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Rio de Janeiro
Interesting places in Rio de Janeiro:Rio de Janeiro (pronounced IPA , Portuguese: ; Portuguese for "January River") is the name of both a state and a city in southeastern Brazil. The city was the capital of Brazil (1763-1960) and of the Portuguese Empire (1808-1821). Commonly known as just Rio (particularly in English and by its inhabitants), the city is also nicknamed A Cidade Maravilhosa - "The Marvelous City".
Beaches
Rio's beaches are undoubtedly one of the main reasons why travellers visit the city. Copacabana and Ipanema are by far the most famous, but there are many others, each with a distinct character. Travellers should be aware that most beaches are polluted, and bathing is not advisable in any of the non-oceanic beaches (except for those in the island of ). The beaches that are often proper for swimming are Ipanema, Leblon, Recreio dos Bandeirantes, and Grumari. Copacabana, though worldwide famous, is usually dirty. Some of the most notable are (ordered from North to South):
- Flamengo (by the bay, but often polluted)
- Botafogo (by the bay, but often polluted)
- Praia Vermelha (oceanic, but often polluted)
- Leme (oceanic)
- Copacabana (oceanic)
- Arpoador (oceanic)
- Ipanema (oceanic)
- Leblon (oceanic)
- São Conrado (oceanic)
- Barra da Tijuca (oceanic)
- Recreio dos Bandeirantes (oceanic)
- Grumari (oceanic)
It is also worth visiting the beaches in , particularly:
- Praia da Moreninha (on the Guanabara Bay, but often proper for swimming)
Cariocas have a unique beach culture, with a code of customs which outlanders (even Brazilians from other cities) can misconstrue easily. Unlike many foreigners might think, there is no topless in the beaches - in fact, it is outlawed and women who dare to try it can be arrested. Girls can wear tiny string bikinis , but it doesn't mean they're exhibitionists. For most of them, it's highly offensive to stare. Until the 1990s, men and boys wore , but since then wearing bermudas or boardshorts has become more usual. Jammers are less usual but nothing wrong either. Smoking marijuana is quite common among youth (and not only), even in crowded spots, but use drugs in Brazil it's still illegal (though a minor felony since 2006) and undercover policemen can watch for infractors. Other drugs are rare, except for beach raves.
Waves in Rio vary from tiny, calm in Guanabara bay beaches (Paquetá, Ramos, Flamengo, Botafogo, Urca) to high, surf-ideal waves in Recreio. In Leme, Copacabana, Arpoador, Ipanema, and Leblon, there's a popular way of "riding" the waves called (pe-GAHR zha-kah-REH; literally, "to grab an alligator"). You wait for the wave to come behind you then swim on top of it until it crumbles next to the sand.
Residents go to the beach with their swimsuits on, under shorts and T-shirts or even wearing only the suit, which is normal. You will see people in speedos and bikini walking on the streets or in the bus. There are "cabins" and lockers for changing clothes in the beach only at Copacabana beach in some new and clean public restrooms (located like a subway station under the famous boardwalk). If you don't go with your swimsuit on, use a towel to cover yourself while changing. Women must not dare to take their bra off in the sand, even for a brief moment, or they might get trouble.
If you don't want a sunburn and you are typically white, get a strong sunblock for yourself. Locals are used to get a tan easily, but don't try to mimic them; you might end up at a hospital. Also, having a red-burnt skin is considered as "lame", and can make fun of it - especially girls, say, if you're trying something at a nightclub.
Commerce is common in Rio's beaches, with thousands of walking vendors selling everything from sun glasses to fried shrimp to cooling beverages (try , a local ice tea mixed with lemonade). For food, there is also (baked flour pastry filled with meat or cheese) and (cool sandwich with vegetables and mayo). Vendors typically shout out loud what they're selling, but they won't usually bother you unless you call them.
Although beaches are often considered a plural, democratic space, there are still some informal (and not too strict) "social area" divisions. In the South Zone, Copacabana attracts mainly tourists (foreign and national) and lower-classes bathers. Prostitution is also widespread there, even in daylight. Ipanema is the major beach for middle-class, and specifically the section (watchtower #9) is prefered by left-wing, intellectuals, artists, journalists and similar beach-goers. You can easily walk into a politician or someone famous there. The beaches in Barra and Recreio (Quebra-Mar, Pepê, Pontal, Prainha) were favored by surfers and hang-gliders until the 1980s, but now they are outnumbered by the middle-class and from the suburbs and also West Zone favela residents, such as now world-famous (City of God, that of the film).
