Tarangire National Park

 It’s not possible that I stay in Kenya, Africa and not visit “ The” most sought after place for one of the best safaris in the world – Tanzania, a country like Kenya that is full of wilderness and vast savannah. People who know me, know how crazy I am about animals. I think majority of people who stay in Kenya do visit Tanzania either for safari or beach. Zanzibar being one of the most beautiful beaches, however, after staying in Sri Lanka, Cambodia, visiting pristine beaches of Seychelles, Thailand, Mauritius etc, Zanzibar never attracted me. Ok, back on track, so here I was trying to make my way to Serengeti and see the most viable and economic way to get there. I was excited to see one of the most thrilling natural reserves of Tanzania.

Early morning we left our house and in a little more than 2 hours we were at the Namanga border (Kenya & Tanzania border); after getting our passports stamped and getting our visa, we took few pictures at the border and also at no man’s land- a land piece between the 2 countries that belongs to no one. The travel agency that we decided to go with was willing to pick us up from home and take us to the border, however we decided to save few bucks on that and drove our car till the border and our driver brought our car back home. We walked past the border to the Tanzanian car which would have been the case even if we went with the travel agent’s vehicle. I had to take advantage of the fact that I am staying in the neighboring country.

We settled in a comfortable land cruiser excited to see a slightly different terrain and have a new experience. Our road led us through small lively towns with modern architecture and rickety buildings. We drove through chaotic traffic from time to time, matatus, motorcycles, cars and through the hustle bustle of lives. Then slowly the scenery started to change, we started driving past mud-colored huts, locals in their bright colored clothes doing their day-to-day business and small excited kids waving wildly at us. Finally, we reached Tarangire National Park which is in Northern Tanzania and reached just in time for lunch at Tarangire Sopa Lodge. The kids couldn’t control their excitement when they saw the pool and decided to swim while they were setting up lunch for us by the pool side. It was a hot day and kids had a blast swimming and splashing around. We let the kids have some fun before we took them for a game drive which generally starts at around 3.30pm. 

Tarangire National Park is a least known wildlife destination, although the national park is full of wild animals of all sorts, yet it is overshadowed by the popularity of Ngorongoro and Serengeti. However, this was the perfect place to begin the Tanzanian safari. Our journey started by seeing a giraffe which had lost it’s tail somehow was relishing leaves from the acacia trees. There are always so many stories scattered all around the savannah that lights up my heart with enthusiasm. We were surrounded by many species of birds and this national park is a bird watcher’s paradise.

Tarangire is also known as the Kingdom of Pachyderms. Our next encounter were the magnificent elephants, which this national park is famous for.  We saw so many different herds of elephants all around with their calves. In some big herds, the babies of almost the same age, played with each other wrestling with their trunks and chasing each other, a further ahead in another herd 2 juveniles played with each other by locking their trunks. 

We also saw many gazelles, impalas, ostrich, mongoose, baboons, bush buck and of course a resting king of the jungle. The zebras grazed on the green grass wandering from one baobab tree to the other. We saw so many baobao trees also known as tree of life that are also in Kenya but not as huge and in so many numbers as in this park.  While we were enjoying our safari suddenly, we felt something biting us at intervals and this was our first encounter with the notorious Tzetse fly. 

After our safari, we settled back into our camp and had dinner. The sound of wilderness brings in a kind of tranquility in me that I find all worries of the world melting away, even though it’s temporary but the weight is out at least for a while. I slipped into my bed to embark on a new adventure the next day.

Walking under the sea in Mauritius: Day 5

 Ile aux cerfs Island and Under the sea walk

A day full of fun activities and excitement was in wait for us… we started our day with a boat that took us to this privately-owned island called Ile aux cerfs, which is a picturesque island and is famous for its white sandy beach, turquoise blue lagoon, shallow channels, black rocks and it has a lot more to offer. It is a hub for wild parties and adventure sports. Of course, with 4 small kids we had to forgo the wild party part, but we went wild with our water sports.

While our speed boat was taking us to the island, we did cross a few catamarans where youngsters were parting with beer and bare clad bikini. The guys in our boat had started drooling over the crowd in it, and as quickly as Neha and I saw that happen, the kids were handed over to the fathers; a reminder of the stark reality that lay before them.

Our first visit was the Grand river south east waterfalls. The beautiful waterfall surrounded by the verdant jungles is a sight not to be missed. From there we continued our boat ride to this floating deck in the middle of the ocean, from where we were to begin our adventure sports. 

