Buenos Aires - Day 3

Wednesday 25th October

It´s cold and rainy, a real departure from yesterday´s blazing heat so Helena and I decide to visit Galerias Pacifico, a posh shopping centre with marble floors, frescoed ceilings and the likes of Yves Saint Laurent boutiques.

Still buzzing from last night´s tango experience I decide I want to have some lessons while I´m here and need some tango shoes. I was told that Suipacha Street was the place to find them. There are several tango shops here and I´m lured into one with sparkly shoes in the window. It´s like being in a sweet shop, so many colours and flavours you want to try them all.

After trying a couple of pairs on, the shop assistant approaches me and asks if I´d like a free tango lesson as there´s an instructor right here. I point to my flip flops and he says no problem and disappears for a minute. He emerges with some tango shoes with a high ankle strap and tells me to put them on.

In a surreal 10 minutes I dance around the shop with the tango instructor. He tells me I´m not bad for a beginner (I haven´t admitted I had a lesson yesterday). I notice a camera has been filming me but do not notice the man with the microphone who steps up to ask if I mind doing an interview.

´Not for TV?´ I ask before I embarrass myself

´No, you´re safe´ he replies.

He proceeds to ask me why I´m in Buenos Aires and what I like about it. I´m sure I disappoint him with my vacuous answers about travel and culture.

There is a pub quiz at the Millhouse hostel tonight, where some of my travelling acquantainces are staying. I´m usually rubbish at these unless they´re mostly about music but I´m with a bright bunch of people so I figure we may not come last. While I´m away for a brief moment my group decide to name the team ´Maria´ (not sure why) so this is doubly worrying if we come last.

We´re really lucky with the questions as we have experts on sport, film and celebrity gossip (not me) and romp home to victory 80 points ahead of the second place team. Our prize is tickets to a nightclub tonight called Rumi. Night clubs here don´t get going until 2am here if you can stay awake that long. Somehow I manage and we get a taxi at 1.30am. The club is almost empty when we arrive but by 3 it´s heaving. The music is a tedious mix of repetitive drum and bass beats of the type that make your ribcage vibrate. I´m bored after an hour.

I do have one short conversation with a local Argentinian something along the lines of:

Him - 'Where are you from?'

Me - 'England' (this doesn´t seem to excite people here for some reason whereas they get very excited about Australians)

Him - 'Oh. Can I kiss you?'

Me - 'No'

Him - 'Can I talk to you over there' (points to a dark corner off the dancefloor').

Me - 'No thanks, I'm here with my friends.' (I point to some random people on the dancefloor)

Him - 'You've broken my heart'.

I´ve had enough excitement by 4.30 so a couple of us catch a cab back early to the hotel.

Buenos Aires - Day 2

Tuesday 24th October

Despite the four hours sleep I´m up for a breakfast of sweet croissants and coffee, and ready to embark on a walking tour of the city. End up walking through the centre and around San Telmo, Recoleta and back again. The whole thing takes 6 hours in the relentless heat but gives me a good feel about which areas I´d like to explore more.

By the time I get back I´m knackered. Having walked all day in my Havaiana flip flops my feet do not take too kindly to being squashed into shoes ready for a my tango lesson in an hour.

Tango shows are everywhere and and 60 US dollars buys you a three course dinner, an hour´s tango show including transfers to and from your hotel.

Me and a couple of others decide to go to the ´Complejo Tango´ show because it includes a free one-hour tango lesson.

On arrival our tango instructor teaches us the 8 basic steps of tango and once we´ve ´mastered´ these we pair us with the other tourists to practise. My partner is a 60-year old American from Colorado who annoyingly prefers to chat about his holiday than practise the steps.

The show is spectacular - showcasing tango through the ages. There are a myriad of dazzling costumes and the six dancers whirl their away around the dance floor with ease and elegance. The speed in which they move is incredible. Rather depressingly there is also not a basic step in sight. The movements are fluid and graceful even with the rapid kicking inbetween each other´s legs their timing is impeccable. I am left wondering if a mis-timed split second would ruin the whole sequence among other things.

