Trip to Rio (Day 3)

We woke up and had breakfast at the hotel, and then went outside and flagged down a car service to take us to Corcovado. We were delighted to find that our driver/guide, Robert, was very accommodating. Although he didn't speak much English, Hadley was able to communicate with her Spanglish skills. Of course, the language there is Portuguese, which is more different than Spanish than you'd think. Regardless, Robert could understand enough of our English, and Hadley could understand him, so we were good to go.

On the way to Corcovado, he took us to some type of heliopad that had some pretty good views:

View from the Heliopad


Another view from the Heliopad


Lizard at the Heliopad


Safari ants at the Heliopad


Robert drove us up the mountain to Corcovado, once we left the Heliopad. Corcovado is actually the name of the hill (2,400 feet tall) on which the statue of Jesus stands. The statue is 100 feet tall, and it is covered in a mosaic of soapstone. Jesus is standing with open arms, blessing the city. On a clear day, this spot offers a complete 360 degree view of Rio. Unfortunately for us, by the time we climbed to the top (about 20 minutes on foot), the clouds had dropped and we literally couldn't see three feet in front of us. We waited and waited and took a few pictures as the clouds came in and out:

Hadley's Picture of the statue


Another picture taken by Hadley


My only picture without the clouds


Once we'd had enough of Corcovado, Robert took us back to our hotel, where we changed into our bathing suits and headed to Ipanema. We stopped for a quick bite for lunch in a great little place in Ipanema called Gula Gula, known for its salads and desserts. After stuffing ourselves, we headed to the beach!

Beach shot


Enjoying a coconut AND the scenery!


After we'd had enough of the beach and people-watching, we headed back to the hotel to clean-up for dinner. Here's a shot from our balcony around sunset:

Sunset


Hadley had made reservations at a restaurant in Leblon called Carlota, chosen by Condé Nast Traveler as one of the 50 most exciting restaurants in the world. We found Robert outside the hotel, and he drove us there and we were seated immediately. Dinner was absolutely amazing!

Dinner at Carlota


After dinner, we walked down to Academia da Cachaca, a laid-back yet up-market Leblon restaurant specializing in North East Brazilian food and great cocktails all built from the traditional Brazilian spirit of cachaca. There are at least 500 varieties of the potion to choose from - served up either straight, as traditional Caiparinhas, or as colorful fruity concoctions by barmen who are quite clearly pass masters. Unfortunately, the wait was too long and we decided to pass. We did, however, befriend the host...a nice gentleman named Lauro. He spoke great English and suggested we come back the next day. That said, we grabbed a cab, headed back to the hotel, and called it a night.

To see more pictures from Day 3, click here, here, and here.