Friday, December 28, 2007

Day two - a ride on Maria Fumaça

A ride on Maria Fumaça was not in the plan - but thank goodness Paulo enjoys impromptu activities because this is too great to miss. While Lenira and I ate breakfast, the guys hustled up four last minute tickets and we started our day. One thing you have to appreciate about Brazilians is their ever-ready ability to have fun. This group started at 9:00 am with a taste of wine (not me - not before noon... too American) and a dance or two on the platform, then loaded up, waving and cheering and blowing mock whistles (this I did - remember when the trains passed by when you were a kid? Woo Woo!)
When everything settled down there were German singers, Italian singers, a comedy skit and, of course, more wine for entertainment. At about 35 minutes, the train stopped for a station break, photo op, wine and more music, then took off again.
There was one crazy moment when we had blocked a road crossing and a line of Semis honked and blew their whistle to greet us as we passed. Totally great fun, a good way to enjoy the back roads without having to drive.




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