We started with the donut ride. While one set of parents went crazy, the other babysat the kids. The kids were baffled at how crazy their parents could get – screaming and cheering loudly like small children, may be even embarrassed a little. I am glad that I did everything at the right time, how things change with health is unknown. I have always believed to do all the things I can and as much as I can now. Live for today, you never know what tomorrow will bring. Never knew that 6-7 years down the line, I would have to think about my back, aches and pains that these thrilling rides could cause. 

Next was parasailing. All of us went so many times that we don’t even remember… solo, with kids, just kids, couples, father-daughter, father-son, mother-son and mother-daughter…. We did all the different permutation combinations of people that could be done for parasailing. 

We finally headed to the beach where the kids enjoyed making their sandcastles and dipping in the sea, while we were fishing out sea urchins and star fishes to show to the kids. After lunch, it was time to get back on our speed boat and head back to the mainland.

But the excitement was not over yet... we were looking forward to our once-in-a-lifetime unique experience that had our adrenaline pumping.  This was a first for all of us. We were going to walk under the sea. The latest family additions of both families couldn’t do it since they were very small, so we left them on the boat, and we all went in together. Once submerged, for the first few seconds I tried to calm my panic-stricken mind till I realized that it was more of a psychological scare. After taking in a few long breaths of air, I realized that I was not going to drown. After calming my nerves, I started noticing the vibrant fish all around and suddenly it felt like the time had stopped, breathing underwater got conceivable and that’s when I started to notice the lovely flora and fauna around.  

After the full day of water fun, we came back to our resort, freshened up and had dinner. All the kids were dead tired and ready to hit the bed. The parents didn’t want to call it a night, so after dinner we all went for a walk and sat at the beach, slowly retiring back to our rooms. 

Departure

The next morning was our final day in this beautiful country. We dedicated it to the sun, sand and the sea. The motto of the day was relaxation, sipping pina coladas, enjoying the resort, kayaking and spending quality time together to make memories that we will never forget.  It’s not so common and, in my experience, I would call it rare to find like-minded people with whom you gel so well, like an extended family. I will say this was our first international holiday with our now family friends and it couldn’t have been better.

Up close and personal with the wild in Mauritius: Day 4

 Swim with the dolphins and walk with the lions – could this day have gotten any better?

Till now we had spent enough time on land, we didn’t want the sea to feel deprived of our presence. So, our fourth day was all about sun, white sandy beaches and the sea that beamed in every shade of turquoise. I was super pumped for our adventure of the day since not only were we going to see the dolphins in the wild where they rightfully belong, but we were also going to try and swim with them as well.

By the time we reached where the dolphins were, I was a little disappointed to see few boats and people already swimming with the dolphins. I think it is decided by the boat owners that each boat gets a turn to swim with the dolphins, probably to avoid scaring away the dolphins with overwhelming humans. We all were ready with our gear to jump in, snorkel or swim. 

Now in this blog, I have to admit my phobia of putting my head under the water due to which I can never snorkel. My heart beats over a 100bpm and I get struck by panic. I jumped with Aananya next to me in the water and she brought her head out of the water with excitement and said “Mumma the dolphins are swimming right under your leg”. I can’t even begin to express the dismay in myself for not having the courage to put my head under the water to see such a spectacle. However, when the dolphins came out a little further ahead to breathe, I enjoyed every moment of it. Aakaash was the only one who made a mad dash and tried to keep up with the dolphins just for a while and could say literally “I did try and swim with the dolphins”. The rest of us can just say we were in the same water as the dolphins!

We had decided to dedicate our entire day to the animals. When I was plotting out our trip to Mauritius, all I had in my mind was the sun, sand and sea. Never had I thought about the interaction that I was about to experience. Our next stop was the Casela Nature Park. It’s a huge nature and adventure park but we only visited the big cat’s kingdom, bird park and middle kingdom.

We started walking through the aviary and saw various colorful bird species from around the world. Next, we went to the middle kingdom to see the tortoise and petting farm. This place gives you a great opportunity to have face-to-face interaction with zebras, African antelopes, impalas etc. We also saw a lot of lions and cubs that were kept in an enclosure and in another were cheetahs. Not that we have not had these interactions while staying in Kenya, but it’s always humbling when you can interact with wild animals no matter where you are. Aan enjoyed running after the chickens that were free to roam around the middle kingdom.

