Easy border crossing
16th August. The bridge between Peru and Brazil is very symbolic: red and white on the Peruvian side, turning green and yellow as soon as you cross into Brazil. We were entering at a remote corner of Brazil, a little past the bridge we found the border crossing & migration office, completely empty, just us.
Handing over our passports and hard-won 90-day visas (truly a pain in the butt to obtain). Printing off Jaxon’s, I noticed his visa carried my last name instead of his. A clerical slip & one that could have been a nightmare—thankfully, the officer either didn’t notice or didn’t care. Bam bam bam bam—four stamps & 5 mins later, we were in. First hurdle cleared.
Luckily, the agent who processed the truck paperwork spoke English, he also whisked us through the process record time. Papers stamped, we were free to roll on & South America’s biggest country. Portuguese is tripping us up, so very, very different from Spanish which was a big enough challenge, we’re now back at square one.
The midday sun was brutal, did I mention we don’t have air-conditioning? So we pushed on, windows down, breeze blowing in, to Porto Velho. A place we’d finger traced on maps for years, dreaming of driving the infamous Br319.
Porto Velho
17th August. Before tackling the 319, we needed to restock the pantry (the kids’ appetites are bottomless), pick up some cash, and sort out insurance for Bruce. We found a shiny mall, parked up, and headed into the air-conditioned bliss. Compared to Peru, it felt like stepping into another world—stylish shops, people dressed to the nines. Catching a glimpse of ourselves in the window, we suddenly looked like scruffy backpackers—except Jaxon, who always manages to look sharp. We promised ourselves a wardrobe update in Manaus.
One lonely ATM later (terrible rates, but no choice), we moved on to sort cell data at the Claro store. No CPF (Brazilian social insurance number), no plan—unless, apparently, you have Brazilian friends willing to help. One quick phone call later, and voilà: four months of unlimited data for just $30 CAD! Fifteen dollars each, back home in Canada, we were paying $95 each per month.
By the time we stepped out, night was falling. Through google translate I asked a security guard if we could camp the night in the carpark. Nodding he pointed to where we could enter. Later someone came and reassuring us we were welcome and safe, patrolled every hour. The cost would be 42R ($10 CAD). Perfect, we cracked a cold beer, pulled out the chairs, and settled in.
The next morning, after reorganizing the truck (away with winter clothes, out with summer). When we were ready to leave, a security officer happily escorted us to the gate. When we tried to explain that we first had to pay our ticket, he insisted no, no, and we were on our way.
First Taste of Brazil
Next in the priority list is a shower, we need to clean up. Truck stops have showers, so we head to one listed on iOverlander. There we each had a glorious, free, 6 minute cold shower that felt heavenly.
Clean and refreshed, we pulled into a roadside churrascaria for lunch—Brazilian BBQ.
Juicy pork, rice, beans, spaghetti, salad, and a mystery item, crunchy grain of some sort. Three plates were more than enough to feed the four of us, all for $5 CAD each. We’ve missed food like this.
Ready
With the truck full of diesel, fresh water in the tanks, food in the fridge with cold beer on ice, we set our course for our next exciting leg, Brazils infamous ghost highway, the Br319….