At the end of the show a couple of us are pulled up to dance in the aisles with the tango dancers and I have my photo taken with my leg wrapped around one of the tango dancers (who looks about 16). I think this is great until I see dozens of tourists doing this in La Boca later on in the week (more on this later).

Buenos Aires - Day 1

Monday 23rd October

Arrived in Buenos Aires at 8.30am having caught the ferry at 5.30am. Checked in to the hotel, had breakfast in a local cafe and walked a couple of blocks to the Plaza de Mayo to see the Casa de Gobierno, also called the Casa Rosada (pink house because it´s pink). It´s where Evita supposedly addressed the people from the balcony - well at least Madonna did in the film version.

Try to get my bearings and although it should be easy as the city is designed on criss-crossed streets, I have no idea in which direction I´m going. I´m usually not this clueless.

Despite being a Monday night, it turns out to be a big one and Helena (my roommate) and I are tucked up in our beds around 5am.

Buenos Aires Diary

It´s been a while since I logged on to the blog - mainly due to a combination of late nights and a flu-type bug. I arrived exactly a week ago but it has blurred into one long day/night and I´ve been struggling to remember what I´ve seen here.

For me Buenos Aires feels a little like Paris with a South American flavour (it´s been called the ´Paris of the South´). The buildings are grand (but many are crumbly and faded); the people are elegant and it definitely feels like Europe, unlike Rio. If I´d opened my eyes not knowing where I was I would have said Paris for architecture and Italy for people. Have seen much less of the cultural mix here than in Rio.

There is surprisingly little to ´sight see´ in terms of tourist attractions and monuments. It´s much more about enjoying the cafe society lifestyle and walking around the various districts which have very different flavours. I haven´t made it to all the districts and my impressions are very much my own.

Recoleta and Barrio Norte are smart, classy and expensive. Recoleta is home to the cemetery where Evita is buried.

San Telmo - Buzzy, slightly bohemian and full of bars and restaurants. The oldest part of Buenos Aires.

Palermo - a leafier version of Recoleta with lots of parks and gardens. Also the current a la mode place to go out. Palermo Hollywood or Palermo Soho?

La Boca - Slightly run down area when the Boca Juniors stadium is situated; Has 2-3 colourful streets with painted houses including the famous ´Caminito´. Where most of the Italian immigrants originally settled.

Puerto Madero - bordering the redeveloped dock area - it did remind me of the London Docklands; Apparently a lot of English expats live here in swanky converted warehouses. Expensive.

The ferry from Colonia takes three hours and as I was on deck watching us pull into the port, I have a feeling I´m really going to like it here.

Colonia (del Sacramento), Uruguay

Another 3-hour local bus ride takes me to Colonia (del Sacramento), a quaint town across the Rio de la Plata from Buenos Aires. The town was founded in 1680 by Portuguese settlers from Brazil trying to smuggle British goods into the Spanish Colonies.

The old town is pretty, with cobbled streets and coloured houses. It´s quiet, laid-back and feels like a weekend haven, away from life´s stresses.

Took a walk around town and climbed to the top of the lighthouse, from where you can see Buenos Aires in the distance. It`s an early night for me as I´m catching a ferry to B.A at 5.30am tomorrow.

Estancia del Puerto, Montevideo, Uruguay

Good times in Montevideo

Another 6-hour ride across rolling countryside (could have been Surrey) on a local bus takes us to Montevideo. I like MTV immediately. There is a laid-back feel to it and there`s the sense that no one´s in a hurry. The old town is an architectural mix of old and new - tree-lined squares and crumbly colonial buildings in serious need of some paint, but that`s all part of its charm. There isn´t a lot to see or do but wander round and absorb the cafe society and outdoor markets.

Our guide takes us to the Estancia del Puerto, an indoor marketplace full of food stands. He orders a bit of everything on the Parilla (barbecue), adding `try it, you`ll like it´. I decide (as I suspected) I do NOT like cow`s intestines or glands. We´re offered a bottle of `Medio y Medio´, a bit like chilled sweet cava which goes down surprisingly easily. Everyone´s a fan but after several bottles between us, our sightseeing activities are definitely over for the day.

