Life in a year full of Saturdays: Rio de Janeiro

Showing posts with label Rio de Janeiro. Show all posts

Wednesday, July 26, 2017

Rio de Janeiro (Brasil) - Just like being home again

RIO DE JANEIRO (Brasil)
26 July - 31 July 2017

There's a couple of places Inga and I tend to gravitate to when staying in either Buenos Aires or Rio de Janeiro. When in BA its the wonderful Pan Americano that overlooks Avenida 9 de Julio. Of course, there are better hotels, more stylish, more salubrious but the central locations and the views down Avenida 9 unmatched. The Porto Bay in Rio shapes as the perfect accompaniment to the Pan Americano in Buenos Aires. Of course it doesn't pack the same style or have the same glamour name that say a Belmond Copacabana Palace does, but it does take pride of place on the beachfront in Copa and provides for a calm, tranquil atmosphere in a very tranquil locations.

Porto Bay Hotel - Copacabana - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil

Our room, located on the 4th floor was spacious, had a great balcony and provided 180 degree views of the the beachfront. The location for us was absolutely perfect, with direct access to the beachfront and an area set up for guests directly in front of the hotel, its where we spent most of our time during the day, lounging around and soaking in the sun on the complimentary lounges. This was our plan A to each of our days. Our back up to the standard plan A however was to head up to the roof top in the chic, Fasano inspired dark wood, pool area. For me it always felt like a balancing act as to whether we'd choose the beach or head up to the roof top pool bar area. For one, the views from the roof top are spectacular, which when supported by drinks and the occasional free snack thrown in makes the 'Plan B' quite the attractive alternative to the famous beach below.

Porto Bay Hotel - Copacabana - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil

Inga &; I have a standard modus whilst in Rio now. Usually it commences when the colours of the sky commence being painted with hues of orange, pink and red and beams of light come streaming through the window. At this stage we are pre-programmed to instigate our strong cup of coffee process. This quickly transitions into gym wear, with Inga this time around heading up to the gym and me getting out onto the road in order to do the run down to the bottom of Ipanema and back to the hotel. Usually the time we both spent was around 1hr - 1hr 20, but the real treat was what always followed. We'd always elected to have breakfast included whilst staying at the Porto, which is a buffet affair, but, the absolute gem at the breakfast service was the bottomless champagne offering. This was always our post training treat at the Porto Bay, a workout followed by some good 'ole fashioned champagne - you can't beat that!

The iconic Cervantes - Copacabana - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil

Cervantes - Copacabana - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil

Rio de Janeiro - Brasil

The iconic Cervantes - Copacabana - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil

We set ourselves up with a few things to whilst in Rio but one opportunity that came out of left field was meeting up with the Medcalf's for an afternoon in Urca. Unbeknown to me, a colleague of mine from the Federal Court had his cousin in Rio at the same time we were there, so we set an afternoon to catch up with Amy & Andrew at Bar Urca for late afternoon drinks. For those that don't know, Bar Urca is a classic restaurant that also has a bar/picas type of counter at an iconic location, overlooking Guanabara Bay and the Botofogo area. It's known for its fish, crab cakes, bacalao croquettes and drinks. Of course for Inga and I drinks in Rio is equivalent to for a call to have more caipirinhas, who were we to say no to an invite like that?

Bar Urca - Urca - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil

It was a pretty cool afternoon, just hanging out on the bay, chatting and watching the sun go down. Later on we headed to another Copacabana icon, Cervantes, a place that has become famous for its insanely generous sandwiches which is often served with a slice of pineapple, an option that both Inga and I usually ditch.

Porto Bay Hotel - Copacabana - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil

Copacabana - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil

I think the highlight of our stay on Rio this occasion was our afternoon of paragliding to the beach of Sao Conrado from the launch pad up in the hills named Rampa de Pedra Bonita. This is something that I had planned in advance, prior to arriving in Rio.