There is also in the Guanabara Bay, a popular destination among low-class beach-goers. There the government built an artificial pool on the sand . Not recommended for foreigners to visit this place.
Sights
- Corcovado - The tram up costs R$36 for roundtrip up to Cristo Redentor, and it is definetly worth the view.
- Pão de Açúcar - the Sugar Loaf mountains (one taller, the other shorter), Brazil's top landmark, with an aerial tramway to the top; unmissable. A ticket up is R$ 35. The buses number 591 and 592 bring you to the base station.
- Lagoa Rodrigo de Freitas - a large lagoon in the middle of South Zone, with great views to Corcovado and Ipanema and Leblon beaches; there are skating and jogging fields all around it.
- Maracanã - the largest football/soccer stadium in Rio and once the largest on Earth.
- Parque Lage - a small park, once a private mansion, where now a school of fine arts works.
- Jardim Botanico - The Botanical Garden, planted up in the 1800s. It is both a park and a scientific laboratory. If you take the bus note that Jardim Botanico is also the name of a neighborhood so make sure you take the right one to the entrance. The admission is $4. The gardens are well kept and very lush. Not far from the cafe, first you hear swooshing sounds. Look up and you can see small monkeys swinging from tree to tree.
Buildings
- Paço Imperial (1743) - old Imperial Palace (though impressively modest), colonial architecture (in downtown, next to , Fifteen Square).
- Casa França Brasil (1820) - French cultural center, with gallery and video hall (in downtown, next to CCBB).
- CCBB - Centro Cultural Banco do Brasil (1906) - a cultural center with gallery, movie theater, video room, library and stages; usually hosts the main exhibitions in town (in downtown).
- Candelária Church - neoclassic cathedral (next to CCBB).
- Mosteiro de São Bento (1663) - , colonial architecture (in downtown).
- Ilha Fiscal Palace (1889) - in the Guanabara Bay, next to the Navy Museum
- Palácio Gustavo Capanema - former ministry of culture, designed by French architect Le Corbusier; though small, it is regarded as an important pioneering in modern architecture (downtown).
- Arcos da Lapa (1750) - Lapa Aqueduct, colonial structure that brought water from springs to downtown; now it has a suspended tramway track (in Lapa)
- Catedral Metropolitana - cone-shaped cathedral, an example of modern architecture (in Lapa).
- São Francisco da Penitência church (1773) - colonial church.
- Teatro Municipal (1909) - City Theater, inspired by the Paris Opéra House (in Cinelândia square).
- Biblioteca Nacional (1910) - (in Cinelândia square)
- Câmara Municipal - the City Hall, hosts the city council (in Cinelândia square).
- Palácio do Catete - the former presidential palace (1893-1960), now hosts a museum of recent history and nice gardens (in Catete).
- Itamaraty - former presidential palace (1889-1893) and foreign office; now hosts a museum of South American diplomacy, a library and the UN information offices in Brazil (in Downtown, next to the Central station).
- Palácio Guanabara - former palace of the Imperial Princess, now governor's office; ecletic architecture; not open to public (in Laranjeiras).
Museums
Downtown
- Museu Histórico Nacional - a museum of Brazilian history stretching from colonial to imperial times; big collection of paintings, but poor in artifacts (downtown).
- Museu Nacional de Belas Artes - includes large paintings from Academicist and Neoclassical Brazilian artists, as well as many copies of European sculptures (downtown, Cinelândia square).
- MAM - Museu de Arte Moderna - the second most important contemporary art museum in Brazil, after MASP (downtown, next to Santos Dumont airport).
- Museu da Imagem e do Som - for researchers about Brazilian film, radio, and broadcasting industry (downtown).
- Museu Naval - downtown.
- Museu do Carnaval - history of Brazilian carnival and parades (in downtown, next to the Sambódromo).
- Museu Chácara do Céu - an important collection of South American modern art (in Santa Tereza).
South Zone
- Jardim Botânico - not a museum per se, but a huge collection of plants from all over the world, not only tropical, yet you will find Amazon trees and river flowers as well in the same-named neighborhood.