Drinking games in Uruguay

The boys in our group were keen to have a good steak so we ended up in what seemed to be the only restaurant on Uruguay Street. I´m not the biggest red meat eater but I thought I´d join the club especially as the whole dinner cost about 2 pounds. It was pretty good I have to say.

Not wanting to go to bed that early we retired to a local spit and sawdust bar that only served beer and whisky and then the drinking games started...

Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay & Uruguay

Where the river converges (in the photo) you can see the borders of Brazil, Argentina and Paraguay.

Took a trip to Paraguay this morning - not sure why exactly. Ciudad del Este is a big mess but supposedly has the largest shopping centre in Latin America. Everything is dirt cheap especially electrical goods. I was warned it was pretty dangerous to walk around the streets so I ended up stuck in an indoor shopping mall not unlike Wood Green Shopping City for an hour and half until I could get the driver turned up to get me out. Shame it's the only place I went to in Paraguay as it didn`t leave me with an overwhelming desire to return.

One thing I have noticed is that since Iguassu it`s become warm and dry. Thank god for that. I was tired of walking around with crazy-woman (frizzy) hair.

It`s another overnight bus (12 hours) from Puerto Iguassu in Argentina to the Uruguayan border. This time the seats don´t recline as much and there is less leg room which means I wake up with cramp in the middle of the night trying not to scream and alarm everyone. My light doesn`t work either so I can´t read. I would have watched the film had it been slightly appealing but ´Funky Monkey´ I couldn´t face. I do manage to sleep a bit although when I wake up I can only see out of one eye.

Turfed out on the side of the road (in Concordia I believe) a taxi magically appears to whisk me and my travelling buddies across the Uruguayan border. No problems at the border - no one even checks our passport photos.´Good to know border controls are thorough. I keep reminding myself of the first piece of advice I was given on arriving `Don`t worry, this is South America' i.e. don`t expect too much.

Bleary eyed from not too much sleep the taxi delivers me to my hotel in Salto - a charming small town which revolves around a high street originally named ´Uruguay Street`. First stop is breakfast which costs about 20p and then I´m on a mission to find an optician as I´m still half blind. After a couple of abortive attempts I end up at an eye doctor´s house. Well there are certificates on his wall so that`s good enough for me. He assures me all is ok but that I probably slept with one eye half open (freaky), and together with the air conditioning and the dehydration (I avoided drinking water on the bus as I couldn´t face the toilet) my eye dried out. So I was dispatched with drops and the assurance that my vision would soon return to normal. Hoorah for that. Spent the afternoon relaxing at some thermal baths (Termas del Dayman) 8km out of town and treating myself to a massage.

La Garganta del Diablo (The Devil's Throat), Iguassu Falls

Iguassu Falls - Argentinian side

The Argentinian side needs a day to view properly as there are various trails to walk - the upper and lower circuits etc. - which offer different perspectives. There is also a 15 minute boat trip you can take up the river which literally takes you under part of the falls (not the Devil`s Throat) and completely soaks you from head to foot. The views are better from above but it's a good excuse to get wet and cool down from the humid temperatures. It`s also great fun.

The views only get better and better and just when you think you're possibly waterfall-ed out, 'La Garganta del Diablo' (Devil`s Throat) overawes you once again.

Bird Park (Parque de Aves)

Iguassu from the air

Eleanor Roosevelt apparently said 'poor Niagara' on seeing the Iguassu falls. It's four times as wide as Niagara and is much more impressive in my humble opinion. It left me wondering why Niagara is that much more famous.

Decided if I was ever going to take a helicopter ride it might as well be here. It`s a brief 10-15 minute flight but offers a different perspective and helped me to appreciate the sheer scale and volume of water.

At the end of my exhausting but fantastic day I decided to have a walk through the bird park across the road from the helicopter place. It houses an array of tropical birds I can`t even begin to name, in their recreated habitats i.e. Pantanal region, and even a couple of anacondas (in an enclosure).

Iguassu Falls - Brazilian side

Iguassu Falls - Brazilian side

Woke up to brilliant blue skies yesterday - perfect for sitting on a bus all day. Said goodbye to pretty Paraty and arrived in Sao Paolo five hours later with four hours to spare before my overnight connection to Foz do Iguacu.

