Advertisement
Published: April 5th 2016
Today was the day for ticking off the last of my must do things in Rio - Cristo Redentor, the iconic statue which looms over Rio from up above,day and night. Along with Sugar Loaf and the Iguaçu falls, which I saw three years ago, I would then have done the three things that tourists must do in Brazil and could do the things I really wanted to do such as avoid big cities!
The day got off to a bad start when the metro machine swallowed the integrated ticket that was also supposed to get me on the bus which would take me the rest of the way. However since the woman in the ticket booth had been less than helpful I decided not to make a fuss for the sake of about 75p. As I was leaving the metro, I asked one of the security guards for directions but as the bus he recommended was nowhere in sight, I got on another. I checked that this would take me there but rashly assumed that Cristo would be the last stop, though did wonder why most people got off at the one before. However a Brazilian speaking perfect American
English put me right, so off I went back down the hill that my bus had just driven up.
Had a one hour 40 minutes wait until the next train (like a mountain railway) so bought my ticket ( discounts for Brazilian residents only this time) and went for breakfast at the Museum of Naive Art's cafe. Deliberately avoided the breakfast buffet by the kilo - which is a common way of charging for foods in restaurants here - by ordering specific items. Initially wondered why the waitress/ chef picked up the plate of scrambled eggs I had served myself with - as suggested by her - and whisked it away. Evidently she was weighing it along with the bread roll - but not the fruit juice or coffee! Still don't understand how they can charge the same for bread, pastries, eggs, fruit etc but as it worked out quite cheaply I may have another go at this. The museum itself had some striking pictures but am not sure I understand/ can spot the difference between Modern Art and Naive Modern Art (Something about the latter being done by people who have not been educated in art and are
At Cristo Redendor
Taking that special photooften poor and from marginal communities.)
The train journey up to Cristo Redentor was fine but mostly through jungle with only occasional glimpses of Rio down below. Having gone up the escalator which takes you up beyond the train station I was peering over the edge when I suddenly noticed something that I very much hoped was smoke. Of course it wasn't, it was mist moving towards us very rapidly! Visibility was actually worse than the day before, in spite of the fact that down below it was sunny and clear - which perhaps explains why the wait for a ticket was less than 2 hours! I suspect that this happens more than the Rio Tourist Authorities would have you believe. However most people seemed unperturbed by this, they were so busy taking photos of each other. One pose involved the photographer lying on the floor facing the statue whilst the subject stood with their arms outstretched in front of them which, of course made him/her look almost as big as the Christ figure. I realised then that the point was to be seen to have been there - the views were incidental - as they were for the
View from Cristo Redendor
The view that you will never ever see in the guidebooks Sugar Loaf.
Made my way back to the bus terminal and, after asking about three different drivers/security guards, got on the right bus although the driver declined my remaining integrated ticket - still don't understand how this system works and now never will. This time I made a point of asking the driver to tell me where to get off but nevertheless sat with my mobile on my lap, carefully studying the moving blue dot that was me on the Google map. In fact was so busy studying this that it was only by chance I looked up to find that we were pulling away from a stop next to the very metro station I wanted - as o much for never getting lost again with Google. Spoke to the driver, who studiously ignored me, shot to the back of the bus, looking for a button to press but for some reason they were all covered in tape. Fortunately there were a couple of security guards, police, military - who can tell the difference? - standing at the exit who noticed that I seemed a bit agitated. They actually understood my Portuguese for 'I want to get off' and
View from the favela
Probably not worth the risk! shouted to the driver to open the door whilst we were standing at traffic lights.
Got off the metro at the last stop in order to go up in a lift which takes you into a favela (shanty town). This is used primarily by the people who live there but has good views. LP assures the reader that it is perfectly safe now since 'pacification' by the police a few years ago and that Madonna and the President of Brazil have both visited. Fine, but I guarantee they were both accompanied by a large number of bodyguards. My younger son advises that LP often suggests visiting places that are 'sketchy' , slang for 'a bit risky'. There was a security guard in the lift but nobody on the stairs above which takes you to the view. The place was filthy - I won't tell you what I thought I saw on the wall - and the views weren't a patch on the views you get from a cable car serving a similar function in Medellín. Somebody had scrawled on a pillar : " Escrevi e saí corriendo"- literally, "I wrote this and left running". I more or less did
the same but then had to wait for the escalator. A few young men turned up but fortunately didn't seem at all interested in me. I noticed that everybody using this lift was black - I wonder what proportion of the people living in favelas are of African origin.
Had something to eat at the hippie fair also recommended by LP. The food stalls there were Bahian - the state of Bahia is where I am going in a few days time so this wa a foretaste. Not too sure about Bahian food - it seems very gloopy though I suspect I managed to miss the best food stall because I was too hungry to trail around.
Later on, back at the flat, I was just summoning the energy to go out for something to eat - not easy round here and, as usual, I wasn't quite sure where I was heading - when Sheila, who was cooking, invited me to stay for dinner. We had a typical Cariocan black bean dish made with industrial quantities of garlic, which I would normally steer clear of at home in that amount, accompanied by brown rice and fried chicken. She
has been so nice to me that I couldn't say anything about there being no hot water in my shower all day - I suspect this is why few people write critical reviews on Airbnb - you become too attached to your host and also I am pretty certain she needs the money!
More horror stories from her tonight about the state of Brazil including: child prostitution, which everybody turns a blind eye to, Rio de Janeiro State police on strike because they hadn't been paid last month and hotels belonging to international chains which supply prostitutes for their clients - they keep an album of photos from which the men can take their pick - like a menu. At the end of this very long list of of things that made her sad about Brazil she confessed that she wished she had been born in a first world country like the UK, because we didn't have inequality. Explained that it wasn't true that we had no inequality,though obviously not like Brazil's, and rather inappropriately tried to cheer her up by pointing out the weather in winter in the UK was very depressing. However this did the trick- winter
in Rio sounds perfect!
Advertisement
Tot: 0.132s; Tpl: 0.013s; cc: 8; qc: 47; dbt: 0.1067s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb
Carol Staton
non-member comment
Good job you learnt some Portuguese!
My goodness! I wonder how on earth non-Portuguese speaking tourists who are trying to travel independently get on! It all sounds very interesting, if somewhat disconcerting. I hate not knowing where to get off buses in a foreign country where I can't speak the lingo. Am getting very lazy now in just commenting on your blogs instead of writing a full-blown e-mail. Love Carol