28.10.09

Last day...before my 38 hrs bus-overland to Rio



Here our standard of sleeping-waking up with sunlight i
s disturbed, curtains that close out light and air-con disorient me, guests talking in front of our door....disturb me!!
It is a nice well run place in a beautiful environment...but still it' feels too 'civilized' after the days on the rivers.
After breakfast Julinho offers to take me on a horse-ride. He is already wearing the leather trouser protection of local peoes (guarda), the guaiaca(leathern revolver belt...empty) and has his knife stucked in the back of his trousers.
On the rear of the pousada we find other guests of Piuval and their guides, some of them we have already met before, waiting for the horses to be saddled by the peoes of the pousada. Like Julinho they all wear the leather protection on top of their jeans. I can't fail to notice that Julinho is the only guide that saddles his own horse (and mine) and helps in preparing the others.
We are a group of five guests, two guides, one of the peoes, Julinho and me. I'm the lucky one, speaking portuguese I'm invited to join the 'locals' at the front and participate in their chitchat. At least I try, I haven't ridden a horse since I was 14...and it doesn't always obey me. The men keep calling me but...I try to smile relaxed on my white horse and pretend I'm guiding it and not that he is guiding me.
The surroundings of Piuval are indeed very beautiful, we ride through lush green fields and enter a forest until we arrive to a wooden look-out tower where we have a rest. It is quite high and has a nice overview of the surroundings.
Soon we have to 'leave' the tower to another group of tourists. We climb down the steep stairs and continue our ride. We see some small mammals, two toucans and lots of other birds but take out the camera on horse-back would be too much for my miserable riding abilities...
After the ride we enter the grounds of Piuval again, and Julinho instructs me on how to unsaddle my horse, fresh him up with water and put him into the corral. I end up helping the peao and Julinho with the other horses too, grateful for the opportunity to be learning something new.
Shower, lunch and there we go again, direction Poconè.