Shortly after exiting the cable car on Sugarloaf mountain, the line of people slowed down. Initially it was hard to tell why. Then, as we moved forward, we discovered this guy was hanging out next to the path entertaining passersby.
Rio de Janeiro is set in an amazing setting as the city seems to drape itself over the mountains that grow out of the ocean. I was only there for a few days during the World Cup so didn’t really get a feel for the city, apart from a couple of interesting nights out in the Samba district. My dad and I also stumbled upon a restaurant for lunch one day in Ipanema that was so good we had to bring the rest of our group back there for dinner the same day.
We worked up our appetite that day by first visiting Sugar Loaf mountain where we got this view back over the Botafogo district, where we were staying.
While in Brazil for the World Cup we took some time out for a side trip to Ouro Preto in Brazil. It’s an old gold mining town perched atop steep hills. There’s a church with an amazing gilded interior, but you couldn’t take pictures inside. The church in this picture isn’t that same church, but gives you a good idea of what the town looks like.
I took this photo looking down at Botafogo’s busy streets from my hotel balcony one night. I had to wait a while for Christ the Redeemer to show himself from behind the clouds.
I won’t be posting for just over a week as I’m going to London for meetings. First though, I’ve tacked on a long weekend to Marrakesh and will be making a return to Amsterdam once the meetings are finished. It’ll be my first time wandering around Amsterdam’s canals in winter.
I didn’t manage to take a lot of pictures while I was in Brazil as there was a pretty sizable distraction on the go… the World Cup.
My Dad and I did make the trip up Sugarloaf Mountain though and I managed to take the following picture, which I’m very happy with. I’ll probably be getting it printed. If you look closely at Copacabana beach, the furthest left, you can see the FIFA Fanzone set up on the sand. Admittedly, you’d probably have to know what you’re looking for to find it.