Rio

Rio

You Tube video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HUcdv7gqrIo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wEGXvTRQEPw&feature=related

The above was slightly more full than when we were there-haha

Full of anticipation and excitement we head in to Rio.

We decided some time ago not to bring the bikes into Rio. They are simply too large, a target for theft and there is too much of a chance getting lost trying to find our way around to the sites we wanted to see.

Buzios was the stop, having looked at the map Buzios appeared to be a large tourist destination and would most likely have tours to Rio. Sure enough we entered into the town where we found the tourist office, lucky for us the minister of tourism for the region spoke English and took care of us.

The tourist minister made many phone calls and found a tour leaving the next morning with an English speaking guide for $109 US for both of us. This was a good deal as it included an all you can eat buffet (and a good one with sushi and many different types of grilled meats), admission to the Jesus Christ statue and all transportation.

The day started out at 9:00 am (they were ½ hour late picking us up) were we driven about 1 hour to our first rest stop, a large roadside stop with food outlets and stores. Off again about 1 ½ hour later we arrive in Rio and cross the grand bridge that England helped them build. 74 meters in height to allow the ships to pass under and 7km long makes for great views but heavy traffic.

First stop is the Maracana soccer stadium, makes sense as South Americans are passionate about their soccer or better known as football here.

Next stop is to the largest Samba school in Rio, it is also a strip about 800 meters long. They were playing a video of the 2008 Carnival and it shows thousands of people entering into the area and thousands of people in the stands-must be quite a rush!

From here we make our way up the twisty road to the Jesus Christ statue (Cristo Redentor in Corcovado). The statue is a gift from France. a statue for the people of Rio welcoming all regardless of sex, religion, or color. A famous French sculptor made the head and the hands in france, where he shipped them to Rio and the remainder of the statue was completed in Rio. Standing some 38 meters high and 28 meters wide it is spectacular, that in some way makes you feel spiritual while in its presence.
In the base of the statue on the backside they have a small place to worship. While in Miami we met Lance a great guy who spent 9 months in Brazil and gave us all kinds of advice and help on our journey. He had given us 20 bucks to place in a house of worship and this one seemed very appropriate. Lance a few weeks ago had lost his mom, so at this time our deposit into the church seemed that much more important and our wishes are with him and his family. We also took a moment to remember our own families and say hello to those in heaven, we are very grateful to be here right now in this place of beauty.

If you ever get a chance to come to Rio the views from here are worth the trip alone! Unfortunately being on a tour and a timeline we felt our time in this magical place was cut a little short, however we knew later in the day we would have another great viewing spot on top of Sugar Loaf Mountain.

After leaving the statue we headed back into the center were we passed by Ipanema and Leblon beaches. I guess we have been spoiled from all the northern beaches of Brazil because they did not seem to be all that.-touristy and right now the weather is less than 20degrees c
From here we hit a very late lunch. Excellent it was so good to have salad and sushi again!
Now stuffed we stopped off at Copacabana beach were Brent and I had a beer and took a few photos. It is currently spring here and way too cold to be doing any swimming or sun bathing.

Now off to the grand finally Sugar Loaf Mountain. There are two cable cars you need to take to arrive at the top. Although the views from the lower section were great we headed straight up to the top. At the top you have a view of the city, Jesus Christ statue, the bay and all the interlaying hills and valleys that make this area visually one of the best I have ever seen!!

All in all good idea and some times hard to believe I have actually made it to Rio. Brazil and Rio have always seemed like it was so far away and much too expensive to get to that I would never see this part of the world. Well I made it, today September 25, 2008, and I am truly thankful for all the experiences we have had to get here (even the bad ones I guess)!!