Outback Diaries on YouTube

I just realised it's been over a year since we (Jhow, Marina, Salma, Lucy and I) went on our amazing Australian outback trip, when we learned a lot about ourselves, nature, aboriginal culture, trips and friendship.

To celebrate, I finally put our "Outback Diaries" film on YouTube. Enjoy!

Part 1:



Click here to see Part 2

Brazilian Attractions

In the exact week Brazil is celebrating the Standard & Poor's raise of debt rating to investment grade, which can potentially open the floodgate for foreign investors - particularly big endowments, pension funds, and insurance companies that are restricted from buying risky debts - I came across an article talking about another of the Brazilian attractions: the Brazilians.

Two hundred years ago, José Bonifácio in his "Living Thinking" expressed the following about the citizens from my country:

"Brazilians are enthusiastic about beautiful ideals
They love freedom and suffer very little whenever they lose privileges they once had
Obedient to those who are fair, the enemies of arbitrary actions, they would rather be robbed than despised
Ignorant due to a lack of instruction, but talented by nature
With a brilliant imagination, they are therefore the lovers of novelties that promise perfection and nobility
Generous, but braggers
Capable of great actions, as long as they do no require a long attention span or constant monotonous work
Passionate about sex, climate, life and education
They take on a lot, but finish little..."

Recently, a research carried out for the National Tourism Company (Embratur) confirmed the uniqueness and attractiveness of our people. When foreign tourists come to Brazil for the first time, their main motivations are the beaches (31%), the climate (20%) and the scenic beauty (16%). When they leave, asked about what they liked best, some of the most common answers are the tropical climate (19%), the scenic beauty (22%) and the beaches, sun & sea (28%). However, the absolute leader wasn't showing in the expectations' list: 52% of the interviewed will miss the Brazilian people the most.

Wanna come along?

Perfect Easter

If Easter is about resurrection, I had the perfect long weekend.

It all started with the idea of visiting a charming town called Paraty (meaning "river fish" in the indigenous language tupi), 350km far from São Paulo.

As we started to read about the region, we realised there were a lot of nice beaches, waterfalls and hiking tracks around. So, why not staying at a guesthouse in the middle of the Atlantic Forest, 6 km from indigenous communities and close to desert waveless beaches?

Our guesthouse


The view from our room

Trekking

Wide smile after a refreshing swim at a waterfall

More pictures of our Perfect Easter

Old centre of Paraty

Paraty's pier under the full moon

Chimarrão, sun & sea



Great company for special times

The Noble Path

One of the books I read while travelling is called A fortune teller told me. It tells the story of Italian born Tiziano Terzani, a journalist in Asia who decided to follow the advice of a fortune teller from Hong Kong, who told him not to fly for one whole year.

The commitment changed his work profoundly: suddenly he couldn't cover breaking news, wars and unexpected events anymore, as it would take too long to get to the episode's site. Beyond that, the experience changed his perspective about life, places and relationships with others.

As Tiziano, I spent 7 weeks travelling to all corners of Thailand, Laos, Vietnam and Cambodia overland, taking old buses, crossing rivers and seas on boats and feeling some adrenaline flowing while on the back of motorbikes and tuk-tuks.

The fact that every trip takes many hours really changes things. Our commonly accelerated pace slows down and we appreciate the diversity and beauty of the landscapes around us. As well, our contact and conversations with people go much beyond a 5 minutes weather talk, once we have time to build trust and ask deeper questions.

If I would highlight one learning from this trip, I guess it would be the 4th Buddhist Noble Truth, which is the concept of Magga (or Middle Path). According to Buddha's teachings, Magga is the path leading to the cessation of suffering, consisting neither of sensual indulgence nor self mortification - and I would dare to say neither of religious extremism nor lack of spirituality; neither of government control nor economic single mindfulness; neither of deprivation of simple comforts nor empty advertising of goods; neither of lazy nor workaholic routine; neither of passiveness nor forcefulness.

