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Rio de Janeiro seen by Jean-Paul Delfino

Brazil, Rio - Hotel Copacabana palaceBefore even setting foot on Rio de Janeiro, you already have the feeling you know everything about it, with all those clichés and set ideas that stick to the cross-bred skin of the Cidade Maravilhosa: Copacabana, Ipanema, Sugarloaf Mountain, the Corcovado and its giant white statue of Christ the Redeemer facing the Guanabara Bay with extended arms. But also the carnival, football, the Maracana, the multicoloured slums, body worshipping on the golden beaches, the bossa nova, the famous Garotas de Ipanema…

Brazil, Rio Janeiro - Santa Teresa - Bondinho TramwayYes, no doubt, that is Rio de Janeiro. But it is also, fortunately, a lot more than that. Rio de Janeiro is a puzzling city, a city that can only be understood under the guidance of its inhabitants, the Cariocas. Rio de Janeiro is also the Botanic Garden, the industrious centre that tries to imitate Sao Paolo, the marvellously preserved Santa Teresa Colonial district, the cathedrals built in all different styles, the pedestrian streets nestling rococo jewels such as the Confeiteria Colombo, the churches, patiently erected by negro brotherhoods before the Golden Law in 1888 at last abolished slavery. Between the football World Cup and the Olympic Games, Rio de Janeiro has also equipped itself with ultra-modern museums, with brand new city transports, with theatres and shopping sanctuaries, with international hotels that compare favourably with the ones in Los Angeles or Paris.

Yet, Rio de Janeiro still stands out with its very specific way of life. Here, a relaxed rhythm of life is prevalent. Time takes its time. It stretches and overextends, under the sunshine that simply makes you want to stroll around. From the craft market on General Urqueza Square to a tasty moqueca de peixes at the Curvelo, with a supergelada (ice-cold) beer on Amarelinho terrace, adding a few sips of caipirinhas cocktails or batidas in the Lapa historical district, with the sound of a Choro concert in the background, the pleasant Cariocan atmosphere will gradually take hold of you, as if it were the most natural thing in the world…

Written by : © Jean-Paul Delfino (This text is subject to copyrights protection in accordance with existing laws)

Our description of Rio de Janeiro is on this web page​ : https://terra-nordeste.com/en/destination/rio-de-janeiro-en/

Other texts by Jean-Paul Delfino are available here: Travel Diaries - Jean-Paul Delfino

Jean-Paul Delfino is a French writer and screenwriter so passionate about Brazil that he has taken on the writing of a major novel fresco entitled "Suite brésilienne" which covers three centuries of great Brazilian history.

Wikipedia : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean-Paul_Delfino