Paradise. Or Fernando de Noronha

May I welcome you to Fernando de Noronha.

They allow 400 people a day come and go on this island. Because it's an ecological wonderland. And Mr. Broad and I are like, the shit.

The flight felt like we were entering some tropical paradise. Ya know that scene in Jurassic Park where they land on the island in a helicopter.

That's how this felt. Except for the lack of dinosaurs. And we were on a plane.

Yes I took a picture from the airplane window. Wouldn't you??

We stayed at a Pousada which is a hotel but more like a bed and breakfast. A nice pousada (Mariluisa spoke English!) where we met some great people. Now some highlights and lowlights on the food.

Shrimp Risotto. Pretty good. Also the LARGEST portion I have ever received. Was it that obvious we were American??

Mr. Broad ordered this one- spicy seafood pasta. Looked better than it was. The pasta was watery. Was it the tomatoes? The pasta not being fully drained? Not sure, but water in your pasta? Never a good thing.

These are Shark Balls. How could you NOT order them.

Note: They are fried balls made from shark. Not... ya know. Taste- Not bad.

Introducing the worst steak. ever. And the worst meal we had on the island.

Note to self: If you are surrounded by ocean. Do not order meat. If I hadn't stopped Mr. Broad from trying to cut the steak I think he would have still been trying to slice it. Ugh. Tough. Came with a lot of side items that weren't that bad (that is fried manioc- which tastes somewhat like a french fry).

We went off the beaten path (is that even possible in Fernando?) with some new friends we met at our Pousada. Go Canada! An ecological restaurant that specialized in Lobster. Uh yes please.

Again a meal that serves two people. Luckily this decision was easier for Mr. Broad and I.

Large and impressive.

Our new Canadian friends went with the lobster and shrimp (I think?) moqueca. They confirmed it was tasty but I think they had secret menu envy.

And Acai. (pronounced Ah-sah-ee)

It's a fruit that is now pretty popular and somewhat trendy superfood. The new pomegranate if you will. Tastes like... a slushy? Best with bananas and granola, definitely refreshing. Not the last Acai I ate on our trip...

And because why not. Mr. Broad walked by a Malagueta pepper plant. So guess who tried it. Oh the reaction was priceless.

But really. While the food prices were high, we were on an island. The real higlights was not the food but rather the views. Oh the views.

The highlights. Of the sights

We went snorkeling in this cove one day. Only 25 people allowed at one time. To preserve it and stuff. Mr. Broad was tempted to pee in this part of the ocean. Verdict is still out if he accomplished his mission.

We may not surf. But we can take pictures of it.

There main roads (there are like 2) are paved but the majority of the streets are composed of dirt. And rocks. Not like pebbles but large rocks. And boulders. That can kill you. So this is their mode of transport on the island, buggys.

We did a buggy tour and saw every 22 beaches around the island. Our cut, built, stoic, speedo wearing Brazilian tour guide took us around on his buggy. And he rode a sting ray Steve Irwin style while pointing out sea turtles.

Bad Ass.

*Took a boat tour around the island to see dolphins. Lots and lots of dolphins. More snorkeling. More views.

In case you want a break to go to church

It's like a Coronha commercial.

Overall Fernando went like this:

*Snorkel. Lay in a hammock. Drink crappy beer. Check out another beach. Snorkel. Drink more beer. Hammock. Meet people from your Pousada even though they don't all speak English. Drink lots of beer with them. Oh and apply sunscreen. Lots and lots of sunscreen.

In some order.

Note: Mr. Broad had to eventually tell me to end this blog post. Otherwise I could have kept posting pictures. But there are more. Lots and lots more. Because not all beaches look alike.

Check in at the airport.

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Less than 24 hours in Olinda

From New York to Dulles, VA to Sao Paolo to Rio to Recife. We got there.

Man, I love airplanes. What we do in order to use up airline miles.

"Olinda is the Greenwich Village for Recife." Hmm, Lonely Planet you have intrigued us.

Recife is a city in the northeastern Brazil (pp 2 million) and within it is a town called Olinda (pp 400K).

