Brazil Trip #1 - Rio De Janeiro - April 2006
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When we landed in Rio we picked up a rental car and headed towards the tall buildings we could see in the distance. We were not given any street maps and all we could  get were general directions... quite unsettling!

Once we left the airport and got on a main road, there were many signs and we felt comfortable.  Due to experience in Africa and Venezuela though, we knew to stay away from the unsafe, crowded inner-city areas.

The city center was not very appealing, but the beach area made up for any disappointment.
Our hotel was in a residential area near the nice beaches; the shopping area was up the coast.

The airport and areas beyond were very flat and smoggy.  The city center & bridge across Guanabara Bay looked OK... ... but the areas near the ocean were more appealing to us. 
 
Our hotel was located on the famous Copacabana beach, as shown on the map to the right.  From there we ventured out to see the Rio highlights for 3 days. 

The next few sections show pictures from the beach, the botanical gardens, Corcovado and Sugarloaf Mtns. (see map).

Note: Give me feedback if you think the maps I am using give you a better idea of the places we visited than just using words.
The hotel was in a high-rise building which was on a busy street which connects the city center to the beach area.

The room was like a suite and very comfortable.  We didn't spend much time there, but it was nice to have a clean & quiet room available if we wanted it.

The hotel was nestled between two other high-rise buildings, but had a cute little neighborhood & a steep hillside behind it.
The first day we were in Rio was beautiful and very warm, even though it was the beginning of their winter season.

About 4 in the afternoon we decided to head down to the beach, which was only 6 blocks away.  We had read many horror stories about security issues at the beach, so we didn't take anything of value; which meant that I didn't take my camera.

It turned out that the security at the beach area was excellent ... and so were the sights, but you'll have to take my word on that!

At night, many of the hotels put out tables and umbrellas for dinner guests.  We didn't want to eat as late as the locals did, and were quite happy to find that there were 'early-bird' specials if you ate around 7pm.

Overall the places in the 'Copa' area were nice & in-expensive.

The next morning the weather turned cloudy & cooler... and the beaches were empty!

From these pictures you can see that the beach was quite wide & had plenty of room for lots of people... and plenty of room for those who would want to play some sports.

The beach area was kept up in an im-maculate fashion; there was no trash or garbage to be found anywhere.  There were a lot of street vendors and a few beggars... but overall, the beach area was impressive.

A rather busy street separated the beach area from the hotels.  On the beach side of the street there was a very nice sidewalk for people to walk or ride bikes on.  Our favorite place to visit were the little  beach huts which sold drinks & snacks. The specialty drink of Brazil is the caipirinha.. wow!
The hotel and apartment buildings in the Copabana area were somewhat old fashioned.  We expected more modern restaurants & pubs, but the quaint, cultural feel of the place was refreshing.
We decided to drive to the next beach area, called Ipanema.  Driving was easy and parking was safe.  The beach & boardwalk were pretty much the same as at 'Copa', but the waves were much larger. 
As we neared the end of the beach area, the sad reality of the poverty in Brazil became apparent.  The poor areas, called favellas, were built all along the hillsides surrounding the richer areas.
The inland neighborhood areas had nice, tree-lined streets.
 

We then visited the botanical garden & saw many plants that we had grown in South Africa and in Venezuela.  We were still surprised, though, to see quite a few plants that we had never seen before.  

The only disappointment was that we did not see many birds.

The next day we set out to see one of the most spectacular sites in Brazil, the statue upon the  2300 foot (750m) Corcovado  mountain. 

From the hotel area, which was only minutes away, you could make out the shape of a cross.

The road up to the statue was very steep and hilly; but we made without any problems.
Some other unfortunate visitor did not have the same luck! Only when you get closer then you realize that it is a 100ft (30m) tall statue of Christ with outstretched hands... 



... quite awe-inspiring!

From the platform around the statue, we got an entire view of Rio; luckily the weather was perfect!
You could get a pretty good view of the city center and the long bridge which spans the bay and leads north along the coast. Close-up of the Sambadome, where Carnival parades are held.
Across the bay is Niteroi, which leads to some nice beaches. The pointy rock is Sugarloaf... which we plan to visit tomorrow.  We will head to the beaches in the distance in week or so.
Copacabana area from behind. This is the area near our hotel. This is the crowded end of 'Copa'
Ipanema beach begins when Copacabana leaves off. This area is more modern and even has a horse track. Looking south, we see where we will head a few days from now.
Yeah, OK... for the family we will include some shots of us... even though we aren't going to win any smiling contests!

So far the trip to Brazil is going better than expected and we are really impressed with Rio... let's hope the luck continues!
The next day the weather was a bit cloudy... but we had to visit Sugarloaf Mtn. regardless.

The pics to the right were taken yesterday from Corcovado, but show how 2 cable car rides are needed to get to the top.  The 1st ride goes up to Morro da Urca; the 2nd ride then goes to the top.
There was a small beach at the base of Sugarloaf; people must be expecting it to clear up! 
We took the first cable car up and were able to look back at the beach & bottom base area.




From the mid-point we had a good vantage point to see the next cable car ride.... quite steep!

The 1300 ft (430m) high series of cable cars was completed in the early 1900s and was considered a world-class engineering feat at that time.

The weather cleared up as we neared the top of Sugarloaf.  The tip of the mountain was very small and the sides were steep... but a platform allowed us some good views. 
On the bay-side, there was a nice harbor area with lots of yachts and small sail-boats. The weather cleared up as we neared the top of Sugarloaf.  The tip of the mountain was very small and the sides were steep... but a platform allowed us some good views from all around. 
On the ocean-side, we could see the Copacabana beach area quite well.  I zoomed in a bit to confirm that there were some people on the beach... and more tourists flying in to enjoy Rio de Janeiro!
This concludes our visit to wonderful Rio de Janeiro & our first picture page of our visit to Brazil. 

To continue to the next page, click on :  Brazil #2 - Trip to Parati

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