Things to do in Rio - part III

For quite some months now we have been trying to do new things, enjoy the entertainment, museums and restaurants outside our immediate city streets. On August 18, I wrote about how to find out what is going on ‘around Rio’. (Look through the archives listed to the left) On August 31 and September 28 the blog was about the Municipal Theater programs and visiting Santa Teresa respectively.

This weekend we continued our quest of knowing the REAL city of Rio. On Friday we joined the low-keyed recovering locals strolling on the sea wall, just watching the people watching the sea. We sat for a time at one of the kiosks, drinking water and agua de coco, (coconut water) enjoying the last of the daylight and watching the cleanup crews clearing the beach of chairs and umbrellas. This is a top notch activity.

On Saturday we made reservations to watch a samba band at the Teatro Odisseia in Lapa. Camillo made a lot of effort to make this reservation. The Internet and the brochure we had showed the show starting at 9:00 (we verified this later) our reservation for a table just off the stage was for 8:30. At 8:30 / at 9:00 even at 9:15 the theater was still locked up tight. When the doors finally opened, no one could figure out our reservation times – the show started at MIDNIGHT! THIS is so (!) Brazilian.

Instead of just sitting inside this theater listening to a DJ play loud music until midnight, we decided to walk the streets of Lapa and to have a beer at the famous Bar and Botequim, Manoel & Juoquim in the Praça João Pessoa, then we would go back to see the show….. 11:00 we were once again outside the theater - the line now stretched across two blocks…. No way, we marked this off as a learning experience and caught a taxi home. Because we are trying these new places with a spirit of adventure we all had a great time. Moral - do not ask for a reservation, do not just believe the printed material ask a native how it works, and do not go with a preconceived, set idea of how the evening will turn out.

New Years Eve on Copacabana Beach

Last night for our New Year’s Eve celebration a group of friends and family walked from the apartment in Ipanema to Copacabana beach (about 2 kilometers each way) to join 3 million other Brazilians and tourists viewing and enjoying the fireworks.

For me this is one of the best experiences in Brazil - maybe not as a tourist but as a resident of Brazil it is one of the best. For a tourist you pay MEGA bucks to stay in a hotel and to be jostled about in the over-enthusiastic crowd. I can see where this might be frightening, but for me it is the best.

The crowd sings and dances. They take over the street and the taxis and buses pass carefully through the middle.

There are groups playing music - some Brazilian and (like last night) Indian, there are the sounds of drums and horns, voices raised in song and laughter, mostly adult sounds but also of children enjoying this family activity.

We left the apartment at 11 and walked the seawall enjoying the rain and mist from the sea, through the Arpoador seeing the decorated streets and apartments along the way. Once on the seawall of Copacabana it is just a matter of joining the crowd and seeing what you can see. I found a small hole along the edge of the beach and took many photos. ((I carried a small Sony Cybershot (8.1 mp) hidden in my pocket and did okay with the look of homemade photos and video.)) We watched the 20 minute show, walked back to Ipanema, took our red, yellow and white roses into the water, threw the roses into the sea asking our ancestors for love, wealth and a good life in the next year then finished to two kilometers home in shoes filled with sand and pants wet up to the knees, said goodbye to all at the door and began the new year at 2 am feeling quite satisfied with life. Enjoy the video - one minute - extrapolate to imagine the 20 minute show.

Out with the Old and in with the New

During the five years we have lived in the apartment in Ipanema we have heard many stories about the two houses and one apartment building sitting vacant across the street.

It is (or was) apparent that at one point they were quite handsome homes. They had the look of many of the houses that are still scattered throughout Copacabana, Ipanema and Leblon - houses preserved with loving care.

We heard that at one point they were private homes, beach houses or vacation homes for the rather rich that lived in the old central Rio or possibly even Sao Paulo. At the turn of the century (20th) this was the country - incredible thought isn't it? It was farm land, none of the tunnels that ease access to this part of town were there, driving over (hum, driving? maybe coming by wagon or horse, and surely byway of trail or small dirt roads) for the weekend or the summer at the beach just like all Brazilians love do today.   