Sao Paolo is ugly at first sight, a vast sprawling metropolis with hundreds of grey skyscrapers. I can´t imagine 23 million people living in one city. London seems busy enough. Due to arrive in Foz do Iguacu at 8am tomorrow morning.

Wow. I have never been on a bus like this before. Overnight travel has transformed since my 18-hour bus journey in Colombia in 1994! The seats are called ´poltronas´ - ´armchairs´ literally in Spanish, and they recline a good way back. Semi-cama I´m told is the correct expression. You can tell I haven´t taken many sleeper buses before as I was genuinely excited about sleeping on a bus.

The bus left Sao Paolo at 6pm and by 7pm all the lights were out and my 20 or so fellow passengers looked fast asleep. I tried to read my book in the dim light but it made me tired so I relented and hunkered down under my blanket with my ipod which made me think of home.

Slept fairly well but woke up to grey skies again. Not great for the first major highlight of my trip, the Iguassu Falls. I have imagined it with clear blue skies, glittering cascades and rainbows (ok maybe that last bit is slightly cheesy).

Arrive in Foz at 10ish, an uninspiring place at first glimpse that´s about 28km from the falls but the main base for Iguassu visitors.

The Iguassu Falls straddle the Brazilian and Argentinian borders. The Argentinian side is much larger and is generally deemed to be more spectacular than the Brazilian so I start off here.

On entering the trail after a bus ride through the forest, I start photographing the first bit of waterfall I see, but it only gets better and before I know it I´ve take hundreds of photos.

The final walkway in front of the Devil´s Throat (La Garganta del Diablo) takes my breath away. Words don´t do justice to its stunning beauty and power so I´m not even going to try. Photos don´t come close either.

Penha - tobogganing

Paraty, Brazil

It´s a two-hour (local) bus ride from the port of Angra to Paraty - a lovely colonial town with cobbled streets and colourful doors. It was raining when I arrived last night and it didn´t stop for most of the evening. I ran into an Australian couple I met in Rio and then again on Ilha Grande. I have a feeling I´ll be doing that a lot.

Was feeling a little hard done by in that it always seems to be raining. I asked a local if this was normal. ´Yes - it rains pretty much every day in October´ was the reply, which made me feel slightly better knowing that I wasn´t just unlucky. I should have noticed earlier that there are even postcards of Paraty in the rain!

The rain didn´t seem to keep people away from the pop concert on in town. It´s a bank holiday weekend here so the place is flooded with tourists and Brazilian weekenders. The shops are open late so I treated myself to another pair of Havaianas. Very useful in the rain.

Today I took a 30-minute bus ride to Penha where there is an old Cachaca distillery and a natural toboggan i.e. people throwing themselves off a large slippery rock. The countryside there is simply stunning.

Tonight there is another street party here. Not sure it´s going to be a late one for me as I have a 24 hour bus ride tomorrow to Foz do Iguazu via Sao Paolo.

Leaving Ilha Grande

Street party before the rain, Ilha Grande

Blue Lagoon, Ilha Grande

On my last day on Ilha Grande I took a day trip to the ´Blue Lagoon´ - seduced by the memory of the film of the same name when I was very (very) young. It turned out to be largely an excuse for tourists to get plastered on Caipirinhas.

I went for the lagoon itself of course - a stretch of clear aquamarine water in which to swim and snorkel among brightly coloured tropical fish. A relaxing day out but I was a bit bored by about two o´clock and trapped on a boat with loud drunken people. Maybe I should have joined them on the Caipirinhas but I couldn´t face one today.

I was looking forward to the street party that night but predictably it was a washout and most of the revellers sheltering under the awnings got fed up of waiting for the rain to stop and went home.

Next stop - Paraty.

Lopes Mendes beach, Ilha Grande, Brazil

Trek to Lopes Mendes

What´s the point of going to the gym three times a week if I´m still going to struggle up hills?

Woke up this morning to blue skies and bright sunshine. Great day for a 2-3 hour trek to the ´most beautiful Brazilian beach.´ Definitely up for that.

