And so I left...

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... and after a fourteen hours and a half plain journey, including a two and half hour delay due to frost, I finally arrived in Rio de Janeiro.

After having checked into my hostel in Leblon, an area west of Rio, I went out to explore the city centre, by foot. Which turned out to be not such a good idea, as the city is surprisingly large. If you look at the map of Rio, everything looks within walking distance, but in reality the scale is somewhat deceiving. So I managed to walk to the end of Ipanema beach and towards Copacabana, when I stopped to have lunch.

I there met two men in their late 40s who were having a drink at a table next to mine. We started talking, teaching each other our respective language (in my case, french), and ended up staying there for over about an hour and a half, during which time one of the two men had drunk about 6 large bottles of beer. In the end, it was a very taxing lunch as it was very much an intensive portuguese lesson, including an inspired speech (in portuguese, but I got the jest of it) about how Vasco de Gama was the best football team in Rio. I was then kindly walked to the nearest metro station, and actually realised that they were street sellers on the beach, as they explained how they worked. I was pretty happy considering they didn't really speak either english or french, it was a successful lunch.

After a failed attempt to register my passport at the french consulate (opens till 12 only), I went up to the Pão de Açucar, where I enjoyed the magnificent view over the bay (my photos unfortunately do not quite convey that enough unfortunately).

I am absolutely exausted, but considering the amoutn of walking I did, it wasn't too bad a day.

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Photos

Copacabana and Leblon beaches
30°C at that point. Nice...

Comments

[ale]

Wow, David! It sounds amaaaaazing... and those pictures are so beautiful. I'm really happy for you. Hope tomorrow is as interesting! xxxx

[Tai]

The Journey Begins
[-- ...and so Bilbo set off on the track, his knapsack on his back, at the crack of dawn with the sky just shy off black. The little hobbit was not at all scared, for he was well prepared, bread pack with care, a few socks spare and a mat to sleep anywhere. Over beaches and through rainforest, the hippie hobbit hopped, and in the towns he shopped alot, and told many a tale of.... France. --] I can see this will be come an epic adventure :-) I look forward to reading more about your adventures in Bazil-land!

[ilips]

wooaaa c géant !!! :O