 

Back to the houses across the street - we heard that these houses and the building were once a famous school. We heard that all this property was owned by one family. That at one point it was all for sale, and sold and then one of the family protested the sale.

We heard that the government (or the family member or other parties depending on which porteiro was telling the story) wanted the property protected as a historical sight. It (the property) was in limbo.

In limbo means - no maintenance was done. I imagine no taxes paid. One weekend about 3 years ago there was pounding in the dark of night and part of the roof and some of the windows disappeared before the police came. At that point a high white wall went up and was topped with barbwire (razor wire) - so someone cared. (the wall was soon dirty and 3rd world looking)

 

The three years passed. Even though great expense was expended to put up a fence, iron bars on the lower windows and to post a guard at night, no effort was made to patch the roof and the natural vegetation began to take back the land. Yes, trees began to grow out of the roof. Green slime and other growth began to cover the outer walls, run down the side of the houses generally creating a great eye sore. I am sorry but I didn't take photos of the trees - I was going to one day and never did.

On the 29th of December 2008, an engineering sign appeared, then workers. About 20 workers came and took the remaining roof tiles, all the doors and windows, piping and who knows what else that might be considered recyclable. In less than one day the houses were shells. (the old apartment building was always a shell)ON the 30th a gate in the wall appeared and then a bulldozer arrived and the houses began to come down. Today the 31st, more work with the bulldozer finished off one house, and two men began with sledgehammers on the apartment building.

Now it is clear that this is a very big piece of land. We now can see that there was a large 3 story building at the back, by the architecture looks mid 70s. Maybe this was added when the school was there.

So now there will be a new apartment building or a fancy hotel inserted in this space. The battle between family members and the government was won through neglect. But no matter on what battlefield it was won - after 5 years of looking at inner city decay and blight in our own front yard, we can only benefit by the taking out of the old and bringing in of the new.

HAPPY NEW YEAR! Ginger and Camillo

Video of early 20th century Rio

Since comming to visit for the first time, to moving here I have always wondered where the term "cidade maravilhosa" came into play in reference to the city that I know now. This little clip helped to expain. the film is 7 minutes long, take the time to watch it through. Thank you Sisi for sending it to me.

Christmas Eve in Rio

After months of clouds and rain, December 22 dawned with crystal clear, bright blue skies.

Oh joy to the season.

And with the sun came heat and humidity, snarled traffic and bad tempers.

I have to ask WHERE"S the joy? 

Yesterday on the December 23, the streets surrounding our Ipanema apartment were so clogged they were at a complete 'horn blowing' stop. The streets were clogged with busses, trucks, tourists (cars) and shoppers (cars). Yes, in the height of this joyful season large delivery trucks double parked along the streets further testing the tempers, the goodwill (?) of all the holiday shoppers and beach goers competing for parking space. (The free one of course, the parking lots below ground and in the shopping centers are so expensive everyone drives around and around looking for 'just the right' free space on the street). I don't really know of other areas in Rio but in Ipanema the 'lojas' are not big on holiday decorations. The local association of business people line the sidewalks with what is meant to be a cheerful and welcoming carpet. In past years it was red, 'rolling out the red carpet'. This year is was a faded green and after so much rain and muddy footprints it looks a little worse for wear. There are a few stores with glass balls, some with poinsettias, and some with a Santa or an Angel in their front window, but compared with Gramado the frantic aura of noise, pushing and shoving of Ipanema I have to ask WHERES THE JOY?

Christmas Eve - today the number of cars has dropped to a manageable number, fewer busses, only an occasional delivery truck and what seems to be more taxis. Today the taxis are blowing their horns, but everyone else seems to have lowered their 'rush, rush' mode to holiday mode. Camillo and I walked around the corner and had a Caiprinha to get into the mood. There are still a lot of shoppers, but maybe they are only tourists - the Cariocas have gone home to cook dinner and begin enjoying the time with their families and the remaining tourists are out to enjoy their hot and sunny Christmas in RIO.