Thursday, November 15, 2012

The Octopus in Brazil

First of all, I would like to mention that taking three back to back flights to get to Florianopolis, Brazil was possibly not the greatest idea in the world.  That was a VERY long day.

However...

I made it!  Waking up in Brazil the next morning was amazing, I had a lovely view of the ocean from my window.  Most days we had beautiful sunrises, which made the fact that we were getting up at 6:30 slightly less painful.  That being said, the early wakeup calls were worth it, because I had a fantastic time at the conference.

I know that the idea of a room full of scientists studying cephalopods would not be an exciting prospect for many individuals, but I was in my element!  There were some amazing presentations of the work being done in cephalopod research right now, including some amazing video footage of rarely seen species from the deep-sea.  I gave a 15 minute talk about my study species, which went really well.  I received many compliments from people whom I look up to in the scientific community.  We finished the conference with a closing gala dinner, which had a diverse array of food, and some Brazilian entertainment.

Despite the lovely weather in Brazil, I spent most of my time indoors, so did not take full advantage of the sun.  I did have a couple of days of being a tourist before heading back to New Zealand.  I discovered that Florianopolis is home to projecto Tamar, which rehabilitates injured Sea Turtles.  It was an amazing experience to come so close to these beautiful animals.

 I spent the remainder of the day wandering around Florianopolis, which is an island off the Brazilian coast connect by a bridge.  The city is full of tropic parks, sandy beaches and colorful buildings.

On the ride home, I had an overnight layover in Rio de Janeiro.  Once there, I stayed around the corner from the Copacabana beach.  One of the things that has always been on my bucket list, was to see Christ the Redeemer.  I was thrilled to be in Brazil, so I went to see it.  However, when I got there, the mountain was covered in a thick cloud, and I was told there was not visibility at the top.  But did I let that stop me?  Noooooooooooooooope!  I started climbing the hundreds of stairs to the top of the mountain, and eventually, the statue came into view.  After about 20 minutes of waiting, the clouds cleared for a brief instant, and i was able to snap of few pictures and enjoy the monument I had journeyed to see. It also has a great view of the harbor the city is built on.  I was also glad to meet some of the locals.

Brazil is a beautiful and interesting country to visit, however, make sure you know a little Portuguese before you go... it'll make the trip slightly less stressful.  For the most part, the locals spoke little English, but they were very helpful to tourists who obviously didn't know any Portuguese.

Thank you Brazil for a wonderful trip!  I hope the next time I visit I will be able to experience more of your beauty, and less of the inside of a conference hall!