Adventure Time in Rio De Janeiro!

          Well I suppose from reading the title of this post you already have a pretty good idea what it going to be about. I just went to the one and only Rio de Janeiro with about forty other exchange students from all over the world! We spent three thrilling days there and did so much that I don't even know where to begin! If I told you everything it would be just about the longest blog post ever in history, so I'll do my best to highlight the greatest moments, and if you want to know more well... I guess you'll just have to take a trip there yourself now won't you?!

Sugarloaf View at Sunset

Sugarloaf View in Daylight

Sugarloaf View at Night

         The first day was the most packed! We all woke up bright and early and headed straight out to explore downtown Rio! We saw historic churches, went to this huge and fancy cafe called Confeitaria  Colombo... I know this is terrible, but all of the americans went to the Starbucks across the street for frappuccinos... don't judge us we haven't had Starbucks for half a year!!! We went to this public art staircase that was completely mosaic and probably one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen! Then after lunch we went to the street where Rio's carnival is held and tried on the amazingly elaborate samba costumes that the dancers wear, as Rio's

Maracanã Stadium

carnival is known for it's samba! From there we went to Maracana Stadium, where the Fifa World Cup was held! We all stood in the bleachers and on the field and got to see Neymar's jersey! And finally we took the bus to Pão de Açúcar (Sugaroaf Mountain), the famous peak in Rio that will take your breath away! We went all the way up to the top and waited for sunset. It was one of the most magical views I've ever seen, with Rio, and the water, and mountains, and Cristo lit up overlooking it all. That sunset alone was worth coming to Rio for! We got dinner and everyone surprised me by singing happy birthday in all their different languages and giving me a card and cake! Oops, haha I guess I forgot to mention it was my birthday..! The best birthday one could ask for.

Flavelas

          The next morning we all climbed up an endless winding staircase through the Flavelas, the historic neighborhoods that sit on the hills around Rio. It was about 105°F and sunny and hot, but we made it to the top eventually, and from there we could see all of Rio below, which was pretty darn stunning. We went to Fort Copacabana which looks out on the ocean, and from there straight to Copacabana beach! It was a beautiful day, but unfortunately we didn't stay in the water for long because it was so trashy and polluted! I couldn't believe that somewhere so beautiful could be so dirty, it made me so sad. We ended our day walking down the beach at night to the Copacabana Ferinha (artist fair) where we bought some souvenirs and such. All in all another great day.

Cristo

          Our last day was incredible and bittersweet. It all felt so fast and short! We started right off with going to Jesus Cristo, one of the seven wonders of the world. We got there early in the morning, and it was so foggy we could only see the statue's sandals at first, but within five minutes of our arrival the fog cleared and we could see the whole thing! It was massive and looming and frankly pretty amazing! I snapped a couple photos with my boy Jesus and then we went down the mountain in a cute little trolly. From there we headed to another beach and then to dinner. After dinner we had a Samba and Funk dance class! It was SO fun we all got to learn how to samba like a boss, and dance with some serious attitude in the funk class, and after we had a dance party! We were surprised at the end of the night when a professional group of funk dancers gave us a private show! They were insanely good, moving in ways I never knew were possible for the human body!!!

          Then came the goodbyes. In just three days it's hard to imagine getting so close to a group of people. All of the exchange students were so wonderful, I couldn't have asked for better friends to share these experiences with. It's hard to think that I'll probably never see most of them again, and I hope our paths will all cross again sometime! And that's the end to my adventures in Rio. There's so much more to tell, but enough time or words to tell it. I'll miss you Rio!

Mosaic Staircase

*People living in Rio de Janeiro are called cariocas.


P.S. I have no clue why the fonts are so messed up here... oops!