Today we have an all day shared tour (booked on our own) to go to Monte Serrat and the Coffee Museum so we are up and at ‘em early – but then again, that’s usual!  We are out in the port terminal really early and searching the area for the meeting place – the tour operator has given us excellent instructions including pictures!  Makes it fairly easy, except for the fact that MSC is here for turnaround – or at least people are embarking – and they have the pier nearest our meeting point.  Our pier is way down the port – we have to take a shuttle to the terminal and our entrance is in another wing of the building – just means more walking – we’re good.  We do eventually hook up with our guide, Mary who turns out to be both excellent and adorable.  But, as I said, we are really early, so we hang out and have a coffee, debating on whether to buy the 10 piece Pao de Queijo at the coffee stand.  We pass, knowing we can’t eat them all and that they really don’t last all that well. 

When it is close to our departure time, we hang outside with Mary looking for the other folks who will join us. Turns out there are 6 other passengers, all from Oceania Marina who is also in port; 2 Brits and 4 Germans, all sick.  Joy.  Mask up!!!

We head off into the city for a quick little abbreviated tour around.  Mary is a local and knows the timing of most of the other ship’s tours, so she is making sure we avoid the crowds by doing things in a little different order.  We are going to the Old Town first because it will be cooler, and up to Monte Serrat early to avoid the crowds.  As we drive through the narrow little streets (many that are closed due to light rail construction), Mary gives us background on Santos, explaining it is an island with a population of about 434,000.  The area across on the mainland is protected area with mountains and forests where no one lives.   

Arriving at the funicular that will take us up to Monte Serrat, we just miss the first ride as it is filled with an Azamara tour. But luckily another one is leaving quickly – otherwise we would have to wait for 30 minutes.  The funicular takes us up to the Casino Monte Serrat, built by 6 Spanish immigrants who wanted to pay homage to the original Montserrat in Catalonia, Spain. They built a huge and imposing events and casino complex in 1927 that thrived until 1946 when gambling was banned.  Afterward it was preserved by a family as a tourist attraction, as well as an events center.  All the materials were shipped from Europe – Swiss carrara marble for eh floor, stained glass windows from Belgium. 

It’s a quick 5-minute ride up the 150 meter high hill to the casino.  Once we are there, we head directly to the upper level viewing deck that provides stunning views across the city of Santos and over to the mainland forests. 

Taking our fill of photos, we next head out to the Capel of Our Lady of Mounte Serrat, built in 1604.  It is still visited by sailors who come to pray for their safety, and has the ubiquitous ribbons tied to fencing in the front.  A simple single aisle church, it is located at the top of the only other access to this mountain, the 402 step staircase built before the funicular. 

Free time now before we head back down the mountain, so we indulge in our first Pao de Queijo, which is really, really good, but really, really expensive!  They are a little different than normal, more puffy and muffin like, but oh so good. Worth the splurge.  Then it is back down the mountain on the funicular and into the waiting van for our next stop, the Pele Museum.

On our way to the museum, we pass through the old town and some great architecture that is impossible to photograph through the van, so just trust us – it was awesome.  Parking at a little church, that was going to be demolished in 1649 to make way for building the railway station (which is right next door), but when the workers went to try to remove the statue of the Saint, it couldn’t be removed.  Many different sets of workers tried, but legend has it that the statue didn’t want to leave, so the King said church could stay! 

As we are walking past the aforementioned railway station, a trolley is just filling up with passengers.  For 100 years, Santos had a working tram system, but now it is just a tourist tram that takes you on a 15 minute overview of city.  Oh that tour would be very disappointing!

Into the Pele museum we go – which is a really cool place with tons of information on Pele, his life and his successes.  Such a legend.  We learn that his father was a football player too (which we didn’t know) and that before he gained his fame, as a youth, he was a shoeshine boy outside a train station in his home town of Bauru.  His shoe shining kit, a little piggy bank he used to keep his money, the radio he used to listen to games and the ball made from torn socks that he first used and showed his talent are all on display here.  And of course tons and tons and tons of memorabilia and wax likenesses and photos. 

Now we are off to the main event – the Coffee Stock Exchange.  First we walk through the old banking district.  Virtually every building on this street was a bank back in the days of the stock exchange. Then it is on to the Exchange, itself in a beautifully designed building with arches and marble embellishments everywhere.