Alongside the petting zoo was also a play area. The kids enjoyed the gardens along with a stream full of fishes, swans, turkey, flamingoes, peacock, crown crane and a varied species of ducks. This was the perfect set up for us to leave the kids with Neha and Vividh and head towards the big cat’s kingdom. We were lucky to be travelling with our friends for we decided to go for the walk with lions turn by turn since the kids were not allowed. Why? Because if you are less than 5 feet tall, the lions think you are potentially food.

Recently, in one of our safari trips in Kenya, Aananya was talking to me about what is it that I love about safari, which animal excites me the most and that’s when I realized that I am a great lover of the big cats. I can spend hours and hours with the big cats without getting bored or tired. Just watching their every move makes me feel happy.

Now, back in Mauritius, we were going to have a once-in-a-lifetime experience of walking with the lions. We were taken to the lion reserve by bus and were given a short briefing about the safety measures that needed to be followed while on the adventure. We were also advised to walk behind the lion handlers with our canes… like that could protect us in any way if things turned south. FYI, you do have to sign a disclaimer if anything goes wrong, you are responsible.

Never did I think that during my trip to Mauritius I would be giving a potential disclaimer for getting maimed by a lethal predator. Yet here I was in an open-air bus bumping along a dirt road into the forest to meet one of the most efficient predators of the world. I always feel blessed whenever I get a unique opportunity to spend time with the cats but this was way beyond. The thrilling sensation that went through my body when I saw the lions come out, and we were walking alongside them and at one point even interacted with them. You can feel the adrenaline rush through your veins when you are in the presence of these magnificent and majestic creatures.

It is amazing to see the lions so up close and personal; we walked with them through the long grass and tropical foliage while the lions were playing around, tackling one another, scaling the trees doing their day-to-day business. The lions were called Mpara and Matata were 10 months and 2 years old respectively. Matata is a white lion originally from South Africa. The handlers showed us how long they can leap by motivating the lions with chunks of meat or how they could climb trees, motivation being the same. We were walking along a narrow stream when suddenly both the lions crouched down to drink water. Now came the time to take a few prized pictures when the handlers encouraged us to come forward and touch their bristly tails and their back.

While writing this blog, I can’t help but think about my mother… if she had her way, I would definitely be grounded for doing this, regardless of my age or the fact that I live oceans away.

Discovering Mauritius by land – South Tour: Day 3

 Trou Aux Cerfs – Floreal Shopping Factories – Sacred Lake of Grand Bassin – Black River Gorges- Chamarel Waterfalls – Chamarel Seven Colored Earth

The beauty of Mauritius is in its beautiful landscapes with spectacular mountain viewpoints, waterfalls, colored earth caused by past volcanic activities, luscious plant life, varied flora, fauna and the dream beaches with an amazing sea life phenomena. 

Our third day on the island was spent exploring the land beauty of Mauritius and our first stop was Trou aux Cerf’s dead volcanic crater, which has become one of the naturally created attractions. Interestingly, it is said that this volcano is also the origin for Mauritius’s existence. For that we had to hike a small hillock, and the weather was perfect. It had just drizzled right before our tour and the kids enjoyed running to the top where we finally saw the crater of a dormant volcano surrounded by thick vegetation of lush green shrubs, bushes and pine trees. The view of the crater was along a dangerous steep embankment, so we made sure that the kids don’t steer too close to that. However, the panoramic scenic view of the island from this vantage point was beautiful and gave us a great opportunity to take amazing landscape pictures.

From there we went to Floréal shopping factories, which has the biggest and most famous workshop for model boats. However, the prices were so exorbitant that even though we wished to buy the handcrafted boat, we didn’t buy any. We also visited the Adamas diamond factory but just like the model boats, we only enjoyed seeing them.

Our next stop was the Sacred Lake of Grand Bassin situated amidst the picturesque view of lake Ganga Talao that is formed in a crater and is surrounded by mountain area and colorful temples and idols of deities around the lake. It is a popular pilgrim place, sacred to Hindus and is the largest of its kind outside India. The entire land is considered scared and pious in the minds of locals and visitors from India. The huge statue of Lord Shiva, a whopping 108ft tall, built in the open is a real marvel. This place is considered auspicious and you will definitely feel at peace and calm while visiting it. After which we took a break for lunch.

