Brazil, Brazil, Brazil!

In February, I had an amazing opportunity fall right into my lap. Nick was working on a project that required a lot of international travel. He found out at the first of the year, one of the places he’d be working for two weeks was São Paulo, Brazil. As soon as this was known, a plan for a long weekend in Rio started evolving. 

I’ve never been to South America, and although this trip was really about four days, it was completely incredible. I met Nick in São Paulo on a Thursday and made my way to his hotel. I’ll admit, this was the most trouble I’ve ever had communicating in another country. There really aren't a lot of phrases and terms in common between Portuguese and Spanish. But after a 10 hour flight and 1 hour cab ride, I made it! 

Ibirapuera trees // Papaya Créme // Rooftop in São Paulo 

He surprised me at the hotel, and we made our way to the central park, Ibirapuera. It was a perfect day, quite different from the February Chicago weather I had left behind. We spent the day meandering throughout the park, and went to a few museums that were within the park. My first taste of true Brazilian food was pão quiejo from a little food stand. It was really just a cheese bread, but was it delicious! Nick also introduced me to a common Brazilian dessert which he had indulged in every night since he had arrived. Papaya Créme. Papaya blended with vanilla ice cream, topped with Creme de Cassis liquor. A must try if you find one! (It doesn’t lend itself well to making it at home though, it might be that the papaya I bought wasn’t exactly ripe…) 

After that, Nick and I went to a great rooftop bar with an amazing view. It reminded me of a rooftop in Chicago, but it was very interesting to see a completely different skyline. We headed back to the hotel after dinner and a drink. We had to get enough rest for our 4:30am flight to Rio de Janeiro! 

São Paulo is quite an interesting and very urban city. Some locals described that SP is the mind of Brazil, and Rio de Janeiro is the body, basically insinuating that SP was a hard working city, focused on getting ahead and growing in industry, and Rio is more focused on external beauty and more relaxed attitude. It was an interesting bit to think about as we were on our way to Rio. 

Selarón Staircase // Sugar Loaf Mountain // Sloth // Boats @ Copacabana Beach // Christ Redeemer

We took a flight with TAM airlines, and it was really interesting because it was a regional airline. I felt more immersed boarding a plane with Brazilians and being greeted in Portuguese when I entered. We took a cab from the airport to our hotel in Copacabana for about an hour. I haven’t experienced one of those ancy cab rides in years, probably Disney World or something like that! With the Christ Redeemer statue emerging, all I wanted to do was get out of the cab and explore the city. 

We had booked a private sightseeing tour prior to coming with a guide named Madson. It was great, we could pick anything we wanted to see in Brazil within a four hour window. He picked us up, had a fun personality, and spoke English really well. We started downtown by stopping by the central cathedral shaped like a pyramid. It was in the main business area, which was quite a change from the beach. After that, we zoomed around the Santa Teresa neighborhood, which was described as the Monmartre of Brazil. Within this neighborhood was one of the greatest surprises of the trip, the Selarón Staircase. It was created by Jorge Selarón, a local artist that added individual colorful tiles all along the staircase. It was such a sight! It was like a burst of color in an otherwise monochromatic environment. A MUST SEE if you go. Madson explained that he became familiar with Jorge as he brought visitors to the staircase throughout the years. Sadly, Jorge had died just a month prior (on my birthday!). He was described as very troubled during his last few months that he was alive. 

After that, we headed to Corcovado, which is where the Christ Redeemer statue is located. I highly recommend doing a private tour with Madson, not only because of our limited time in Brazil, but also because of the relationships he has built with the locals at each of these attractions. Surprisingly, 4 hours isn’t that long to see Rio! He moved us to the front of the line for a van ride to the top. He helped us find the best photo opportunities for the statue and explained all the landmarks that you could see from that amazing view. Seeing the Christ Redeemer statue that close was really neat, you could see that he’s missing the very tip of his finger due to a lightning strike! There’s even a chapel within that statue. 

As we made our way down Corcovado, we noticed a lot of cars stopped on the winding trail. We realized that they were looking at a three-toed sloth! Madson was even surprised and said he only sees them once a year. It was really cute, and although it was probably escaping as fast as it could, we were able to snap a lot of cool photos. 

