To save some money and to avoid taking the same touristic route back to Brasilia, we decided to go the other way. It was just a dirt road making its way through the hilly relief of the Chapada with the sun going for a touch down. We walked around 3km and we were really lucky because Daniel and his girlfriend took us in their car again - some 20km, mucho obrigado. Later, we were taken by a truck and soon, we were in Colinas do Sul. Having nowhere to sleep, we asked locals if they knew about a safe place to sleep. They recommended us to sleep behind the gas station - they are free, but safe to sleep at everywhere in Brazil and some even have facilities available (shower, toilet). Truck drivers often spend the night there.. there were some street bars (containers with cold bottled beer and other drinks), so we went to the nearby one and had beer with snow foam (yes, Brazilians drink beer this cold)!
Niquelandia
We started the next day with tapioca and oats + fresh mango from the city garden! We walked, it was hot. First ride was a pickup who took us 1km and refilled our empty water bottles. Not too many cars stop, so we waited for like 2hrs under Baru tree (we did not know it had really good nuts) playing cards. The second ride, a Brazilian couple going to the lady’s father’s farm, took us 30km further to the crossing of BR239 and BR237. There, we got some more water at the lanchonete (refreshments). We cooked tapiocas with goiaba jam under another tree and when we were done, a pickup van offered us a ride to Niquelandia. Sweet! In Niquelandia, they also had their Redeemer just like in Rio, so it’s probably just waiting to become famous. On the way out of the town, two young men chilling by the road offered us some coffee, we sat down and chilled with them. They told us about beautiful cachoeiras and the lake close to Niquelandia, recommended that truck drivers start their day at 5, so it’s best to start hitching early. We also asked them if they know a good spot to sleep. Their first response was the nearby gas station with good food. Then, they thought about a better place - a laguna 10km away from Niquelandia, where you can camp and bath. They even offered to take us there! We said yes and Thiago started up a 30 year old Chevy and hit the road. The car had a loose rear axis, it couldn’t keep a straight line and before we reached the destination, we ran out of fuel. Luckily, Thiego stopped a passing car to send for his amigo, who was meant to arrive with more gas. In the meantime, we learned some mechanics in Portugese. And some time later, we were already bathing in the Laguna, drank one more shot of Becherovka before we bid farewell to Thiego and fell asleep our tent to the sound of the jungle.
Hitchhiking through fire
As Thiego advised, we woke up at 6am to start hitching. After 3hrs, we managed to hop in our first ride of the day, a Volvo truck. We were dropped at a junction and then walked for about 4km at midday in peak heat. No one was bothered to stop. Then a bus picked us up, but this was expensive 8 reais per person only for 8km!! But we were really thirsty so being in a village with water and food was nice. In the shadow, we found time to enjoy a can of Proibido beer, reminding us of our homeland since it had “Dej bůh štěstí” motto on it. The next ride was a lorry with 40 tonnes of stones and the truck struggled in most uphills (blazing at 20km/h). The consumption of fuel of such trucks is 1L/km! The highlight of the ride was when we literally drove through open fire that started just off the road.. We made it to another gas station where a church charity van picked us up and drove us to the end of the town (Cocalzinho de Goiás). There, we waited for a bit until Juri took us inside his Ford Estate and told us he was going to Pirenopolis! He did paragliding in his free time, spoke English/Portugese, told us about Brazilian history, offered us Barú nuts, stopped for a view of a really cool waterfall, bought some Korbačik cheese for us as well and had good music on the playlist. The best ride so far! In Pirenopolis, an old gold mining city, we drank some beer together before we met with Monika, our host in Pirenopolis.
