I need more junk in my trunk

December 23, 2011:  Having something like vacation #8 within the past year, Cecile decided to visit me in Salvador during her two week Christmas break rather than fly back to France.  Picking her up at the airport she looked more like a mule going through customs than a tourist, as she was transporting candy, Christmas presents, Christmas movies, electronic equipment and 2 new cameras to name just a few things.  Looking at her backpack, 2/3 of the stuff she brought was mine and the other 1/3 was her traveling basics.

Shortly after her arrival, we left Salvador and spent a few days at Chapada Diamantina National Park.  Anytime spent in a national park in any country could not possibly be poor time or life management.  Not having a car and being at a National Park surely has its obvious drawbacks, restricting our plans to be organized and packaged.  Seeing some great rocks, trees, waterfalls and some amazing viewpoints, it was a refreshing and well needed break from the urine stained cobblestoned streets of Salvador.

On our last day, we spent the remaining time and little energy that we had left hiking to a natural stone waterslide.  Once there, we saw a pack of locals showing off as they quite effortlessly leaped into the dark blackish brown water from the large rocks that sat on the side of the river.  There was also an older guy in his Speedos that was quite entertaining as he would do pushups almost everywhere it seemed, trying to attract attention from the ladies – getting more discreet laughs than women ogling him.  Right after one of Mr. Speedos many pushup sessions, a tourist half his size mocked him doing some porn star like pushups, dropping his head up and down as he simulated humping the ground.  It would have been worth a few friendly punches from Mr. Speedos, but it was taken well. 

Watching everyone all afternoon sliding down the natural rock slide made it look easy – look easy.  Walking up to the top I became confused on where to go down.  Losing my footing, I began to slide toward a small but rocky pit – the only one on the whole entire slide.  Spreading my legs as wide as a dirty whore, my feet couldn’t catch the sides as I dropped into it banging my toe pretty badly.  This was not a good start but when I actually did begin moving forward, I sat on my hands to make up for the lack of junk in my trunk as I launched it down the slide and into the water.   It was fun, but only a “one time” fun.