Time to relax and so I went to the beaches at Itacare - white sand, coconut palms, clear sea, good company and cocktails at sunset- bliss.
Then, when I left I had a horrible day when my shock absorber fell off. OK, slight exaggeration, the bolt holding it sheared off and...Thelma looked like she was in pieces. Naturally this occurred on an appallingly bad dirt track in the middle of nowhere with humid jungle all around me - the ground was so uneven that I couldn`t even put my side-stand down. Using a complicated combination of holding Thelma up with one hand, whilst unlocking and removing a pannier with the other, I managed to manoeuvre Thelma onto her side resting on the pannier (she weighs almost 300 kg with the luggage!)- a passing cyclist was commandeered into helping me to clout the shock absorber back into position - then, with just a half-inch of snapped bolt holding it in place I gingerly proceeded.
It fell off twice more before I managed to reach tarmac and then a bike workshop - four hours to cover 30 miles, I don`t think I have ever been so tense in my life.

I have now reached Salvador - a beautiful colonial city and am going off in search of a 15 mm spanner... such is the glamourous life on the road.