Romantic looking isn't it?Yesterday, I came by bus down into Rio to meet Camillo after his trip to the USA. I left Friburgo via Mil e Um (1001) on the 11am bus. Buses run on the hour from Friburgo to Rio and on 40 minute past the hour from Rio to Friburgo. The trip is right at 2 hours 10 minutes plus taxi on both ends. Yesterday my ticket was R$22.80 but that fluctuates depending on time of day/day of week/holidays etc. (R$17.00-23.00) The taxi in Rio was also R$22.00 but I gave the Motorista an extra R$2.00 cause traffic in Ipanema was crazy and we were not on the meter but doing 'flat rate'. Going back the prices will be about the same. So for about $R90.00 you could come to Friburgo for the day with no hassle of driving.
I dressed as I usually do for a bus ride; blue jeans, a light t-Shirt and a shawl in my bag to keep from freezing with the AC turned to 22c. The joke was on me, the bus was Conventional - or with no toilet and no AC. It was a open-windows-all-the-way day.
While still in the mountains it was a very pleasant trip - I was asleep immediately and only awoke past Cachoeiras de Macacu. Once down in the valley though, it was miserably hot. The air blowing into the bus was HOT AIR - there was a baby crying behind me - I was in full sympathy. A couple of times we were going slow - a truck or cart in front of us (?) and it was death defying HOT. Blue jeans is not something you want to be wearing when the temperatures are upward of 40c. It flashed through my mind that no Brazilian would even look if I stripped my jeans off for comfort. 
Surprisingly when we reached the bridge (Ponte Rio - Niteroi) the wind off the bay rushed through the bus and it felt cool and refreshing.
The 1001 web site has lots of information, even talks of a museum on wheels. http://www.autoviacao1001.com.br/pt/
You can switch the site to English and buy tickets for travel.... This trip for me was uncomfortable but generally the buses are clean and comfortable and everyone is courteous both staff and other clients.
It sounds like you had a lovely day GingerV :)
ReplyDeleteYou are very descriptive and it almost feels like I see what you saw......
Steady On
Reggie Girl
Reggie girl, I received your photos of the snow, what a great thing to have when the temperatures are over 100. I printed the one of the house.....
ReplyDeleteloved it.
I want to pack up my gear one week and take a Greyhound bus to Georgia, and take photographs of all the stops and all the people who get on and off. I have not been on a bus since I was a small child except when I was on assignment in Thailand.
ReplyDeleteHere is one of my Thailand bus stories:
I had to catch a bus to a checkpoint to get to my guide who was going to take me to a little border town. It was a long trip.
People were getting on with chickens, and other things, sitting on top of the bus with baskets. It was very colorful. But that is not the story.
There is a large fruit in Thailand called a durian. People either love it or hate it. The smell of it can offend some people so much they don't even want you to have a durian in a hotel (the smell can get into the venting system).
Well, I liked the durian, though it was a bit strong. When I was leaving the little house I had been staying in, the housemaid cut a durian for me and put it in a large clear plastic bag.
So there I was, heading to the bus with my my camera gear and that big old clear bag. The bus driver ran towards me shouting, "No durian! No durian!" He grabbed it and put it in the storage area under the bus.
My ride time in that bus was about 9 hours. You can imagine how that durian smelled in 110 degree heat when I arrived at my destination.
I offered it to my guide and he took it gratefully! It sure did smell, but he loved it.
Patty - great story, thanks for sharing. there is a fruit here called a jaca - think this is correct spelling - bigger than a football, looks like a giant spong and is liked or hated and smells 'sickly sweet'
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