Camping in the jungle! (Dairy entry no. 2)

So we are currently on week number 3! We have just come home from our first trip away. We were invited by our friends here to join them for new years eve at their farm house. We did not realise it was in the middle of a jungle but my gosh that was the best experience we have ever, ever had!

My husband and I (look at the jungle behind us!)

We stayed here for 3 nights, their was about 15 of us all together, many of them did not speak a word of English, but still treated us like family. We were so welcomed by these new people who had never met us before, and that describes 95% of the brazillians we have met. You never have to worry about making friends if you're moving here!

In Brazil its quite common that a family own a little farm house that they frequently use as a holiday house, (we have since been to another families holiday home which was also absolutely gorgeous, photo below). But this farm house was in the middle of the Brazillian jungle! We slept in a tent as there wasn't enough beds in the house, and although that sounds absolutely terrifying - it made the experience so much more memorable. We swam in a lake (pictured below), our friends had to play super loud music out the back of their car to scare of water snakes! Again, absolutely terrifying but so so so so much fun.

(Where we were camping for 3 nights!)

(^^The other farm house I was referencing^^)

(^^ The lake we swam in! You can't see but there's actually a wooden walk way all the way up to that hut in the middle of the lake, and the hut has a floor too but the water was about 2 inches above the wood).

The trip was of course filled with lots of drinks and food, one of the most memorable parts of this trip was the new foods. To welcome us into their family, they slaughtered one of their pigs and one of their chickens, now that may sound barbaric to some, but remember this is a different culture to what you may be used to, and for them to do this was considered an honor. My husband helped to pluck the chicken (photo below) and even ate a chicken foot lol (photo below).

(^^My husband plucking the chicken!)

(^^ The cooked chicken foot.. which in some cultures is considered to bring you good luck once you eat it!)

We learnt of a new food which has become a staple in our Brazillian diet - pamonha! It is purely made out of sweetcorn, they mash the sweetcorn into a paste, add ingredients such as coconut milk, salt, pepper etc. And put it all back inside of the corn husk to boil (photo below). Getting to sit around the table and make this Brazillian delicacy made eating this food so much more enjoyable. The farm we were on provided 90% of the food we all ate, and that was the most magical part of the whole trip. (And by the way, fresh meat and vegetables are WAY more delicious than shop bought!)

(^^Process of making the Pamonha).

So we spent 3 days lying in hammocks, drinking and eating with new friends, listening to music, swimming in snake infested lakes, star gazing at the most incredible skies you've ever seen over night and watching fireworks into the new year. Writing this a few months on.. this was the most incredible holiday we have ever experienced. It will take alot to beat this! I'll include a few more random pics of our trip, enjoy!

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Love, Rose. Xo