Running in Rio

This is the view from the top of yesterday's walk, starting down there on Ipanema beach where we are staying. And yes the girls are tall and slender and lovely and I have to stop myself going Aaaah when they go past. Young people should google Girl from Ipanema to understand the reference. In one walk we went from rich beach life through a favela and up into dense forest where we saw leaf cutter ants, a troop of meko monkeys and a Chilean Eagle with the inevitable vultures. You should be able to make out Christ the Redeemer just to the left.

The day before we had a great tour of Rio with the inimitable Dolores who drives people around in her tiny buggy attracting lots of attention.  Seeing around the different areas with a fund of information from her gave us a great sense of how complicated Rio is (in many different ways). Brazil was the last place to do away with slavery in 1880 and now about 30% of Rio's population live in the favelas - some with fantastic views that would cost a fortune in a mainstream area. We thought we heard gunfire but it was just fireworks being let off to warn people that the police were coming into the favela. 

Christ the Redeemer is very impressive in many ways - it certainly is massive and the surface is covered with a mosaic of tiny pieces of soapstone.  These were distributed to every parish in Brazil and all the old ladies got to work grinding away to fit them into little squares which could be put together on the statue like crocheting squares for the world's largest tea cosy. They would scratch the names of family members on each one and Brazilians feel they should visit and see Cristo at least once in their lifetimes.

Our first day on the  beach was hazy but hey... it's all relative. On Sundays they close the road along the beach and all the world and his wife are there running, cycling, playing beach volleyball, sunbathing and surfing but in every case....posing.   

It's been a tough day so far - up at 6.15 to go running the 7km path around the lagoa and then cool off in the surf.  We've just had a yoga lesson up on the deck of the apartment and this afternoon we are going up Sugarloaf with the kids when they finish school.  What a wonderful place to grow up.