Historical/Background Info:
Rio Grande means “large river” in English. This is a port city in the very southern part of Brazil in the state of Rio Grande do Sul. It is one of the oldest cities in the state and was the former capital. It is the second busiest ports in Brazil. That and the petroleum refinery here make it a very prosperous city. The city was founded by the Portuquese in 1737 and a fort was built to defend Portugal’s territory in the south.
Rio Grande is said to have the longest beach in the world. It is approximately 160 miles long with sand dunes up and down the coastline. The inland is very low with a maximum altitude of 33 feet above sea level. As a result, it is savanna like in that it is made up of fields of low vegetation. The average high temperature during summer (Jan, Feb, & Mar) is 80F. During winter months it averages low 60’s. There is a lot of agriculture here in southern Brazil which includes: corn, soybeans, wheat, rice, cattle, and sheep for wool. In 2012 there were a lot of new John Deere combines lined up on the dock. None this year. The city actually has a population of nearly 200,000 but where I was today in the old part you would never know it. I actually liked this port!
What We Did Last Night:
What We Did Today:
OOPS! I said yesterday that we would be having a sea day today. Well, I was half right as we did not arrive here until 1:00 pm. Did our usual morning routine: up at 8:00, room service breakfast at 8:30, online for couple hours, tried to workout but fitness center was full, and then it was time for lunch. Featured at pool buffet today is "South American BBQ". I usually get the pool buffet food and take it into the air conditioned La Veranda restaurant. They have another buffet in there too which Rebecca usually frequents. Rebecca was NOT happy because now only 2 of the normal 4 treadmills are operational.
Ok, we are now in Brazil and will be visiting its ports for the next three weeks. The places we will be visiting are, with a few exceptions, very small with limited services and things to see. For example today there is only one excursion available, "Sights of Rio Grande". We turned our tour tickets in as Rebecca does not want to go outside in the heat. Besides, we did this tour back in 2012. Took our Captain forever to get this thing docked. You can tell she is a brand new Captain-very cautious.
I took the first shuttle bus into town at 1:30. The old part of town is not that far but bus had to drive slowly on rough streets. It was actually not that hot in town today. Forecast was to be in high 90's but is only in low 80's. I walked around for over an hour snapping some photos which I will attach the link to at the end of this. I stopped in a little shop to get a Fanta soda (I love them). The Brazilian currency is the "real" and 4 is equal to $1. The two ladies did not speak English but I managed to get them to accept $1 US for a Fanta. Then all I had was $5 bills. I really did not want "Real" in change so said "No abrigada" (no thank you in English) and started to walk out. They called me back and were going to give the Fanta to me for free. I gave them a $5 and now I have some Real. How nice was that of them!!! It made my day and now I can tell this great story tonight at dinner. Besides I will be in Brazil for 3 weeks so can certainly use the Real later.
I got back to ship around 3:00 pm and Rebecca was still working out. She also did a load of laundry since the laundrettes are open again. She does not like the ship to do her "stuff". We get free laundry so I let them do mine!! Good News! The gastro-intestinal problem is officially gone so now the ship is back to normal. I can have canapes with my cocktails again in the lounges. We can serve ourselves at the buffets. Yea!
This evening we will again be joining the Carlson's and Zito's at 7:00 for dinner in Prime 7. Tonight's show features a flute player, Suzaane Godfrey (that's the way she spells her first name). This does not sound like our kind of show! Tomorrow is a sea day.
Here is link to today's photos:
https://goo.gl/photos/go82qmwfDPfdXAjA9
As a special bonus, here is link to photos I took here 4 years ago:
https://goo.gl/photos/PteHeuvzuLuHU5S67
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