The last stop!
Trip Start
Oct 08, 2005
1
71
Trip End
Oct 06, 2006
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Thursday, October 5, 2006
So I crossed the border into Brazil from Puerto Iguazu, not as straightforward as I'd hoped, as the public buses that take you over the border don't actually wait for you to clear immigration before they take off again, so I had to stand in the baking hot sun for an hour waiting for the next one. The next one came and got impounded by Brazilian immigration because it was full of smuggled beer. They hadn't even bothered to hide it that well, it was just in cans underneath the seats, how rubbish! Finally I got there, stayed in a lovely hostel that was like a resort and left the visit to the Brazilian side of the Iguazu Falls til the following day. I was pretty impressed - both sides of the falls are definitely worth seeing as they both give different perspectives. The Argentinian side allows for getting right up close, but the Brazilian side gives an awesome overall perspective and some fantastic views of the Gargantua del Diablo. Tip though, if you are going at this time of year, go in the afternoon as the weather is much better then. My photos are grey.
Prize for the most boring bus journey ever goes to the one from Foz to Rio, I was the only person on the bus (I'm not kidding) and there was nothing to see on the way, up until the last 2 hours or so when we got nearer the city and the area became quite mountainous. For nearly 22 hours I slept because there was sod all else to do. But when I got to Rio it was worth it, as I had a brilliant few days. I stayed in a hostel in Ipanema, expensive but the safest area in the city and only a block from the incredible, met a great group of people and had such fun. Whilst I was there I took a trip up to the Cristo Redentor statue, something I had dreamed about seeing since I can remember, so was so excited when the weather cleared after a few days and I thought that I would get the amazing view so famous from there. Instead I saw.... cloud. The statue was in the only cloud over the city, and Jesus wasn't visible at all. Looking down was like looking out across the Arctic - pure white. Very disappointing. I could have gone back a couple of days later, but its a bit of an effort and quite expensive to get up there, so I guess I have an excuse to go back to Rio one day.
I spent the rest of my time shopping in Copacabana, getting a Brazilian wax (when in Brazil and all that, but christ, it was undignified and it bloody hurt!!!!), and on the last night of my trip went to watch Flamengo and Fluminense, two local teams, play a league match at the Maracana, the legendary football stadium. The level of football was somewhat dubious - Brazilians play great individually but the team play was dire - but the atmosphere was amazing, better than Boca I think. Flags were waved, songs were sung constantly and they all had a cool samba beat, flares were lit, and best of all, all the men took their shirts off and waved them round their heads. Now girls, I can assure you that this was worth the entrance fee alone, Brazilian men are HOT. After the match, me and my friends drank caipirinhas til 2am, and I got all drunk and emotional about coming home. My last morning was spent on Ipanema Beach, enjoying the last sun I will see til who knows when.
Rio was a fantastic place to end a fantastic trip. Its not as scary as people make it out to be, provided you stick to the main areas and are sensible about your valuables. Even riding the bus wasn't the den of thieves I had been promised, I felt perfectly safe, and I am definitely coming back here one day.
I was really excited about coming back. Its been an amazing, incredible year, but its also been really tiring, and I was ready to go home and see my family and friends again. The flight was fine, long though and I was impatient to get back. When the plane took 20 minutes to descend through cloud I knew I was back in England, but actually cried when I touched down at Gatwick, and the rain was the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen! I cried even more when I found out that the bloody airline hadn't actually put my bags on the flight from Lisbon (TAP Air Portugal are shocking when it comes to luggage handling) and it was going to take them 2 days to actually get them back! Typical, I fly all the way round the world, take the most primitive buses in the backwaters of nowhere and manage to keep hold of everything, I come back to England and my bags don't make it. Still, I was home, my best friend gave me a big hug and an even bigger Stella, and nothing else mattered.
Comments
Home.....
....so good to have you back chick xxxx