One of the days we had available to do the paraglide was cancelled due to inclement weather, but the day we got the 'all clear' was absolutely perfect. A gorgeous bluebird day with the right amount of lift that allowed us to stay a loft for the greater part of half an hour.

Lapa - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil

This was another one of those activities where I tend to get excited early on in the piece and then get more nervous and anxious about the event as it approaches. Admittedly it wasn't so bad as the Durban Swing, which would build up the courage to do in December, but, I do recall standing on the take off ramp and vaguely being able to listen to the instructions prior to launch. All I could think of whilst standing there is that at the edge of the ramp there was a bit of a void, a place where the world just dropped away, so now all my trust was going into the skills of a Brazilian 'pilot' that could only really speak to me with hand signals as his capacity for English was equivalent to my grasp of Portuguese.

The instructions for launch were simply this, run in tandem with your pilot towards the edge and as it lifts off do nothing else. OK Joao Pinto, this one is all on you, you're responsible for me completely.

Rampa de Pedra Bonita - Sao Conrado - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil

In the motion of actually launching there was about a second of fear where I doubted the whole process. My moment of fear didn't give any credit to any of the previous launches or the smiling faces that I saw landing safely on the beach earlier, I felt certain that it was all going to unravel, but magically and with such a minimal amount of fuss, my feet simply lifted off the ground and we were away. An effortless motion, like simply being plucked by our collars and suspended in the atmosphere. It an entirely different feeling to the one that I was anticipated. The glide was smooth, un-rushed and silent as the pilot gained height on the up-drafts from the mountains. As we circled gaining altitude the world beneath our feet fell away and our perspective widened to encompass mountains of Pedra de Gavea to our right, the beautifully pronounced with sand beach of Sao Conrado in front, and then to our left Ipanema and further on Copacabana.

Sao Conrado - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil

Ipanema - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil

It was an exhilarating experience, floating down from the mountains so serenely. The perspective and views that we had were second to none, and as we got closer to the beach we actually did a couple of turns about 30-40mts above the hotels and apartment blocks that lined the promenade, seeing people look up and wave as we hovered above their heads. The experience was entirely pleasurable and one that I'd be more than happy to do again in another part of the world.

Rio never seems to disappoint us. Of course we understand that it has its dangers but I think that if you're aware and don't place yourself in a situation of vulnerability then you can manage to mitigate a lot of the risk. Usually its an element of stupidity or momentary opportunism that will make you a target of crime. In our travels thus far Inga and I have not had any issue at all. Of course we've been taken advantage of in small ways, specifically in terms of operational scams where being a tourist puts you at a distinct disadvantage, but mostly we've been free to do as we please and have found that people are generally very helpful. That's the way we've always found Rio to be and hope that it will welcome us in the very same way when return, which I'm sure will be sometime soon.

Wednesday, July 5, 2017

Rio de Janeiro (Brasil) - Let the caipirinhas begin

RIO DE JANEIRO (Brasil)
04 July - 06 July 2017

I couldn't have imagined that seven years prior when I had to cut my South America trip short in Bolivia that I would have had the access to the continent that I had in those years that proceeded. South America, in particular Buenos Aires & Rio de Janeiro have become familiar friends to us, so as a honeymoon destination, the requirements of sun, sand and sea are a specialisation in this town.

Whilst this stop would only be relatively short we did set some time later on in the month to take a few days and indulge in our favourite city on the sea.

Santa Teresa - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil

The familiar waves of the walk on Copacabana - Copacabana beach - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil

For this short stay we decided to take accommodation in Santa Teresa, a hilltop district that overlooks Flamengo, Botofogo and Urca, directly to Pao de Acucar. Winding streets, a village like atmosphere, a colourful bohemian type feel, its an attractive area of the city and its views out to Guanabara Bay are probably the best in Rio.

