Rio de Janeiro

Rio de Janeiro, the ‘Marvelous city’, has one of the most photographed and famous harbors in the world with its towering mountains and islands that surround its pristine sandy beaches like Copacabana and Ipanama. It is stunningly beautiful. The city is also known for its Reveillon celebrations on New Year’s Eve and its annual Carnival in Rio which is the largest popular festival in the World. No wonder it has been chosen to play host to the 2014 Soccer World Cup and the 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Rio de Janeiro means ‘River of January’- legend has it that the Portuguese who first arrived in Guanabara Bay in January 1502 thought it was a river. The city is squeezed into a zone between rainforest-clad cliffs and the sea, in what is considered the world´s most beautiful city setting. The Cariocas, Rio’s residents, are extremely friendly and you will always experience color, sound, rhythm and joy wherever you go in their ‘Marvellous City’.
For the best views of the city, you should make a trip to ‘Christ the Redeemer’, located at the peak of the Corcovado Mountain in the Tijuca Forest National Park. You will see, not only of the sheer size of Rio de Janeiro, but also how important religion is to Brazil. Another wonderful vantage point is the top of Sugarloaf Mountain, which sticks right out at Guanabara Bay. You can catch the cable car to get to the top where the views are equally as stunning. One of the best things to do in Rio is to watch the sunset here or on Corcovado peak, from where you will see the most beautiful and rugged coastline, and some of the 365 islands scattered along the region..
There are also some marvelous museums here like Museum of Modern Art in Flamingo Park with a strikingly designed 1955 building which seems to have an exposed exoskeleton that holds the building suspended above the ground. Further afield across the 14 km long Rio-Niteroi Bridge in the affluent satellite city of Niteroi (the richest city in Brazil and the 6th largest) is the Niteroi Museum of Contemporary Art, most famous for is1966 spaceship –like building by Oscar Niemeyer.
Another interesting neighborhood is the hilly and bohemian Santa Teresa with its art galleries, cafes, bars and restaurants. For a long time local residents and tourists alike took the bonde, Santa Teresa‘s famous yellow tram, to get up the steep hill leading to this neighborhood. However, the service stopped after a derailment in August 2011 but there is some talk it returning to service in 2014.
You will notice the shantytowns or favelas up almost every steep hill slope rising up from the city, the biggest of which is Rocinha with over 150,000 residents. Once considered dangerous no go zones, the city program to clean up these favelas since 2009 for the upcoming Olympics has resulted in police-patrolled favelas that are becoming tourist attractions in themselves.