Rio de Janeiro Things to Do Tips by b1bob

Copacabana Copacabana Review

Ironically, finding Alexandre and Flávia after passing through customs proved to be the bigger challenge. I had my BUSH WON GET OVER IT t-shirt which should have made me stand out like a watermelon in a bowl full of chick peas. I finally found him and the first thing I noticed when I left that airport was that it was as hot as a tar road in Tennessee. I had on long pants because most flights set their air on "igloo" and this was no exception.

We went to his silver Volkswagen Gol to make a trip through Rio de Janeiro into Petrópolis. While slums exist in every city, I haven't seen them as prominent as they were in Rio de Janeiro on the stretch of road from the airport through to downtown. We had to stop at the dentist office of a friend of his. On the road, Alexandre pointed out hotels that used to be casinos before gambling was banned in 1963. We stopped by the famous Ipanema and Copacabana beaches.

Ipanema Ipanema Review

This beach was made popular the world over by the song "The Girl from Ipanema". Alexandre, Flavia, and I stopped there briefly on the way back up the hill to Petropolis.

Barra Tijuca Barra da Tijuca Beaches Review

Visit the beaches at Barra Tijuca, a ways south of Ipanema and Copacabana. The water is warm and the scenery is beautiful as you can see from the photo.

Address: South of downtown Rio

Birds-eye view of Rio de Janeiro

Being 2329 feet (710 m.) up gives you a great view of the bustling city below.

Sugar Loaf view from Corcovada Sugar Loaf - Pão de Açucar Review

Seeing Sugar Loaf from up there reminded me of the one key "must see" I missed during that trip. Thinking positively, it only gives me an excuse to come back. Folks, there will be an in-depth Sugar Loaf tip added to this page.

Christ Statue another view Christ The Redeemer, Corcovado Review

After a long, congested drive up the hill, and afterwards, struggling to find a parking slot, we then had to climb stairs to get to the main part of the area. Most folks take a snap of the Christ Statue from the front, but I figured I'd be different (VT'ers have probably come to expect that from me).