Brazil- Part Two

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil-

RIOOOOOOOO!!!! In case you couldn’t tell I was extremely excited for my trip to Rio de Janeiro! I completed my first bucket list item for SAS here. I had so much fun, but I am so exhausted. I guess it is good we have the next 9 days to catch up on sleep until we reach Ghana.

My SAS group of 30 students and 2 adult lifelong learners arrived in Rio de Janeiro at 9 am Wednesday after a long night of flying and switching planes in Sao Paulo. We groggily headed out of the airport and met our tour guide Patricia who would lead us around town for the next 3 days. I quickly realized I would have to get over being tired and make the most out of my short time in Rio. We immediately visited a favella called Babylonia, basically the shanties of the city, and learned about the eradication of the drug lords from the neighborhood. The police now occupy all the favellas across Rio de Janeiro and from what I saw they were doing an amazing job, I felt completely safe unlike everything I had been told. The community truly worked as a whole- private companies, government and the people- which made Babylonia the most successful favella project in Rio. After this community breakfast we hiked to one of the many mountain tops for a breathtaking view of the entire city. It was amazing and on the hike back down I even got some close up action with some monkeys. They were so cute and small, but have to be a relative of the squirrel in the U.S. they look so much alike. I realized on this hike, and believe me it was completely uphill through the rainforest, that I am very out of shape. Hopefully all the outdoor activities on this trip will change that though :-)

After checking in to our hotel, Copa Sul in Copacabana beach, I finally showered and a group of us headed out to a super nice dinner at Porkao Rios, one of the most popular Brazilian steakhouses in Rio. Although it was quite pricey (in my opinion, especially when I don’t eat much meat) I enjoyed it and now I can say I have been to a real Brazilian steakhouse. In addition to the normal foods, I even tried chicken heart and ostrich, both were completely disgusting but then again at least I can say I tried! After dinner we hopped into cabs and headed for the beachfront bars along Copacabana beach. Oh before I forget, Brazilians are CRAZY drivers, they completely freak me out, drive too close, yet they never seem to wreck. It really makes no sense, but you just have to go with it. After we each were able to try a Copadina, the Brazilian national drink, we decided to make the 3 mile trek to our hotel and call it an early night.

The next morning I decided to go with 3 other girls shopping at Ipanima beach. I got a few things, but I realized how difficult it is to do anything, including shopping, when you do not speak the language and the sizes are completely different. I used some broken Spanish and luckily I was able to get by. It really opened my eyes, especially to the fact that I need and want to learn at least the basics of a few languages. I completely recommend this for everyone travelling, the locals respect you more and it makes your life a heck of a lot easier! That afternoon our small group took a taxi to the base of Corvocado Mountain and then rode up to see the Christ the Redeemer statue. It was hot, sweaty and crowded, but none of that seemed to matter. I was just so excited to be somewhere that I had dreamed of going for so long! On our way up and down the mountain we met a couple of people from Sweden and also a group of men from Israel, I know they will never remember me but each of their stories will stay with me forever. I learned so much just from talking to them for a short period of time and I also learned a lot about myself. Both groups were just travelling around South America to various countries for around 3 months total. They were staying in cheap hostiles (about $12 per night) and using the cheapest transportation, yet they were not worried of their safety, made good decisions, and best of all they were travelling so much more in depth than I was, yet for the same price. At this point I realized the type of traveler that I wanted and needed to be. Sure nice hotels and flying are great, but I would much rather travel for a longer period of time and truly see how the locals live, as well get to know other travelers in depth. My next trip to South America I hope will include backpacking and staying at hostiles as I go to Argentina, Peru and Brazil.

Later that night we all headed to the Lapa District of Rio, where all the best nightlife takes place. We went to dinner and drinks at Scenarium, where I learned the basics of Samba dancing, celebrated Carnival early by wearing beautiful masks and best of all I met the most friendly Brazilians. By the way, there aren’t many unfriendly Brazilians, it was amazing and made the experience so much better! After we left, we literally ran through the market to pick up some last minute souvenirs and then I spent the remainder of the night Skyping and Facebooking before my free wifi sadly ended. I managed to sleep for 2 hours before an early 6 a.m. departure for our flight back to the ship in Manaus. It has now been 2 days since we got back on the ship. I am still exhausted, muscles hurt I never knew existed and I long for the day I can go back to Rio- ahh the blessings of travelling. I know I made it sound pretty rough at parts, but honestly it was completely worth it and the only thing I would change in future trips is to even fit more into my time in port and sleep even less. My body may hate me, but I can die knowing I made the most of every minute I spent travelling and that’s what this experience is all about anyway.