Niteroi, Brazil

We sit to the side of the bridge and take turns blowing up the air mattress, 20 breaths at a time. It takes a total of one hundred and twenty breaths between the two of us. While one of us fills the mattress the other one takes turns knocking beach nuts into the sea with rusty mosquito zapper tennis racket that we found on the shore.

Ilha da Boa Viagem, Niteroi, Brazil

Today we’re going to visit Ilha da Boa Viagem in Niteroi, across the waters from Rio in Brazil. The island, which houses an abandoned monastery, has been blocked off for years. But we figured if we took a boat, we’d be able to access the island via a steep staircase cut out of the rockface. The island was a perfect fort, with steep cliffs and only two notable access points. One was completely boarded off and zagged with barbed wire, and the other, accessible only by boat was the stair.

But our waters are not the same as we’d seen them the last time we were here. On our prior visit, they were so calm and shallow that we walked across to the shores beneath the precipice. That’s when we discovered the first entrance was blocked off. We had to get to the stair.

Now, the waves were coming around from each side of the island and crashing together under the bridge in frothy fury. Eyebrows raised, we gave each other a sideways glance as we lifted our craft into the sea. We remained determined but slightly doubtful. A huge wave that seemed to come from nowhere crashed ruthlessly over the air mattress, soaking it. We knew for certain then that this would make an interesting ride.

To be continued…