Originally Posted by
B747-437B
This is an excellent suggestion and I had overlooked this property when doing my research. It is exactly the kind of hotel that my wife loves (as long as it is well maintained!). Thanks for pointing it out. I've tentatively made a booking here, but will keep an eye out for sales here or elsewhere that may improve the value proposition.
I myself prefer staying in Porto da Barra, since Pelourinho can get a little intense with all the movement and music, and I like to swim laps in the calm cove in the morning,....... and the breakfast room of the modest hotel I prefer has a killer view out over the bay. But the Convento is in a more tranquil part of the historic district, and I hope you both enjoy your stay at that lovely property.
Originally Posted by
B747-437B
Neither of us is white (Indian and African respectively) and we could both probably pass for locals on the basis of skin tone. We don't speak any Portuguese though, but we have traveled in Mozambique and Angola without any issues.
The "vibe" is quite different from Moz, but with your experience and background, you should feel more comfortable than some. Do take advantage of all the culture and history the city offers.
Originally Posted by
B747-437B
Unfortunately (or fortunately as the case may be), for unrelated reasons to this trip, I am not able to set foot in Argentina and my wife is unable to travel to Paraguay as her country of citizenship does not have diplomatic relations with them and hence they will not issue her a visa. Therefore we will be on the Brazilian side exclusively. We will arrive at 730pm on the Thursday and depart 11am on the Saturday, We're going to just focus on the Brazilian side of the falls (maybe the speedboat and/or helicopter ride) and maybe the bird park if we have time later in the day.
So you really have one full day. With any "extra" time, you could explore some less common sights, or enjoy the resort pool. The Brazilian side of the park takes about 3 hours to walk the path and take photos. The Bird Park takes maybe 2-3 hours. The heli ride is usually 10 minutes, plus any wait. The Macuco Safari maybe a couple of hours tops, including the so-called jungle walk, but afterwards you may want to return to the hotel to change into dry clothes. There's a mosque and a Buddhist temple, iirc.
There is also a boat ride up the river to a historic plantation house of scientist Moises Bertoni (who studied the Guarani indians, among other topics), if it's still running, but the place may actually be on the Paraguay side; it was interesting, but details of a visit long ago are a bit hazy