Still according to Buddha, this Noble Path reveals itself in 3 steps: ethical conduct, mental development and wisdom. In my case, there's one thing I'm positive about: observation and reconnection to nature has a central role for pursuing such path, as for me there's nothing as tested, complex and beautiful as the intricate harmony of millions of years of dynamic equilibrium and constant re-creation. And nothing as calming and self correcting as the smell of the forest, the sounds of the birds and the sight of the underwater life.


Boat going to floating markets, Thailand

Communal breakfast in the NGO, Cambodia

Buddhist Monk in Angkor Wat, Cambodia

Waterfall in Luang Prabang, Laos

Life cycles

Behind its sophisticated, intellectual beauty, there is something profoundly simple, something archetypal and natural that reaches the heart without needing to pass through the head.
Tiziano Terzani, in A fortune teller told me, talking about Angkor

Some days ago I had the privilege of spending 14 hours (04:30 a.m. to 06:30 a.m.) in one of the most amazing architectural projects ever built by humankind: the ruins of Angkor, in Cambodia.

Erected between the 9th and the 13th centuries when the Khmer Empire was the main force in Southeast Asia, the temples (the only structures remaining, as the other constructions used less durable materials) were palaces of the ruling king-god. They commemorated Hindu, Buddhist and Animist figures (especially Vishnu, Shiva and Buddha) and had more or less the same general configuration: one main tower in the middle, various other towers nearby and a squared moat surrounding them. That's because the temples were the physical representation of the universe, where the gods sit on Mount Meru (the centre), amongst mountains and surrounded by the primordial ocean.

The uniqueness and richness of the details of the sculptures and bas-reliefs is unbelievable, as well and the grandeur of the constructions. Angkor Wat, for example, is 1,5 km X 1,3 km and its moat is 190m wide.

More than an isolated historical moment, Angkor for me represented the cycles of life: creation by a strong empire; fall of the empire and abandonment of the site; rediscovery centuries later (1863) by a French naturalist; partial destruction by the Khmer Rouge another century down the road; and finally the main symbol of a country, one that 1) attracts thousands of foreigners to visit Cambodia and 2) gives Cambodians a big reason for being proud, to the extent that they use the image on their national flag and the name in businesses, beer brands, guesthouses and any other possible opportunity.

This cycle feeling is especially strong in Ta Prohm, certainly my favourite site, where restoration was limited and the vegetation was mainly kept, showing that nature eventually takes over and life changes its forms, but never stops re-creating itself.

Sun rising behind Angkor Wat

Amazing architecture features in different temples

Giant tree taking over man made construction

Does tourism save or destroy culture?

Since I started this trip, one question has always been on my mind: does tourism save or destroy culture?

We all know that tourism interferes in the local culture: brings points of view from all over the world; injects money into the economy; stimulate constructions; demands the presence of ATMs; stretches business hours; puts a price in handicrafts and traditional arts expressions; etc.

Therefore, a tourist destination is more likely to have the presence of global brands, but also more money to support local cuisine and arts (there wouldn't be tons of Thai food courses in Chiang Mai or daily Vietnamese traditional dance performances in Hue without travellers). In the same way, it's very probable that the life of a touristic town be less simple and less community based; however, its residents will possibly have more access to goods and comforts than before.

In the book "Once while travelling", Lonely Planet founder Tony Wheeler - a travel enthusiast himself - brings up some interesting points:

The First World may have exported McDonald's, KFC and Pizza Hit, but we've brought back Thai, Mexican and Japanese food to balance those exports.

and

...it's very patronising for those of us in the developed world to think people should maintain a simples life to please us: 'It was so nice when you didn't have electricity and cars and motorcycles and life was simple.' I've yet to see a Third World village that didn't rejoice when electricity arrived or cheer when they could enjoy motorcycles traffic jams instead of walking to work.

I don't have an answer to the original question above. Probably tourism both saved and destroys culture. What I'm sure of is we shouldn't measure its impact just through the material gains of the visited societies, as often cars, electronics and money don't represent a better life. Perhaps a better indicator would be the tolerance and cultural understanding raised through individuals' direct contact, especially in times of fear and unjustifiable wars.


