Residency days 1-10

July 1-10

Car-plane-bus-ferry-taxi-hills and more hills - Ilhabela Island, Brazil

I thought I knew what I was going to write in my first blog post from Brazil but I am stuck. I have never known a peace so quiet and beauty so lush. The front door is locked but the windows and doors around the house are wide open. Birds fly through and they fly out. Hummingbirds flutter around flowers intertwined with railings. Green parrots dart and cackle around in groups. Bright red hibiscus grows on the side of the road. Every potted plant grows in abundance here. I am taking it all in.

My mornings have been doing some sketches of a scene outside my window and then I head upstairs and make some coffee and stand on the balcony and take in the mountains, sea and life around me. The first few days were cloudy and overcast but yesterday and today have just been perfect sunny hot days. Not like CT right now. It is winter here so it’s in the upper 70s and with the sun it feels hotter. I draw and paint in my art journal for most of the morning and early afternoon. In the afternoons, I have gone for walks or to the beach. I picked up a few shells and rocks. One beach has several pieces of a quartz like rock that I made a pendant out of. There is a sea glass beach nearby, I hope to visit soon.

Ilhabela is a small island right off the coast of Brazil. It has about 50,000 inhabitants with many people coming to the island on the weekends and holidays. Only one side of the island is populated (the north side). The rest of the island is a national park of jungles, waterfalls and beaches. There are hiking trails throughout. Everything is a hike here. The house that I am staying in is one mile up from the main road. And it is a hike. I have walked over 80,000 steps since I’ve been here. Call me thunder thighs. I currently have one house mate and we will be joined by two more by July 15th. 

The food has been good. I have eaten primarily fish, beans, rice, veggies and fruit. I grocery shopped the other day and got staples for the house. The best thing I have eaten is fried cassava. It looks like chunky french fries but they are light and buttery.

I think that’s it for now. Here is a link to some photos from the island:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/XBryzPKsVbAVsCGMA

If you have my cell # you can text me on Whatsapp.

Tchau, Jessica