The first thing you notice when you’re being driven out of Natal Airport is surrounding countryside area. There are barely any cars for the first 10km of the journey into the main area of Natal. You see farms, a lot of greenery, crops, etc. I’ve always associated airports with being near motorways, it was something new to me.

When I got to the Porto Suites hotel, the staff were stuck on how to communicate with me with the language barrier. I didn’t think there was an issue. All I needed to do was fill my details out, ask about the Wi-Fi and find out what the deal was with breakfast.

At one point there was something I wanted to find out which I didn’t know how to say in Portuguese. I used Google translate. The Manager of the hotel was so relieved of the solution I came up for the language barrier. He spoke to me through Google translate throughout my stay at the Porto Suites hotel, apart from words and sentences he thought I’d know.

The Manager suggested I go to the Ponta Negra area of Natal to have dinner. Apparently it’s a popular spot for dining. Who am I to disagree with someone who knows the area better than me?

Here’s the great thing about getting to Ponta Negra from the hotel, I was shown several restaurant leaflets by the hotel. They said these restaurants will send a van to pick me up and take me to the restaurant of my choice as long as I eat there! How good does that sound!? I didn’t need to pay for a taxi or order an Uber, nor did I need to get a bus. All I needed to do was pick a restaurant to go to and boom! It was that simple.

How awesome would it be to have something like that in England? If in the unlikely scenario the CEO of Nandos or any major food chain is reading this, get this idea implemented ASAP pretty please.

I chose the YMBU Gastronomia Regional Restaurant as it was apparently the closest thing you’ll get to authentic food in Natal. I have no idea if what I eat was authentic Natal but it sure as hell tasted good. I had pastry stuffed with shrimp, garlic and parsley served with aioli sauce for a starter. The main dish (aptly named the Chef’s shrimp) consisted of glazed shrimp with white wine, sweet potato gnocchi and Italian sauce.

I had a buggy tour booked the next morning to see sand dunes, beaches and lakes. I shared a buggy with a Brazilian family, Rodrigo, his wife and Daughter. Our first stop is the Dunas de Genipabu which I believe is the most well known sand dune in Natal. It’s around 20km from the centre of Natal. It was my first time on a sand dune and on a buggy for that matter. As soon as you step off the buggy, you get a sort of slow motion sinking feeling before your feet settle. The only thing I need to do now is drive a buggy on a sand dune myself.

Throughout the day it rained on and off. It was warm which made it bearable. I don’t mind the rain so much as long as it isn’t cold. It was timed well, it rained whenever we were in the buggy on the move, and stopped whenever we arrived at a beach, lake or dune.

My favourite part of the day was when we arrived at the Lagoa de Jacuma. At the top you could zip wire onto the lake or slide down head first. Me and Rodrigo chose to do the latter. Rodrigo’s wife refused, though she would go on the zip wire with Rodrigo and their Daughter.

After some lunch in a restaurant by the beach, we made our way back. I was pretty tired and was trying to stay awake. Me and Rodrigo exchanged numbers as he took some photos of the push start of my slide down the Lagoa de Jacuma. He hasn’t sent them to me which made me wonder if I gave him the right number. I’m sure I checked it 2 or 3 times. Who knows, maybe he wanted to keep the photos of me as a memento of the day.

I get back in time for the second half of Barcelona vs. PSG which happens to be one of the most exciting I’ve watched in recent memory. I’ve struggled to catch football matches since arriving here, but I can safely say I’ve caught the good ones. The only other game I’ve seen is Manchester United vs. Southampton. Both games have yielded 10 goals in 3 halves of football.

After the game I get a WhatsApp voice message from Mauro saying the Maracana has reopened and it’s in good condition. Now I could’ve cursed my luck along with a bit of bitching and moaning, instead I’ve added it to a list of about 100 reasons to come back to Brazil.

I had another tour booked the next morning, this time to Praia da Pipa. It’s one of the most famous beaches in Brazil and is around 80km – 85km from Natal.

We arrive around 9:30am and walk about 10 minutes down the road to get to the beach. I’m there wondering why we couldn’t have been dropped off any closer, it wasn’t as if the road had restricted access. It’s like the driver and tour guide had a look and thought “fuck this, they’ve been sitting long enough. Let’s make them stretch their legs a little.”

We entered through a small café and you get a breath taking view of the beach and the cliffs. I knew there and then I made the right choice to booking this tour group.

