I ended up spending over a week in Curitiba where Australia finished their quick campaign. I had to rest due to cold and flu which I figure was a result of the long rides and more so the change in climates and temperatures for the past few weeks which I tend to struggle with at the best of times. The rest time was for lots of sleeping and watching matches at the comfortable hostel with a mix of others. When I finally left I took the road towards Capao Bonito to pay a visit to some old friends Claudinei and Luciana, two Brazilians I had lived in a share house with a decade ago during my first time living in north London. We had kept in remote contact over the years and hadn't spent time together for over five years and couldn't miss the opportunity when passing through Sao Paolo province. I took this memorable back road, riding hours on the dirt tracks through the hills between Apiai and Iporanga which brought some excitement back after the monotonous highway travelling I'd been confined to so far in Brazil.
Claudinei & Luciana who are expecting their first baby in a couple of months. I stopped for a couple of days on my way east to Rio.
Catching up with friends from home, Luca & Amy and Lisa for a break in pulsating Rio de Janiero, sharing an apartment, some tropical beach time, street cocktails and a couple of those silly all-you-can-eat don't-leave-the-table buffets.
High above the City of God at Sugarloaf, Copacabana beach to the left
Amongst 20,000 others at the Copacabana beach Fanfest to watch the Germany v. France and Brazil v. Colombia quarter finals in the scorching sun. Despite the music and dancing prior to the match, the Brazilians don't chant and can be very tense during their games even when leading.
From Rio I followed the picturesque BR-101 coastal highway along Rio de Janiero and Sao Paolo states, with brief stops in towns like this at Paraty. I was making slow ground trying to get out of Brazil before my visa was up, having issues with my back brakes which sent me back to Curitiba, camping at gas stations and getting lost in the poorly marked detours around highway closures. There was more hill riding and eventually I crossed into northern Uruguay for a couple of quiet days of deserted highways, laguna camping, warm encounters with gentle old men and peaceful towns before arriving in Argentina and Messi's home town of Rosario a day before the final.