Kao San, the crowded backpackers' street in Bangkok, Thailand

Magnificent forest on the way to an Akha village in northern Laos

No stress vs. War

Experiencing the tranquility of Laos is amazing! Nobody is ever stressed and always ready to adapt to all situations - e.g. transform one's dining room into a restaurant or wait 5 hours for a bus to have enough passengers.

We read some anthropologist saying that the "no stress" / "life exists to be enjoyed" culture is so strong that people are totally not encouraged to work or even study too hard, a fact that is pretty different compared to other Asian cultures.

I imagine how confronting was a war in such a place. The big population of villagers - who in reality don't feel any difference if the country is communist or capitalist - would probably find violence very alien and the fact that another country would waste a lot of money and human lives in such a theoretical mission just insane.

Welcome to the Land of a Million Elephants

Quick facts about intriguing Laos:

- 5,8 million people (a big chunk live in hill tribes and doesn't share the same ethnic, cultural and religious background);
- Most heavily bombed country per capita in history of warfare (177 bombs a day or 1 planeload of bombs every 8 minutes for 9 years);
- Communist, in the process of embracing market economy (US suspended the economic embargo in 2003);
- Around 10% of the population fled the communist revolution. Many remaining opponents were oppressed, including the centuries-old Lao monarchy members, who were exiled in the border with Vietnam in 1977 not to be seen again;
- accepts 3 currencies everywhere (the Lao kip, the Thai baht and the US dollar).

About picturesque Laos:

The bus system reflects a lot the laid back Lao lifestyle. Check it out:
- if there aren't enough passengers, we wait until the bus is full (the other day, we waited 5 hours);
- a bus can easily hit a lamppost while parking in the bus station. In that case, no panic. We find another wooden post and replace it (the lack of energy is almost not noticed anyway);
- if you need to spit, why not on the bus floor?
- if you need to pee, just ask the bus driver. He'll pull over right away and all passengers will find a spot to relieve themselves on the sides of the road;
- if the old bus overheats, we spot for some minutes and continue;
- as people also need to transport the motorbikes, rice sacks and animals, let's squeeze a little bit and fit everything.

I must say the magic is conquering me. I'm really enjoying this peace of land - or should I say state of mind?


Border Thailand - Laos just crossed

Typical Lao bus (the one that hit the lamppost)



Overheated bus in Laos

Sukhothai Ruins

Today I've been having the pleasure to be in Sukhothai, in the ruins of what used to be Thailand's capital in the 13th century. Historical documents suggest it used to be a benevolent rule, according to Theravada Buddhism.

The place has a magic aura. The ruins beautifully mix with trees, palm trees and moats (those purposefully build around the buildings to mark the beginning of a purified area).



On top of all that, I started to find real backpackers, those with a tight budget, not stuck in beach resorts or party areas, and full of great stories and cool travel plans!

Thailand - first impressions

When we are in a very different country, it does feel we are living much more than the days and hours we spend there, right? It's all new and our senses are stimulated all the time. I've been writing a lot since I arrived, but will just publish a small post written yesterday for now.

"After 2 days in Thailand, I obviously don't have a good cultural picture, but I'll try to draw my first impressions.

a) Sense of privacy is very different here. Many times, people have their business at home and consequently naturally ignore the concept of business hours, working much longer (as well, they seem to expect we understand they might be busy at 1p.m. watching their favourite soap opera and therefore will take longer to serve your lunch). In addition, they naturally approach tourist with question like "where are you from?", "where did you buy your scarf?", "how much did you pay to get here?" and so on.

b) Thai people are really friendly. 80% of the time they are genuinely helpful and in 20% of the occasions they expect some benefit from you - it's not only that straight forward to tell one from the other, though.

c) Finally, Thai people tend to be very, very reverent to both religion and the monarchy. We can see mainly Buddhist symbols everywhere - temples, houses and car mirrors. Equally, pictures of the king and queen are commonly seen in public and private buildings, and the anthem is played at 6p.m. in every park and bus station in the country.

