Friday 20th May 1988
I got up fairly early and had breakfast in the hotel dining room which was more like an art gallery. A Siamese cat watched me eat my continental fare. I then went out with my camera to capture the town on film. I walked down to the beach where a few locals were setting out their towels and several horses were grazing on the grass above the white sand.
I took photographs of the solid old churches, the cobbled alleyways, the produce market at the end of the town jetty where fishermen trundled their catch down in wheelbarrows and vegetable products were delivered by horse and cart.
In the town plaza, a big grassy square planted with trees, children played and pop music blared from a stage by the huge main church, the Igreja Matriz Nossa Senhora do Rosário. This is the largest church in Paraty and it takes over a whole block. Its construction started in 1646 and ended only in 1873. The back part of the church was never really finished for two good reasons. They ran out of money, and the whole block started to sink under its heavy weight.
The music and the red bunting strung across the streets were part of some festival. I sat in the plaza and sweated in the hot, humid heat. At 11:00 hrs. I packed up my gear once again and caught the 12:00 hrs. noon bus to Rio de Janeiro. This cost 750 Cruzados.
The scenery was beautiful along the coastal road. There were secluded bays, green wooded hills, blue sea all under a blue sky. We passed a nuclear power station and several road works where the latest labour-saving machinery was in use, not the manpower with picks and shovels of the Andean countries.
The road followed every nook and cranny of the coastline and we were constantly hurtling around often frightening speeds in the luxury coach. We stopped for lunch and I sat out in the sun with my top off for the first time in a long while.
Soon afterwards we reached the shanty towns on the outskirts of Rio de Janeiro. Shanty town or slum in Brazil Rocinha is the largest hill favela in Rio de Janeiro (as well as in Brazil and the second largest slum in Latin America). Although favelas are found in urban areas throughout Brazil, many of the more famous ones exist in Rio.
We hurtled on along a busy dual carriageway into the heart of the city. One of the most picturesque cities in the world, Rio De Janeiro requires no introduction. Known for its gorgeous beaches and free-living lifestyle, this place is an artistic epitome. Visit the iconic Christ the Redeemer landmark, also recognized as one of the Seven Wonders of the World or take solace in famous Ipanema Beach for the lovely mountain views and soothing bossa nova vibes.
Rio remained as the capital of the pluricontinental Lusitanian monarchy until 1822, when the War of Brazilian Independence began. This is one of the few instances in history that the capital of a colonizing country officially shifted to a city in one of its colonies. Rio de Janeiro subsequently served as the capital of the independent monarchy, the Empire of Brazil, until 1889, and then the capital of a republican Brazil until 1960 when the capital was transferred to Brasília.
From the Bus Terminal I took a local bus for 28 Cruzados to Copacabana. The city had its fair share of tower blocks, colonial buildings, monuments, plazas and parks, just like many other cities that I had been in.
I could see Christ the Redeemer until we went through a tunnel and emerged in the affluent shopping district of Copacabana, a block inland from Atlantic Avenue and the famous beach. Copacabana begins at Princesa Isabel Avenue and ends at Posto Seis (lifeguard watchtower Six). Beyond Copacabana, there are two small beaches: one, inside Fort Copacabana and the other, right after it: Diabo ("Devil") Beach. Arpoador beach, where surfers go after its perfect waves, comes next, followed by the famous borough of Ipanema.
I got off the bus and consulted my Rio Guide. I had worked out where the International Youth Hostel was when a woman from the Tourist Information Kiosk beckoned me over. Convinced that I must be lost, she spent about fifteen minutes looking for 41 Emilio Berla on her map.
I eventually got away and walked quickly to the Youth Hostel which was located in a small street at the end of Rua Barão de Ipanema. I was allocated a bunk bed in a dormitory for 500 Cruzados per night.
I got some food in McDonalds and went for a walk along the famous seafront. Towering hotels and apartment blocks formed a wall along the full stretch of Copacabana Beach. Tanned, muscular youths did pull ups and dips at the open-air gyms amongst the copses of palm trees on the white sand.
People in elegant evening wear were heading out for the night while at the other end of the spectrum tramps were settling down in cardboard boxes in doorways in the side streets. I had a couple of Brahma Chopp beers in the small bar/café Oriz, one of the many open fronted places where the local working class men drank beer and laughed and joked and argued.
Brahma Chopp is a Lager - Adjunct style beer brewed by Companhia Cervejaria Brahma in São Paulo. “Adjuncts” are anything added to beer that are not one of the four main ingredients. An adjunct beer is simply a beer that has a little (and sometimes a lot) more than your basic ingredients. Most people know beer is made with malt, hops, water and yeast. What many don’t realize is there’s a bunch more stuff that can be added to beer. I called it a night at about 23:30 hrs.
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