Two half days in Rio

[CLOU]

I will hopefully have two half days in Rio before my cruise in November. I am scheduled to land at 1:00 on a Tuesday and leave on Wednesday afternoon. We are staying at the Marriott right at Copacabana beach, so I know I will see the beach. I am hoping to be able to go up Sugarloaf on Tuesday afternoon, and ride the train up Corcovado on Wednesday morning. I have read that the lines for the train can be long, so I thought arriving early on Wednesday morning would be a good idea. Can anyone, especially a Rio native, give me any idea of how long the line for the cable car up Sugarloaf might be on a Tuesday in late afternoon in November? Is there a better order to do these two must sees. Is there anything else I absolutely should try to cram in? Thanks in advance for any advice.

[VidaNaPraia]

I think your itinerary to this point is fine. You should get to the hotel by about 3. The regular yellow taxis fromin front of the terminal are fine; look for the name and phone number of the cooperative painted on the back fender, known entities.

Copacabana IMO is very interesting, esp. in the evening. The main street (Nossa Senhora de Copacabana) of this residential neighborhood is very lively, with good people watching, esp. as people come home from work, and has a variety of restaurants at many price points. Visit the fort at the end of the beach; it has a cafe. Next to the fort, there is an interesting very early morning fish market with stalls that then come down. You can walk down to the kiosks on the sidewalk next to the beach (do NOT go onto the sand after dark though) and have a beer or a cold coconut water in the coconut) As in any huge city, be aware of deserted streets that isolate you.

Sugarloaf is particularly nice at sunset, but any time of day will do. It is very close to Copacabana, so won’t take long to get there from the hotel. There are two cable cars, one to the intermediate point and the next to the top. At the top, get off the asphalt path onto some of the dirt ones, and look for little Miko monkeys in the trees and for the buzzards soaring at that altitude. Try to explore the Urca neighborhood just below, either before or after going up the mountain. To me, it has a very Mediterranean feeling somehow.

If you aren’t at Sugarloaf for the sunset, you could walk over to the rocks at Arpoador (between Copacabana and Ipanema) to watch it from that popular location.

November is not yet high season, so the lines for the train up (not a Carioca, but familiar enough to give accurate info I think ) Corcovado may not be as long as those who go in peak season (Carnaval for example) complain of. Getting there first thing is a good idea though. I thought the train was fun, much more so than going up by car/taxi to the shuttle point for the official van to the top from there. You won’t spend all that much time up there, so maybe plan something more to do that day, before, I assume, you have to board. You need time on the top to take the iconic “arms out” under the statue’s outstretched arms, and to look over the city a bit from all sides, taking pictures of the beaches, etc. I suggest looking at a map beforehand, or taking one with you, so you know what you’re looking at.

Consider a visit to some of the other vista points, or the waterfall and koi pond, in Tijuca forest by taxi if you have time. We’ve been able to see troups of spider monkeys on the road itself as we were driving around.

If you don’t drive around in the park, and you have a bit of time left still, you could visit the historic Colonial buildings in the Centro for awhile, and have coffee and desert at Confeitaria Colombo.

Or you could take the 12 minute ferry ride (ferries leave every 15 minutes, so no worries about getting back on time) across to Niteroi from Praca XV near the Centro; the views looking back over to Rio are spectacular.

Have a lovely visit and a great cruise.

Let me know if you need any Brazilian port info.

[CLOU]

Thank you very much! This is extremely useful information. I can't wait to go. It is too bad we have such a short time in Rio. After Rio, we go to Ilhabela, Paranagua and Porto Belo, which seem like beach ports that we will just stroll around, although I would not mind finding a rain forest tour on Ilhabela.

[John Bull]

Corcovado

The routine for the train is that you join a line to buy tickets. The tickets are timed, so you can go find a beer or whatever & when that time comes around you join a short line for the next train.

Group tours (such as ships' tours) block-book, and this can make a big big difference.

When we arrived, we asked people leaving the ticket booth what time ticket they had - they had about a twenty-minute wait. 15 minutes later when we got to the front of the line our tickets gave us a two-hour wait!! Trains for about a 90 minute period had been block-booked.:eek:

So get to the bottom station good & early, well before groups are booked.

Train ticket price includes admission.

 

The routine for taxis is that they drive you to almost the top, where they park-up, you walk through a booth & pay admission, then you carry on to the top in a shuttle van. You then return same-way to your taxi, which waits for you - there are no taxis available to hire at this point.

Taxi fare doesn't include admission. Bear that in mind when negotiating a taxi. ;)

 

JB :)

[roscoe39]

I think your itinerary to this point is fine. You should get to the hotel by about 3. The regular yellow taxis fromin front of the terminal are fine; look for the name and phone number of the cooperative painted on the back fender, known entities.

