outdoor dining table.  After lunch we walked  the wetlands trail, and it started to rain fairly hard.  We did not have our waterproof camera bags along, so we cut it short. No water that night.  Ron said I used it all up on laundry in the sink! In the middle of the night we heard all the pipes filling up again.
October 15, Monday It is so peaceful here today, only six guests.  Our guide for today is Kevin, a British  bird guide who is volunteering here at REGUA for a few weeks.

Kevin

   He led us on the Savannah Trail.  According to Thomas, it is an easy road walk (true) and only 3k (more like 5 miles!).  We saw 45 bird species!  We had a very nice time, enjoyed Kevin, and were extremely happy to see our driver come back for us!  Our lunch was delayed while we waited for the French Canadian birding group to arrive.  This group adds great pizzazz to the place.  Very friendly and fun, unlike the last two groups that were here. The rest of the day was spent relaxing at the lodge.
October 16, Tuesday Our expedition today is to Sumidouro, looking for the 3-toed jacamar.  Our driver is Alcine, guides Kevin and Adilei.  Adilei, one of REGUA's expert guides, did get us on 80 birds.  He was persistent and made sure we each saw every bird. He spoke only Portuguese but was able to tell us the English names of the birds.   We drove in a spacious and comfortable Mercedes van.  The good road wound up and down mountains on a sinuous route.  We made several birding stops of about fifteen to forty-five minutes.   We walked only around 2 miles.  The ride back to the lodge seemed longer than the ride there!  We stopped in Guapimirin for bathrooms and snack.  Alcine bought me a treat from the bakery, a manioc and ground meat fried pastry, very delicious.  This was the last evening with Chris and Dave (who we referred to as Dale as he reminded us of Dale Paulson!)  We bonded nicely during their stay.  Drank my caipirinhas a bit too fast!
October 17, Wednesday We walked the Wetlands Trail (Yellow Trail) this morning, and was it ever steamy!  We did see some good birds including rufous-tailed jacamar, and black-bellied whistling ducks.  We enjoyed a quick swim before lunch, ahhh!  A new birding group of British birders arrived in time for the meal.  Thomas had advised us there was to be a special barbecue today, which is why we opted change our off-site excursion until tomorrow.  The food was delicious, and there was homemade ice cream for dessert.  After dinner (empanadas, vegetable soup and flan) Ron joined Adele and Kevin for the giant snipe hunt.  They did see both the giant  and South American snipe, plus burrowing owl and tawny-browed owl.
October 18, Thursday Breakfast today was hilarious!  These birders acted as if this were their last meal, stashing bunches of bananas in their pockets!  We ate at 6:30 am, and the buffet included (Polly-made) ham and cheese paninis, bacon, grapes and papaya, and fresh coffee.  We drove with our young Portuguese-speaking driver in the Mitsubishi truck to Macae' de Cima, a private reserve in the cloud forest.  Took some awesome photos of orchids growing wild on the property.  Helmut identified them.

Oncidium marshallianam

Miltonia caneatum

Lime tree

 We decided to have Kevin be our bird guide rather than Adilei.  We thought the day would be more enjoyable with Kevin, and Ron told him that one lifer would be a good day!   The road soon degenerated as we climbed up, becoming quite steep and muddy.  We walked about two miles on the road in the high montane forest.  Once the bellbird started singing and calling, his bonks filled the air.  At the reserve the heavy mist turned into rain, and the wind picked up.  We actually wore our rain gear.  Various hummers were feeding from the flowering bushes.  There was a beautiful fruiting tree heavy with limes.  We had a massive lunch of sandwiches, granola bars, candy bars, nuts, sodas.  We got back to the lodge around 2pm and enjoyed another dip in the pool.  Ron and Kevin then birded the yellow trail.  We got our duffel bags packed for the trip back to Rio tomorrow.
October 19, Friday  As I made our breakfast paninis, there was a lively debate as to the correct way of making them.  Andy, a British  guide who now lives in Rio, and Kevin and I discussed the pros and cons of cheese on the inside or the outside, or both, and if there is ham allowed inside the bread.  We relaxed around the table, drinking coffee, enjoying our last day here at REGUA.  All the other guests left on their excursions.

