Where We Be
| The Selaron Steps (Escaderia Selaron) are colorful tiled steps leading steeply up to Santa Teresa |
| Volleyball is popular, but even more popular is groups of three or four kicking a mini soccer ball back and forth with incredible skill right next to the water |
| We've never seen water lilies quite like this before |
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| A beach day in Rio is an absolute must -- and iconic Ipanema is one of the best |
| Rio de Janeiro, Brazil |
| Ipanema Beach is absolutely packed with locals on a typical Sunday. It turns out there are many, many girls from Ipanema. |
| On Sundays the beach road closes so people can walk, bike, and roller skate along it |
| We went swimming in the warm water, rode the waves, and actually did think to ourselves, "This is the life!" |
| Arpoador is a small rocky peninsula between Ipanema and Copacabana that's particularly famous for sunset watching. From atop Arpoador we're looking down at a pocket beach, with Copacabana just beyond. |
| Christ the Redeemer is visible from the gardens |
| If you have some extra time, Rio's Botanical Garden makes for a worthwhile visit |
| The botanical garden makes for a quiet escape from the city |
| As we walked from the Jardim Botanico to Lake Freitas, we came across this wild building covered with climbing ivy -- and elaborate grafitti art at the bottom |
| Lake Freitas makes for another pleasant outing, especially with its lakeside kiosks offering fine food and cold drinks |
| An artist named Selaron decided to add the colorful tiles to the stairs. Over time the Selaron Steps have become famous and serve as a Rio landmark. |
| Many of the tiles are unique. We got a kick out of these tiles honoring AC/DC and the Three Stooges. |
| Grafitti art seems to be accepted as a viable art form in Rio and is particularly common in artsy Santa Teresa |
| Hilly Santa Teresa offers some lovely views down onto Rio. This overlook is at Parque das Ruinas, a ruined Belle Epoque building from the early 1900s. |
| From Parque das Ruinas you can see this enormous buillding poster honoring the 2016 Olympics in Rio |
| Parque das Ruinas has a somewhat haunted feeling now, augmented by ghostly pictures of the former owner in the windows and wraith-like statues awaiting you here and there |
| We came across this life-size Nativity Scene in the Lapa District just below Santa Teresa. It features a pregnant Mary still on the way to Bethlehem. The manger remains empty until Christmas Day. |
| We stayed at Casalegre B&B during our week in Rio and the owners couldn't have been more welcoming or helpful when it came to planning our days. Our room was just off this breakfast area. |
| The Centro is Rio's busy commercial district as well as its historic center. It has some fine historic buildings, like this Theatro Municipal, sprinkled in among the skyscrapers. |
| Confeitaria Colombo was our favorite stop on our Centro tour. We loved its old-world feel. |
| Colombo's huge art nouveau interior with oval glass ceiling makes for a memorable place to share a cup of coffee |
| We followed Lonely Planet’s walking tour and hit a few of the major sights |
| The Imperial Palace (Paco Imperial) may not look like much but two Portuguese kings lived here -- the only European kings to have been crowned in the New World |
| Jardim Botanico |
| Historic Center |
| Santa Teresa Neighborhood |
| Ipanema & Copacabana Beaches |
| Copacabana Beach is a bit more touristy, with an unbroken string of hotels fronting a gorgeous curve of sand. This picture is taken from the edge of the beach closest to Arpoador where local boats are pulled up onto the sand. |
We were lucky enough to spend a week in Rio
and could easily have stayed longer. Yes, this
is a city even we can wrap our minds around.
Where else can you hang glide off the cliffs in
the morning and take a subway to the beach in
the afternoon? Just the names Ipanema and
Copacabana are enough to evoke sighs from
those who are snowbound or stuck in rush
hour traffic! Rio's natural setting is nothing
short of stunning: the big city surrounds but
never overwhelms the beaches and mountains.
We made the most of our week in Rio, strolling
its beaches, exploring local neighborhoods like
Santa Teresa and Urca, sipping coffee in the
Centro (historic center), and seeking out a few
of the city's quieter oases like the Botanic
Garden and Freitas Lake. Of course we also
visited Christ the Redeemer and Sugarloaf
Mountain -- what visit to Rio would be complete
without? But let's start with those sigh-inducing
beaches and stroll a few neighborhoods for
some hidden gems before we get to the rest.
and could easily have stayed longer. Yes, this
is a city even we can wrap our minds around.
Where else can you hang glide off the cliffs in
the morning and take a subway to the beach in
the afternoon? Just the names Ipanema and
Copacabana are enough to evoke sighs from
those who are snowbound or stuck in rush
hour traffic! Rio's natural setting is nothing
short of stunning: the big city surrounds but
never overwhelms the beaches and mountains.
We made the most of our week in Rio, strolling
its beaches, exploring local neighborhoods like
Santa Teresa and Urca, sipping coffee in the
Centro (historic center), and seeking out a few
of the city's quieter oases like the Botanic
Garden and Freitas Lake. Of course we also
visited Christ the Redeemer and Sugarloaf
Mountain -- what visit to Rio would be complete
without? But let's start with those sigh-inducing
beaches and stroll a few neighborhoods for
some hidden gems before we get to the rest.
| We did something that's rare for us: spent a whole afternoon just relaxing under an umbrella and swimming |
| Cristo Redentor the sand sculpture blesses the beach umbrellas and the people beneath them |
| Sugarloaf Mountain is visible in the distance behind Copacabana Beach |
| You can rent an umbrella and beach chairs for the whole day for R$ 20 ($5 US) or less |
| The last tile at the top of the stairs |
| This Crac is addictive and goes quite well with Coke! |
| The highlight is the row of royal palms planted by the Crown Prince of Portugal when he first arrived |
| The orchid room holds some beauitful specimens |