We’re here!

We decided to begin our trip in Brazil as my friend, Lucas, is from São Paulo, and I was keen to meet with him on our travels. We lived together in D.C. three years ago as Fulbrights and have remained close friends since. Given it’s high summer in Brazil at the moment, he suggested we start in Rio and he meet us there for a beach weekend.

We arrived in Rio a day ahead of Lucas and spent the morning weaving through the busy streets of Ipanema and Copacabana, stopping for coffee and brigadeiros (heavenly little truffles of chocolate and condensed milk) along the way. We then made the somewhat misguided decision of visiting the Cristo Redentor statue, which gobbled up the rest of the day. There is a system in place for booking tickets and shuttles to see the statue, but it is mind-bogglingly inefficient and the trip took several hours as a result. Though the views of Rio are quite staggering from over 2,000 feet above ground and the statue itself impressive, I’m not sure the 15 minutes you spend at the top, amidst throngs of tourists frantically waving selfie sticks, outweighs the time spent getting there and back.

We met Lucas that night for chope (Brazilian draft beer) and made plans for a day at the beach. We would start early in Ipanema to avoid the crowds and find a good spot to rent a parasol and deckchairs.

The following morning, as we laid out our towels, we watched the beach vendors arrive, who sold everything from grilled cheese and shrimp skewers to portable speakers and swimsuits from their carts. Though it’s not often the case with beach vendors, this group wasn’t pushy and always wished us a good day before moving along. Watching them laugh and interact with each other actually made for a pleasant part of the experience.

We then spent the evening in Lapa, which is bustling on a Saturday night. People sitting out, dining in groups, walking the streets and dancing samba in the clubs.

On our last day, we visited Parque Lage, the Jardim Botânica and Escadaria Selarón. The park and the gardens are both beautiful, filled with unusual trees and plants of all shapes and colours and some beautiful architecture. You also get an impressive view of Cristo Redentor at the top of his mountain, and it is arguably as nice as the one from underneath his nose (sometimes looking up is as good as looking down, and it involves less shuttles). Meanwhile, the Selarón steps are carved right into the heart of Santa Teresa, a charming, wonderfully colourful and tightly packed hilltop town.

With Lucas as our guide, we sampled many staples of Brazilian cuisine in Rio, including: Açai served with fruit and granola (an ideal after-beach refreshment), Coxinhas (a popular street food and school snack for Brazilian children, good with beer), Rodízio style BBQ (you use a green/red card to indicate to your server if you’re still eating or have had enough) and Pão de Queijo (a small, cheesy bread eaten as part of breakfast or with coffee. The thing Lucas missed most when living in D.C.).

Next stop is São Paulo, where we’ll meet Lucas again, as well as a few other Fulbright friends. Plans thus far include finding good coffee, beer and more BBQ.

Ar aghaidh linn 🙂