Rio de Janeiro Bay as the sun sets from Sugar Loaf Mountain.

The last stop on the tour was Sugar Loaf Mountain. There is a cable car between the peaks that you can travel to the highest point. We watched the sun set over the Rio bay. It was a nice end to the tour, being able to slow down, relax, and appreciate a natural modern marvel. 

Hiking through the Tijuca Forest // Pedra da Gávea // Much deserved beers after the hike // Up in a cloud // Proud!

The next day, we booked an adventure hike through the Tijuca Forest up to Pedra da Gávea, the highest point in Rio. I was excited but a little nervous, because it was described as a strenuous hike with a small amount of hand climbing. I’m not worried from a fitness perspective, but more of the hand climbing/ascending with the fear of taking the wrong step! On our way up with our guide, Alex, a woman had an accident and broke her leg. The firemen that were helping her came over to us and warned us to be very careful. Not only because of the woman’s accident, but a hiker had died yesterday from falling off the mountain. WHAT?! I had to get past my fears and realize that I was on a hike of a lifetime. There were a few steep climbs, but with the help of Alex and Nick, I ventured on. I’ll admit, there was one point where we reached a 70 foot vertical wall of rocks that I thought, “Maybe I’ll just hang out here while they go to the top - there’s no way I’m getting up that wall.” Alex had some tips for rock climbing, since I had never been before. There were a lot of steep ledges, almost like the edge of the Grand Canyon, where one wrong move could cause a fall. I finally made it to the top and was it ever worth it! You could see the entire city! The photos we took don’t do it justice, and I felt that I could take on anything now! We were up in the clouds, with hawks and turkey vultures circling the top. I remember seeing them on the way up and kept thinking “Gosh, those are high!” 

Appreciating the view from Pedra da Gávea

The whole hike ended up being almost 8 hours, so we rewarded ourselves with an açai. If you consider the Papaya Crémes Nick’s thing, these were definitely my thing. It was a smoothie of açai berries (which actually grew in the Tijuca Forest that we hiked through) and sometimes topped with granola and banana. Deeeelicious! 

We headed back to our hotel, had a beer and coconut water (straight from the coconut!) and prepped for a night full of dinner and dancing at Rio Scenarium. There was a line of at least 50 when it first opened. We had many recommendations to go there, along with it being the number one attraction on TripAdvisor. It was an eclectic place with live music and dancing as soon as we entered. Our high hopes of dancing the night away were soon lost after we ate dinner. After that 8 hour hike and the beginnings of sunburn, we were falling asleep at the table! We tried to dance a bit, but Nick and I just laughed at how pathetic we looked. We decided to throw in the towel and headed to get a cab, only to find a line of over 200 people to get in. That was our one regret of the trip - poor planning after a long day! 

Prepping for our hang gliding // Lunch in Copacabana // Gliding through the air!

Our last day in Rio, we booked a hang gliding adventure. What a way to end the trip! Although we were as red as lobsters, Ricardo picked us up and said it was a perfect day for hang gliding. We drove to the top of Pedra Bonita, ran off of a little green ramp, and soared through the sky. It wasn’t nerve wracking at all, it was actually really relaxing. There were no noises really, just floating through the sky, landing on the beach. I even have my own pilot’s license now! 

We came back to explore by our hotel, and came across a market. Nick found a great painting by a local artist, and I found a few souvenirs. We had a delicious lunch in the same area, then went to the botanical gardens. We ended the trip by watching the sun set from Arpoador. Nick and I were so sad that it was our last night there, but a good way to end it. We ate dinner at an outside restaurant on the beach, had a few Chopp Brahmas (beers), ate a Papaya Creme, and headed back to the hotel. 

The sunset from Arpoador on our last day. Ciao!

The next day, to pass the time for my flight back to the US and Nick’s flight to Brasilia, we ate at a Churrascaria for about three hours. We parted our ways sadly at the airport. 

Brazil is an amazing place, and in my whirlwind four days there, it was an experience I’ll never forget!