So our last planned trip before we go home for school break was to Rio De Janiero.. I wasn't so interested in going to Rio to be honest.. I don't like travel.. LOL.. perhaps I have mentioned that before.. however.. my better half loves travel.. so off we went..
Like most of our trips, though I balk, I always come back and say how I loved it.. this trip is the same.. wonderful.. Rio is AMAZING!!! We hired a lovely guide to show us around and we saw so may things we might not have if we didn't have her!! Some of them I don't even have pictures for.. I was busy learning the history and taking it all in
Thankfully I do have some pictures of the highlights.. LOL.. so in pictures I present Rio;)
In the Botanical Gardens there was an orchid sale and contest going on. In Brasil there are over 2,000 varieties of orchids!! They were stunning!!
Our first sight of Christ the Redeemer.. simply amazing.. the view of him from every point of the city is just lovely and reminds you he is always watching!!
LOVE this picture our guide Lais took!! A tree the size of a small house with a notch just enough for some kids to find refuge in!!
The family amongst the royal palms that line the gardens..
Christ the Redeemer.. he is 30 meters tall without the base.. hollow side.. made of concrete with blue/green sandstone tiles glued on to the body.. the heart of Christ is the only part that is finished on the inside to so it is beautiful inside and out. Last year Christ was damaged by lighting and our guide was able to tour the inside and sit on his shoulder!!! CRAZY.. it is simply amazing!!
The view of Rio from Christ!!
Random photo I know.. but because I love cemeteries we asked to visit one in the city.. not a real tourist attraction, but it should be.. the graves are amazing and the histories of the buried are equal. What was so interesting to me was the older graves show no dates of the birth or death and the names of the dead are usually their signatures..
Sugar Loaf is two mountains connected by a cable car so you can enjoy the best views of the city!!
The ride looks like it will take forever, but nope.. a short 3 minutes to be across.. and for someone who loves heights.. 3 minutes is really long enough:)
The view.. amazing and worth it!!
Every trip.. she just looks older..
So the local dish in Rio (one of them) is Feijoada.. it is a black bean stew with pork served with kale and bacon, rice, more beans and farinheira.. I could have eaten the whole pot by myself.. incredible!!
goofing around in Santa Teresa.. the oldest part of Rio..
So I sorta felt like a bad mom as Nola kept asking what these were.. oh child it's a payphone.. so we stopped and explained... parent fail no. 4,562
so while in Rio we visited a Favella.. a Favella is basically a slum.. or at least they used to be.. hard to explain, but long ago when people would come to Rio and they could not afford housing they would build what they could on the side of the mountain. Over time more and more were building and they built high up the mountains... no roads, no services.. just poorly constructed homes on top of one another with tiny alleyways.. Rio is trying to improve the conditions and the one we visited now has a working trolly up and down the mountain, everyone has water, electricity and social programs. They also host the prettiest views of the city.. Was very interesting..
the view from the almost top!!
narrow alley ways..
so we toured a farmers market.. this is Lais and I enjoying a tapioca with banana and cheese.. the tapioca is made by taking yucca flour and heating it with cheese.. forms this lovely cheese pancake.. so good!!
The Brasilian empanada.. square and called a pastie!! :)
OK.. this fruit has a name.. for the love of all that is good I can't remember and the name my husband gives me is apparently the Colombian name.. no matter what.. it was the best fruit I have every tried in my life!! ever.. and I hate fruit for the most part.. this I would consider selling my sassy child for:) KIDDING.. but seriously.. so yumm
The cathedral in Rio.. it is amazing and was really hard to get a picture of.. it is a cone shape.. all open air and so modern looking you would never expect a cathedral to be inside..
Nor would you expect the roof to be so lovely and the stained glass sides are a true work of art!
Lastly I won't forget to show you Copacabana Beach.. LOL.. this is the sidewalk pattern.. on every piece of souvenir you can see this pattern!!
and while the sidewalk was nice and all.. it was the beach that my girls loved.. swimming at 7 pm at night.. heaven!!
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