Ubatuba

by Laura Babyn (Canada)

Making a local connection Brazil

When I first read about the municipality of Ubatuba before my trip to Brazil, the town barely registered. It had a short, 1.5 page blurb in the over 700 page book, which mentioned nice beaches and a resort like town for rich Paulistanos to escape to. It certainly wasn’t a place at the top of my list to travel to. So when Ralph, my new Brazilian friend, told me that I needed to go there, I raised my eyebrows surprised. I was going to be in the region anyway in a couple days, but I hadn’t planned on stopping in Ubatuba. “Really?” I asked: my curiosity piqued. “What makes it so great?” Ralph smiled winningly. He’s one of those people who are just easy to talk to. Funny. Charming. Kind. An all around genuine and great guy. He also happened to be the owner of the hostel I was staying in in Manaus. “I have another hostel there,” he told me. “You have to see it - it’s my favourite.” I laughed and rolled my eyes. Ahhhh, just another sales pitch. “No, no,” he assured me. “It’s not like that. Ubatuba is the best!” He exclaimed. “That’s why I have another hostel there. The beaches are phenomenal, the mountains are extraordinary — it has something for everybody. And,” he added with a sneaky smile, “my hostel has a pool, is a block away from the beach, and we have a stand up paddleboard for rent. It’s the best.” I had to admit I was intrigued. “I’m going to hike one of the mountains on Sunday with my girlfriend - why don’t you come?” He offered. “I’ll take care of everything. We’re going to camp at the top of the mountain and then hike down the next day. It’s going to be amazing!” His enthusiasm was infectious - I was sold. Three days later, I found myself struggling to unlatch my pack at a rest stop as we hiked up the nearly vertical path on the mountain. Ralph and his girlfriend Paulinha, a lovely Sao Paulo local, were further behind and struggling to catch up as I waited with our guide. I was grateful for the break. The jungle was hot and the path slippery. It had been raining on and off for the past few weeks, so the trek upwards was strenuous. I grabbed a chocolate bar from my now open pack and ate the entire thing quickly. I was ravenous. This was one of many breaks that day, but we had already been walking for nearly seven hours straight. The jungle was beautiful and lush; although the higher we climbed the sparser and calmer the forest became. Birds chirped intermittently, but the area was otherwise very serene now. I could tell we were close to the top. Paulinha and Ralph stumbled into our rest spot panting hard, letting their bags drop heavily to the ground. “Almost there,” the guide told us, confirming my suspicions. When the others had rested long enough, we continued up the path to the summit. We arrived about 30 minutes later only to be greeted with a giant mass of cloud and drizzle. We had finally accomplished our goal, but weren’t met with the reward we had all been hoping for. No matter, we set up our tents, built a fire, and settled in for the night. Ralph had brought a flask with cognac and honey “to keep us warm” and we passed the time regaling each other with stories of our respective lives and anything else we could think of. Paulinha and Ralph were funny making the time fly by. In the morning, we were greeted with the most beautiful sunrise I have ever witnessed. The clouds had parted and the view was spectacular overlooking the surrounding shoreline, islands, and lush jungle mountains. As I took the view in, Ralph came up beside me. “See?” He said proudly. “I told you it would be amazing.” I looked at my new friend and smiled: “you were right.” I felt incredibly lucky to be in that space and grateful to Ralph and Paulinha for generously bringing me here.