Blogs from Copacabana, Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, South America - page 28

After visiting the Brazilian side of the falls in the morning, we decided to have another go at Ciudade del Este in Paraguay in the afternoon. This time we went by bus and didnt go through immigration - we checked that you needn't do all that faff if you're just doing a day trip- and besides, we've got the passport stamps now!! We had both decided that a posh camera for some of the more spectacular scenery would be a good investment so we started our bargain hunt. It turned out to be a very stressful afternoon. As it was the Thursday before a long Easter weekend every shop we went in decided to tell us that they were about to close and that if we wanted a camera we needed to buy it then and ... read more

Ja hoor, heb je hem weer! Altijd weer diezelfde over-het-paard-getilde lauwtoffe godgloeiende pestpokke volautomatische gaskamerbrede teringtouwtyfus blafkankerkolere kutblog! (J. Deelder, over Amsterdam) Maar vrees niet! Het is de laatse episode in een serie van 10, de afsluiting van een reis van 12 maanden, van een buitenmenselijke ervaring. Monumentaal, fenomenaal, radicaal. Niet te beschrijven, natuurlijk. Geen woorden of beelden kunnen ook maar een fractie van de ervaringen, energie, schoonheid en geluk beschrijven. Reizen trekt alle registers open, maar vele worden weer gesloten wanneer getracht wordt dit alles te delen. Echter, met weinig nemen we ook genoegen en we zullen zien hoe ik de levenskracht van Brasil digitaal weet te maken. Brasil, lalalalalalalalaaa! Meer dan 200 keer zo groot als Nederland en over 7400 kilometer kustlijn: Brasil is immens g... read more

Welcome to what is probably the last blog of the trip, which I am writing a block away from Copacabana beach (unfortunately there has been persistant rain over the past four or five days, which explains why I´m writing this and am not there). From Asuncion, we headed to Foz in Brazil. The border was the most lively we had seen the Paraguayans with roadside vendors running after cars and guys trying to sell us ´genuine´ David Beckham sunglasses inside the border checkpoint. On the other side of the border, the scene was instantly more energetic with huge queues of Brazilians waiting to pass through customs with their flatscreen tvs (Paraguay is a duty free zone) whilst we passed through a small hut that represented passport control. Our first night in Foz we went to the ... read more

Finally arrived in rio on Monday 4th Feb. Ask most people to describe Rio and they´ll say things along the lines of "beautiful beaches", "sunkissed", "paradise" etc.. If you´d asked us that Monday afternoon we would have replied "pissing down"! Yes, 24 hours after leaving a bright, sunny Manchester we started our 6 month trip in a wet, muggy Rio! We arrived at our hotel (First Barra, also called Tryp Barra on tínternet) which was fine but quite a way out in Barra da Tijuca. We knew Barra wasn´t going to be central and is, effectively a different town, however, we didn´t realise just how big Barra was and, lo and behold, we seemed to be at the far end. The taxi from the airport cost 92 reais (about 25 pounds). We arranged it at a ... read more

Rio So we finally made it to Rio after about a zillion hours flying. First couple of days just wandered around Copacabana and beach a bit, and sampled my first (of many) Brazilian caipirinha. Met up with some friends after a few days (Helen and Fergus), spent the day on the beach catchng up and so the caipirinha drinking continued........ Carnival at the sambadrome was fantastic. The costumes and floats were spectacular........and sooo much glitter!!! It all started at around 9pm and finished at 6am - wasn´t sure I´d make through but we met a couple of Brazilian guys who made sure we were dancing constantly and never without a beer!!!! There were loads of street stalls all around Rio sellng costumes and outfits for carnival - I resisted the urge to buy a glitter wig ... read more