Tiradentes with children, part 2

Ok, here's the rest of the story! We got settled at our pousada, and then walked into town. We got to the praça, and let the kids run around for a while. If you walk a bit away from the praça (over the "bridge" and towards the mob of horses), you can see Igreja N. Senhora das Mercês, but in terms of all the Churches there, it's not the most impressive. We then decided that we wanted to make it back to the pousada for their 5:00 Tea, so we rented a horse drawn cart to get back.




Very fun! I tried negotiating with the driver, but he told me the fixed rate was R$30....hmmm....but it was worth it. We got back in time to be first for the tea (cookies, bread products and tea), and the kids played in the playground and then it got pretty cold, so we just hung out inside and watched bad TV, went back into town to get Pasteis for dinner (fried pastry with meat inside, yum!) and went to bed early--it was wonderful!

The roosters woke us up off and on through the night, but overall it was a good nights sleep. We had breakfast at the Pousada, and then the kids got to ride the horses. They LOVED it!






They each had about 20 minutes to ride around the neighborhood. After that, we ventured into town. We could hear the train whistle, so we decided to go towards to the station to check it the Maria Fumaça. We just so happened to arrive right before the steam train "turned" around. The train had to move onto the turntable, and the workers had to manually push in order for it to be turned to go the right direction. It was VERY cool, and the kids loved being so close to the engine.




I've heard that it's fun to ride the train to São João del Rei, but the line was SUPER long, and I wasn't sure that I wanted to do it on this trip. I think the train goes twice a day (at least on holidays and weekends) and costs R$40 roundtrip for adults, R$20 roundtrip for kids age 6-10, and is free for the little ones. Thankfully the kids weren't begging to go on the train, and we drove back towards the main part of town to look at the churches. We went to the Chafariz (fountain), and then went on a hike on the trail behind it. We'd read that it was 6 miles long, but the kids were happy hiking for about 30 minutes and then turning back. If you do want to to the whole way, make sure you wear good shoes and clothes that you don't mind getting dirty--the trail is right next to the stream and you have to kind of bushwhack at different points. But it was very beautiful.




Next we went to the Igreja Nossa Senhora do Rosario, the slave church. This was by far the most interesting to me. It was very simple compared to the other churches, and had lots of African saints. The Church was built at night, after the slaves put in a full day of work.



Then we window shopped and worked up an appetite. The owner of the pousada recommended Restaurante da Mercês, and I'm not sure it's one of the best in Tiradentes (which is known for having GREAT restaurants), but we enjoyed it. The waiter recommended the Chicken in a Bowl (or something like that), and it was really good. Especially the sauce. Last week I was talking to a friend, and he said it probably was made with chicken blood (ew), but it was really yummy, especially with Angu (a kind of Brazilian polenta).

The rest of the day was spent at the Pousada, trying to stay warm. It was very cold for Brazil (60-65 Farenheit), and the floors were all tiled and there is no insulation, and the sun never came out, so we were chilly! We went back into town for dinner, looking to find coxinha for Katie (the chicken snacks that look like a chicken leg), but we had no luck. But we did find espetinhos (kebabs) for R$2 across the street from the gas station. I love me my cheap eats!

The next day we went to Bichinho, a small artist community about 7 km outside of Tiradentes. Most of the road there is cobblestone, so it's a pretty slow drive. But it's very scenic. There are lots of stores selling handicrafts and art, and it's a great place to buy furniture made from reclaimed/recycled wood. Unfortunately, my sister had left her wallet at the place we had bought espetinhos the night before, so we had to cut our visit short. But the good news was that the woman who found my sister's wallet was SO excited that we came back--she said she had no way of knowing how to contact us (all my sister had was a little cash and her American credit card and no ID). And of course, she had coxinhas today, so not only did we get back the wallet, but we got our chicken salgado (salty snack). We drove out of Tiradentes happy.

On the drive back, we stopped at Charm Country for Linguiça com pão (sausage with bread). They threw on a little cooked Minas cheese...oh my oh my. It was heavenly. It's kind of a dying little restaurant by the side of the road, but it's got a nice view and a little space for the kids to run around before the final leg of the trip.


"Mom, we are not happy that you are making us pose in front of the stinky cows!"


Katie with a Papaya tree!

Fun weekend, wonderful time with the kids and my sister, and some great food!