Later we boarded our mini tour van to go to Black river gorges national park, which is the largest protected national park of Mauritius. The varied, exotic flora and fauna and the unfathomable beautiful gorges of unspoilt beauty of rainforest will leave you totally enraptured. Our minivan stopped at Chamarel waterfalls, which has a jaw dropping height of 100 meters and is the highest waterfall in Mauritius. It is indeed a popular tourist spot for its picturesque, pristine waterfall surrounded by dense lush green tropical forest and rocky river canyon. From the viewing platform we did what tourists do, clicked 1000 pictures and moved on to our next location.

Have you been to tours where you try and squeeze every sightseeing attraction possible in one tour? Well, that’s kind of what we tried to accomplish that day. Hop off – see the attraction – hop on to the tour and move to the next. So finally, our last destination for the day was just 4 kms away from the waterfall – the Chamarel Seven Colored Earth. I was super excited to see this as it surpasses all the extravagant things in this country. This otherworldly unique geological formation has seven colors – red, brown, violet, green, blue, purple and yellow. Although it is hard distinguishing all the 7 colors of this geological wonder, but we will not contest that. These psychedelic dunes are a rare combination of natural phenomenon of volcanic activity over a milleniaWe were busy clicking family pics then group pics, then individual pics, then kids’ pics, then sibling pics, then girls together, we really got very busy collecting lifetime memories. So, you know where most of the time was spent... When we were assured, we had enough pictures to last a lifetime, we retired back to our hotel to enjoy some relaxing time before our next island adventure.

More on Mauritius – North tour: Day 2

 Port Louise - Citadel Fort – Caudan Waterfront - Marie Reine de la Paix – Bagatella Mall

Mauritius is described as “heaven on earth” and it sure did live up to its name. This incredible island is known for its magnificent beaches sandwiched between the sparkling turquoise Indian ocean and the luscious green cliffs at the opposite end. 

On day 2, we were all set to explore the beautiful landscapes, bustling cities and old colonial buildings. It’s a well-known fact that Mauritius is “the” destination for honeymooners. When the minibus arrived to pick us up, it was already filled with honeymooners and that too all were from India. Now I have to say that Vividh has a wicked sense of humor and his jokes about the sufferings of married life just didn’t stop. Oh man, I wonder how we scared those young couples for life! I am sure they were happy to get off the bus when the tour ended and get away from the middle-aged couples with kids.

Our first stop was a viewpoint for the Pieter Both Mountain – the uniqueness of its appearance and it being the second highest mountain of Mauritius makes it a famous tourist attraction, especially for nature lovers and hikers. After this stop we were in the colorful capital city of Mauritius – Port Louis, where next on the sightseeing agenda was the Citadel Fort, also known as the Adelaide Fort, which is the national monument of Mauritius. Perched on top of a hill, the heritage monument offers breathtaking views of Caudan waterfront and the colossal Indian Ocean. We got beautiful panoramic shots of Port Louis, which is also the largest city in Mauritius. We took loads of pictures of Citadel Fort –one in particular where Aakaash was on the cannon, only wish if the cannon were working and I could use him as a human bomb. Just kidding. 

We roamed around the city, where the kids enjoyed churning out sugar cane juice for themselves. Clicked pictures next to the sculpture of the famous explorer Nicolas Baudin who met his maker in Mauritius. Next, we found ourselves super excited in the umbrella alley at Caudan waterfront. It’s a narrow lane covered with colorful and vibrant floating umbrellas. Its happy aesthetics gives you many photo opportunities. What I didn’t know was that the umbrellas are replaced every month to keep it bright and vibrant. We did make a quick stop at the Prime minister’s office to say hello before we headed to the craft market.

From the craft market I bought few mother of pearl dinning mat sets. Later we headed to Marie Reine de la Paix, which has been a popular destination for filming a lot of Bollywood songs. It is an open church with a beautiful view of Port Louis. After climbing 82 steps, we reached the top and the view was gorgeous. The kids went crazy running, rolling, and falling on the hill slope.

After all the wonderful sightseeing, Neha and I had reached our personal haven – shoppers’ paradise – Bagatella Mall. I think we were to go to a local craft market and China town after that, but it was impossible for others to get Neha and me out of this place, so I think we skipped the other 2 places and enjoyed some retail therapy at the mall. Aakaash and Vividh were with the kids, enjoying fish spa, reflexology and what nots. Till date Aakaash says that he had one of the best head massages there.