It really was a go between city before we could get to Fernando de Noronha because we. were. not. going. on an airplane again. For another day.

While we were really only there less than 24 hours, we did get some meals in and observe some sights.

Just in time for dinner on a Saturday night (Mr. Broad totally planned that one) we found a restaurant from his savvy internet research-- Oficina do Sabor. Ooh atmosphere.

PS- Thank you Google for your translator.

We ordered the pumpkin stew with shrimp and lobster for two. Presentation was Top Chef quality. There was a cheese melted on top too. Sounds interesting but it really worked. Or we were just hungry and lethargic.

Note: Pumpkin and Brazil. We noticed it a lot throughout Brazil; thoughts anyone??

Another note: Agreeing on a dish with Mr. Broad is harder than you would think.

Next up we walked the cobblestone streets. Plenty of history in this colonial town dating back to the 1500, it's now a UNESCO site. Oh and there's a huge Carnival there to rival Rio's in February.

However, we found to the street food section. It was as if Mr. Broad's name was being called...

First up a stop at an Afoxe club/bar. Man, we're so cultured.

Then as if it was late night 3am pizza (or 11pm in our case), Mr. Broad found what he was looking for.

Street meat.

Presenting... Acaraje. Something about a stuffed bean pate, shrimp, and lots of spices. And fried. This $2 dish below was easily Mr. Broad's favorite item he ate all 2 weeks.

Sorry for the spoiler.

The next morning we tried the ever popular Tapioca. Not exactly the pudding variety familiar in the dairy aisles in the supermarket.

It is a stark white pancake that Brazilians use and put either sweet or salty toppings on them. Eaten like a taco or crepe. This was a dried beef one with cheese.

Others not photographed included Chocolate and cheese; and Dulche de Leche with Coconut

Not bad, just a bit flavorless.

And sights.

You can see Recife in the distance. Pretty cool...

A church

Take a picture of a random Brazilian and you feel ohso National Geographic...

And again.

But seriously, I loved Olinda but it did not remind us of Greenwich.

People we met who spoke English: 0

Languages the church tour guide spoke: Spanish or Portuguese

Languages Mrs. Broad speaks: English

Worst tour of a church if you do not speak Spanish or Portuguese: Olinda

Number of times Mrs. Broad tush was pinched in the Afoxe bar: 2

Where the kids like to drink on a Saturday night: On the streets as if they tailgating

Number of times Mrs. Broad tripped walking up the cobblestone trips: infinite

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Brazil... And we're back!

What an amazing vacation! We saw numerous gorgeous beaches, lots of underwater wildlife, and accomplished plenty of relaxing.

I decided to blog about our experience over the next several posts and show you some of our food adventures (or misadventures...) but wanted to give you some highlights first.

So here you go, a fast recap of superlatives and stats.

Days on vacation: 16

Pictures taken: 1,190

Books read: Mrs: Broad- 6 (I ran out of books) Mr. Broad- 1/4 of a book. To his credit the book is called Gotham, History of New York til 1898 and is quite dense.

Bottles of sunscreen used: 2

Best reaction to Mr. Broad's pale skin when we arrived: 2 Brazilians touched his arm

Best overheard quote: "Man, if you want some good weed, you should come to the States dude."

Mrs. Broad's favorite quote to her: "You look like you are Brazilian because you are so beautiful." -a Rio taxi cab driver.

Mrs. Broad's favorite quote said to Mr. Broad after he was speaking Spanish to a Brazilian: "Uh, I don't speak Spanish, I speak English or Portugese." Said in English. Right...

Number of beach vendors that walk up and down the beaches of Rio: hundreds

Best thing to buy from a beach vendor : A piece of cheese grilled on a stick with oregano

Weirdest thing to buy from a beach vendor: A lace tablecloth

Number of one piece bathing suits we saw: 1

Worst Portuguese-English translation or When you should do more than just spell check: Explanation of a ruin was,"The General's daughter liked hanging out here and it put her at ease with her 'Dawns Syndrome.'"

Acronym that needs redefining: GLS -- For Gays, Lesbians, and Sympathizers. Umm, Brazil maybe we change that to Supporters??

