My flight to Rio wasn’t really that bad. It was about a 10 hour flight to Sao Paulo and then from there a 20 minute flight to Rio. I was hoping that the flight would have movies on demand for me to pass the time with, but they were broken. All we could see was the map and fact sheet about how fast we were going. I wasn’t too pissed. I was really into my book that I was reading (Hunter S. Thompson’s Hells Angeles) and I wanted to try to get some sleep considering I was taking a red eye.
When I got to Sao Paulo, I was getting ready for Rio at the gate. Hiding of all electronics, putting on my secret pouch for my passport, and did some currency exchange. It was something like $1 USD = $2.2 Reals. Not too bad, but it was better the last time I was here. I cashed in $300 USD. It had to last me the entire weekend for everything (food, shelter, and fun!). I had no other means for getting cash because I lost my debt card a couple nights before I left for Rio and my replacement hadn’t showed up. I had my AmEx and a credit card on me, but pretty much everything in Rio is a cash only deal, and there’s no way to get cash from my cards (I did that on purpose).
A few minutes before we were to board, I heard a group of Americans behind me talking about what they were going to do when they got there (they were in their late 50’s maybe). The thing that got my attention was when I overheard one of them suggest they go explore Copacabana at night! I turned around and asked them if they have ever been to Rio (kind of a rhetorical question at that point), and the of course said “No”. Being the nice guy I am, and seeing the massive amount of gaudy jewelry on them, I gave them the low-down on Rio and what to do / not to do, where to go, and where to avoid. It took a little convincing, but I think they got the point to leave everything in the hotel. Time will tell =).
The flight from Sao Paulo to Rio was a, “ok, we’re up… oh look at the view, and we’re landing” kind of flight. Even though our cruising time was about 15 minutes, I think the 4 stewardesses offered me juice / water about 10 times. Way more than I was asked on the flight from NYC! For the most part, the view was pretty cloudy, but they did break apart for a bit to be able to see some of the beaches and surrounding area of Rio.
This is when it finally hit me… I was definitely in South America =)
We landed in Rio around 1PM local time (10am EST), and the airport wasn’t nearly as crowded as the last time I was here. I had a very distinct memory of the taxi stands and the craziness that ensued there last time. Time time? Nothing. There wasn’t anyone there and they kinda just asked if I wanted a taxi. No yelling, screaming, and carrying on. I was kind of disappointed. Oh well. To save cash, I decided that this time I was going to take a bus to the hostel. Well, the general vicinity of the hostel. I had a crude map, an address, and a name for the hostel. With that and having been there previously, I figured it would be a piece of cake. The ride was about an hour long and only cost R$6 (about $3 USD). As opposed to a taxi which would have costed R$70. There was an overcast but it was still about 75 degrees out. No more need for the hoodie! As we were driving along the beaches, I could see some serious waves coming in. They were probably about 8 feet or so when they broke. The beaches were empty (clouds + workday = no one at the beach) and there were signs up saying not to swim. I saw the cross-street that I need to get off at so I signaled the bus to stop and jumped off onto Ipanema beach. Perfect timing too, because I just finished my book =). Onto the hostel!
On the walk to the hostel, the area just didn’t feel “right”. I remembered things just a little bit differently. It was a year ago, and I was only here a couple days, but still… something was off. When I finally got to the hostel, I knew it wasn’t it. Crap, I booked myself at the wrong hostel. Now I really wish I could remember the name of the place I stayed at. So at this point, I had 2 options: stay at this hostel, or wonder around aimlessly hoping something clicks and I find the other hostel. This hostel was nice, but I didn’t want to stay there, I wanted the one I originally planned on staying at, so I chose to wonder around aimlessly until I found it. Worse to worse, I can just come back here. I had a reservation for it.
After about an hour or so of walking in circles and scaring the hell out of some local woman (I was convinced that her building used to be the hostel… I was wrong =), I finally found the place! Relieved, I buzzed in and asked if they had a bed available. 1 left! Rock! By the way, it’s called the Mango Tree Hostel.
