After the coast of Bahia, we went to Rio de Janeiro. We had heard so many amazing things about this city and it definitely lived up to it all. The city is absolutely stunning, and has a glut of natural and man-made beauty. It is surrounded by mountains, many of which are covered with tropical rain forest. It has beautiful beaches (we already spoke in previous posts about Brazil's coastline) and it has hidden waterfalls and lagoons. It is on one hand very modern and posh in areas like Leblon, and right next door are favellas (slums). It is very religious (the massive Christ you see from everywhere), but also the capital of carnival and women in bikinis that are so small you might even question if the bottoms qualify as such (at least from behind).
Getting around Rio is relatively easy, public transit is extensive and Uber is cheap, but truly navigating the City and discovering it takes some effort. Luckily, we were introduced to a wonderful carioca (people from Rio), Fernando, who we spent a lot of our time in Rio with! With him we saw his City from all different angles (the touristy things and some that we would have never found otherwise). Fernando showed us that Rio is so much more than Copacabana and Ipanema with a caring and warmth that we hope to emulate when we finally settle down in a place to call our own. We have found that meeting wonderful people, like Fernando, really made the cities what they are to us. It is hard to untangle the experience from these incredible people we meet.
 |
| Copacabana boardwalk |
 |
| In the cathedral of giant bamboo! |
 |
| Former mansion (now arts school/public space) in Parque Lage |
 |
| Catedral Metropolitana from the inside |
 |
| And from the outside |
 |
| The Royal Portuguese Reading Room, which Fernando's family had a hand in |
 |
| One of the most beautiful coffee shops there ever was |
 |
| Post coffee and pastries in Colombo |
 |
| Calatrava's Museum of Tomorrow...or taken from the set of Star Wars |
 |
| Resting on a hotel rooftop in Botafogo with one of the best views in all of Rio |
 |
| Taken in a Flamengo match at the famous Maracana |
 |
| Cristo from up on high |
 |
| And what Cristo looks down upon |
 |
| Niterói Contemporary Art Museum by Oscar Niemeyer |
 |
| Small island near Niterói |
 |
| Niterói City Park, where many people go hang gliding |
 |
| The elusive banana flower |
 |
| A beautiful waterfall in Tijuca National Park |
 |
| Visiting the theater/opera house is somewhat of a tradition of ours |
 |
| We saw an opera tribute to one of the local singers who is 95 |
 |
| The Selaron steps, tiled by a Chilean artist as a tribute to Brazil |
 |
| 18th century Carioca Aqueduct |
Comments
Post a Comment