Rio – Marvellous City

The unusual topography of Rio is striking as you drive from the airport along the coast. It is a dramatic sight of mountains which seem to emerge from the water. The city derived its name from the month it was discovered by the Portuguese – January River or Rio de Janeiro.

Copacabana

Copacabana Beach stretches out in a long curve, with numerous ocean-front hotels and beach views. With temperatures in the mid-30s, early morning beach swims and the rooftop pool helped keep us cool.

Beachgoers hoist umbrellas in the early afternoon. Bikini-clad females and bronzed shirtless males spread their towels, ready to enjoy the sun, sand and surf.

Driving around the city, an upward glance at any time will reveal the most recognisable icon — the 38-metre high Christ the Redeemer statue atop Corcovado Mountain with arms outstretched over Rio. It warms your heart on any day but moreso on this 40-degree scorcher. Ascending the mountain involved a hair-raising trip in a minivan. I clung to the edge of my seat and dared not look at the forest and trees in my peripheral vision. After the final stop for vehicles, one can climb the 220 steps to the base of the statue. We chose to conserve our electrolytes and opted for the express elevators.

Saying Up Yours to the searing heat, we proceeded to ascend another mountain … named after the shape it appears to be – Sugarloaf (Pao de Acucar). Superfast cable cars in two stages take you to the peak in about 3 minutes. You have sweeping views of Botafogo and Copacabana beaches from the top of Urca Hill, and more mountains rising out of the water.

Cuisine

On our first day, we sampled the local cuisine at the Fogo de Chao in Botafogo (a churrascaria or steakhouse). It is a Brazilian BBQ where they bring large meat skewers to the table and carve them on to your plate. Everyone gets a coaster, green on one side and red on the other. The staff continue to serve you as long as the green side is facing up. When you are done, simply flip over to the red side. There are plenty of salads to balance out the various meats. I was adventurous and tried out chicken heart and quail eggs for the first time. Samba dancers appeared after dinner (a surprise organised by our host), providing a lively show and encouraging us to join them in some hip-swinging! Make sure you try the local drink, Caiparinha, Skol beer, strong coffee and delectable Portuguese tarts.

Be adventurous and try a traditional Brazilian feijoada meal. You will be served a variety of meat/beef/pork products, all prepared with black beans in various ways. It’s a bonus if a musician in your group stumbles upon a grand piano in the Marriott hallway, raising the roof with some deft keystrokes and an impromptu singalong by patrons and guests, interrupted only by the call for lunch.

Ipanema

Your Rio trip is not complete without a visit to the Garota de Ipanema restaurant where the famous bossanova song “The Girl from Ipanema” was written. A picture of the original music score graces the café front. Ipanema Beach continues where Copacabana ends but you can tell the difference by the paving style on the beach front. Copacabana has a wave pattern while Ipanema has a mosaic style.

Museum of Tomorrow

The Museum of Tomorrow (Museu de Amanha) in the city centre is not just a funky futuristic design and architectural marvel. It is also thought-provoking with interactive screens, cubes and displays urging us to ponder on conservation of our earthly resources. We act, the planet reacts!

You may recall seeing the famous Maracana Stadium during the Soccer World Cup and Rio Olympics. Tours are available for sports fanatics. If you have the time and inclination, you can take a ferry for a day trip to Paqueta, one of the islands in the Guanabara Bay. A sudden thunderstorm put paid to our island plans but we comforted ourselves with some retail therapy at the Rio Sul shopping centre.

Santa Teresa

Santa Teresa is one of the arty neighbourhoods with cobbled streets and great views of the city from the Ruins Park. It is also home to the famous Escadaria Selaron or Selaron steps. A Chilean artist, Selaron, started painting mosaics and livening up the area in small stretches. He eventually expanded his artwork to over 20,000 tiles from numerous countries, many being gifts from tourists. Unfortunately, he met a tragic end. The stairway is busy in peak tourist season. Climb up a bit higher to get that special photo.

After seeing the vibrant and colourful parts of this city, it is confronting to hear there are almost 200 favelas or slums in Rio. We drove through one of the few favelas where you can do a walking tour and which is safer for tourists. Some other favelas are controlled by gangs and therefore considered dangerous.

You cannot leave Brazil without their famous souvenir footwear, available in amazing designs and various sizes, so make sure you bring back some Havaianas.

Rio Carnival

We timed our arrival at the tailend of the Rio Carnival. The city transforms into one gigantic party with dancers, floats, samba music and a festive atmosphere. The Carnival Championship Parade is an experience like no other. The prize-winning floats are on show … elaborate, colourful and ostentatious. The dancers are energetic and strut their stuff on the long stretch of the Sambadrome. Each float takes about 30 minutes to get from one end to the other. The event ran all night long from 9pm – 4.30am.  I floated into noddyland by 1am and made an early exit, missing some of the best displays but still super-impressed by the ones I saw.

When Rio was nominated as the meeting point for my hubby’s high-school reunion, we needed no second invitation. We mentally packed our bags and were ready to travel. Muito Obrigado … a big Thank You to our Brazilian hosts Francisco and Nancy who threw the best party ever! Our men-turned-boys (fortunately not shirtless) reminisced about their school and boarding days the whole week.

There were moments of hilarity with people forgetting their room number and trying to (unsuccessfully) break into the wrong digit rooms or getting strange food orders because Google Translate was too literal! All in all, it was an awesome gathering … seeing old friends, making new ones and enjoying a collegial atmosphere.

Sadly, the Carnival is over and it’s time to say goodbye to RIO … Cidade Maravilhosa … Marvellous City!

On to our next stop … Iguazu Falls.