Rio - Day 2

Copacabana Beach was very quiet when we went for a walk before breakfast.

Ian's dislike of heights reappeared when he saw the cable car swinging between Sugar Loaf Mountain and its neighbour, so opted to spend the morning on the beach whilst I went up there with Chris and Stuart.  

The little cable car pod and some views as we went up.

Including Christ the Redeemer

The views all round were amazing; Rio is a natural harbour with sweeping bays and lots of little volcanic islands, most unoccupied.

Copacabana Beach with approximate location of our hotel

Back to the beach to collect Ian - the water may give the impression of being calm.

But being the Atlantic, although not that cold the waves were huge at times, with a very strong undercurrent so unfortunately swimming was out.

Looking back towards our hotel

All along the beach front are exercise apparatus and statues of one kind or another.

Ian having a heart to heart with Brazil's best loved poet Carlos Drummond de Andrade

This was the first time we'd seen anybody paddle boarding.

After lunch we went to the Botanical Gardens which had a very impressive palm walk, but although were very well laid out it didn't house the variety of flowering plants I'd hoped to see, apart from in the Orchid House.

These giant Victoria lily pads were rather exceptional though.

One of the many species of Egret.

Next day our flight wasn't until mid afternoon so Ian was able to soak up a few more rays in the morning.

And from our hotel rooftop, a last view of probably the most famous beach in the world

And that was Rio, before we really got to know the place it was time to pack the suitcases again and we were off.  We totted up 13 flights overall and goodness knows how many miles.

My favourite sites were without a doubt Machu Picchu and Iguazu Falls.  Ian's favourite sight was probably this!

Ready for the journey home, luckily already being on the east coast of Brazil, the flight to Madrid isn't quite as long as the outbound to Lima, so hopefully we won't be as tired when we get home.

Except unfortunately at Bajaras Airport, Madrid we came into a gate miles away from our connecting flight to London (Bajaras is a huge airport) and we were bussed all over the place.  Despite the 7 of us running the last few hundred meters, the gate was firmly shut when we got there and Derek's pleas went ignored - easier to offload our cases than let us board!  

In October 2020 during the worldwide Covid-19 pandemic, having endured more than 6 months of lockdown and cancelled holidays and with no idea when we might plan such adventures again, I decided to revisit this blog.  It was the first I'd ever written and was brief to say the least, so I spent a week going back through all my photos and rewriting the chapters as the memories came flooding back.  We are truly blessed to have had the opportunity to visit such iconic and amazing places.

Rio - Day 1

Oh my goodness - RIO - I keep having to remind myself that this is the City/Country I didn't want to visit!!!

The city is built on the entrance to Guanabara Bay and is littered with volcanic islands; in fact the airport is on an island which makes take off and landing interesting.

Our local guide is very jolly and rather large.  She seemed to think getting the group - albeit only 6 of us - to sing The Girl From Ipanema was a good idea - personally I'd never heard of it, but Ian knew it and joined in.

The drive from the airport took us through parts of the city.  Rio is well known for the contrast between rich and poor - this is one of the favelas on the hillside.

Of course being a firmly Catholic country there are churches everywhere (sorry about the lens flare through the coach window).

Even at the docks.

We caught the small train that runs to the top of Corcovado Mountain; the journey through the forested mountain takes about 20 minutes.

Apparently there had been heavy rain earlier this morning so we were very, very lucky that the weather cleared for us although it was still quite hazy.   

The views were amazing, Sugar Loaf Mountain, Copacabana and Ipanema Beaches and the City all laid out below us.

This is the vast São João Batista Cemetery

In the distance is the Rio-Niterói Bridge, the 8.26 mile box girder bridge linking the two cities on either side of the bay.  When it was completed in 1974 it was the second longest bridge in the world.

Now to the statue itself; Christ the Redeemer built between 1922-31, this art deco masterpiece made of reinforced concrete and soapstone stands 98ft tall (plus 28ft pedestal) and the arms span 92ft.  Nothing prepares you for the first close up sighting - it is fabulous - I feel quite humbled to see it with my own eyes.

I know I'm probably very stupid but I'd somehow thought Brazil was still rather "third world" so I was amazed to realise just how developed it is and also that it is now the 5th largest nation and the 9th largest economy in the world (note to self: watch BBC news more often !!!!).  

Our hotel is actually on Copacabana Beach but once again we've been warned not venture too many blocks in from the beach area as the streets are not safe for tourists.  Rio is officially the most expensive place I have ever been and makes Bueños Aires quite cheap.

The beaches around the city dominate life for everyone; volley ball, foot-volley ball, sunbathing, swimming - although the tides are very very strong so you really do need to be careful, and every other sand activity you can imagine

After dropping our cases we went for a short walk before sunset.