Inside Mary guides us on a tour of the main auction hall area, showing us where the brokers sat, the little tables where they would sample a few beans of the coffee that was being auctioned and how the auctions were conducted. The Santos coffee stock market was the most important in world in its heydays in the 1920s; many brokers would not buy coffee unless it was stamped certified from Santos.  The coffee sold through the exchange came from all over Brazil, not just  Santos and was classified on a visual and taste basis. 

Moving through the museum, we head upstairs to more displays that provide detail on exactly how the beans were classified, the safe in which the sales records were stored, maps showing the regions from which the coffee came and tons of other interesting information, not to mention beautiful artwork and architecture. 

Now we have free time for lunch. Mary points out a few places, we follow her to a buffet, but it is packed and the line is long, and well, we really don’t want a buffet – we want a sit down meal. We had spotted a little restaurant/bar called Lyon down the street – so we headed there.  Got a lovely table outside and google translated to tell the waiter we only had 30 minutes to eat – he said no problem, so we sat back ordered a beer (no wine here…what???), octopus salad for Ed and local sausage plate for me. 

As we were waiting, I saw a street placard advertising Pao de Queijo for 1.75 Real with an arrow pointing down the street.  We figured, what the heck?  Appetizers!  So I walked down to this great little diner sort of place and there two Paos left.  I asked for both but another woman standing there (who I thought worked there) shook her finger and basically said one was hers.  Ok, then one please!  So one it was!  And it was delicious and a perfect appetizer split between the two of us. 

After I left, the waiter came out and told Ed no octopus and pointed at something else for him to have, so who knows what we’ll get.  Or when, because we waited and waited and waited, and no food came out for us. As we waited, the diner guy came and took his sign down…guess I truly did get the last Pao!!!  And still we waited.  I finally had to go in and get the waiter and point to my watch, and he still gave me the thumbs up sign. But soon it was almost time for us to meet the rest of the group again.  And still no food. So I went in and found the waiter again and just said lista – and gave him the sign language for out of time need the bill.  He kept trying to have us stay, but we had to leave, and then of course here comes the food.  Some big salad with seafood for Ed, which we then just said this is fine, we’ll both split it.  And we gobbled it down as fast as we could still looking for the bill.  A few minutes later he comes out with this huge plate of sausage and beans and rice for me and I just looked at him and shook my head – no way. We have to leave now.  He said he was sorry – and I said me too!  And when he gave us the check he didn’t charge us for that meal which was nice of him. But what a disappointment.

And then, insult to injury, the rest of the group hadn’t finished their meal yet either and came to tell Mary that they needed more time.  Sigh.   We ended up sitting in the Coffee Exchange, ordering an empanada and cappuccino while we wait for everyone to finish their lunch.  Then we have to sit and wait longer while they come back and have their after lunch coffee.  Double sigh.  Oh well, whatever.

Our next stop is the Botanical Garden, which is lovely and created in 1945 when the city hall acquired part of Julio Conceicao’s (a passionate orchid enthusiast) collection of orchids after his death.  The city then redeveloped a small football field into a public park and began the Orquidario and Botanical Garden.  Now it has been transformed into an Atlantic Rainforest garden with all the different species found only here in Brazil and the rainforest. 

It is a fabulous garden, with loads of trees and orchids and beautiful flowers.  We pass by the fountain of Ninfa, then past the Rusty-Barred Owls in their cages – so cute!

Oh, and then the Agouti!  This bizarre combination of a rat, squirrel and nutria.  Really weirdly pretty looking with their gold fur color, wandering all over the park on the sidewalks in the bushes, just everywhere!

There are birds and parrots and turtles and koi ponds. And a real coffee tree where we can really see how the coffee bean pods grow on the trunk!

And then the monkeys – oh God the monkeys.  They are a variety of marmoset called Buffy-tufted-ear marmoset – and while sort of cute, they are actually sort of scary with their almost human face scowling at you from – thankfully – inside their glass cage.  Nightmares are made of these!

There are cuter little common marmosets in the next cage, and a sweet little “free” marmoset running around, jumping up on the cross hatched fence roofing and staring longingly in the window trying to get in to play with its mates.  Sweet.  And a whole heck of a lot less scary!

Our last stop of the day is all the way around the bay to Porchat island, where we have a marvelous view of the shoreline of Santos, along with a wonderfully artistic advertisement for a cervejaria right there at the top of the mountain! Then it is back to the port, down to sea level with quick photos out the van window of the bay, the Basilica Menor de Santo Antonio do Embare, one of the many Gothic churches here in Santos, and then the port facility and back to the Quest for our normal evening activities.