Jan 22, Friday Natal Brazil
Fortaleeza at night as we departed
Today we arrived in Natal by sailing under a wonderful new bridge that was less than 10 years old...quite a sail in!
Sand dunes on the Atlantic Beach as seen on sail in.
Used boat sales?
We took a guided bus tour of Natal and drove through many interesting neighborhoods, some quite old and others I would characterize as "beachy."
Our guide showed us one street that was just for ophthalmologists and optometrists and shops selling eyeglasses and sunglasses. The sun shines the vast majority of the time in Natal and the citizens are encouraged to get their eyes checked regularly; skin cancers are common.
One of the stops was to the world's largest cashew tree (confirmed by DNA tests run by Guinness so it must be true!) which was nothing as I had expected. The "trunk" was limbs of various-sized diameters snaking along the ground and curving up towards the sky but there were hundreds of these limbs thrusting up through the sand so I can only imagine what that network must have looked like underground.
The guides showed us what the cashew fruit looked like and then the nut which does not look like the ones that come in the Planters can. A raised boardwalk meandered through the tree which was a great idea--it protected the tree from the tourists and yes, the tourists from tripping and breaking something. Can you imagine trying to explain that situation to your insurance company?
From there we drove along the beach and saw some people surfing until we reached an old Portuguese fort for a photo stop. Great looking beach.
Finally, we stopped for about 1/2 hour at a former prison that had been developed into a market. Each of the cells had been turned into a stall selling tableclothes, tee shirts, leather sandals and purses, and various other knicknacks that tourists love. Who doesn't love a good fridge magnet!!
from Natal, founded on Christmas Day,........cynthia
Fortaleeza at night as we departed
Today we arrived in Natal by sailing under a wonderful new bridge that was less than 10 years old...quite a sail in!
Sand dunes on the Atlantic Beach as seen on sail in.
We took a guided bus tour of Natal and drove through many interesting neighborhoods, some quite old and others I would characterize as "beachy."
Our guide showed us one street that was just for ophthalmologists and optometrists and shops selling eyeglasses and sunglasses. The sun shines the vast majority of the time in Natal and the citizens are encouraged to get their eyes checked regularly; skin cancers are common.
One of the stops was to the world's largest cashew tree (confirmed by DNA tests run by Guinness so it must be true!) which was nothing as I had expected. The "trunk" was limbs of various-sized diameters snaking along the ground and curving up towards the sky but there were hundreds of these limbs thrusting up through the sand so I can only imagine what that network must have looked like underground.
The guides showed us what the cashew fruit looked like and then the nut which does not look like the ones that come in the Planters can. A raised boardwalk meandered through the tree which was a great idea--it protected the tree from the tourists and yes, the tourists from tripping and breaking something. Can you imagine trying to explain that situation to your insurance company?
From there we drove along the beach and saw some people surfing until we reached an old Portuguese fort for a photo stop. Great looking beach.
Finally, we stopped for about 1/2 hour at a former prison that had been developed into a market. Each of the cells had been turned into a stall selling tableclothes, tee shirts, leather sandals and purses, and various other knicknacks that tourists love. Who doesn't love a good fridge magnet!!
Sail away from Natal
from Natal, founded on Christmas Day,........cynthia
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