Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays everyone! I'm not in Brazil anymore, in fact I'm about as polar opposite as you can get from Brazil! I'm at my Uncle's Mountain House riding out a snow/ice storm! Nevertheless, I want to write a blog about the highlights of our time in Rio.
Monday is when we arrived in Rio and settled into our Hotel, the Windsor Martinique. It was located RIGHT on the Copacabana beach, so naturally we headed there immediately. Later that evening, we headed to Mercado Popular da Uruguaiana to do some partying. Supposedly there was Samba dancing going on somewhere on the premises but it was essentially a crowded street party and I couldn't stray too far from the Caipirinha stand. We had a lot of fun, despite the harrowing journey we had to make to get there. We met a couple of Brazilians that spoke English (a pretty rare find), a German who sounded Australian, and these two sleezy Parisian dudes. One of them was wearing a Ninja Turtle T-shirt. They were both rather memorable.
The next morning everyone woke up (slowly), headed down to the lobby for some complementary breakfast, and then set out for the Marina da Gloria. We took a boat tour around the coast and harbors of Rio. It was really awesome and relaxing. We listened to Brazilian music and soaked up some sun. We even had a group picture photobombed by a Chinese man. Excellent. After the boat ride we walked around the city and went lotsa places. Churches, banks, libraries, the usual sight-seeish stuff. Then we headed back to the hotel for some R&R.
Wednesday started with a trip through the Market. We tried our best to blend in, but a group of 11 Gringos walking around is rather... conspicuous. We were making our way to the Centro de Operaçoes Rio. This place is supposedly the "command center" and we were going to get some inside info about how Rio is gearing up from the Olympics. When we arrived to the place we weren't even allowed to go in because there was a dress code that we didn't know about. Apparently no one is allowed to wear shorts or sandals in Brazilian Government buildings - who knew! Even though that aspect of the day was a flop, we recovered and still managed to do some pretty cool stuff. We took a hot and sketchy train to the Complexo do Alemao which is this sky tram system that takes passengers over a huge Favela (slum). It was an interesting set up - like the Brazilians were like "hey tourists come see how our poor people live!". It was cool, but weird. I must say though, compared to the slums I've seen in India, the Brazilians have it good. Electricity, dish television, and water tanks on the roofs of their tottering cinderblock homes. After the sky ride, a group of us headed to the Escadaria de Selaron some famous tiled steps. The steps have tiles from all over the world! There was a tile from Ohio right next to a tile from Lima, Peru (this is significant because Jordan and I's roomie Janet is from Peru!). Also, there was a tile from WUPPERTAL! I couldn't believe it! It was incredible. The steps led up to an incredible view of the city.
Thursday we rode the Bondinho de Pao de Acucar up to the Sugar Loaf! Sugar Loaf is this giant rock formation that looks like a loaf of bread... kinda. We rode up these huge high speed gondola things that can hold like 70 people at a time. The view from the top was awesome - so many good views everywhere you go in Rio. Also, there was a huge group of German tourists up there, so I got to eavesdrop on a tour auf Deutsch. It made me happy! Later that day we went to lots of garden type places Jardim Botanico do Rio de Janeiro and Parque Lage. I saw wild(ish) monkeys way up in the tops of trees! They were cute! We had a sweet dinner along the lake that consisted of beef, beans, and rice - surprise surprise.
And now the moment you've all been waiting for. I bet everyone was wondering when we were going to take the Trem do Corcovado to see Cristo Redentor (the giant Jesus). I'll be the first one to say it wasn't that cool. The tram ride up was cooler than the statue itself. Once you got to the top it was SO HOT and super crowded. Also, you were like right under the statue so there wasn't really an awesome view of it. But, like I've said before, there were plenty of cool views of the whole city! Later that evening we went to Lapa, the HUGE party district. It's entrance is marked with these big arches that were once the aqueducts of the city. There was a massive party in the street and all the surrounding buildings were big clubs. I only lasted a little while at Lapa because we had stuffed ourselves with another huge meal of beef, beans, and rice. Even just seeing Lapa was enough of an experience for me!
Our last day in Rio was strictly R&R. I beached for a bit before retreating back into the shade to nap and lounge. I also hit up the hotel pool and did a bit of last minute Christmas shopping. Our Rio adventures were everything I had hoped for - the perfect mix of tourist destinations and relaxation. I left the city feeling accomplished with our adventures, and even got a tinsy weensy tan in the process. I can safely say that I'll visit Rio again for the World Cup or the Olympics since I've already got my visa! Until then, até logo!