We had the perfect end to a hectic day, unwinding back at our resort. There was a live band playing at night and the kids had a blast dancing and performing on a small stage in the dining area. We called it a night, ready to explore more of this island’s natural beauty the next day!

Memorable Mauritius

The story goes – we had just come back from Brazil in January, which had created a big dent in our pockets. One evening, sitting with friends who had now become very close and were leaving Kenya forever, an idea struck to go for a holiday together for the first time but hopefully not the last. FYI – full disclaimer – idea was not mine. I just jumped right into the bandwagon that came along, that’s all. Aakaash was totally opposed to the idea since we had just returned from a trip. I agree the timing was not ideal, but we couldn’t push beyond mid-February for they had to start wrapping up to leave. Neha, Vividh and I started exploring the options for the ideal place and finalized on Mauritius – a country that is even smaller than the city of Nairobi, where we live.  

I feel if you are going with friends, a beach holiday is the best, so that you can relax and spend quality time since there is not too much of sightseeing involved. Vividh did pretty much all the research, contacting the travel agents and getting competitive quotes, and he would secretly update me about the trip. When we would sit in the evenings, he would gently slide it past Aakaash. I had to be neutral about the plan because I knew if I pushed Aakaash, the whole idea could go south very quickly. Finally, after a lot of pull and push, we were able to convince him.

I was super excited for the trip, since this was also going to be one of the first vacations with friends. It is very important to travel with like-minded people, or else the whole trip can be a total disaster. So, we set on this beautiful journey… oh wait a minute… when you have 4 kids ranging from the ages of 5 to 8, I should rephrase and say it was a journey… starting with the commotion in the play area of the airport till we reached our destination. 

Arrival

Our flight landed in the evening and the driver was there to pick us up. The moment we entered our resort, we were totally pleased as we knew that we had reached our paradise. I remember seeing the excitement on our faces, trying to compose ourselves and heading straight for dinner; after which we couldn’t resist going to the soft, white-sanded beach and dipping our feet into the ocean. Even though we were tired, we didn’t want to call it a night and strolled along the coastline. However, we had our small alarm bells who forced us to get back to our rooms. 

We wanted to balance out and make this a memorable vacation with a mix of sightseeing and spending some “friends bonding time” as well. We had tailored this holiday to be a perfect blend of relaxation and excitement.  On day 1, we decided that we would just chill out and enjoy in the resort and so we complied. It was more like “let the craziness begin”. I feel if you have friends with whom you can be comfortable doing everything and not be thinking of how you will be perceived, then they are your keepers – maybe forever. After breakfast, we started exploring our resort. With cocktails/mocktails, pics, clicks, sun, sand and sea - the madness had begun. Is sand called sand because it’s in between the sea and land? Lol. My sense of humor is indicating it’s time to wrap up this post now. More on Mauritius coming soon.

Rio De Janeiro – Party City

In the morning, we woke up bright and early to board our flight from Pantanal to Rio de Janeiro – one of the most exciting cities in the world. It was a hopping flight from Sao Paulo with a layover of an hour plus. Unfortunately, our flight got delayed from Pantanal and by the time we reached Sao Paulo it was too late… even though we ran to the gate, we saw our flight take off right before our eyes. This was the first flight we missed in our lives for no fault of ours. After having a difficult conversation with the ground staff and explaining our situation, we got the boarding pass for our next flight, only to know that the gate number of the flight had changed at the last moment. If you were sitting at the airport, this is what you would have seen: an Asian couple with 2 small children literally running and dragging their kids (like you see in the movies) from one end of the airport to the other and then back again to the other. OMG, the language barrier really gave us a ‘run’ for our money! It was the final call for our flight when we boarded huffing and puffing. 

We were at our wits end, not only because we had missed our original connecting flight but had almost missed the second as well! There was more stress not only due to what we had gone through but because it was New Year’s Eve. How does that affect us? Well, the roads get closed to Copacabana at around 5pm to host one of the biggest parties in the world, with 3 million people from all over the world who gather around the iconic beaches of Copacabana. To top it all, I had booked the hotel in the heart of it, where all the action happens. So you can imagine, after this stressful journey, if we wouldn’t have reached before the roads closed, the taxi would have left us at the outskirts of the city, with 2 small kids and suitcases to drag to a location that we didn’t know, and no knowledge of the local language to help us with directions. Now you know why our anxiety level was hitting the rooftop.