Best jobs of people we met: A tie with a 1) Snowboarding photographer from Switzerland and 2) a guy that worked for the Brazilian FBI (the equivalent) policing the Amazon for drug smuggling from Columbia.
Uh, wow.

Best place to see a soccer game: Maracana Stadium. There is a moat around the field so fans don't charge after the game.

Worst place to wear a black top to: Maracana Stadium when it's the opposing team's colors.

Number of Phillies' fan we met: 2

Number of Yankees fans we met: 0 (Ugh! Seriously?)

Weirdest thing we ate overall: ??? You can be the judge in upcoming posts....

And the sights. Who can give a superlative to this?!

Olinda- a cobblestone town within Recife.



One of the many beaches from Fernando de Noronha

See that trail... that's how you get down there. Plus two ladders that go straight down 200 feet. Plus a lot of praying. A whole lot of praying.


Hundreds of dolphins we saw!


More beaches from Fernando de Noronha (there are lots of these but I'll try to cut them down on the blog updates). Notice how deserted they are...




Best place to watch a sunset- Jericoacara


Might as well ski down the sand dune...


And Rio de Janeiro

Scene from Ipanema Beach

Lots of coconut drinks on the beach


A poor shot of a favella


We didn't stay here, the Copacabana Palace

And of course, the famous Christ the Redeemer



More to come, don't you worry...

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The Girl From Ipanema

Well I am OFF.

A trip that has been planned for about 11 months (Airlines Miles how I heart thee!!). Before the Olympics and World Cup make it like totally popular. (because no one has heard of Rio before this??)

Mr. Broad and I are taking our foodie adventure skills to BRAZIL.

So have no fear. I'll be back. In November. Enjoy Halloween, The New York City Marathon, Day Light Savings and all those other things that happen the last two weeks in November.

Things I'm excited about in Brazil:

The dolphins in Fernando De Noronha

The sand dune beaches in Jericoacoaro. Here is their main website which took forever to load.

And RIO. We are going to this RIO. NOT this Rio. HAVE you seen City of God? Whoa.

Along the way I'm SURE we'll have plenty of pictures of food. Brazilian steakhouses, Brazilian nuts, and drinking from one of those coconuts. Yes. Definitely a coconut or two.

And on that note. While I have been signing my new/old favorite Barry Manilow classic in honor of the Rio beaches.

I found this I'd leave you with:




Or you can compare it to the original.

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Pictures of the boring turkey sandwich. Or Lunch.

B Bar and Grill

40 E 4th Street

Because the neighborhood Cosi is getting overrun as NYU's dining hall. And sometimes you want (if you can) to have an actual sit down lunch; Nikki and I went to B Bar.

Note; this lunch is over 2 different visits. Which means more pictures! And it was good. It's just a boring post. I promise.

Homemade Guacamole and Chips

It wasn't exactly your mexican place but had a wide variety of familiar cuisines. Including the familiar guac and chips. And plus guac is really like American food now isn't it? It was a nice quality serving of both chips and guac; and well I specifically liked that they had spread the guac spread throughout the layers of the chips.

Calamari Salad

The calamari was a bit too greasy and crunchy for my liking. But it was a "salad"...Uh, I guess?

Squash and Zucchini Sandwich with Red Pepper Cream cheese

Exactly like it sounds. A large sandwich that doesn't exactly look so pretty on the inside... but interesting flavors that makes up for a nice sandwich.

And the inside.

Why am I obsessed with taking pics of the inside of sandwiches? It's so not pretty.

Prosciutto and Mozzarella Panini

Nikki ordered this one; she said it was easy to eat and "not as rubbery" as some prosciutto.

Roast Turkey Club

Kind of your typical club sandwich. Large, and filling for a lunch.

Review:

B Bar is a good run of the mill lunch place. Pretty average with a very nice outdoor eating area. Ya know with atmosphere and stuff. Pretty affordable if you are getting a sandwich or salad (around the $10-12 range). But overall, just nice to get a sit down lunch. When you can sit down for lunch.

Rating: 6.5

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