Copacabana IMO is very interesting, esp. in the evening. The main street (Nossa Senhora de Copacabana) of this residential neighborhood is very lively, with good people watching, esp. as people come home from work, and has a variety of restaurants at many price points. Visit the fort at the end of the beach; it has a cafe. Next to the fort, there is an interesting very early morning fish market with stalls that then come down. You can walk down to the kiosks on the sidewalk next to the beach (do NOT go onto the sand after dark though) .

 

 

Hi , Im in Rio in January 2014 and was interested in your comment about not walking on the beach after dark...excuse my naivety.....but ...why..is it a safety thing????? im at the copacabana palace hotel for 3 nights and was hoping to do a bit of "people" watching...(read perving!) thanks... roscoe

[VidaNaPraia]

Hi , Im in Rio in January 2014 and was interested in your comment about not walking on the beach after dark...excuse my naivety.....but ...why..is it a safety thing????? im at the copacabana palace hotel for 3 nights and was hoping to do a bit of "people" watching...(read perving!) thanks... roscoe

 

Yes, for safety, you should act conservatively (IMO, based on following my own advice and not having had problems in decades of travel in Brazil) and avoid ANY deserted area in Rio (even perhaps an innocent looking street in what appears to be a middle-class area) that isolates you and therefore makes you vulnerable. After dark, the calcada (sidewalk) where the kiosks remain open is OK, but the sand is likely to have no one on it. For people watching, walk back a couple of blocks from the hotel to the main street of Nossa Senhora de Copacabana for people watching. Lots of options for a beer or snack al fresco while you do.

[jrkfrk]

Dear VidaNaPraia,

We will be in Salvador for two half days and one night. Is there any thing that we should not miss? A wonderful restaurant (local, not too tourist) suggestion would be great! Any good places to wander and shop?

Thanks,

Fran

[VidaNaPraia]

Dear VidaNaPraia,

 

We will be in Salvador for two half days and one night. Is there any thing that we should not miss? A wonderful restaurant (local, not too tourist) suggestion would be great! Any good places to wander and shop?

 

Thanks, Fran

 

For starters, read the site www.salvadorcentral.com (formerly bahia-online.net) of the most knowledgable expat, esp. the pages on beaches, sights, neighborhoods, history, eating and drinking.

 

Two half days are not hardly enough for Salvador, but......

 

The principal sights (churches, museums, lots of shops and restaurants) are in the historic district of Pelourinho, very touristy at the same time it is very local (locals live on the fringes). You can walk from the cruise port and take the elevator up, or just take a short taxi ride up the cliff. Salvador has an Upper City and a Lower City that are seen clearly there.

I highly recommend Didara, the shop of the original designer Goya Lopes whose African based graphics on high quality fashion items are unique.

(use Google translate for the site in Portuguese http://www.didara.com.br/ and see photo http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2009/02/27/travel/SALVADOR39_395.jpg)

The Mercado Modelo, a short ride down the Lacerda Elevator (back toward the cruise pier), has lots of souvenir items.

 

The next most important sights in the city after those in the Pelourinho are the church at Bonfim (on a peninsula about 45 minutes by bus, maybe 20 by taxi from the elevator) and the former-sugar-plantation, current-modern-art-museum Solar de Uniao (not far from Mercado Modelo, but take a taxi there and back).

 

The restaurant page on SalvadorCentral (http://www.salvadorcentral.com/FoodinSalvador.htm ) has some very good suggestions. Perhaps the Bar Cruz do Pascoal, a short walk from Pelourinho, and with a great view out over the bay, would fit your "local, not too tourist" criteria; don't be deterred from arriving by the gentrifying neighborhood.

At sometime during your visit, try a moqueca (seafood stew with coconut milk) and the acaraje, two of the signature dishes of Bahia. The SENAC cooking school restaurant in Pelourinho has a buffet with a wide variety of local dishes to sample.

http://www.virtualtourist.com/travel/South_America/Brazil/Estado_da_Bahia/Salvador_da_Bahia-1503499/Restaurants-Salvador_da_Bahia-Senac-BR-1.html

 

Another evening activity could be a beer on the praca, or some music in a small club, in the seaside Rio Vermelho neighborhood (safe as can be, easy by taxi or bus, 15 minutes from Pelourinho), which also has the famous acaraje stand of Dinha. In Portuguese:

 

Salvador is known for its music, so hear as much as you can.

 

Have a great visit.