Santa Teresa - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil

The only issue with staying in Santa Teresa, should you not have access to a vehicle, is, that you do need access to a vehicle. Getting in and out of the area is difficult, you kind of get locked in as transport options are particularly sparse and access to remote streets, especially after dark, kind of puts you in the position where you're tempting fate.

Santa Teresa - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil

At the fantastic restaurant Aprazivel in Santa Teresa - if you haven't been, then go!

Santa Teresa - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil

It's definitely a beautiful area of Rio, one that should be seen, but I'd say that the days that we stayed there were probably enough for us with what type of mobility we had.

Monday, July 11, 2016

Rio de Janeiro (BRASIL) - And your Olympic city is.....

Rio de Janeiro (Brasil)
11 July - 14 July 2016

The first Olympics I was fully conscious of and that I can remember with some clarity was Los Angeles in 1984. I recall being on holiday with my family in Croatia. Back then Croatia wasn't a thing, it wasn't the burgeoning tourist destination that it is now, in fact, it wasn't even Croatia, it was still part of Yugoslavia and my family, living in the capital of Belgrade, would do the typical thing of heading to the seas-side over Summer.

There have been some great Olympics. Barcelona in 1992 was memorable and then of course I was lucky enough to have experienced a hometown Olympics in 2000. Now that was truly one of my favourite sporting experiences of all time. I recall riding the train to work each morning from Seven Hills and looking over at the Olympic stadium with the cauldron burning proudly. That was a hell of a good time.

How much do I love the Olympics!? - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil

Rio de Janeiro - Brasil

Since then I've personally had the feeling that the Olympics have been on the slide, that they may have lost the lustre of being the pinnacle (well, nearly the pinnacle), of world sporting events. My hope, my desire really, was that a somewhat exotic location like Rio, the first South American city to host an Olympics, would bring back some of the excitement and anticipation that had been lost in recent years.

Copacabana beach - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil

Copacabana - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil

Aside from my Olympic slant, the standing agreement that I have with Inga is that any time we go to Buenos Aires, that Rio is also included on our schedule. Her pilgrimage to Rio is as much about her paying North European homage to sun, sea and sand, as mine is to red wine, football and meat when going to Buenos Aires. In all honesty I'm a big fan of Rio too. What's not to like about the carioca culture, the marvellous beaches of Copacabana & Ipanema, the beautiful people on the beach or running them, the caipirinhas, the easy way of living. Simple pleasures but thoroughly enjoyable.

Copacabana beach from the Porto Bay - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil

Driving in from the airport is a known entity to us, and the beginning of that feeling of being in the city always commences when we see Cristo de Redentor. From a distances is always a lot smaller than you anticipate it to be but its position as guardian of the city is undeniable and understandably its acknowledgement is one of the new seven wonders of the world is deserved, I believe.

This time around we decided to stay at the wonderful PortoBay Rio (Copacabana). Without question, its roof top bar and pool area has one of the great views in Rio. Some six years earlier I had made the wonderful discovery of this location with Janelle and Jet but have never had the opportunity to stay, now was our time and my, what an absolute treat. To virtually be right on the beach and to fall asleep listening to the sounds of the waves crashing on one of the worlds most famous beaches was such a highlight.

Copacabana beach from the Porto Bay - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil

Porto Bay Hotel - Copacabana - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil

A typical day for us in Rio is goes like this. An early morning run from the hotel down to the end of Ipanema and then back to the hotel (around 12kms). Shower and then down for the buffet breakfast inclusive of bottomless champagne. Post breakfast its time to change and then head out to the beach for a few hours in the sun, grabbing caipirinhas from the passing vendors who are brutal with the cachaca! As the light descends during the back part of the day we head up to the roof top bar at the Porto Bay for afternoon drinks and then discuss our options for heading out during the night. Once again, there's nothing overly complicated about the routine but that precisely what's great about it. It's beach culture at its finest.