 Ron spent a few hours back on the observation tower while I sat on the veranda.  Lunch was beef stuffed with sausage, rice, scalloped squash, watercress, and mango fruit salad.  We settled our bill with Thomas.  This included our five off-site excursions and drinks. We left around 2pm for the trip back to Rio.   My Fitbit  battery was not working properly and I tried to ask our  driver if he could stop somewhere on the way so I could buy a replacement.  Although he spoke no English, I know he understood but had no intention of interrupting the trip.  He dropped us off at our new hotel, Vila' Gale'. The hotel is situated in a tightly packed old downtown neighborhood, with all the buildings connected, on a busy street.  Ron had asked me not to look it up prior to the trip as he wanted something about it to be a surprise.  We pulled up to a pink building with lovely flower boxes on the front windows.    There was a doorman, valet, and bellhop waiting to help us.  Behind the front doors was another world,  a peaceful hidden oasis with  pristine marble floors,  and a massive outdoor pool surrounded by gardens.  Unfortunately, it was raining and  too cool to swim.

We walked a few blocks to find the electronics store, like Radio Shack, and bought my battery.  A few  blocks further we chose a restaurant.  Most of  the stores, bars, and restaurants opened directly from the sidewalks, with patrons mingling outside.  Many cafes had someone outside, calling to passersby to come on in.  We saw a large barbecue, everything smelled delicious.  We sat far back in, away from the street noise.  Ron ordered frango (chicken) stroganoff, a popular dish we had eaten before.  I ordered beef skewers.  As usual, the portions were massive and we should have shared.  I thought I had ordered the wrong thing because my plate only contained fries and farofa (manioc and plantains). Then, when we were almost done, my meat and chicken skewers and salad/salsa were brought out.  Then Ron realized he only had 55 reals, luckily our meal came to 54,50!  (about $14)
We got to sleep early, maybe 8:30pm since we had to leave at 3:30am.  We were woken up less than an hour later by loud partying neighbors.  No soundproofing at all in the walls!  The party continued all night long.
October 20, Saturday  We had arranged the night before for a taxi to the airport.  Good thing we got to the front desk a bit early because they thought we were going to the international airport (GIG).  We actually needed the domestic airport SDU (Dumont), so the doorman just hailed us a regular taxi.  Couldn't believe the street parties at 4am!  Hundreds of people walking around every block.  Vendors set up along the streets were actually selling alcohol.  The airport was not far away.   We were checked in by a very nice agent.. We ate breakfast at a quiet cafe, empanadas and juice and coffee (served in those mini cups!).  We arrived in Cuiaba' at 10:30am after a smooth flight.  We found out there was a one hour back time change.Taxis were lined up and the drivers were hanging  around. We tried to get a taxi to Taina' Hotel, but the driver instead called the hotel and asked for their shuttle service.   When our car arrived, they waved us over to it.  All were very nice and polite.  As it turned out, we actually could have walked to the hotel, it was right outside the airport parking lot.  We walked a few blocks to a buffet (what else?!) restaurant for lunch.  Very good food with many meat choices.  After lunch we slept for a few hours, feeling the effects of the short noisy night.  Texted Lelis that we had arrived, and made plans to meet in the lobby at 6:30pm.  We met Terry and Sally first, then Lelis arrived.  He informed us that Bobbi was delayed for a day, her Denver flight was cancelled.  She will join us tomorrow evening.  We walked a few blocks to the Airport Grille for dinner.  What an experience!  We started with the massive salad bar, which included many hot dishes as well.  Lelis explained churrascaria,  Brazilian barbecue. A token is placed in front of your plate, green side up.  Every few minutes the servers come around with large skewers of grilled meat.  If you want it, you use a small tong to hold on to the top of the meat as it is sliced onto your plate.  When you are done eating, simply flip the token to the red side.  We had a lively meal getting to know one another.  We arranged to meet for breakfast at 6am tomorrow.
October 21, Sunday  Breakfast at Taina' Hotel was a culinary feast.  Ron's favorite dish was a 4-layer chocolate cake. A festival of baked goods included pao de queijo (Brazilian cheese puffs), other pastry stuffed with meats and cheese, Italian bread wrapped around meat and cheese. Then then were  eggs, bacon, ham, panini makings, fruit tray, soup, various hot and cold meats, cereals, fresh juices. There was constant resupply from the kitchen staff.  Oh my!   Our driver, San (short for Santos) was waiting for us after. We rode in his meticulously clean Mercedes van.  The actual drive time to Pousada Pouso Alegre in the Pantanal took about two hours.  We stopped about five times at various birding areas.  A fun sighting was a male rhea with about a dozen chicks.  Almost every bird we saw was a lifer.   It was a wonderful introduction to the Pantanal.

