Day 7 - São Francisco Do Sul

 São Francisco is the oldest city in the state of Santa Catarina (founded in the early 16th century) and third oldest in all of Brazil.

My excursion today was titled “Highlights of São Francisco and Joinville” and included, in about a 4 hour span of time, a drive by bus of about 1hr and 10 minutes one way, to the town of Joinville where we visited the studio of acclaimed (I’m told) artist Juarez Machado, a (very) quick look at an old Cathedral (about 5 minutes, during a mass!) with multiple stained glass windows, a walk in the sun to an immigration office where we saw only the exterior of the building, then the long ride back to the terminal, load the “tender” for the second half of the 45-50 minute round trip ride to and from the ship. 

If you are a big lover of art, in its many forms, the studio tour was likely a delight. Once explained, I could grasp the intent of several of his paintings and other creations, but most of it was lost on me.






One of the highlights for some (those who were fast enough with a camera to catch it at 70 km/hour, which excludes me) was the spotting of the Scarlet Ibis, a bird that, like the flamingo, changes from the white of its youth to a bright red color due to its diet. By the time the tour guide alerted us to its possible siting, and explained about it, it was gone, having been displayed only briefly outside our window.

The tender ride today was longer, but much calmer. Tomorrow we will be docking in Santos (also, apparently known as São Paulo, the third largest city in the world (made up of 17 million people!)

Oh boy, a big city!

After my return to the ship, Alicia and I participated in a team trivia contest. Our team name was “Low Score Wins”, and we won!



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