After a healthy breakfast of fruit and muesli I´m off but suffering as soon as I leave the beach to start the climb into the forest hills. It´s wet, slippery and humid, there are rocks and a vast network of tree roots to negotiate - and of course it´s all uphill for the first 40 minutes. 30 minutes in there´s the small consolation of a great vantage point of Abraao bay, where I´m staying.

The descent begins shortly afterwards and I can now hear the ocean. Blimey I did that quickly I think as it´s only been an hour. I walk on to the beach and think this is nice but my expectations are high after my arduous walk so I´m slightly disappointed. I ask a local if this is Lopes Mendes but he says it´s another 40 minutes away and points to the end of the beach and mumbles something in Portuguese. I walk to the end of the beach and decide to ask someone else as I´ve no idea where to go. He says it´s over the mountain and points to a high ridge.

I think about cheating and getting the boat - but no I´ll miss out on all the nature and great views so I struggle up the hill again wondering if everyone´s suffering or if it´s just me. Several people have passed me enroute which depresses me. My only thought at this point is that what goes up must come down and in 40 minutes I´m at the beach again. Hoorah. But it´s still not the right beach. My (paradise) beach is still two beaches away. I now begin to think my planned treks in Torres del Paine and Macchu Picchu are a bad idea. I´ll never make it.

A local says he´s seen me before and I think ´yeah right whatever, just tell me how to get to Lopes Mendes´. But he has seen me - the previous night in Abraao. He tells me to follow the trail and I´ll arrive at my beach.

´How long will it take´ I ask?

´15 minutes, but for you 30´ he replies.

What? Can he tell I´m chronically unfit?

Anyway, I persevere up another (short thankfully) hill and arrive at the holy grail. It´s taken me almost three hours, although I did stop to take photos along the way.

The beach is long and wide with big crashing waves and crystal clear water. Nice - but I´m not sure I´d rate it as one of the most beautiful beaches in the world.

Ilha Grande flora, Brazil

Ilha Grande, Brazil

Left Rio today and took a three-hour bus ride to Angra to catch the boat (another 2 hours) to Ilha Grande - described in my guidebook as ´a mountain ridge covered in tropical forest sticking out of an emerald sea and fringed by some of the world´s most beautiful beaches.´

On of these is Lopes Mendes, a good 2-3 hour hike through dense forest with poisonous snakes! Oh well, I hope paradise is worth it.

Ilha Grande used to be a notorious pirate lair, then a landing port for slaves and then a prison for hardcore criminals which closed in 1994. There are no cars or roads so the only way to get around is to trek though the forest or take a boat. It has a lovely laid back feel and there doesn´t appear to be much to do apart from trek, swim and take boat trips around the island (and eat and drink of course). Fantastic.

Colourful downtown, Rio de Janeiro

Convento de Santo Antonio, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Downtown & the art of Caipirinhas

On my last day in Rio (still overcast) I decided to check out downtown Rio and follow a recommended walk in my guidebook. My starting point from Cinelandia metro station was Praca Floriano, which reminded me a bit of Shepherd´s Bush Green - complete with winos and beggars with a steely stare. First impressions of downtown were of odd-shaped skyscrapers and lots of concrete and glass. Very 70s.

Felt pretty vulnerable with my large daypack so walked quickly down the Avenida Rio Branco to my first stop, the Convento de Santo Antonio which is on a hill and thankfully away from the mayhem below.

Santo Antonio is, apparently, an object of devotion for women looking for a husband! I wondered whether there would be anything unusual about the church or its visitors. Not sure what I was expecting really - maybe some desperate women perhaps (not sure what these would look like) but there was nothing like that - just a lovely sacristy decorated with elaborate wood carvings and blue tiles.

Further stops included the Nossa Senhora da Candelaria church and the Mosteiro de Sao Bento (monastery) - the main church is adorned in ornate red and gold carvings. Unfortunately there was no cloister - which I love (architecturally). Deviating from the route I also encountered some lovely side streets with colourful colonial houses.