After the coast and the big city, I'll head to the rural and mountaneous areas to experiment the simplicity and spirituality of the north (probably some hard time in comfort and communication as well). I'm loving it so far!"

Ready for Southeast Asia

Check list:
- 3 months of readings about Southeast Asia's history, culture and best travel spots
- Health insurance extended
- Tetanus, diphtheria, pertussis, hepatitis A and typhoid fever vaccines
- Vietnamese visa
- 1 backpack packed
- (Very flexible) itinerary
- Unmatched excitement general confidence about exploring this amazing part of the globe completely by myself

So… let's get the next flight! If time and infrastructure permit, you will be able to find some posts in this space in the next 45 days.

Lovely weekend in Brisbane

I’ve been to Brisbane this last weekend. The weather didn’t make justice to the capital of the sunshine state, but it was certainly lovely anyway.

Quality time with Brett for riding bikes, seeing the contemporary art centre, watching movies and enjoying each others’ company and catch up with wonderful Anh, after 9 months in Cambodia, a broken fist and a Portuguese love story.

Talking to Anh, the development work issue surely arose. We discussed how it seems to be the right thing to dedicate one’s career to, as it directly addresses fundamental issues. On the other hand, it so many times doesn’t work, neither for the professionals, nor for the communities!

Facing that, Daniel Quinn would probably say that "kids don't follow the circus to give up about things”. So I guess we need to listen to our intuition more often and consciously follow our circus.

Amazing Southeast Asia, here I go!

Hello!

I finally bought my tickets to Southeast Asia! Oh yes! As soon as I finish work in Sydney (21st of September), I head to Thailand, Laos, Vietnam and Cambodia, diving in the probably most exciting trip of my live!

I’m going to have 6 weeks and a half by myself to explore culture, history and nature, in order to – hopefully – understand the world and myself a little bit better.

Besides the normal backpacker’s itinerary, I’m looking at doing something a little bit different. Ideas involve visiting a refugee camp in the Burmese border, taking a scuba diving course in Phuket, doing some development work in a Cambodian NGO and doing a meditation retreat in a Thai Buddhist centre. Let’s see what turns out!

See what’s waiting for me:

World Heritage in Northeast Australia

According to the Lonely Planet, locals from Cairns “speak reverently about their region and will look at you with undisguised pity if you’re form ‘down south’”. That was exactly what happened in the first hours of our 3,5 days long weekend in Cairns, when we talked to some authentic Australian blokes in a local pub.

In our 3 days, we had the chance to:

- Stay in a $19 backpackers’ place (with dinner included ;o))
- Drive through the beautiful sinuous road of the Wet Tropics World Heritage Area, in the middle of the rainforest, headed to Cape Tribulation
- Do a short walk and see where the rainforest meets the see
- Take a boat in the Daintree River and see 3,5 meters crocodiles
- And most importantly: snorkel and dive in the exuberant Great Barrier Reef! (I saw all sorts of corals, molluscs, fish and even sea turtles, crown fish - Nemos! - and a shark!)

The Reef totally deserves to be called World Heritage, as it has so much to teach to humanity with its interrelations, uniqueness and beauty. More than the colours, shapes, dimensions and features, the incredibly intricate harmony of life under the water is really impressive. Camouflage, fluorescent, tiny, gigantic, funny and odd fish are host by hard or flexible (but always gentle) nurturing corals. When the water current is strong, they all pulse in the same rhythm, as if they were guided by the best of the orchestra’s maestros.

At the end of the weekend, I got a jellyfish scarf, felt a lot of “saudade” from Brazil and shared the Cairns citizens’ pride for living in the paradise.

Visiting the Nation's Capital

Last weekend, Mandi, Sveta and I rent a stylish red/pink Toyota and had the best time in Canberra, the Federal Capital, 3 hours south of Sydney.

The construction of Canberra was decided in 1901 (year of the constitution of the Australian Federation), in order to end the dispute between Sydney and Melbourne.