[Pearl64]

Thank you Vida! We are on the same cruise as Fran. I have read about a folk performance. The site is in Portuguese which I cannot read. Can you get tickets ahead of time and what is the best way to get there from our ship? We were also told about a church nearby whose Mass is a very interesting one(even though we would not understand anything). Can you enlighten us? Since we are in Salvador overnight we thought this might be something different for us to see? I did find that the tickets were around 20 USD.

 

Thank you for your time answering all our questions.

 

Pearl

[jrkfrk]

Thank you so much VidaNaPraia (what is the meaning :o?)!

Since we will be in port over might it affords us such a wonderful chance to explore and it would be unfortunate to miss a good local meal. Your help is appreciated!

Fran

[VidaNaPraia]

Thank you so much VidaNaPraia (what is the meaning :o?)!

 

Life on the beach. You can see the island, on one of whose beaches we live in a community of local fishermen, across the bay when you come into port.

 

Thank you Vida! We are on the same cruise as Fran. I have read about a folk performance. The site is in Portuguese which I cannot read. Can you get tickets ahead of time and what is the best way to get there from our ship? We were also told about a church nearby whose Mass is a very interesting one(even though we would not understand anything). Can you enlighten us? Since we are in Salvador overnight we thought this might be something different for us to see? I did find that the tickets were around 20 USD.

 

Pearl

 

The folk performance is likely the Bale Folclorico de Bahia. They have a small theatre in Pelourinho, Teatro Miguel Santana in Largo do Pelourinho (the big square that slopes downhill) near the Casa Jorge Amado (the famous writer) museum, and also have toured the U.S. and internationally. You can stop by the theatre to get tickets when the box office is open in the afternoon (after 2 iirc). I don't think you can buy online and I'm not sure of the current ticket price (but certainly a small fraction of what tickets go for on their US tours! ).

http://www.balefolcloricodabahia.com.br/eng/index.html

http://www.balefolcloricodabahia.com.br/eng/agenda.html

http://www.balefolcloricodabahia.com.br/eng/repertorio.html

 

======

The church is Igreja de Nossa Senhora do Rosário dos Pretos, the blue church in Largo do Pelourinho, built by slaves because they were not allowed to attend other churches. There's a small entry iirc if you are just looking around at a time when there is not a mass; mass is of course free. The mass includes lots of clapping and drumming. The parisioners are very open to visitors (and they do get quite a lot, due to the church's location), so don't feel shy about joining in.

http://www.fodors.com/world/south-america/brazil/salvador-and-the-bahia-coast/review-441389.html

Here's the mass schedule fro this site:

http://bahia.com.br/outros_servicos/igreja-de-nossa-senhora-do-rosario-dos-pretos/

Missas/masses:

Sunday at 10am.

Monday (missa das almas) at 9am.

Tuesday at 6pm (Sto Antônio Categeró).

last Wednesday of the month (Sta Bárbara) at 6pm

first Wednesday of the month é realizada missa em homenagem a São Benedito.

Thursday of the month (Sto Benedito) at 6pm.

=====

 

More restaurants with music:

http://www.salvadorcentral.com/happenings.htm

======

 

More questions? Happy to help.

[roscoe39]

Yes, for safety, you should act conservatively (IMO, based on following my own advice and not having had problems in decades of travel in Brazil) and avoid ANY deserted area in Rio (even perhaps an innocent looking street in what appears to be a middle-class area) that isolates you and therefore makes you vulnerable. After dark, the calcada (sidewalk) where the kiosks remain open is OK, but the sand is likely to have no one on it. For people watching, walk back a couple of blocks from the hotel to the main street of Nossa Senhora de Copacabana for people watching. Lots of options for a beer or snack al fresco while you do.

 

thanks, appreciated, its going to be hard not to wander off on my own but warned taken.....ill stick to the beach when its packed and full of brazilian beauties..lol....

roscoe

[VidaNaPraia]

thanks, appreciated, its going to be hard not to wander off on my own but warned taken.....ill stick to the beach when its packed and full of brazilian beauties..lol....

roscoe

 

Well, Roscoe, those are the photos you always see online and in print of beaches in Rio, those Brazilian beauties male and female. What they don't show is the guy with the huge belly hanging down over his Speedos or the very round lady in her tiny bikini who was standing next to them, and the fact that nobody Brazilian really gives a care enough to remark about either (or the young man/woman who is model thin because s/he doesn't get enough to eat). No wonder gauche foreign tourists have a bad rep.

[roscoe39]

What they don't show is the guy with the huge belly hanging down over his Speedos

 

youve been peeking at my avatar again!

[VidaNaPraia]

youve been peeking at my avatar again!

 

So you'll be in good company then, hey. :-))