Rio De Janeiro, Brazil

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After an hour´s delay we finally landed in Rio around 11pm. We jumped in a taxi straight to the hostel and went straight to sleep, it had been a long day and we´d had quite a few vodkas´s on the plane...

After a poor nights sleep due to people coming in the room at all hours of the night and turning the lights on we got up early and went down for breakfast. Turns out the standard breakfast in Brazil consists of cake, fruit and some form of bread, and if your lucky a little bit of meat. After breakfast we walked down to Copacabana beach which was only 5 minutes away from our hostel. The beach was fairly quiet as it was so early so we walked to one end, the sun was already shining but the sea was freezing! We decided to have a day down the beach as a nice easy start to our travels. By the afternoon the beach was unbelievably packed there must have been over 100,000 people there. We had been told that this beach was famous for beautiful women and we have to say they did not disappoint. Wherever you looked another thong would be in view, even the older, slightly larger women would have them on, it seems there is no shame in what body type you are in Brazil. That night we went back to the hostel and after a very plain pasta dinner we had a lie down in our rooms about 9pm. the plan was to chill for half an hour and then get up and go out, but we woke up at 8am the next morning! We obviously needed the sleep.

On our second full day in Rio we had booked on a Brazilian Expedition tour. We got picked up at 10:45 and headed for Sao Conrado beach to watch the handgliders landing from the mountains high above. Next we drove up into the mountain forest, got out the mini bus and had a small walk through the forest to Tijuka Forest Waterfall. We stayed to take a few photos and then it was time for the main event, so we drove up the steep winding roads to Christ the Redeemer. At the top we were faced with 250 steps up to the monument or a recently installed escaltor, so we took the steps to be more authentic. At the top, the sheer size of it was unbelievable, an 8m base and then 30m Jesus towered over you and looked out onto the city of Rio. We took a few photos and then took in the 360 degree views across the city, you could see everything from up there. After our descent we visited the Lapa Steps which from the top looked like normal steps but at the bottom as your turned around, all of the risers on the steps were tiled in different colours and had tiles frm cities all over the world. We had lunch at the oldest Portugese restaurant in Rio and were pleasantly surprised with how good the food was, me and Freeman both went for the steak with rice, brown beans and roast potatoes. Our final stop was a drop off at the Sugar Loaf mountain which was an additional cost but we decided to do it anyway. We got the cable car up the mountain and wasn´t sure what to expect but the view from the top was breathtaking. We could have spent hours looking out over the likes of Copacabana beach, Christ the Redeemer etc etc but had to get back to the hostel as we were going to a boat party that evening. Back at the hostel we were still full from lunch so decided to skip dinner and just get smashed instead so we had half a litre of Sky Vodka and headed to the boat party around 10:30pm. The party started at 11 but for the first hour they put all the girls upstairs with a free bar and all the lads downstairs paying for drinks! I got talking to a local guy called Leo he was pretty cool and told us how he had class the next day but was trying to pull one of his friends, lad! Once the free bar ended for the girls the party really got going and everyone hit the dancefloor. A local girl came and danced with me and then out of no where she got me in a headlock and started nuggying me!!! Funniest/most unexpected moment of my life, Freeman couldn´t control his laughter, it was so funny though! The boat came back into the port around 4am and we just got a taxi home and hit the hay.

Feeling a bit ropey the next morning we still managed to make breakfast and decided that today we would do a stadium tour of the Maracana Stadium as the game had been sold out a couple of days before. We managed to work out the tube system and got to the stadium with no dramas. We bought our tickets but had an hour to kill so walked around the outside of the huge stadium where we were offered dodgy tickets and also cocaine, both of which we declined. In the entrance of the stadium they had the ball which Pele scored his 1,000 goal with along with other cool statues. The tour started and we took the lift up to the top of the stadium where we got a feel of the size of the stadium and took some good photos. We then went into the VIP boxes, changing room and finally up the tunnel and out onto the technical area. I would give many things to have a ticket to the World Cup Final here next year! We went back to the hostel, ate and then showered. We weren´t sure whether to go out but the Aussies said it would be good so we joined them and paid a tenner for a ticket to Zero Zero club which included two hours of free caipirinha´s (the drink of Brazil). A group of 4 English girls also joined us so we had a good crowd. The club was really smart but our free drinks were unbelievably strong! After a couple though everyone got flowing and i decided to do the worm, which ended in me smashing my chin on the floor and regretting that decision, never mind! The club started getting busy and we were all having fun when two locals got the whole bar doing a synchronised Samba, it was amazing. All in all a great night and a great end to our time in Rio.

The next morning we had breakfast and then jumped on our bus to our next stop Ilha Grande, an island 4 hours south of Rio.

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Comments

[Dave Freeman]

Well done lads!
It looks as though it's all working out well, have a great adventure, we are very envious here in cold Southwell! DF