RIO DE JANEIRO

Hey!

As promised, I want to write a little about our trip last weekend, which was to the famous "cidade maravilhosa" - Rio de Janeiro!

But first, I want to give some respect to Rio and its surroundings following the terrible floods over the last few days, as I´m sure many of you have heard about. It´s really terrible what´s been happening there, and it´s strange if you think about it that I am in Brazil during this time, and I see the news about it every day here on Brazilian TV... and what´s even more, I was actually still in Rio the day before the rains had started! We were very lucky, since imagine if the rains had begun a couple of days earlier...

That said, I must say that Rio de Janeiro (literally, it means "the river of January") is an impressive city, and I definitely want to go back there again, as I was only there for a short time (but I have to wait it out now, of course..). The city is basically divided into three parts, zona norte, centro, and zona sul, the latter being the most popular and famous with visitors, which proudly hosts both Ipanema and Copacabana. On my first day in Rio, I went up to the famous Corcovado, up on the mountain, where the figure of Christ the Redeemer stands. The views over the city are truly beautiful, and I´m glad that I got to see them first from a lower platform, while the sun was still shining (it was the end of the afternoon), as the view of Rio bathed in sunlight is gorgeous, with the city, the beaches, and the beautiful Pão de Açucar (Sugar Loaf Mountain).

I went up the Corcovado in a van, and by the time we got to the top point, it was starting to get dark, so I got to see a view of Rio at night, too. My only dissappointment was that the figure of the Christ is currently being renovated, so it´s all pretty much covered up with boards, and you can´t see much of it. I think, they only began this a couple of months ago, so I´m just a little bit late :( So I guess I´ll have to make a trip to Rio and the Corcovado again sometime!

On that first day, we also had to find our hostel. Luckily, while I was on the Corcovado, my fellow travelers, Julio and Rolando (both trainees in JF too, from Colombia), managed to find one for us in town, in the area called Botafogo, which is between the centro and the beaches. The hostel was pretty decent, although it was the first time I had slept in a hostel room with other girls, without any friends in the room of my own ;) (The boys had to share a separate room).

Climbing the Selaron stairs in Lapa ^^
 

Now for the curious part: Lapa. Lapa is a neighbourhood in central Rio which by day is a residential area. But by night... it turns crazy. It´s like nothing I´ve ever seen before. The area comprises a whole bunch of streets, which in the weekend fills up with people from all over the city, and booms until the day comes (so I´ve been told, I couldnt actually hold it out that long myself). We actually went there both Friday and Saturday nights, and apparently those nights, because of Easter, were "quiet" for Lapa´s standards. But to me, a poor little European, by the time I left on the second night, Lapa had begun to seem like a complete madhouse. All over the place, there´s crazy people, bars booming out all kinds of music, and just... lots and lots and lots of people, and taxis, and noise. But ultimately, it certainly is a good place to party, it´s something to experience, and... well, manage to actually get through.

Lapa!

We went to a club there the first night, where they play a popular type of Brazilian music called funk. Funk is basically like Brazilian rap, I think originating from the favelas (shantytowns). Funk is crazy. I´d wanted to go to a funk party already in JF, but it was my first time in Rio, and I wasnt actually quite prepared for it, because the way some people dance it, at least there in Lapa, is pretty memorable for its extravertedness. It can be pretty intimidating for a first timer at a funk party, as people do more than go down to the floor, let´s just say that.

There is also a beautiful - and unexpected - street in Lapa which features a staircase, designed by the Brazilian artist Celaron, along two walls made of a variety of colourful tiles, all very random and beautiful, with images from various countries, with a dark red overall background. I actually even found a Dutch tile among the many there, which said "Doe wat je wilt, kletsen doen ze toch". Random, right? But the street is really worth a visit!

And last, but not least, and certainly not in this case, I´ve been to Ipanema and Copacabana! We stayed at Ipanema during the day on the beach (and naturally, I got burnt), and I swam a bit, but soon after the waves started coming crashing so hard, it was a bit scary to come far into the water, at least for me. Ipanema is a beautiful beach, with the view of Pão de Açucar in the distance, and a lovely blue sea. Later, we also went by Copacabana, another famous beach a walking distance from Ipanema. It´s hard to believe I´ve actually been to these places now, as they still seem like these distant dream places for me, because of the fame they´ve acquired throughout the world.

Ipanema beach, so beautiful!

Well, that´s all in all the main highlights of my trip to Rio! I´ve added some pictures for you guys to see, of the views from the Corcovado, Lapa, and Ipanema. I hope you enjoyed reading it, and I havent overloaded you with information ;)

 

Beijos!