We started the day early, aiming to beat the crowds to Christ the Redeemer. But it seems everyone had the same idea—it was incredibly busy at the top. The scenic train ride through Tijuca National Park was a highlight, and we were glad we opted for it. Hiking, though tempting, seemed too risky based on online reviews citing frequent robberies.
As we stepped out of the train the tranquility of the trees left us as everyone jostled for a spot on the platform around one of the seven wonders of the world.
The statue is awe inspiring, the arms wide open to the city underneath, welcoming all. It’s nearly a hundred years old and I am sure there will be massive celebrations for it in 2 years time.
We saw marmoset monkeys and coatis, our first time seeing them in the wild. They were being fed by tourists which is a big no no. After taking some crazy photos and having to wait in lines for some prime spots, the children had had enough of pictures. We admired the views of Rio and then headed down.
It was just 1030 when we got to downtown so had heaps of time before our walking tour in the afternoon. We filled the time with haircuts, card games and a bit of shopping.
Kids had their first açai bowls and fell in love with it, perfect recharge for the long walk ahead.
Our tour took us all through downtown learning about the history of colonisation, becoming a kingdom then an empire and finally a republic. The two adjoining cathedrals with the same names, as the Royals took over one and banned it from the commoners so they built one right next door. There are so many similarities with the buildings and streets to Portugal which is very fresh in our minds.
We stopped at Colombus bakery, the oldest and prettiest bakery in Rio. There we tasted the Queen’s icecream, which Queen Elizabeth ate daily when she visited and even took a box back in the ship, none of us wanted a second helping. The croquettes were a much better buy.
We learnt of the rejuvenation projects in place to bring back to life the old streets that are currently deserted as the stock market moved out of Rio and then the capital moved to Brasilia.
The tour ended at the Selaron stairs which is a single man’s project. Started with a few stairs and as he earned money through them he continued to decorate all of the 215 steps. They are now the third most visited place in Rio. They are pretty and not too busy by the time we got there. We had fun spotting tiles representing other parts of the world- a kangaroo from Australia, the Indian flag, the lions from Thailand and many more.
By this time Aanya was completely exhausted so we quickly made our way back to get some sleep.
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