My first stop was Porto Alegre, the capital and largest city in the state of Rio Grande do Sul.

Walking to the hostel, the thing that I noticed about this place was how fresh and green it is. Some of the streets are literally overflowing with trees and plants.

This city, and the people I met at the hostel were so pleasant I ended up extending my stay a couple of nights. Although I think this is the first ever hostel I've been to where there hasn't been another Australian!

The first couple of days I spent recovering from jet lag, after that I took a couple of tour buses, walked around the historic city, played a game of football with the guys from the hostel, cooked a few dinners, and went to a Bloco (street party) nearby and had a few too many drinks.

Now, my bag is packed again and tonight I'll take a 13 hour bus to Curitiba ... where the weather looks horrible. But before that, I'll fuel up for the journey at a nearby Churrascaria I've had my eye on ever since I arrived!