- Museu da República - hosted on the former presidential palace, this museum hosts permanent exhibitions about recent Brazilian history (from 1889 on); one of main features is the room where president Getúlio Vargas shot himself in 1954 (in Catete)
- Centro Cultural Telemar - formerly Museum of Telephone, it now hosts a fine gallery with temporary exhibitions of digital art or art with interactive medias; it is sponsored by the local phone company (in Catete)
- Museu Internacional de Arte Naïf - with Naïf painting. In Cosme Velho, next to Corcovado rail station.
- Museu Carmem Miranda - about this Brazilian actress and singer (the lady with pinapples-and-bananas hat), the national icon in the 1940s and 50s (in Flamengo).
- Museu do Índio - a very small museum with a modest collection of native American artifacts and craft (in )
- Museu Villa-Lobos - a modest collection about Brazil's most important composer (in Botafogo).
North Zone
- Museu Nacional - actually, it's the Natural History museum, with dinosaur fossiles and lots of mounted tanned animals; go there if you want to see a jaguar without getting into the jungle; it was formely the Emperor's Palace (in São Cristóvão, just next to the Zoo)
- Museu do Primeiro Reinado - a museum about the reign of Emperor Pedro I (1822-1831), but with a modest collection (in São Cristóvão)
- Museu Museu de Astronomia e Ciências Afins - with an observatory (in São Cristóvão)
- Museu do Trem - a modest collection of 19th century engines, train cars and streetcars (in Engenho de Dentro)
- Museu Aeroespacial - in Campo dos Afonsos (in the surburbs)
West Zone
- Museu Casa do Pontal - the most important collection of popular craft and artisany (in Recreio dos Bandeirantes)
Parks
- Jardim Botânico
- Parque Lage
- Parque do Flamengo
- Parque Guinle
- Campo de Santana
- Quinta da Boa Vista
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Once upon a time in a distant place called Copacabana...
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No mar estava escrito uma cidade. - Drummond e a Vaca Cow Parade (Outubro/2007) - Calçadão de Copacabana - Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. www.eliezersanchez.com.br MAS VIVEREMOS (Carlos Drummond de Andrade) Já não há mãos dadas no mundo. Elas agora viajarão sozinhas. Sem o fogo dos velhos contatos, que ardia por dentro e dava coragem. ... Já não olharei sobre o oceano para decifrar no céu noturno uma estrela vermelha, pura e trágica, e seus raios de glória e esperança. Já não distinguirei, na voz do vento a mensagem que ensinava a esperar, a combater, a calar, desprezar e ter amor. Há mais de vinte anos caminhávamos sem nos vermos, de longe, disfarçados, mas a um grito, no escuro, respondia outro grito, outro homem, outra certeza. Muitas vezes julgamos ver a aurora e sua rosa de fogo à nossa frente. Era apenas, na noite, uma fogueira. Voltava a noite, mais noite, mais completa. E que dificuldade de falar! Nem palavras nem códigos: apenas montanhas e montanhas e montanhas oceanos e oceanos e oceanos. ... NO MAR ESTAVA ESCRITO UMA CIDADE, no campo ela crescia, na lagoa, no pátio negro, em tudo onde pisasse alguém, se desenhava tua imagem, teu brilho, tuas pontas, teu império e teu sangue e teu bafo e tua pálpebra, estrela: cada um te possuía. Era inútil queimar-te, cintilavas. Hoje quedamos sós. Em toda parte, somos muitos e sós. Eu, como os outros. Já não sei se vossos nomes nem vos olho na boca, onde a palavra se calou. Voltamos a viver na solidão, temos de agir na linha do gasômetro, do bar, da nossa rua: prisioneiros de uma cidade estreita e sem ventanas. Mas viveremos. A dor foi esquecida nos combates de rua, entre destroços. Toda melancolia dissipou-se em sol, em sangue, em vozes de protesto. Já não cultivamos amargura nem sabemos sofrer. Já dominamos essa matéria escura, já nos vemos em plena força de homens libertados. ... Ele viaja sempre, esse navio, Essa rosa, esse canto, essa palavra.
Maybe the last one...
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Somewhere on the sands of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Botafogo Beach... actually it's not a ocean beach but a bay beach, the Guanabara Bay. Note the polution and the trash after a storm! El Nino? If the sight of the blue skies fills you with joy, if a blade of grass springing up in the fields has power to move you, if the simple things of nature have a message that you understand, rejoice, for your soul is alive. ~ Eleonora Duse ~ A human being is part of the whole, called by us Universe, a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings as something separated from the rest - a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty. ~ Albert Einstein, 1950 ~
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