Olinda

After arriving in Recife from São Paulo, I hopped in a taxi to Olinda. First impressions of Recife weren't big - driving through the town at night it did not feel very safe and I was relieved to get to Mameluco Hostel and into bed.

The hostel is so nice - the owner Rebecca is really friendly and the space itself is really cool. There's a big garden with a nice chilled out breakfast area and mango trees which you can pick and eat.

In the morning I explored the town but I managed to forget suncream so my face and neck are pretty burnt and I now look like a typical gringo haha. I've also developed a bit of an eye infection too as my eyelid is swollen so I'm not looking my best at the moment.

Olinda is a charming colonial town but also a bit tired and run down with graffiti and rubbish everywhere. That being said, it's still got bags of atmosphere and some really artsy cafes and bars. In the evening I met some people from my hostel and we went for a few drinks around the town. This was so much fun as there are loads of different street parties with lots of live bossa nova music. We also got 3 beers for £2.50 - a bargain by anyone's standards.

The next day we headed into Recife, which is the capital of the state Pernambuco. We had been told about São Jose mercado - a market which sells just about everything including clothes, furniture, food and even animals. We had some freshly squeezed orange juice and wondered around the markets. After we crossed one of Recife's many canals and went for lunch.

After we went to Embaixada dos Bonecos Gigantes also known as 'the Embassy of Giant Puppets' which sounds really strange but it was actually really cool! They have human sized puppets which they parade at carnival and they are all made to be different famous people.

Then we stumbled into a frevo museum - I've never heard of frevo before but it's a type of Brazilian music and dancing popular in Pernambuco. There was a live band playing frevo music and and this crazy man got up to dance and was trying to drag up everyone else. Luckily we bumped into the two Brazilian guys who were staying at our hostel and they offered us a lift back in their car, instead of us having to get the bus.

Tomorrow we are heading off to Porto De Galinhas which is a beach place about two hour's drive from Recife. I've also arranged to go to a beach town called Pipa with another English girl I've met at the hostel. After that I will fly to Salvador for a few days before Carnival in Rio :)Read more