On Wednesday the 23rd of February 2011 at 07:00hours our hired car, a Fiat Dublo with 7 seats arrived at the Marina. Heidi and Udo (SY-LA BOHEME), Anne, Barbara Frank and I entered the car and off we went.The first 2 hours we drove through a green tropical landscape, but slowly the vegatation became brownish and suddenly it turned into pampas,totally dry. Hours later slowy the vegetation turned again into green and suddenly we arrived in the rainforest-what a beauty!! Our destination was the little town of Lencois, situated in the Nationalpark Chapada Diamantina which has the sice of about the Netherlands. The park is situated about 400 km just west of Salvador.Lencois was founded
at about 1850 when diamonds where found. But soon the mines where empty and the city fall asleep.Just recently tourism started and the whole town was renovated and redecorated and looks very beautiful. At about 17:00 hours we arrived at the pousada Vila Serrano (www.vilaserrano.com.br) which we had booked in advance. The pousada is situated in a tropical garden and each appartment is a little bungalow. The pousada is run by the swiss couple Chris and Sandra. We felt very comfortable from the first moment. Chris suggested we should take a guide for the different locations in the jungle.
The next moring, after an opulent breakfast we entered our car together with our guide Dida.The first destination was a huge Waterfall. To get there we first had to climb for almost one hour along the river over big stones. And then the waterfall Cachoeira - what a beauty, peopele where taking a bath underneath the waterfall, we had no time and turned back to the car. After an hours drive we arrived in front of a cave. We all got a helmet and slowly, some had a tourch, the guide of the cave had a big
gaslamp we went down into the cave. The dimensiones of the cave are enormous. and very beautiful figures which where formed by dropping water over the centuries. When we where back, a real brasilien lunch was prepared for us, everthing cooked on an open fire. We got chicken, beef, red beans,pumkin, kactus,manjok and, and, and of course beer and water. Each meal cost only 7,-€. Then we drove to a huge mountain, the last 360 meters we had to clim ourselves. At the top we overlooked a part of the
landscape, when we came back to the car, just closing the doors a very heavy tropical rainshower went down.
Later we went to a lake which was shining like silver due to white shells at the bottom. We took a long swim in the cool, refreshing water. Late at the evening we where back at the pousada.
Next morning we drove about 90 km to a swamp area called Marimbus, our guide Dida had ordered to boats for us. We took our oars and for the next 2 hours we paddled along the little rivers and lakes, This is the real rainforest, we saw a lot of colored birds. We had to stop at an almost dry river, walked at the very hot seabed then through a forest and arrived at an wterfall. 5 minutes later everybody took a long swim in the cool, clean water, I liked also to drink this water. After the swim we went to an 200 year old farmhouse where an opulent meal had been prepaired for us. Now it was a real hardship to walk back to the boats and paddle back to the car!!! But we made it.
On Saturday the 26th of February 2011 we drove back the 400 km to Salvador. We brought Anne to her airporthotel because her vaccation was over and gave the car back at 20:00 hours in front of the marine.