River Preguiças tour



 I made two new friends dying today’s full day Rio Preguiças tour. The tour pick up was 40 min late, then the first time ever in my life our speedboat broke down which took one hour for a replacement boat to arrive. Everything else happened as intended, including 94f hot sun and 12mph wind. 


The speedboat travelled along the Rio Preguiças, one of Maranhão’s most scenic waterways, where river, dunes, and sea blend.










The first stop was the village of Vassouras, known for its seasonal lagoons that appear during the rainy months— dry now. We saw capuchin monkeys, who freely roam the area. I ordered a coconut to enjoy the juice as well as its meat. 


Our second stop was at Caburé Beach, a natural strip of sand that separates the river from the Atlantic Ocean. On one side: calm river waters. On the other: crashing ocean waves. It's a unique spot where you can swim in fresh or salt water—or both. We had free time to have lunch, relax, sunbathe, or take a dip.


Back on the boat, we navigated further to the traditional village of Mandacaru, and climbed up the iconic Preguiças Lighthouse for an unforgettable 360-degree view of the surrounding landscape—rivers, ocean, dunes, and green stretches of nature. Mandacaru also has stalls with local crafts, as well as refreshing treats like regional fruit ice cream and the Brazilian caipirinhas.


The return trip was hot and sunny. One of my new friends helped to get a local SIM card. It was hard to travel here without seeing eating Portuguese. My friend then left for his flight back to Rio, and I took out a juicy Philly cheese steak burger for dinner. 


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