Even in heavenly beaches it might rain (1/3)

 I thought I knew her well. After all, we had lived together for a long time. But one day, all of a sudden, she announced me that she was leaving to a foreign country. To a foreign country! She, who had always lived in the same neighborhood in Barcelona. I was completely in shock.

‘Yeah... maybe you’re right; a change might be good for you. And where would you go?’

‘...’

‘To Vila do Abrão? Ah ok. And where is this, in Portugal?’

‘...’

‘An island in Brazil? But, mother... are you sure?’

‘Are you crazy?’ is what I really wanted to say, but I didn’t. Definitely, the divorce had upset her. Or maybe it was the stress. Or love. Anyway, my mother, who was so fond of city live, commodities, cinema and theater, left a good job to move to a small village at the other side of the ocean.

I look through the window. I am in a bus on my way to Mangaratiba, south of Rio de Janeiro, where I will take a ferry to Vila do Abrão.

- No need to rent a car, Laura, you’ll have to leave it in Mangaratiba. Ilha Grande is an island without engine vehicles. No cars, no motorcycles, no buses. There is no smoke and no horns!

An island without cars! What else? Why didn’t she go to Rio de Janeiro? Rio is a big city, beautiful, with great beaches, restaurants, cinemas and, more important, an international airport! 

I look through the window again. I must admit that the landscape is nice. The road follows the coast, which is mountainous but has beautiful beaches. It is sunny, the sky is blue and it is a bit hot.

When we reach Mangaratiba I go directly to the harbor. My mother told me that there are two types of ferries: the fast catamarans, which are more comfortable but more expensive, and the local ferries that join Mangaratiba and Vila do Abrãos as it were a bus. I check the latter and it seems fine to me. There are already lots of people, families with children, workers carrying fruits and other tourists with suitcases or backpacks.

I think about my mother and her husband. I do not know him well, to tell the truth. They met two years ago and got married a year later. I remember that I found him a bit shy, reserved, but a nice person. And then, six months ago, they decided to move from Barcelona to Brazil. I never understood the reason behind, but I must convince her to come back to her city, with her family. 

The children’s laughs and cries take me back to reality. We are approaching Ilha Grande. Ilha Grande means big island in Portuguese, and as such, it is the biggest island in the area. It is mountainous and, now that we are so close, it looks imposing (the highest peaks are about 1000 meters high). Vila do Abrão, with 3000 inhabitants, is the largest town, but it seems very small, placed in between the sea and the mountains. 

The ferry reaches the seaport and we get ready to descend. Finally, after several hours of travel by plane, two hours by bus and one hour and a half by ferry, I arrive to Vila to Abrão. 

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>>  Even in heavenly beaches it might rain (2/3)
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