I dropped my bags off and then went to get some food. At the front desk there was this chick that apparently showed up a day late of her reservation, and therefore they gave her bed to someone else (me), and they didn’t have any beds left. SUCKS!
I found a place right around the corner that had really good cheap food. Had some fettucini with broccoli and garlic bread. Also ordered a whiskey and coke. The food was great and the dude poured the whiskey really weird. Almost as if he was pouring some 100 year old whiskey. Presenting the bottle, slow pour, and when he accidently spilled some he freaked out! Then (I don’t get this part at all), he held the bottle up and stared at it until the liquid inside was absolutely still. Screwed the top on, smilie at me and then left.
When I was done with lunch, I went back to the hostel to change into shorts and grab my iPod. It was time to check out the beach and do some walking around town. On my way out, I stopped by the front desk and asked for any information on good tattoo studios and metal bars that they would know of. I know the metal bar is a long shot, but I have to ask. With luck, she gave me 3 addresses of “rock and roll” bars and 2 tattoo studios, one of which she said they were filming “Rio Ink” at. I figure that’s probably my best shot for a good artist and headed there first.
They had about 9 or 10 tattoo artists, and looking through their portfolios, I would say there was 1 or 2 that were good. Unfortunately they only did copy work. Had to bring in whatever it is you wanted. I also didn’t see any cameras or other equipment around, so I’m not too sure about the filming thing either. I asked if they knew of anyone in the city that does good Black and Grey work or “Dark / Evil tattoos” and they said that no one in Rio wants that. Everyone wants a flower, butterfly, or something “sexy”. I wasn’t really feeling getting a sexy tattoo done, so I left. (FYI, the other tattoo studio was even worse. No portfolios at all, just flash books).
The beach was pretty empty still, which made it nice to sit on the walkway and just watch the ocean for a while. The waves were intense and looked as if a storm was coming in, but all the clouds were behind me. After a while of nothing, I got up and went for a stroll around Rio. When I got to Leblon, I hit up the mall to see if I could get a new book, and to pick up some liquid items that I wasn’t allowed to travel with (toothpaste, sun block, etc).
The book store had a large selection of English books (200 or so), but they were all lame, and by authors I never heard of. Passing on that I hit up a drug store and bought toothpaste and soap. I had sunblock in my hands, but when it rung up as R$42 I passed. Must be some crazy special sun block. I figured I’d just stop by a little market on the way back to the hostel. Turns out, sun block is stupid expensive everywhere. The cheapest I found, was a small bottle for R$28. I needed it, so I bought it.
Back at the hostel, I dropped off my items, grabbed my other book World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War (awesome book!) and plopped into a hammock
I’m not sure when, but at some point I passed out. I was woken up by a staff member that needed to take the hammocks down for the night (not sure why really). I wasn’t sure what time it was really as I didn’t bring a watch or my phone. All I knew was that it was night time =). I love not needing time. That’s what really makes a vacation. I used this as an excuse to get up and try my luck at the “rock and roll” bars I was referred to earlier.
The bars were a ways away, and it was night time, so I jumped into a cab, pointed at my map to the cabbie, and we were off! I found the first bar pretty easily. It looked more like a nice house than a bar (turns out that most bars do). Unfortunately it didn’t open until 10pm and it was only 8:30. Crap. Off to the next one! The neighborhood I was in wasn’t exactly the nicest of hoods to be walking around. Especially with “HEY, I’m a foreigner, come rob me!” emblazoned across my chest. But, there weren’t any cabs (any cars at all for that matter), so I walked to the next one. It wasn’t open yet either (not terribly surprised really). The best part about this one was that the entrance was in a back alley. Yay! After that, I decided “screw this” and headed back to the hostel. I’ll just go back out around 11 or so when I know something will be going at. Back in a cab, and back to the hostel.
With a couple hours to kill, I decided to take a nap. I was still pretty tired.
I woke up at 8am the next day.
#