Finally, to our relief, we managed to reach in time, checked into our hotel, and went for an early dinner. Our hotel was close to the beach and had a beautiful view of the Favelas. We returned to our room to change for the New Year’s Eve party - it is a tradition in Brazil to wear white on New Year’s Eve as it brings good luck for the coming year. Thankfully I was aware of this and had made it a point to bring white clothes for all of us. Rio de Janeiro is one of the top 10 destinations for New Year’s celebrations and Rio does live up to its party city name. The city thrives on sports, dance, music, beach, sun and there seems to be a lust for life that manifests itself into this ginormous New Year’s party. This was also one of the reasons I had planned my trip in such a way that I don’t miss out on this spectacle. By evening we could see a sea of people flocking on the roads heading towards the beach and all we had to do was blend in and be one with the crowd to see the world’s biggest firework show at midnight.

When we reached the beach, it was a challenge to find a spot for us. Finally, when we did, you should have seen the vibe of the place, people came fully prepared with their cooler boxes loaded with booze, beach umbrellas, and chairs, I think the ones on hire were all sold out. I had these 2 plastic raincoats that luckily I was carrying in my bag that I spread out for the kids. Aan was too tired so he was dozing off in between and Aananya was too busy to care about the commotion, loud music, etc. happening around her, she was way too happy making her sandcastles; while Aakaash and I were just soaking in the energy that was oozing out of millions. Finally, the countdown started, and we were ready for the fireworks display. I have never ever seen such a long and beautiful firework show, it definitely was one of the most unique experiences I have had. For those 15 minutes, it looked like it was bright as day. When you see the fireworks happening you feel like a kid in candy land who is awestruck by every striking light. We also stepped into the sea at midnight and jumped 7 waves – this is a tradition that is also supposed to bring good luck. After the fireworks finished, people started dispersing – some to continue partying in different clubs and some, like us, to retire for the night for we had loads of sightseeing to do the next morning.

Although, at night, we couldn’t sleep well… my great idea to stay in the heart of the party land backfired. I forgot to think about the people who would not retire when I chose to hit the bed, so occasionally we kept hearing people partying all through the night. We woke up groggy in the morning, yet all pumped to continue our tour. We finished our breakfast but, surprisingly, our guide was late. We waited and waited and then waited some more. Finally, we started making calls to find out what happened? To our dismay, the travel company had goofed up and there was no arrangement done for the day’s tour. We didn’t let that dampen our spirits, so we decided to take it on as an adventure. With a lot of difficulties, because of the language barrier, we were finally able to reach the most famous coastal mountain - Sugarloaf. This mountain has wonderful views of the city, bay, skyscrapers, and the world-famous Christ de Redeemer. Rio is one of the few cities in the world that gives you the best of both worlds, the sea and the mountain in the same view. Aakaash is more of a mountain person and I love the sea, so this city was a perfect haven for us. We did have to stand in the queues, which could have been avoided had our guide been there with us but other than that we pretty much continued our sightseeing. We took the cable car to reach this 396-meter-high mountain; the beautiful landscape and breathtaking views left us speechless.

The next morning, we took it easy, relaxed, and walked around to have a feel of the city. The kids loved playing in a playground close to our hotel. When you talk about Brazil, apart from the wildlife, sports, New Year’s there is another thing that you can’t miss. That is the world-famous Carnival of Rio which happens in February but we couldn’t have stayed for that long obviously, so we decided to do the next best thing and went to see what you can call a spectacular re-enactment of the carnival, it’s like a glimpse of the real thing. Hence, we booked the Plataforma Show for the night. We were supposed to see a similar show in Iguazu, which we missed (to know why, you will have to go back and read my blog on the Iguazu Falls - one of the seven wonders of Nature). The tour bus came, picked us up, and took us for dinner which was followed by the show that we were all excited to watch.

The Plataforma Show represents the colorful and varied mix of rhythmic dances and dramatic drumming of Brazil and often features the previous year’s winning Samba school dancers. You can experience the electric energy and excitement of the carnival by being in the presence of live, upbeat samba music, unbelievable professional dancers in brilliant and vibrant costumes. Watching this 2-hour show makes you realize what it would be like in the real carnival with outrageously colorful and exuberant costumes with theatrical and thrilling Brazilian martial arts demonstrations and pulsating lights that definitely makes it one hell of a show to watch.  Sometimes it’s essential to go out with a bang and this was the perfect way to end this beautiful trip to Brazil.