Synchronicity in Brazil

Back on the Water

March 10, 2025 we left Piriapolis, Uruguay. Due to family emergencies Synchronicity had been on the hard for 3 months, longer than planned. Being back on the water took a bit of adjustment.

The passage from Piriapolis to Rio Grande, Brazil was boisterous and changeable. We experienced squall after squall with winds hitting 27 kn and then slowing down to 15 kn. Us sailors are a fussy group. We don’t like too much wind, and we don’t like too little.

Left and right: Leaving Piriapolis, Uruguay; Bottom: Entering the river at Rio Grande

The confused seas on day one of our passage felt like being in a washing machine, due to high winds the previous few days. Light head winds slowly clocked to the southeast. On day two, the wind strengthened to 15-20 kn, mostly on the beam. Seas were 1-2 metres, and slowly became more organized. Then the squalls came, with increasing winds and rain. Fortunately, there was no lightning. It made for a fast sail, hitting speeds of more than 8 kn.

Various buildings in Rio Grande

Arrival in Rio Grande

The morning of March 12th we arrived at the entrance to Rio Grande, Brazil with breakwaters on both sides of the entrance. The channel is clearly marked. We prepared for the worst as we crossed the bar. Drop boards were put in, harnesses put on, and the hand radio was available nearby. Fortunately, it was an easy entrance that day, and the current, which Navionics said would be against us, was actually with us giving us a nice push. Our first glimpse of Brazil was a shipping port with lots of cranes and large freighters loading and unloading their wares. This led into the city, with a mix of old and new buildings along the shoreline. There were fish boats of all sizes, some open and some with cabins.

Traditional local fishing vessels.

Closer to our anchorage small ferries popped out in front of us, forcing us to stop and back up to stay out of the way.

Anchoring in only 12 feet of water was a bit unsettling. I went to drop the anchor and nothing moved. The chain had jammed itself into a tight pile and wasn’t budging, most likely from all the movement on our two-day passage. Dave managed to unravel enough chain for the shallow waters while I kept the boat in reverse to prevent going aground. Once anchored we breathed a sigh of relief. It was a strange sight seeing birds walking in the water only 100 feet away from where we were anchored.

Left: Synchronicity sitting pretty in the Rio Grande river; Right: Gabriel, friendly and helpful Port Officer

Clearing In

Checking into the country would have to wait until the next day as we were both tired from our days at sea. As well, one of the offices closed at 3 pm and we knew we couldn’t make it there in time. The next day, armed with our boat paperwork, we set off in our dinghy to a nearby dock owned by the Oceanografic Museo (Ocean Museum). We walked to the first office, Policia Federal (Immigration/Port Police). Our lack of Portuguese didn’t seem to hurt us as the officials were happy to communicate using Google Translate. The woman who helped us even printed out a map showing the location of the other two offices we needed to go to.

I asked the official if she knew where a money changer was. Not only did she give us the information, she walked us the two blocks to where the bank was located. While we were walking, she was busy typing on her phone communicating with us. At one point she handed me her cell phone and it said, “You are so brave.” I was so touched. “Obrigada”, I replied (thank you) – the only Portuguese word I could say and pronounce. Sadly, when I got to the bank I learned they didn’t change currency. However, a customer overheard me and proceeded to direct us to a money changer at the local “Mega Mart”.

Off we walked until we saw the bright yellow building of the Mega Mart. It looked like a clothing store and indeed, it did sell clothing, shoes and gems. The store was closed. A man nearby on a bike said in broken English that the store owner lived in the casa (house) next door and to knock there. Sure enough the store owner was having his lunch. We felt bad but he said no problem, in English, and promptly opened his store. And yes, we were successful in exchanging US dollars to Brazil Reals. It turned out the store owner was Greek.

We always try to carry local currency. Most places take credit cards, but not always. We always carry some US cash to exchange for the local currency. South American countries are very fussy about US cash. In Argentina if there was even a slight pen mark on the bill they wouldn’t take it. Most places want $100 USD to exchange, with no rips, no small tears, no folding, and no writing on the bills.

Amazing BBQ restaurant – all you can eat for $25 each

Next we took an Uber to the Alfandega dos Portos, Receta Federal (Customs). Ubers are very cheap, as are taxis, costing about $2 Canadian for most trips in town. At the Customs office they asked the value of our boat. We misunderstood at first and thought we had to pay $70 USD, but it turned out they simply needed Synchronicity’s value. No fees were requested.

After that we took an Uber to the Capitania dos Portos (Port Captain). There we met a young man, Gabriel, who spoke fluent English and was eager to help us and practice his English. He gave me his WhatsApp phone number and told me to message anytime we needed information about Rio Grande. He told us about the Sunday market.

Our check-in allows us to be in the country for 90 days. We can request an additional 90 day extension but need to leave the country and then return. Our boat is allowed to stay for 2 years.

Left: Giant avocados for $2 Canadian; Right: Mega Mart, a store of many things including a money exchange; Bottom: Sunday Market (the farmers were friendly)

Enjoying the Sights

A $3 Uber ride took us to the Sunday market, which we enjoyed. There we encountered a sea of people with bright coloured fruits and vegetables under shade cloths. Vegetable and fruit here are cheap and tasty. Dave spotted shrimp at one of the vendors and instructed me to buy a kilo. At the time I thought ‘hmmm a kilo is quite a lot of shrimp’, but not seeing the size of the shrimp I thought ‘why not’. Well, it turns out these shrimp are shrimpy, which Dave knew as he had watched another person order a kilo before us. We got them home and I started shelling and cleaning them – it took me over 3 hours! The photo on the right below shows what we were left with. They were delicious, but I’ll never order a kilo of shrimp again!

Fresh and tasty Brazilian shrimp, delicious but shrimpy

The official language in Brazil is Portuguese, but Dave and I have been religiously studying Spanish for the last two years. It was a shock being in a country with a new language. We are back to the basics (Duolingo is our friend), trying to learn some simple Portuguese. Meanwhile I made a new friend Lillian, who loves Alanis Morissette and is an Uber driver, a music teacher and musician. She was one of our Uber drivers and we learned she spoke English. Yay!! Since then we have become friends. Lillian took me out to a special coffee shop she called Pelota Sweets. Apparently, the city of Pelota, an hour bus ride away, is famous for their sweets. I got to experience some of the yumminess with a chocolate cream square and a passionfruit mousse.

Pelota sweets and coffee with Lillian and me

We have now been anchored in the river for two weeks waiting for a 3 day weather window to go north. We are easily able to go to and from the shore in our dinghy, just a short distance from where we are anchored. We can leave our dinghy at the Museo Oceanografic dock for free. Sunsets here have been magnificent.

Beautiful Brazilian sunsets

Our introduction to Brazil confirms what others told us before – Brazil is a friendly, welcoming and warm country. We can’t wait to explore more.