After a hard day pounding the streets I thought I deserved a decent cocktail and wondered whether the last (strong) one I had in Lapa was the norm. And it looks like it is, so here´s how you make a good Caipirinha:-

Step 1 - Take some sugar and mash it together with some chopped cubes of lime
Step 2 - Add ice
Step 3 - Fill glass to the top with Cachaca (alcohol distilled from sugar cane)
Step 4 - Add a slice of lime - and drink

Two of these will have you dancing in the aisles of Sainsbury´s.

Goodbye beautiful Rio.

Surfers on Ipanema Beach, Rio de Janeiro

Sand sculpture on Copacabana Beach, Rio de Janeiro

Another rainy overcast day in Rio... so I decided to take a walk down Copacabana Beach to Ipanema and visit the ´hippy´ market. Got very damp but as I´m looking like a tramp these days complete with flip flops and carrier bag (to deceive would-be muggers!) I wasn´t that bothered.

Musings on Brazilian dancing...

How different can attitude (and ability) be to dance?

Last night I had my first proper night out in Rio. Although it was pouring with rain and I was tired and grumpy, a couple of girls I met in my hotel persuaded me to head out to Lapa - a hip place where all the cool young things hang out (so not really sure what I was doing there).

It was fairly early by Brazilian standards (11-ish) so most of the clubs hadn´t really got going. We ended up in a live music venue called ´Brasil Mestico´ where the crowd ranged from young to 50 plus.

´How gross - everyone´s over 40!´ the Australian girl with me turned and said. I was secretly pleased as I felt much more at home with a ´similar´ age group and more importantly (really!) I wanted to hear/see some local music and dancing.

I ordered my first Brazilian caipirinha which nearly blew my head off - strong and sweet.

Within seconds of the live music kicking off, the dance floor was packed. There was no 2-3 hour wait for one or two brave people to tentatively step out. They were all there - men and women of all ages and sizes strutting there stuff as if there was no tomorrow.

Initially everyone stood in lines facing the singer and band, and danced from left to right - almost line dancing - but Brazilian style. Then they formed a circle and it was time for individuals to break out and perform. A girl would dance seductively with a hankie then pick out a guy from the circle who would join her. She´d drop the hankie on the floor and he´d have to pick it up with his teeth (would love to see an English bloke try that) and then he´d pick a girl from the circle to join him and the whole thing would start over. Very sexy.

Not only was there a lack of reticence about getting down and dirty on the dance floor, they were mainly all brilliant - graceful and energetic, twirling and spinning with ease and elegance. No furtive shuffling or eye avoidance.

Now I consider myself an ok dancer. I think I can hear a rhythm and move in time to it but these effortless movers put me to shame and I felt just like Auntie Florence at a wedding.

If you´re wondering whether I danced or not - well I gave it a go (not the circle thing) but was too intimidated to not feel self conscious. To be honest I was completely mesmerised by the sheer talent and spent most of my time admiring the skill, passion and energy of the Cariocas.

I only lasted until 1.30am though as the lure of my comfy bed was too much to resist.

I didn´t take my camera to the club so this is a pic of kids practising capoeira in the favela.

City of God, Rio de Janeiro

The best 'touristy' thing I´ve done by far is take a favela tour - www.favelatour.com.br. No I´m not their new PR person but it´s a real eye-opener to how 20% of Rio´s population live. Most of the city people are afraid of the favelas. If you´ve seen ´City of God´ you´ll know why - it´s apparently an accurate depiction of life in a Rio slum. The tour aims to demystify what goes on inside and try to bridge the gap between the rich and the poor by educating both sides. They also give 50% of the proceeds to a school in the favela.

The oddest thing about Rio is that some of the most expensive houses are right opposite favelas so they literally live across the road from each other. Admittedly most have electric fences or have taken other security measures, but not all. I´m told that once inside the favela, tourists and city locals would be safe as the drug lord (!) of each favela would not permit robberies or violence as this would attract police interference. Outside the favela (in the city) you´re much more likely to get mugged. Good to know.

There is a hierarchy of people working for the drug lords including young boys who earn twice as much as the minimum wage. These younger boys tend to be lookouts at strategic points in the favelas and when they see police approaching, they´ll set off fireworks to warn everyone. This is the time to leave the favela if you don´t live there. Incidentally the average life expectancy of a drug lord is 25-30 years.