 

Water hyacinths

 

Greater rhea

 Our rooms at the lodge were clean and quaint.  We met in the dining lodge at 7pm for the daily countdown.  Bobbi arrived after dark.  There were many guests, and it was a race for the food line.   Each group we met along this trip were basically defined by their nationality.  We joked that the tall Swedes, who were the first in line, had never before seen food.  Our group was last to eat.
October 22, Monday We met up at 5:30am for a bird walk around the property.  Breakfast at 6:30, more birding at 7:30.  Lunch at 12:30, another bird walk at 3pm, 7pm countdown , 7:30 dinner (we were not last tonight!), asleep by 9pm.  I will mention that the heat and humidity were like nothing we had ever encountered.   Even though there were few bugs and mosquitoes, we were vigilant about long pants tucked snugly into our socks over boots.

October 23, Tuesday Same start as yesterday, but after breakfast we piled into Luis's truck for a ride to the river.  It was a wild and bumpy ride.  There were two rows of seats bolted to the top of the pickup bed, and we held on for dear life!  As we drove through the woods on the narrow muddy road, the folks in front would yell "duck!" and we doubled over to avoid being slapped in the face from all the tree branches and fronds!

We stopped at the boat owner's house to pick up our river guide, a teen aged boy.  The boat was big enough for the 7 of us, but Lelis and the guy had to paddle.  The highlight was a family of giant otter swimming and playing.  After our bumpy ride back, we  showered and met for lunch at 12:30.  Then we had a 3 hour siesta.

Typical cerrado road

Tapir tracks

Sunset

 We met again at 4:45 for our bird walk, 7pm countdown, 7:30 dinner, 8:30pm night ride back in the truck.  We looked for night mammals and birds.  The first one we saw was a Brazilian tapir, then the red eyes of numerous caiman.  We saw potoo on fence posts and trees, lots of nightjar on the road, and a crab-eating fox.  Ron and Bobbi sat inside of the truck, hoping to photograph.  Lelis stood  leaning over the cab with a powerful light.  It was a thrilling ride.
October 24, Wednesday  Same start to our day:  5:50 bird walk, 6:30 breakfast (Swedes have left, so the buffet line is easier to navigate!).  Once again, I started the "panini parade" for our group.  Good thing it is a large grill  because there were four sandwiches on it at the same time).

Dawn

Caiman

We met up at 7:15 for a drive to a new trail.  However, it started raining hard so we cancelled it.  We continued our game of renaming all the birds.  The nun bird (all black with brilliant red beak) became Sister Mary Red Lips, then morphed to Sister Mary Hot Lips. 