Typically as a tourist in Rio, if you're not on the beach during the day then you're probably heading up to the viewing point at Cristo de Redentor, or, you're heading up to the top of Sugarloaf. We certainly did both on this trip too, Cristo we did conventionally, taking a bus up from Copacabana like all the other tourists, taking in the views, doing our panoramic photos and partaking in the outstretched arm poses. Sugarloaf however was a little different for us on this occasion.

Cristo de Redentor - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil

Cristo de Redentor - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil

Lagoa rodrigo de freitas - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil

Cristo de Redentor - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil

This time I suggested to Inga that we go about climbing Sugarloaf, which you can in fact do by two main routes. The front face belongs to the true climbers, those that know what they hell they're doing and can respect the challenge. The back way, which on the face of it appears like a steep walk is in fact slightly more difficult than that. We decided to take the challenge without entirely realising the degree of difficulty involved. Of course we didn't undertake the ascent on our own, it would have been foolhardy and potentially deadly to have done it that way, but still, we put ourselves into the hands of a knowledgeable local with a large amount of experience of this route.

Initially the ascent from the back of Sugarloaf is nothing more than a trail with a slight gradient. We had assumed that for the most part this would be the case. How wrong we were.

Climbing Sugarloaf - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil

There's a drop of about 100mtrs just to the left of this photo

Climbing Sugarloaf - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil

The early part of the climb takes place a vast expanse of rock that is quite open. The issue is that the gradient is relatively steep and the terrain is much the same as walking on a steep pebblecrete surface. Immediately we knew that we weren't prepared, our choice of footwear was enough to signal in the fact that we were less than novices We were more like your weekend experience backyard tree climbers. Having enough knowledge to know that positioning your centre of gravity forward and allowing yourself to 'grip something' for support was probably going to be the way to get this done. Here's where the problem was. This part of the mountain was pebblecrete rock face only. No handles, no crevices, just an upward gradient that made you feel like one slip could have you sliding 50mtrs down the face and into the Atlantic. To say it was disconcerting was a slight understatement. The most difficult section did have a long rope to alleviate the nerves but still, looking down to what could be a harrowing death was not appealing for either of us.

Sugarloaf - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil

Conquering pebblecrete alley was one thing. What we didn't know, until such time that Daniel our guide explained it, was that there was about 20mtrs of vertical technical climbing that we needed to undertake...'Hey guide Daniel, excuse me sir, but WTF man, what is this vertical limit garbage and why are you making us wear helmets now'. This is probably where things took a severe turn for Inga. The climb was nerve racking and in moments left us dangling in mid air of the edge of a cliff. It wasn't at all the 'walk in the park' that we expected, and when Inga got to the top of the vertical stretch I could see that her nerves had been completely frazzled. Admittedly from that point out the climb up was just a path, with some precarious drops to keep us company, but still, just a path. Poor Inga however had been pushed to the edge and she literally climbed 80% of the remaining way on all fours. It would have been looked more than odd from the perspective of a bystander but self preservation sometimes forces you to take drastic steps.

The prize for getting up Sugarloaf in this manner? Probably a saving of $20 for not paying the cable cars, which we more than paid for the guide, so I guess really it's just to say that we'd be some of the small numbers that have that achievement under our belt, and that's pretty cool to know.

Final morning run on Copacabana - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil

Copacabana, Ipanema and Sugarloaf - all visible from this photo

Rio de Janeiro - Brasil - on the way back to Buenos Aires - Argentina

Whilst our time in Rio was only short lived on this occasion it certainly didn't diminish our enjoyment and love of this city. Just like Buenos Aires we know that this occasion is only one in a long line of visits that we'll inevitably be making in the future.

Life in a year full of Saturdays

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Wednesday, July 26, 2017

Rio de Janeiro (Brasil) - Just like being home again

Wednesday, July 5, 2017

Rio de Janeiro (Brasil) - Let the caipirinhas begin

Monday, July 11, 2016

Rio de Janeiro (BRASIL) - And your Olympic city is.....

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A year full of Saturdays