There are 752 favelas or slums in Rio - the largest is Rocinha - which has an estimated 130,000 people (60,000 officially). It´s a city within a city and totally self-sufficient with it´s own transport network, schools and hairdressers. As we drove up the narrow streets which were paved in Rocinha by the way, I saw a lady in a beauty salon having a pedicure.

It´s not quite what I imagined a Rio slum to look like - most houses were made of brick, had running water, an electricity supply they´d tapped into albeit illegally (hence the thousands of cables precariously suspended above the streets) and widescreen TVs! Apparently one thing both poor and rich have in common is Brazilian soap operas. I´m assured though not all favelas are as developed as Rocinha.

My observations on Brazilian football...

On my first night in Rio I went to a highly publicised game at the Maracana stadium - currently the largest in the world. Although completely shattered as I can never sleep on planes I thought I couldn´t miss the chance to see two top teams battle it out in the league. And Brazilian football, well what more can you say...

I couldn´t concentrate on the football (and there was no one famous playing in the league of Ronaldinhno, Robinho etc. but what do I know) so I started watching the crowd and comparing it to a British one. Not that I´m a regular watcher in the UK but I have been to a handful of games.

There was still the same chanting and abuse of the referee (although I don´t understand Portuguese I assume the hand gestures were fairly obvious); definitely fewer women; the men seemed slightly? more aggressive - in fact the guy behind me got so annoyed when his team missed a shot he kicked the (empty) seat next to me off its hinges.

But the main difference was the dancing. Several whole sections of the crowd broke into spontaneous rhythmic jigging (not actually sure what that means). I don´t mean the jumping up and down and waving of arms - but proper dancing. Strange to see but delightful.

Flamengo beat Fluminense 4-1 by the way.

Botanical gardens, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Botanical gardens, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Couldn´t resist a trip to the botanical gardens - they are pretty nice too if you like shady boulevards and amazonian flora. I was disappointed with the orchid house (my mum´s orchid at home is more impressive) and the Japanese garden which was half built.

View of Rio and Sugar Loaf from Corcovado, Rio de Janeiro

Copacabana Beach, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Eat your heart out Barry. This is the view of Copacabana from Sugar Loaf. Personally I expected more glitz and glamour (it´s become a bit run down since Barry´s heyday) - and that´s where I´m staying. I´ve since learnt that the glam place to be is Ipanema. Will check it out when the rain stops.

View from Sugar Loaf, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Raining in Rio

For some reason the concept of Rio ever being cold and rainy seems really strange to me but it has bucketed it down for the last 24 hours non-stop. The city which I associate with hot bikini-clad babes (which I have still to witness) and my mum´s Barry Manilow cassettes (which I was forced to listen to in the car aged 11) is now shrouded in mist and drizzle.

It´s just as well that I packed most of the touristy things in my first two days when there was glorious sunshine and 35 degree (not sure how to do the symbol on the keyboard) heat. The views of Guanabara Bay from both Corcovado (Christ Redeemer statue (above)) and Sugar Loaf are spectacular. Think I was lucky with fairly clear skies as I heard a few people say that all they saw was ´white´ on reaching the summit - pretty annoying having spent ten odd quid and enduring long queues to get up there.

Maria Merchandise

If you want to dress like Maria in the newly coined 'favela chic', why not get your hands on some 'Havaianas' (flip flops for the uninitiated...)
http://www.havaianas.com/

Where's Maria?

Use the handy guide below...

Countdown to Rio

It's two days until I leave for Rio and it´s all been a manic rush to sort everything out. No time to contemplate the adventures that await me or say goodbye to everyone I´d hoped to see before leaving. There were the inevitable tears on the last day waving goodbye to loved ones and the very long taxi ride in the rain to Heathrow... so long London!

I must thank the lovely Alastair who helped me set up this blog (well set it up for me as you probably guessed) and who appears to have become my editor in the intervals between blogging. This is all new to me and I´m not quite sure what I´m going to write but I hope you´ll at least enjoy the pics. Please feel free to comment and email back often (although not just to correct me on my grammar and typos!).