Black-fronted nun bird (photo by Lelis Navarette)

  We spent the rest of the morning organizing, packing, napping and relaxing.  Oh yes, and itching! The dining room has the only Wi-fi zone, so I spent some time trying to send a voice file to MK so she could play the bird songs back to mom.  Supposedly, if there are too many people connected at one time the system slows down.  We joked back and forth to whoever was around that they were stealing our Wi-fi!
October 25, Thursday  Usual morning routine:  Up at sunrise, run outside to catch a photo, fill our water bottles from the communal jug, bird until breakfast.  There are certain elements at the buffet table that we have seen everywhere.  Always a platter of tightly rolled up slices of thin ham and cheese, panini maker, fruit, eggs (usually those appear when we're almost finished eating), beans, red chunky gravy, coffee  and juice. We had our last bird walk here at Pousada Alegre. After lunch we  paid up our "bar tab" and tips to Luis and staff.  Everyone else said they only needed 15 minutes to pack.  Good thing we had everything ready to go.  Ron has not feeling well since yesterday.  We both like a more relaxed pace.  We had a long ride in the van to our next hotel, Pousada Vento Sul (Hotel South Wind). Our rooms at the pousada (literally means a place to stop) are large and clean.  We each have a separate cabin, with a comfy hammock outside on our patio, a shared courtyard across from the dining room. A beautiful pool and patio behind the dining hall complete this paradise.

Hibiscus

   Our group of six are the only guests. We left the hotel for an evening bird search on the outskirts of town.  There was the most awesome gorgeous colorful 360 degrees sunset I have ever seen.  We were all turning in circles to see every angle.  Guess who forgot her camera??! Dinner was at an informal churrasco (BBQ) restaurant.  
October 25, Thursday Our 5am breakfast was a delight!.  Pastries freshly baked and hot eggs were perfect.  It was a first class meal.  Ron continued to feel sick so he skipped breakfast and our morning bird trek.  We walked a sandy road outside of town for about two hours.  There were some colorful and dramatic flowering trees and plants.  We did see some new hummers.  We went back to the hotel for a short break and Ron joined us for the next phase.  He had slept a bit and enjoyed sitting on the patio, despite a chainsaw working next door.  Lelis took us on a long slow walk (birder's pace) on a shadier road.  It is actually a bird sanctuary surrounded by beautiful homes set behind fences and trees.  A black and yellow grasshopper landed on my shirt to the delight of everyone.  We saw a small snake in the road.

Cerrado

Chestnut-eared aracari

Capped heron

Cattle tyrant

Scaled dove

Yellow-billed cardinal

Chaco chacalaca

Jabiru

Coatamundi

Bare-faced currasow

Bare-faced currasow

White-lipped peccary

 Our buffet lunch in town was fun.  There was a bottle with a spigot and small cups at the start of the line.  I assumed it was a special olive oil since all the other places we had eaten offered it.  So I told the others what it was.  They proceeded to pour it over their salads.  After tasting it I thought it tasted weird, and Lelis informed us that it was rum!  Of course I enjoyed drinking it up and everyone had a good laugh at their rum salad dressing!  Afternoon trip to Chapada dos Guimaraes National Park.  The area resembles Utah Canyonlands with red rock formations and steep canyons.  There was an enormous thunderstorm brewing as we hiked to the overlook.  We saw the magnificent macaws and parrots flying around the waterfall.  We made it back to the van just in time for the storm to hit.

Chapada dos Guimaraes National Park

Blue-winged macaw

 

Terry, Sally, Lelis, Bobbi

 After a short break back at Vento Sul we drove into town to the same restaurant as last night.  Ron was feeling somewhat better and enjoyed grilled chicken and garlic bread.
October 26, Friday After our  delightful breakfast we drove off by 5:45am.  

All this food prepared for our group of 7, set out by 5:30am

We were back on the red sandy road in the cerrado forest habitat, finally  seeing  the red-legged seriema sauntering up the road.  It felt like such a long walk, our backs were sore, and we were hot and sweaty as usual.  Next, we returned to the "shady" road in the nature preserve.  We saw many beautiful birds.  At the end of the road, just before we turned around for the walk back, Lelis met owner of a private preserve.  He told us to come onto the property to see the newly-hatched channel-billed toucan.  We did not see it.  

