Police Federal / Mauia
We leave with regret our Brazilian friends ... But we absolutely must get the extension of our visa.
At the "Federale Police" we are received by the same people as last time. An employee of Fabio takes our passports and starts to consult the computer then a few minutes later he asks us to sign forms that he countersigns also ... And here we are again in legality. But it is not a visa but a 60-day authorization to leave Brazilian territory.
We are happy ... Not for long ... Indeed our fellow traveler leaves us no respite ... The direction begins to shake strongly and makes a huge noise.
We stop immediately in front of a factory and with the help of a Brazilian a mechanic comes quite quickly. Christophe calls Paulo to explain the problems we encounter.
Marco, owner of the garage, gives us a summary of the situation. The steering rack is broken and he can change it.
There are two models that require him to disassemble the steering. To save time he sends his daughter to the spare parts seller.
We wait more than an hour for the tow truck that turns out to be a model for light vehicles. After a few talks, it was decided that the tow truck would tow the motorhome to the garage, which is 2 km away.
We are not reassured ... The direction can at any time freeze or break ... The minutes pass slowly ... But we are getting there ... We are in a dilapidated neighbourhood where everyone knows each other and talks on the street ... In addition, the streets around are steep!!
We position the camper on the sidewalk along the garage ... Employees immediately get to work .... It is already 5 pm and the store closes at 6 pm ... Once the stearing rack dismantled, Marco calls his daughter to give him the reference.
Seeing how laye itw as, we understand that we will spend another night in a garage ... It becomes a habit ... Some people like luxury hotels, others like "Bed and Breakfast", others like campsites ... Well we love the garages!!
We are surrounded by two crowded bars where music and customer discussions reach decibels that are hard to bear. Sleepless
The calm arrives after 1 am!!
At 9 o'clock the work resumes slowly. Yesterday in dismantling Marco found a defective part that he must replace ... At the end of the day, they have it machined ... It all takes time .
..
In addition, a thunderstorm is falling on the region ... We go on alert " Red " ... Heavy rains turn the streets into streams ... Fortunately we are parked at the top of a very steep neighborhood ...
Everything is up but Christophe is not reassured ... After a few tests and adjustments we leave the garage at 7:30 pm.
It is dark and we find refuge in a parking lot near the garage.
Itatiaia / Taubate
The weather is gloomy and threatening.
While waiting for the appointment of the 23rd, we decide to visit the oldest national park in Brazil.
"Itatiaia" is home to an amazing variety of landscapes, dense tropical forests with wild and rugged mountain peaks.
Most visitors head to the more accessible lower part of the park, where many short trails lead through lush vegetation to natural waterfalls and swimming holes.
We decide to hike the next morning because a fog settled in the mountain.
The summer holidays are over and we find ourselves practically alone in this huge park.
Then we reach the small town of "Penado" described as a small Finnish colony. The city center, gathers about twenty houses built in a typical Finnish architecture, all in wood and painted in bright colors.
Unfortunately we arrive in a dead city ... Almost all the shops, restaurants and hotels are closed, we do not stay there.
Since a few days we hear a small clatter in the engine, which leads us to return to Taubaté under the rain.
The next day, Christophe and Paulo go to a garage. The mechanic is rather reassuring but he cannot take charge of our companion, his schedule being overloaded.
Last evening with Juliani and Paulo and dinner in a very original Japanese restaurant.
For a fixed price you can order as many dishes as you want. This is not a buffet ... Armed with a tablet, Juliani composes us as the evening progresses our menu ... It is a real treat.
Taubate
Since January 2nd we are in contact with "Juliani and Paulo" who had helped us well during our concern for "ball bearing".
We send each other news and photos regularly and we always follow their advice on the sites to visit and the risks of the trip.
Passing by their house, they invite us to spend 2 days at home. The date was set for Sunday 18 and it is today.
Paulo tells us an easy route to reach Taubate from the seaside. It is an area of green hills and the 2 x 2 lane road makes it easy to travel... It’s the last day of the holiday and traffic is heavy.
We arrive just for the delicious lunch that we concocted Juliani.
We spend the afternoon discussing various subjects and among others on our visa renewal.
Paulo being a former high-ranking police officer takes matters into his own hands and inquires from his former colleagues. Several versions are given to him and finally he decides that the next day we go to the "Federale Police" to expose our situation.
For the evening we dine in an excellent pizzeria.
The next day, the four of us go to "Sao José Dos Campos" to the Federale Police. We are very well received and after greeting his colleagues Paulo explains our situation to Fabio who seems to be the manager of the service.
He takes our passports and questions the site dedicated to foreigners ... Finally, he confirms that we cannot obtain a visa extension... But he also found the solution we had obtained in Aracaju: To appear the day after the visa expires to receive a 60-day authorization to leave the territory by paying a fine of 100 BRL.
We leave reassured hoping that on February 23 everything goes as agreed.
Being in Brazil we take the opportunity to change the two front tires, because according to the other crews the tires in Argentina and Chile are extremely expensive.
We spend a pleasant day and evening with our friends.
Ubatuba
Bad weather makes us leave a day early.
Before leaving Paraty, we find an 8 kg gas cylinder that fits into our gas compartment.
Finally we will be able to camp normally without having to take out the gas bottle and install it along the camper.
On our favorite site we spot a gas dealer who would be able to fill our American bottles ... Once again this address is wrong!!
We find another address ... and "bingo" here it is possible ... Phew ... We leave our two gas tanks and we land at the edge of the ocean on a beach very popular with surfers.
In the afternoon we go back to get our two bottles ... A real relief despite an exorbitant price.
We return to the beach to spend a quiet night.
Paraty
We continue our descent towards the south still along the coast.
We are pleasantly surprised by the quality of the 2 x 2 lane road. The steep jungle-covered mountains along our route seem to plunge right into the ocean.
Paraty is our stopover for the next three days.
Small Atlantic port that was founded in 1667, following the discovery of gold in the mountains of Minas Gerais.
The city was quickly enriched by becoming the port from which ships carrying gold left for Portugal. For two centuries this small fishing port hidden at the bottom of its bay was the embarkation point for the galleon armadas in charge of conveying the riches of Brazil to Lisbon.
Since 1966 it has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The historic center retains its atmosphere of the past time and houses many white houses with colorful doors and windows. The cobbling of the alleys is so uneven, paved with all shapes and sizes, that it spoils the pleasure of strolling.
Torrential rains accompany our stay and we live to the rhythm of the clearings.
ROAD BOOK 175
Petropolis
We return to Petropolis to pick up our motorhome that awaits us wisely.
We take the opportunity to do the laundry.
Then the afternoon is devoted to updating the site, sorting photos and movies.
MAVROS ODYSSEE