As a planned city, Canberra is a very organised place and, as the capital, it hosts most of the national governmental entities. On the other hand, the place has a small population (only 300.000 people) and not so much of a soul, if that makes any sense.

Anyway, we had the best time there! We visited the War Memorial, the new Parliament, the Science Museum and the Art Gallery, all great places, which helped us understanding Australian history and arts better.

On the social agenda, farewell party in Lauro’s place – with heaps of Brazilians and the first decent forro since I arrived in Australia! – and meeting Angie, my colleague in the UNDP Peace Project in Poland 2003.

Angie deserves a special paragraph. She is finishing her PhD in peace & conflict in Rwanda, is very relaxed and just joined the Australian Foreign Affairs Department’s Diplomacy Program. She is working in the Chinese economic committee and told me a story that made me feel in the West Wing. Apparently, the Chinese government may not sign the Free Trade Agreement as planned because it’s unhappy with the possibility of the Australian Prime Minister’s meeting with the Dalai Lama, because of the Tibet issue.

Trip stories

Where to start?

In the second day of the trip, in Woomera’s campsite:
"While cooking dinner, we met in the kitchen a couple with a dog. They had a camper van and were driving from Adelaide to Alice, Darwin, Perth and back.
Gabi: Wow, that’s a great trip! How long is it gonna take?
Man: Who cares? Maybe 2 months....."

Last day, in an amazing pub in William Creek, where people from everywhere hang at the walls old IDs, flags, hats, bras…
“Gabi: This is a really cool place. How long has it been here for?
Lady from the pub: 30 years now.
Gabi: Awesome. And how many people live in William Creek?
Lady from the pub: Here? 10.”

In between:
- Opal world capital, which has 50% of its constructions underground and probably the same percentage of the flies of the planet;
- 8 km track in the middle of gorges and unexpected waterholes (it has rained 2 weeks before we arrived, what is absolutely uncommon), which took us the whole day to complete as the track got much harder and we would stop, meditate and swim;
- Car breaking down 500 km far from the closest town;
- Ride with a Rottary high school students’ excursion + food (berosidade!) + camel riding for free!
- Walks in Lord of the Rings type of scenarios;
- Alternative dirt road, which permitted us to met the founder of a village and see the most amazing sunset of my life!

Presents from nature

We were certainly more sensitive and appreciative during the trip. But nature really did its part, rewarding us with amazing blue skies, birds announced sunrises, colourful sunsets and uncountable stars.

Here, you can use one of your senses and your imagination to feel a little bit of that magic. Enjoy!

Sacred landscape

"After leaving Adelaide, seeing some white terrain with bushes, passing through some green bushes and stopping for lunch in Port Augusta - where Salma said G`day to the gas station attendant ;o) - something cool happened: I slept for almost 40 min and feel that I woke up in the desert. Landscape has turned redder, air drier and there's a big isolation feeling. Trip has just started!"
Gabi, trip journal, 1st of April



Throughout the whole trip, nature was absolutely breathtaking. And how much have I learnt!
We’ve seen that the desert can have an exuberant chain of life, in an absolute delicate balance, dynamically changing.

The area where the current desert is located used to be a big sea 200 million years ago (nowadays a good part of it continue being below the sea level) and, although it’s extremely dry at the surface, it hosts an underground water reserve that covers 22% of the Australian territory.

Therefore, we could find palm trees growing from rocks in an area called Palm Valley (!!!), which is still reminiscent of the times where the ocean was in that area (just to emphasize, we’re talking about hundreds of millions of years), as well as frogs who “hibernate” when the weather is too dry, maintaining the water in their bodies and coming back to live when it rains.

We’ve also seen live many sorts of gum trees and animals like kangaroos, camels, lizards, emus, many different kind of birds and dingos.

But I think what touched me the most is the landscape itself. The mixture between flat terrains and impressive rock formations, with gorges, canyons, cliffs and waterholes – result of millions of years of meteors falling, tectonic movements and erosion – transmits an energy that the same time fills us with a fantastic spirit and shows us how small and recent we are. No wonder the aboriginal people considered most of those places sacred.