Barred antshrike

Green-headed tanager

We were so worn out that all we wanted was to get back in the van!  We made it back to Vento Sul at almost noon, got all our gear together, and checked out (after a quick cooling shower!).  We ate lunch in town, Chapada dos Guimares, at a fancy resort.  The huge dining room was open-air, high above  the vast forest.  The tables were marble, the waitstaff very formal in long black aprons.  Of course, our birding optics, including the spotting scope and tripod, took up an entire table!  Ron and I shared a plate of "fish belly", actually the deep-fried ribs of tuna, mashed potatoes with meat gravy, and farofa (manioc with banana chunks), and sauteed veggies.  Of course, I spotted the rum spigot right away, and soon Lelis presented me with a shot!  I joked that I would be done for, drinking in the afternoon.  We sat around the table for another hour, enjoying the cool(ish) breeze and comfortable chairs.  And each other's company also.  We then birded the grounds for another hour.

 

 Finally, we headed back to Cuiaba'.  Ron and I were getting antsy, wanting to be at the hotel and pack for our early flight out tomorrow.  It was turning out to be an eye-rolling event between us as the day dragged on.  Next stop was the city park in Cuiaba', Parque Mae Bonifa'cia.  Every city should have a park like this!  It was designed around vast walking trails with numerous exercise stations along the way.  There were lots of people running, jogging, and walking.  We birded (agonizingly slowly) from 4 until 6.  After a very quick shower, we totally unpacked everything and started repacking for the plane.  I had ripped out the butt of my pants the day before and used my sewing kit to make a passable repair.  I made the decision to ditch the pants in the garbage!  I loved those pants, they traveled with me to Kenya, Alaska, Maine, all over!  We met in the lobby for our countdown at 7pm, then walked back to the Airport Grille.  Tonight the place was packed.  It was so noisy that we had to shout across the table.  But we did enjoy our last event with the group, now that we had a handle on our packing.  After final hugs goodbye, we gave Lelis his tip in one of my photo note cards. I brought several  cards of  for this purpose.   They fly out tomorrow for their Amazon extension trip
October 27, Saturday We were up at 3:15am.  The shuttle trip was about 5 minutes long!  We ate ham and cheese croissants for breakfast.  The plane trip was uneventful, we even had an empty seat next to us.  GOL Airlines is a great company to use despite terrible reviews of their app.  We actually enjoyed the three-hour layover in Brasilia.  The airport is lovely and modern, and we found an empty room to ourselves.  The worst part of the day has been the increase of chigger bites and itching.  I don't have a clean pair of long pants, and it is embarrassing to show these red blotchy swollen legs!  Ron has bites also but not as bad.  Ron is so rummy that he walked into the women's bathroom!  Fortunately, there were no screams, just a few disapproving women waiting outside when he emerged!  The best meal ever at the airport:  McDonald's quarter pounders!  We saw a nun running through the airport and started laughing, thinking of Sister Mary Hot Lips!  We arrived back at the Windsor Plaza Hotel in Rio around noon.  We promptly crawled under the covers and slept for three hours.  After that we went in search of food.  One block away we found the perfect pizza place.  I ordered one last caipirinha (delicious!) 

The dregs of my caipirinha

and we shared a "chicken with cream cheese" pizza.  It was the best pizza we ever ate, with a delicate thin crust, tasty tender chicken, and a creamy cheesy base. 
That night we slept ten hours straight!
October 28, Sunday Can't say this enough, but the breakfast buffet was phenomenal!  We wanted to tour the botanical gardens, and we found out that our hotel offers a car service.  We arranged a late checkout. Our driver dropped us off at noon and agreed to return in three hours.  The extensive gardens were  beautifully maintained.  We toured almost all of it, and my favorite part was the orchid and bromeliad houses.  Ron loved seeing the toco toucans again.  We panicked a bit when we couldn't find our exit, but fortunately we had given ourselves plenty of time to make our way back.  Our driver came right on time.  He also drove us back to the airport at 4:30pm.

Iconic Christ the Redeemer statue

Channel-billed toucan

October 29, Monday After 36 hours of travel, we returned home at 11pm....full of new chigger bites we picked up at the botanical gardens!

Birds seen:
243 species
153 lifers