THE 2024 BRAZIL FLOTILLA IS A FOND BUT UNFORGETTABLE MEMORY

Imagine what the BVI must have looked like fifty or more years ago, when there were very few sailing tourists, when the infrastructure that we know today did not exist and when there were only very few charter companies, if any, around. That is what you would have experienced with us during the first ASA flotilla in the Bahia da Ilha Grande, near the historic colonial port city of Paraty, halfway between Sao Paolo and Rio de Janeiro.

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Old street in Paraty

Paraty is where Wind Charter is based in Marina Farol. The city still looks like it was when established in the 1500’s and was the major trading port of colonial Brazil until the upcoming ports of Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paolo relegated it to the status of an open-air museum.

Marina Farol

The immense Gulf of Ilha Grande is dotted with lush green islands featuring secluded anchorages, beautiful beaches and a few small fishing villages. The main cities are Paraty and Angra dos Reis. Beyond the cities and beaches the tropical Atlantic rainforest covers the slopes of the impressive mountains surrounding the bay. It truly is a unique tropical ecosystem.


The flotilla crew minus Robert and Donna

On April 5, the night before the start of our flotilla, our eighteen participants gathered for a meet and greet event at the bar of Casa Coupe, near the colonial cathedral of Nossa Senhora dos Remedios. For many of the crew, this was their first introduction to the local drinks, like the Jorge Amado, Caipirinha and Gabriela, all based on cachaça made from sugarcane. Definitely very potent stuff… We split into three groups for dinner as no restaurant was able to accommodate such a large venue.

The following morning, our chartered bus brought us to the marina with a stop by the supermarket where our provisioning party got out to plunder the store. They rejoined us later by taxi with the booty.