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| View of Ipanema from our apartment in Vidigal |
Yes big call, but it may just be
warranted. Debatable, yes – but then again who doesn’t love a good argument,
sorry I meant friendly discussion that may include some loud noises (often
called yelling?).
We haven’t been to the likes of
New York or Shanghai, but for us (possibly only me), it is our favourite city
we have set foot in. However, we don’t feel the need to come back as we have
now spent near on 3 weeks here and we all feel it’s time to move on.
Since the Cup finished we have
been able to get back into tourist mode, and what better place to dip your toe
into than Rio.
We ticked off all the tourist
attractions, and not one of them let us down. We have met a few travellers
along the way that will avoid the ‘tourist traps’ as they have some higher,
self-righteous belief that the best and only way to travel is to get off the
beaten path and ‘cover new ground’, thinking of themselves as some sort of 21st
century Captain Cook.
And while we do like to get to
some of the more unknown places, these so called ‘off the beaten path’
destinations, we know we aren’t the first people to set foot there. And we also
share the belief that a lot of these tourist attractions are so popular because
they are that fricken good. As Mr T would say ‘I pity the fool’ who didn’t get
up to Cristo Redentor because so many other people will be there, and have done
it before them.
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| Copacabana and Baia de Gaunabara viewed from Pão de Açúcar (Sugar Loaf) |
But yes getting back to these
tourist traps. We ticked off Pão de Açúcar (or Sugar Loaf) at sunset and thanks
to our trusty ‘student cards’ (yeah we pose as students over here), Nic and I
got up there for half price. Sugar Loaf is definitely a place I would recommend
to watch the sun go down from in Rio – you get to watch it slowly sink beneath
the surrounding hills and then as the yellows, oranges and reds fade to blues,
purples and finally soft greys, the city starts to reveal itself with its night
lights.
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| Sunset over Baia de Gaunabara |
Cristo lights up in various colours, and the water front provides you
with a view probably only mirrored by Sydney Harbour and Circular Quay. And yes,
you do have to fight the throngs of other ‘tourist gits’ to get ‘that picture’ but
in the end it is definitely worth it.
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| Twilight glow of Rio de Janeiro |
We then hit up Cristo and in an
attempt to avoid the crowds we actually got up before 9am (9am was the time the
hostel proposed to serve breakfast – don’t think we got it before 9.45am on any
day but you have to be quick with hostel breakfasts) and caught a mini van up
there. The view you get from Corcovado (meaning ‘hunchback’) is completely different
to that from Sugar Loaf but just as good.
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| Baia de Gaunabara, Sugar Loaf, Copacabana, Ipanema & Lagoa Rodrigo de Freitas all taken in from Corcovado |
After taking in the plethora of scenery
such as Baia de Gaunabara, Niteroi, Sugar Loaf, Copacabana, Ipanema, Lagoa
Rodrigo de Freitas, etc. and getting the clichéd 'Cristo pose' photo we were done
with our good mate and actually got back to the hostel in time for the 9am come
11.30am breakfast.
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| Wilfred refusing to conform to the masses and take the clichéd 'Cristo' photo (mainly because he can't support his own arms) |
The then there is Rio’s beaches –
Leme, Copacabana, Ipanema, Leblon and my personal favourite Arpoador. For me, a
beach has to be more than just a place where the water meets the sand. It has
to offer something in regards to waves – I’m no surfer but I have since found
that you can only throw a ball around for so long – well, most people can only
do it for a certain amount of time. It has occurred to me that I am much like a
dog in this regard. If someone throws a ball, I will fetch it and throw it
back, again, again and again until someone (this has yet to be me) gets
tired/bored of this. This is where the waves come in – I need something else to
occupy my time at the beach for I am not much of a sun bather.
However, Rio’s beaches do provide
something to occupy your time whilst lazing about on the sand – mainly in the
form of bather attire – both male and female variety. Some good, some bad and
some downright not supposed to be allowed out in public. Still, you have to
take the good with the bad, and in this case the good usually outweighs the
bad.
Rio also has a somewhat famous
nightlife – Lapa street parties, any club in Copacabana or Ipanema, Favela Funk
parties, there is always a place to go out at midnight and return at sunrise.
Not that we are much of the party goers these days, but it is safe to say we
still enjoy and drink or two and did venture out to a few of the famed places.
Most notable would have been what we thought was our last night at the
Copacabana hostel when a few drinks turned into a few more, then into going
out, to not quite making it out (for some) and not quite making it home (for
others). Let’s say there was only 1 of the 3 that came away from that night
saying they had given Rio a good crack and came out on top, the other two split
their performances between being a responsible adult and a shameful drunk. Any
guesses on who was who? We then proceeded, with hangovers to boot, to check out
of the hostel and try and move to our apartment, only to be told we weren’t
booked in until the next day. We trudged back to the hostel to make some phone
calls and try and find a nights accommodation only to figure out we were still
booked into the hostel for another night. This cock up didn’t have anything to
do with the state we found ourselves in that morning, but it did make it a hell
of a lot funnier for our roommates.
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| The Favela of Vidigal |
And finally you get to Rio’s so-called
darker side – the favelas. We spent a week living in one of Rio’s favelas
called Vidigal, and although it is said to be one of the safer favelas, it is a
favela all the same. But the thing is, the real favelas are nothing like what
the Western media portrays them to be. There are no longer drug lords lurking
on every street corner armed with AK-47, instead there are street venders
trying to earn a living. There are no beggars, or homeless people lying in the
street, rather a whole community coming together to try and get by. We spent
some time in Rocinha, the largest favela in Brazil, and the thing that
surprises you the most is their sense of community. When you think about it,
it’s not too hard to imagine given that the houses are so close together you
practically share your living room with your neighbour’s bathroom. The favelas
we experienced were as safe as anywhere else in Rio, and a whole lot friendlier.
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| Rocinha |
I’m not saying I would recommend
that you simply walk into the nearest favela and have a stroll through it,
rather spend a few days in one and experience a whole different side of the
city.
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| Favela life |
And as an added bonus, the
favelas are often built into the side of hills which results in some stunning
views – the kind that would bring in millions back home. Vidigal starts at the
bottom of Pedra dos Dois Irmãos (Two Brothers Hill) and winds its way
half way up to the top, and provides stunning views of Ipanema from practically
every house. You can also hike Dois Irmãos to take in the entirety of
Rio from the one position. A mototaxi from the bottom (which is quite the
experience in itself – you jump on the back of some guy’s motorbike and he weaves
in an out of traffic, pedestrians, cats, dogs, footpaths, etc.) and brings you
to the top of the favela. From here, a 40 minute hike brings you to the top of
the bigger brother where you can sit back, relax and take in the panorama of
Rio’s highlight reel from Cristo, to the bay, the lagoon, Sugar Loaf, Copacabana
and Ipanema, all without moving your head.
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| The view from Pedra dos Dois Irmãos |
Yes there are other great cities
out there, but for me to be considered the best they need have a large dose of history,
culture, art, nightlife, leisure activities and a coastline. If Berlin had a
beach it might be a tough question, but it doesn’t…
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