Outback trip - introducing the team

Hello everyone,

Sorry for not posting about the Outback trip until now, but it’s a very hard job to select a few moments, stories and pictures.

Marina, Salma, Jhow, Lucy and I had one of the most remarkable experiences of our lives, where we drove almost 7.000 km, visited some of the oldest geological formations on Earth, saw the beauty and the life of the desert, got to know a little more about the aboriginal way of seeing the world, faced some physical and mechanical challenges and especially reconnected profoundly with nature and ourselves.

This is the team:

Together we:
- watched the stars;
- had a collective massage session;
- played sleepy (cards game, great to re-hydrate and provoke some visits to the toilet during the night, right Salma?)
- shared our gifts in a talent night;
- had public speaking classes ;o)
- transmitted strong energies to one another in Mac Donnell’s Ranges;
- walked a lot!
- danced in the middle of the Oonadatta track, where no cars passed for 3 hours / more than 200 km;
- had a lot of fun!

Ready to the outback - 1 day to go!

We're leaving tomorrow! This means I'm extremely happy, ready to have what I think it's gonna be an unforgettable experience in life.

But it also means you won't hear from me in the next 15 days. If you happen to visit the blog anyway, make a little pray and feel the energy I'm feeling there.

Countdown: 4 days to go!

The peak of my energy recently, though, has definitely been the Uluru trip. U..lu…what?

Well, Marina, Salma, Jhow, Lucy and I are going to face one of the nicest adventures of our lives, I suppose. In 4 days time we’re starting a 2 weeks road trip to the Australian desert, passing through a subterranean mining city, amazing rock formations, canyons, aboriginal sacred places and a lot of land and sand.

The trip is logistically demanding, personally exciting and spiritually relevant at this point of my life. (Soon I can update some more learnings about the aboriginal culture, history and myths)

Check what we’re gonna see soon – in 3 weeks time, pictures taken by me will be available ;o)

Car with history

This situation happen a while ago, but I do think it’s worth it blogging about it.
In Australia Day (January 26th), there was an exhibition of old cars close to where I live. And the car that interests me the most was definitely not the oldest or the fanciest or the most potent. The coolest one, in my eyes, is the following one:

As you see, it’s quite an old car. But it has done 2 absolutely amazing trip, one in the end of the 60s and one recently. It passed through Thailand, Vietnam, China, England, India and other countries. I think I don’t need to say John and his wife (in the picture) had tons of histories and culture to share, as well as an amazing complicity between them. It wish I have their spirit in my live…

Poems #2 - A man needs to travel

Last week I did a presentation about the exchange experience to candidates of an AIESEC exchange program between Australia and Egypt and used this brilliant quote by Amyr Klink, a great Brazilian sailor / traveller (official site and pictures - http://www.amyrklink.com.br/). Enjoy it!

"A man needs to travel. On his own risk, not through stories, images, books or TV. Needs to travel on his own, with his eyes and feet, to understand what is his.

This way, one day he can plant his own trees and value them. Know the cold to enjoy the warm. And the other way around. Feel the distance and lack of protection in order to feel comfortable under his own roof.

A man needs to travel to places he doesn't know to break this arrogance that makes us believe in the world as we imagine it, and not as it is or as it could be; that make us professors and doctors of what we haven't seen, when we should be pupils and simply go and see...”

Amyr Klink, Brazilian explorer

Brisbane - preparation and getting there

Last weekend I started my longer trips inside Australia. And it was just fantastic!

Two weeks ago, I met my Argentinean friend Cecilia in the MSN and she told me she had a friend in Australia, who was very nice. This person, Ahn, was not only nice, but extremely receptive and excited. She wrote me saying I should go and visit her, that she could organise a good outdoor program and that I should do that soon, as she was going to Cambodia in less than two months, to do some humanitarian work for 1 year.

I loved the idea! Getting to know we would have a long weekend in 1 week, I bought train tickets, wrote to my other friend Angie, and decided to go. The trip took 14 hours each way, but was 100% worth it, as you’ll see!