March 2, 2025
PARATY, BRAZIL - The kickoff of Carnival!
Party is a small town backed by the mountains on Brazil's Costa Verde, between Rio and Sao Paula. Its colonial center is cobbled streets and 17th & 18th century buildings dating back to the Brazilian Gold Rush. The whitewashed church was built in 1722. The port was full of party boats that cater to the many tourist and dot the coastline. There are 65 islands and hundreds of beaches. The town was decorated for the first weekend of Carnival and many of our residents stayed in town overnight to part take in the festivities. Which kicked off today.
We took an uber out to Cachoeira do Toboga Falls and watched the more youthful slide down the slick rocks in a variety of styles!
Our Odyssey Crew is so talented and fun loving! They put together this hysterical video spoofing all the crazy things they observed this year catering to us Residents, in a special presentation of our 2026 Horoscopes! Watch all the way through to the bloopers at the end and hopefully you will see why we love them so much!
Don't know if you have figured this out about me - I love to Sail! I constantly scour the ports we are visiting, in advance, trying to line up sailing trips. I have a core group of friends on the ship that feel similiarly and several also scout them out and we share info and invites! Today was the Catamaran Taboo operated by Viola Moorea, owner Leo. We had several back and forths calls & emails - but finally worked out a morning session, for a 1/2 day, for 8 people. The wind and rain were a little temperamental, but we had a great time skimming over the crystal clear turquoise water in the lagoons of Moorea!
We have 3 days on this lovely island of Moorea. Day 1 we just went to the beach for the afternoon and this Piggy Momma held court! She was eating baguettes and then needed to cool down in water. Walked right through sunbathers, across their blanket and then plopped right down unfazed.