The tour guide was offering everyone something for R$35. I had no idea what it was at the time but I went with it. When I was trying to make out what was being said I thought we were being offered a special lunch deal as I heard the word “lanchas”. I must’ve misheard because what was being offered was a boat excursion which I definitely didn’t mind! Don’t ask how I thought we were being offered food, I’m still trying to figure that one out myself!

We had time to kill and I wanted to take some photos, and I meet this couple Bruno and Karine who are from Aracaju. They’re taking photos in the perfect spot, so I kindly offer to take some photos for them. Bruno took a couple for me, he and Karine let me tag along with them as they’re also going on the boat and none of us knew where to go. There was power in numbers to ensure we got to the right place.

They both knew some English phrases but neither of them could speak it fluently. It wasn’t a problem, we seem to communicate fine and I think we all understood one another. Bruno seem to appreciate my love for the country and nicknamed me the Gringo Brasileiro. For those who don’t know, gringo is term mainly used in Latin America or Spain to refer to a foreigner, especially those from the US or Great Britain.

Bruno asked a lot about London, and had a particular interest in the London Eye. I’ve never been on it myself but I’ve heard the London Eye on a sunny day is a must. If anyone who’s been on it can share any tips it’ll be greatly appreciated.

We arrive for the start of the boat trip. We pass along some other beaches, watch some dolphins dive around and we all had a dip in the sea ourselves. The water was almost as warm as Praia do Flamengo in Salvador. We spent around an hour, possibly an hour and a half before we went back to the beach.

Our next stop was a place above Praia da Pipa called Chapadao Hill. It has a restaurant, a swimming pool and some hammocks. While everyone on the tour went to get a table at the restaurant, I took the opportunity to get some photos on top of the hill. It wasn’t crowded and I didn’t think I’d get a better opportunity. I probably spent around 20 – 30 minutes. I’d describe Chapadao Hill as one of the great wonders of the Pipa area.

Once I was done I went to the Amo Restaurant and Tapiocaria. Bruno and Karine called me over to join them. They were struggling to finish the dish they ordered between them. All I could make out was shrimp, noodles, vegetables, mash potato and fish. They were both stuff and there was more than half the dish left, probably two thirds. They didn’t want it to go to waste so they offered it to me. Initially I was only looking to order something small. I was grateful as they saved me waiting time in a packed restaurant. Credit to Bruno and Karine where it’s due, whatever they ordered was one of the nicest things I’ve eaten on the trip so far. Not only did they save me waiting time, they also saved me money as it worked out good splitting the bill with them rather than ordering an appetizer.

With over an hour to spare I made use of it relaxing on a hammock. I got the perfect spot, the sea in view and the time to ponder what was a fantastic trip to this point.

During relaxation time I met a guy from Sao Paulo, Joao. He was on a work trip with his Dad, I think he said they won the trip. You can imagine how envious of them their family were. Joao learnt English from watching TV series. He spoke better English than some people I know back home, despite his insistence that his English was poor. To put it another way, his English was better than my Portuguese.

Joao has done some travelling around. This was one of the best settings I’ve been in, talking travel on a hammock with someone who loved travelling. All that was missing was a caipirinha.

After a brief last stop at Lagoa de Guarairas, we made the journey back. At the start of the day I was content with just keeping to myself and doing my own thing. By the time we left, there were a number of Brazilians asking me about England, Europe, how my trip has been and my thoughts on Brazil. People here seem to love visitors, especially those who embrace their culture.

In the evening I did some packing. I finished early so to avoid getting bored I went to a restaurant up the road just to get out. I wanted something light and looked at the snack menu. I went for a dish called Arrumadinho which is an appetizer from the state of Pernambuco consisting of shelled green beans, farofa, dried beef and vegetables. Mine had calabrese and pork included.

Now one thing I have to question is whether Arrumadinho should be classed as a snack. The portion was so big that in England it’d be classed as a main meal and a half. Considering I had a load of food earlier in the day, a small snack would’ve been ideal. I was there for a long time. It was a struggle but I somehow managed to finish the plate off. The picture is below, judge for yourself whether it should be classed as a snack or not.

There’s nothing bad to say about Natal. There’s everything for everyone, from nightlife and restaurants, to sand dunes, buggy tours and all kinds of activities to suit all ages and personalities. If I’d wanted to I could have spent another 2 or 3 days in Natal.