Intercity bus rides make you feel nauseous in Brazil or at least that was my experience. During the day, a 5 and a half hour bus ride was ok. Bus driver drove fast and stopped just as fast before they hit the speed bumps on the road, almost throwing you off the seat, this being another good reason the have the seat belt on at all times.
I had previously been on long bus journeys and especially at night in Europe, on the Paris-London route, which is more or less 7 hours and includes waking up in the middle of the night for customs screening. I did not enjoy those trips too much but it was cheaper than the plane or train when not bought in advance. At least on those trips I could get some sleep and did not feel sick because of the trip itself.
I don't know about other parts of Brazil but this ride from Maceio to Recife is very wobbly, the bus is always shifting from a left turn to a right one. Also there are sections where the road is so bad that no suspension in the world can make any difference. Moreover, the way drivers speed up and slow down in a rush, adds to a bad feeling for an overall unpleasant journey. On one occasion I thought we were about to crash judging by the force that the driver used to push the breaks, but we didn't, it was just another speed bump on a main road. On this journey, seems I got the opportunity to sit next to people who loved to talk at 2 am like it was the afternoon, after all who cares about the other 95% of people trying to sleep. And no, earplugs don't help too much either.
As taxi drivers, bus drivers seem to love to make you feel as you have boarded a fridge and not a car. Even with the small overhead AC switches turned off, it still is almost freezing if wearing shorts and flip flops. Surely this love for the cold exists because most people have only seen snow on TV in this part of the world. How practical is it to carry a small blanket and a long sleeve top with you when during the day its mostly around 30 degrees Celsius and 23 at night? Another common thing with taxi drivers was that red or green traffic lights both seem to mean you can pass at night. Then why have different lights anyway?
On the other hand, the bus overall quality is superior to most European counterparts, with larger and more comfortable seats as well as a more spacious toilet.
Luckily, the return bus journey was not that bad. I left at 11pm and arrived at 8 am.
I managed to get some decent sleep on a new and clean bus. In the beginning of the trip and then for the rest of it I was on and off dozing away. I only took the bus because it was impossible to buy a flight ticket online as an estrangeiro (foreigner) when I tried.
All in all I will buy flights in advance and only take short daytime buses when needed. Hope others had better bus journeys than me in South America.