I’m not easily fazed at this stage of my life, at this stage of the trip, and at this stage of this “WTF, world” we’ve all been experiencing over the past two years.
I realized it was going to rain in Ilhabela, so I took my umbrella out of my backpack.
I was told black flies would eat me alive, so I bought a tube of the ubiquitous CITROilha repelente against these nasty borrachudos as soon as I arrived. Unlike mosquitoes, they don’t carry diseases. And since they’re not mosquitoes, OFF! doesn’t work, apparently. So I ended up smelling like a giant lemon—and CITROilha dissolves nail polish!—but no bites.
I knew that most of Ilhabela would remain unreachable to me because you need a boat, a Jeep or a lot of time to enjoy trails and beaches on the southern side.
I fully admit I’m not a huge fan of islands in general. I’d take a free ticket to Polynesia, mind you, but I’ve been disappointed a few times with off-the-coast tropical paradise—there are no beaches in Caye Calker, for instance, and Utila was weird.
But I still signed up for Ilhabela after reading all the fine print. I’m 39, I’m responsible and I’ve been roaming around the world for 23 years now. I don’t mind getting out of my comfort zone, especially for just a few days, especially at the end of a trip, when it’s on the way.
I didn’t do much research. I just… booked an Airbnb and took the boat.
It was hot but pouring when I arrived. Undeterred by the weather, I grabbed my umbrella and went exploring. First good surprise—Ilhabela is very walkable with good infrastructures, like buses and roads. It’s hilly but you don’t really need to go uphill, you can just stick to the waterfront, there’s a sidewalk and a bike path. I aimed for the Centro Histórico, four kilometres away. It was a nice walk but the many beaches I passed left me puzzled. They were… small. Like, really small. The Centro was cute, though, with painted house and a blue church. It did feel a bit like Búzios with overpriced Ilhabela-branded souvenirs.
The following day was cloudy but not rainy. I aimed for Praia da Feiticeira in the southern part of the island, an eight-kilometre walk. Doable. This part of the island was wilder, more secluded… but again, all the beaches I passed were tiny, and so was Praia da Feiticeira.
Ilhabela is beautiful. Well, the scenery is, and it never looks the same because of fast-changing weather conditions. I found beaches disappointing, though. They’re just not that inviting to me. They look great in pictures but water isn’t that clean and they are… not super fun. I understand the concept of “secluded beach” and “wonderful setting” but I like beaches when they are playgrounds, beaches where you can walk, eat, dance, play, listen to music, enjoy some people watching or just go for a swim.
And these fast-changing weather conditions were driving me crazy too. It’s sunny. Oh wait, it’s not anymore. It’s cloudy, going to rain… nope. Ah, now it is raining. It’s just impossible to plan anything. I asked around for day trip excursions and the guy shrugged. “Depends on the weather. The boat didn’t leave today, for instance.”
“But it didn’t rain…”
“Yes, but it could have.”
Argh.
On the positive side, I ate really good fish at the comida por kilo and I enjoyed long walks.
It’s just me, mind you, most people love Ilhabela. One thing I’ve realized lately is that I like long beaches with waves and sand dunes better than secluded beaches with calm water surrounded by rainforest. To each his own!
One of the best parts of my Ilhabela experience was the Brazilian family I rented my place from. They lived next door and we got to know each other. The first day, they brought me soup and canjica (sweet porridge). The second day, they brought me a bowl of risotto with shrimp. Then I brought them cake. Then they offered strogonoff de frango. I bought them eggs. And we chatted, and chatted, mostly late at night because like me, they were night owls, all of them—grandparents, parents and kids.
This Rio-Santos road trip was a bit rough—small towns, secluded places, rain, poor public transportation… but it was a great experience because I (re)discovered the true power of the community. I’m usually pretty independent when I travel, but on this stretch of the road, I gratefully accepted rides from Airbnb hosts, tips, food sometimes. Most of the time, I knew I could count on locals to help out. I tried to help out too when needed.
Would I do it again? Not tonight—it’s 3 a.m. and I’ve had the night a bus trip from hell, more on that tomorrow. But I did enjoy the Rio-Santos challenge because I had no idea I would fall into a black hole full of wilderness between two major states and cities.