Full Moon Party
21 July 2005 (Thursday) – 22 July 2005 (Friday) – Canoa Quebrada, Brazil
We packed up and drove to Canoa Quebrada in the late morning. Marilia and Marcelo decided not to join us, oh well.
Canoa Quebrada is another beach, but a rather touristy one. As tonight is full-moon, we came here for the full-moon party.
We found a pousada for R30 which Isa and I would share the cost. However, Javier and Cristian could not afford it, and said that they would sleep on the beach. We inspected the room, there was an extra mattress and a hammock hanging outside the room. We were sure the owner would have no problems with the boys crashing in the room as well. But these stubborn boys just kept declining politely. Fine.
First, straight to the beach, of course. Wow, this is another fantastic beach. The flat sand area was wide wide wide. At the end of the beach were sand cliffs, brilliantly reddish under the scorching sun. All the restaurants and bars were located at the base on the cliffs. And the beach was so long, stretching into the distance.
We settled down at Freedom Bar, which had a huge banner with Bob Marley‘s face and naturally, it was constantly playing reggae music. This is the place with the full-moon party tonight. We were surrounded by happy hippies, both waiters and patrons or just permanent residents decked out on the beach forever who drink without paying.
Instructions on how to look like a hippie: First, grow your hair long and totally mess it up by never washing, never combing, in order for it to look like Medusa’s, dye some of the ‘worms’ in various colours, if you like. Don’t ever shower, you need to smell bad. Then, add the tattoos, bake under the sun for the tan, wear something with ‘peace’ sign or with the colours of the Jamaican flag, smoke some cannibis for the glassy-eyed looks and the silly grin. If you can, learn how to make ear-rings or bracelets.
The tide was coming in. As we lay there from noon to 4+pm, we watched incredulously as the waves came lapping up closer and closer to us. We moved three times to escape the waves. They came nearly to the edge of the bars and restaurants. No wonder the bars and restaurants were built on stilts. Finally, with no beach left, Isa and I left first to have something to eat.
What we ordered was too much and when the boys joined us later, we fed them the leftovers. They ate up the rest of the rice, spaghetti and beans enthusiastically.
Isa and I returned to the top of the cliffs to watch the rising of the full moon. OK, we were a little too late to catch it peeping out from the horizon, but still, it was only a short distance from the water, reflecting its bright light on the surface of the sea. Wow, what a beauty!! We stared at it in silence. I cannot believe it looks so beautiful. This was really special, as I cannot recall if I have ever seen a full moon being born from the sea before. Wow!! I really thank Isa for taking me here to this fantastic place to see the moon!!
Back in town, we found the boys trying out swimming trunks. Cristian put on one with the Brazilian colours – yellow and green – and with a Brazilian flag as well! He asked if he looked Brazilian. We nearly died laughing. Cristian, all lobster pink and dusty-blond hair… you look absolutely like a gringo!!!! No Brazilian in his right mind would wear swimming trunks with the Brazilian colours!!!!!!!!!
I could not believe these chicos locos (crazy boys). They had no money to eat but they were shopping for swimming trunks. Javier put one on and stared at the mirror laughing, thoroughly self-conscious. He kept tugging at the ends, saying that it was too short. This guy had swam in his underwear and now he blushed beetroot, trying out these swimming trunks.
Isa and I looked at each other, shook our heads and dug our hands into the swimming trunk selection to try and find something less horrendous for them. We clucked around like mother hens, deciding which colours looked nicer on whom, asking them to turn around for us to inspect the front and the back. Heh heh (naughty, naughty), they obeyed. We even thought of getting them matching trunks – the juggling twins in swimming trunks!
Finally, after destroying the store, they made fake promises to the saleslady that they would return with some money to purchase the trunks and we fled.
Later, Isa’s friends, Edilisa and Thiago, arrived and we drank some wine back in our room. They had brought along a bottle of cachaça and before we actually left for the full-moon party, I think they were already half-drunk.
At 1am or so, we returned to Freedom Bar and Edilisa, Isa and I danced to the reggae music around the camp-fire, obeying the lyrics to ‘get up, stand up’ and ‘go to the promised land’. Isa and Thiago even dipped themselves in the water. Wow, the full moon was right above us! This was great!!!
Edilisa complimented that I could dance very well, like a Brazilian, claiming that I have latin blood in me! Hey, a compliment from a Brazilian girl who herself dances very well, I was very happy to hear it.
After some time, I don’t know when… Isa and Thiago returned up the cliff. Edilisa also disappeared. Cristian somehow meandered to my side, asking if I saw Javier. Nope.
So, both of us hang around, danced and chatted. We made friends with Mariana, a pretty Brazilian girl whose friends had gone off somewhere kissing. The three of us lost souls had a really good time.
The waves were returning to the shore as well again, making the beach smaller and smaller. Mariana had lost one of her slippers. But hours later, would you believe it… I saw a slipper very far away from where she had lost it, very near to the edge of the water, just before it was washed away and I picked it up. I asked her if it was hers. Yes, it was!! She hurried back to her previous spot to retrieve the other one! Incredible!!
I finally asked the time – 4:15am. Wow, how the time flew! I guess there was only one thing left to do now – wait for the sunrise at 5am! We stayed and stared at the horizon which was showing a tinge of orange now. The thing about sunrise is that you could never be sure when the sun was popping up, so you just keep on staring at the spread of orange calmly and wait.
Finally, the sun came up! Great!! What a beautiful life this is to witness the full moon and now, this! Although I was definitely the only sober person around, I had definitely enjoyed myself. I looked around me. Many people had left. Some were still dancing away. The bar had closed. A few had passed out from too much drinks and marijuana.
Javier had joined us on and off for a while. Now, we found him sleeping right next to the campfire. We woke him and prepared to return to the pousada. While walking back, Cristian, now just barely coherent, asked, “¿Donde vivimos? (Where do we live?)” In a way, I had felt responsible for the boys – my baby brothers, so I stayed with them. I did not want to see them pass out on the beach, to be washed away by the waves, or to be robbed by some other drunk people. And I think Cristian had stayed awake the whole time as well, to watch out for me. Sweet. I led them back to the pousada. Cristian dragged out the extra mattress and fell right onto it. Javier still had the presence of mind to brush his teeth, before collapsing in the hammock outside!!!
Later that day, after Isa had returned to sleep for a while, we bid farewells to the boys, for they wanted to stay on at Canoa and Isa and I were heading back to Fortaleza.
Wow, how the time had flown! Isa had already spent 1 week with them and she felt awful saying good-byes. She is so sensitive. I looked at the boys, with their 8 pieces of luggage, dishevelled hair, smelly clothes and no money, and could not help but compare them to Che Guevara and his buddy in the movie ‘The Motorcycle Diaries‘. Javier, the handsome, intense one would be Che Guevara and Cristian, his goofy buddy. Tchau, chicos!! Nos vemos en Buenos Aires! (Goodbye, boys!! We see each other in Buenos Aires!)
Tags: 03) The Land of the Spirits
swesn