Now eight in our party, we hired a mini van to drive us two and a half hours east of Rio to the peninsula of Armacao dos Buzios, locally known as just Buzios.

Buzios was officially discovered in the 1600's by Portuguese fishermen, and one of Buzios' monuments is a bronze statue depicting three 'pescadores' in the main harbor area. But the most famous statue is of Bridget Bardot sitting on a bench overlooking the bay. This is because she discovered this picturesque part of the world in 1964, and was photographed frolicking along the beaches showing off that bikini clad torso. The pictures captured the attention of the world, and put Buzios on the map.

Buzios represents all that the tropics are supposed to be: white sand beaches, crystal clear waters, palm trees and coconuts, beautiful houses dotting the green hills, and a slow-paced, intoxicating lifestyle for its many visitors. Buzios is also a playground for the wealthy, and is considerably safer than other places in Brazil. Owning a vacation home here is a must for the well-heeled Brazilian.

We rented a comfortable old villa for the week so the family could relax and enjoy ourselves under one roof. It was midnight and pouring with rain when we finally located the house down a dirt road with pot holes that had become ponds in the relentless downpour. I was once again reminded that we were in the rain forrest with the charms of burping frogs, squawking birds and orchids growing off of every surface, and the challenges of never ending humidity and bloodthirsty mosquitoes. The villa had charms and challenges of its own: It was painted in multiple colors with native art on the walls and inviting hammocks in the garden. But the kitchen was ancient, the plumbing temperamental and the ceiling fans did little other than blow the mosquitoes off course. But we were all together, and we opened a few bottles of good Argentinian wine to celebrate our arrival.

The first day we were getting our bearings in the non stop warm rain and realized we would need a car to explore the area that was much bigger than it looked on the map. With eight of us, it was more practical to rent two small cars rather than a large SUV, so we settled on matching stripped-down Fiat Puntos. (Freddie called them Putos). They were both black, and soon covered in layers of thick brown mud. I nicknamed them 'Shit Box One' and 'Shit Box Two'. All sorted now, we loaded up the house with provisions and waited for the sun to come out.

On the second day the clouds parted and the beaches began to come to life with hundreds of families, surfers and beach vendors making up the beach scene for which the area is famous. There are twenty three beaches on the peninsula of Buzios. On one side the beaches face the open Atlantic and the waves are big enough to surf, while the other side has a series of tranquil bays. You can walk from one side to the other in about twenty minutes, so most days we would explore a bit of both.

One day we walked down to the main harbor area where the tour boats depart from. While waiting for our boat, the girls noticed a snake poking along the sand near a storm drain. To our collective shock, we realized it was a green mamba! Another reminder that this place is still very much a jungle. We boarded an old fishing boat called Miss Buzios II for a cruise around the small islands and the more out-of-the-way beaches. It was about $18 each for this day trip but it included all the caiperhinas you could drink, and snorkeling equipment for those that weren't too bombed to swim.

The thing to remember about Brazil is that all local products are cheap, and anything imported is expensive. You can get a Brazilian beer for fifty cents, while an Absolute and tonic will be $8. We celebrated Freddie's birthday at a beautiful Thai restaurant in the harbor, to treat the South American family to the tasty cuisine, which is nearly unheard of in this part of the world. Needless to say, the Thai ingredients were all imported, as was the California wine. After paying the bill that night we made a pact to only enjoy the local specialties for the rest of our stay. This means fresh fish and tropical fruit....not so bad after all.

By this point in the holiday Freddie's Portuguese had come back to him after twenty years of not using it. He was happily chatting away with the locals in the hip beach clubs that we found ourselves in at the end of every day. And Brazilian-Portuguese is not an easy language to follow. It sounds like a stoned Hawaiian speaking Spanish with a Canadian accent. It's a lazy language that suits the tropical heat of Brazil, both charming and challenging.

By the end of the week we had explored pretty much all of the beaches and the local hot spots, and we really got our money's worth from the Shit Boxes. After three weeks I was actually ready to leave the damp heat of the jungle in exchange for the cold crisp winter in London. How incredibly lucky we are to live in an age of high speed travel. None of our ancestors could imagine leaving the tropics of South America and arriving in England on the North Sea in just ten hours. And with that thought, I was overwhelmed by my own good fortune that has brought me to so many countries in the last few years. Travel is the dream of many, and the privilege of few. Only a tiny percentage of the population of South America will ever leave the country of their birth, and the figures get even smaller in Africa and the rural Far East. And sadly, only 20% of Americans will ever explore the world beyond U.S. borders.

Maybe its time to get that passport and get out of the cold US winter? It's summer time in Brazil, and the living is easy!