Thursday – December 22, 2022

Prior to leaving for Rio – we had picked out a few different tours. Our first tour was a Rio de Janeiro city tour. We were really looking forward to this tour because it would start off with Christ the Redeemer and would later head to Sugar Loaf.

We were scheduled to be picked up at 9:00 am from our hotel lobby. When the van pulled up we quickly realized that we were some of the last people to join the tour. However, the rest were all Spanish speakers. *gulp* Our poor tour guide would have to translate Portuguese twice – Spanish and then English. He seemed to do it flawlessly, but we just had to pay close attention as he started speaking to what landmarks we were by that he was describing.

The rest of the group was very friendly – and they were from all over! Nicaragua, Paraguay, Chile, Colombia, and probably others that we can’t remember!

We were on our way to Christ the Redeemer – it sits on top of Corcovado mountain in Tijuca National Park looking down on Rio de Janeiro. The statue itself was stunning, and it wasn’t as busy as I thought it was going to be. However, it still was challenging to try to get a picture with 50 other people in the background.

The next few stops were all technically “external” stops – where we could look at a famous Rio landmark. The first stop was their famous Maracana stadium – that had previously hosted two World Cup final matches: 1950 and 2014. For those of you Olympic fans, it also hosted the 2016 Olympics opening and closing ceremonies.

From there, we made another quick stop at the Sambadrome. This is where the Carnaval parade takes place- different Samba schools strut their stuff down this alleyway. It was specifically designed for this purpose. I only wish we could have seen a parade while we were there!

Next, we went to a cathedral. Definitely not something that we’ve seen before! The Catedral Metropolitana de San Sebastiao looks rather unusual. I think it looks more like a Mayan temple than it does a Catholic Church. It is stunning both inside and out with beautiful stained glass framing four different walls and a skylight in the shape of a cross. We also were visiting in time to see their nativity scene – it was beautiful!

We had one more stop before lunch, and that was at the Selaron steps. You may remember them from the Snoop Dogg / Pharrell Williams music video – Beautiful. Bright and colorful made from beautiful mosaic tiles. This project started in the 1990s by a Chilean painter – no sooner was one section finished – he started working on another. Initially the tiles were only in Brazil’s colors – but he started to incorporate beautiful tiles from many countries around the world.

We had lunch at a Brazilian buffet before heading over to Sugar Loaf. Sugar Loaf Mountain has a beautiful view of all of Rio de Janeiro. You take a series of two different cable cars to the top. It’s quite the adventure getting to the top – and being able to see the stunning landscape of Rio. We LOVED our time there!

There was a lot of construction while we were there – I think they are building a zip line. Something to look into in the future if you’re heading to Rio!

On our way down we saw a bunch of little monkeys – they were so cute! It’s fun to be in a city that has a rainforest in the middle of it – and the wildlife that follows.

The tour concluded after Sugar Loaf – and once we got dropped off we went to eat at a traditional Brazilian restaurant – called Galeto Sal’s. I think we were the only non-locals there – and the food was incredible!

Up Next:
-Sunset sailing tour