Monday is when we arrived in Rio and settled into our Hotel, the Windsor Martinique. It was located RIGHT on the Copacabana beach, so naturally we headed there immediately. Later that evening, we headed to Mercado Popular da Uruguaiana to do some partying. Supposedly there was Samba dancing going on somewhere on the premises but it was essentially a crowded street party and I couldn't stray too far from the Caipirinha stand. We had a lot of fun, despite the harrowing journey we had to make to get there. We met a couple of Brazilians that spoke English (a pretty rare find), a German who sounded Australian, and these two sleezy Parisian dudes. One of them was wearing a Ninja Turtle T-shirt. They were both rather memorable.
The next morning everyone woke up (slowly), headed down to the lobby for some complementary breakfast, and then set out for the Marina da Gloria. We took a boat tour around the coast and harbors of Rio. It was really awesome and relaxing. We listened to Brazilian music and soaked up some sun. We even had a group picture photobombed by a Chinese man. Excellent. After the boat ride we walked around the city and went lotsa places. Churches, banks, libraries, the usual sight-seeish stuff. Then we headed back to the hotel for some R&R.
Wednesday started with a trip through the Market. We tried our best to blend in, but a group of 11 Gringos walking around is rather... conspicuous. We were making our way to the Centro de Operaçoes Rio. This place is supposedly the "command center" and we were going to get some inside info about how Rio is gearing up from the Olympics. When we arrived to the place we weren't even allowed to go in because there was a dress code that we didn't know about. Apparently no one is allowed to wear shorts or sandals in Brazilian Government buildings - who knew! Even though that aspect of the day was a flop, we recovered and still managed to do some pretty cool stuff. We took a hot and sketchy train to the Complexo do Alemao which is this sky tram system that takes passengers over a huge Favela (slum). It was an interesting set up - like the Brazilians were like "hey tourists come see how our poor people live!". It was cool, but weird. I must say though, compared to the slums I've seen in India, the Brazilians have it good. Electricity, dish television, and water tanks on the roofs of their tottering cinderblock homes. After the sky ride, a group of us headed to the Escadaria de Selaron some famous tiled steps. The steps have tiles from all over the world! There was a tile from Ohio right next to a tile from Lima, Peru (this is significant because Jordan and I's roomie Janet is from Peru!). Also, there was a tile from WUPPERTAL! I couldn't believe it! It was incredible. The steps led up to an incredible view of the city.
Thursday we rode the Bondinho de Pao de Acucar up to the Sugar Loaf! Sugar Loaf is this giant rock formation that looks like a loaf of bread... kinda. We rode up these huge high speed gondola things that can hold like 70 people at a time. The view from the top was awesome - so many good views everywhere you go in Rio. Also, there was a huge group of German tourists up there, so I got to eavesdrop on a tour auf Deutsch. It made me happy! Later that day we went to lots of garden type places Jardim Botanico do Rio de Janeiro and Parque Lage. I saw wild(ish) monkeys way up in the tops of trees! They were cute! We had a sweet dinner along the lake that consisted of beef, beans, and rice - surprise surprise.
And now the moment you've all been waiting for. I bet everyone was wondering when we were going to take the Trem do Corcovado to see Cristo Redentor (the giant Jesus). I'll be the first one to say it wasn't that cool. The tram ride up was cooler than the statue itself. Once you got to the top it was SO HOT and super crowded. Also, you were like right under the statue so there wasn't really an awesome view of it. But, like I've said before, there were plenty of cool views of the whole city! Later that evening we went to Lapa, the HUGE party district. It's entrance is marked with these big arches that were once the aqueducts of the city. There was a massive party in the street and all the surrounding buildings were big clubs. I only lasted a little while at Lapa because we had stuffed ourselves with another huge meal of beef, beans, and rice. Even just seeing Lapa was enough of an experience for me!
Our last day in Rio was strictly R&R. I beached for a bit before retreating back into the shade to nap and lounge. I also hit up the hotel pool and did a bit of last minute Christmas shopping. Our Rio adventures were everything I had hoped for - the perfect mix of tourist destinations and relaxation. I left the city feeling accomplished with our adventures, and even got a tinsy weensy tan in the process. I can safely say that I'll visit Rio again for the World Cup or the Olympics since I've already got my visa! Until then, até logo!
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