Rio de Janiero

So...life has gotten in the way lately, and I have been really bad about blogging, but I'm baaaaaaaack! So much has happened since my last posting that I don't quite know where to begin, but I figure I will start with some amazing vacations, in my true style, and then fill you in on the other less exciting (but still exciting) bits and pieces of the history of my past 3 months.


Ipanema Beach

Let's begin with my trip to Brazil. September 18th is Chilean Independence Day, which entails a 5- day weekend of asados, fondas, and lots of chicha. To clear up any confusion about what those last three things are, an asado is a Chilean BBQ that lasts for hours and hours upon end most commonly characterized by meat, meat, mayonnaise, and some more meat. Personally, I hate mayonnaise about as much as a fruit cake on Christmas, and as you may have learned in some of my previous posts, I don't eat red meat, so an asado to me is mostly just an event where I end up starving and drinking a lot of wine. A fonda is a giant party in public spaces that is thrown solely over the weekend of September 18 (or "dieciocho" as it is called in Chile). Lastly, chicha is a fermented corn beverage that somewhat resembles moonshine and is a large part of Andean tradition for festivities. Though the excitement of 5 days of asados, fondas and chicha was enticing, I instead opted to take advantage of the long weekend for a jaunt over to not-so-nearby Brazil.



Christ the Redeemer

With only 5 days to race around Rio de Janiero and Iguazu Falls, my friend Erica and I fit in everything humanly possible, recognizing at the end of the trip that we will certainly have to return. Rio was amazing! Coming out of the Chilean winter, the hot, humid Brazilian weather was a treat. Louri, the owner of the guesthouse we stayed at in Copacabana, informed us that we were lucky to have arrived during the hottest winter in years in Rio. I couldn't believe that it was actually winter and in the 80s! We spent the first day familiarizing ourselves with the beaches in Copacabana and Ipanema, drinking coconut water straight from the coconut and watching the fit Brazilians play volleyball with their feet on the beach.


Escadaría Selaron in Lapa

Day 2 brought us to the giant statue of Christ the Redeemer where we were able to ride a long, scary funicular up to the top of the mountain and view Rio from all sides. The view was really amazing! We spent the afternoon strolling around Lapa and walking up the Escadaría Selaron. We spent the next morning lying on the beach soaking up our last rays before heading to Iguazu Falls to see one of the Natural Wonders of the World. I can't wait to return to Rio (since I spent a fortune on the visa) - hopefully for the Olympics!