We arrived in Rio de Janeiro in the first week of December 2024. We planned to spend 4 days in Rio. Our first place to visit was the Metropolitan Cathedral of São Sebastião. It is a massive cathedral with standing capacity of 20,000 people.
From the cathedral, we walked about 15 minutes to reach Escadaria Selarón. We really liked the multi-cultural, multi-religion aspect of the decoration.
Later in the afternoon we visited the Maracanã Stadium. The exhibits in the stadium were great to see (especially for football lovers).
We started day 2 in Rio with a visit to Christ the Redeemer. We took the train from Cosme Velho Station. It’s advisable to visit as early as possible in the morning to avoid huge crowds. The train journey was lovely. Once we arrived at the upper station, we took the lift (elevator), and then the escalator to Christ the Redeemer. Even early in the morning at 8 am, it was quite crowded with just about enough space to move around. The statue of Christ the Redeemer was great to watch. Also amazing were the views from the top, especially that of Sugarloaf Mountain.
After returning back by train to the Cosme Velho Station, we visited the Park Quinta da Boa Vista.
Our last visit of the morning was to the Centro Cultural Banco do Brasil. It’s essentially a museum with a variety of exhibits.
Later in the evening, we walked along the Copacabana Beach. We visited the Copacabana Fort (only cash accepted for entrance).
We started day 3 by taking the cable car up Sugarloaf mountain. The views of Rio and the sea from Sugarloaf mountain is incredibly amazing.
Post our descent from Sugarloaf mountain, we visited Park Lage, which is part of the wider Tijuca National Park. In the evening, we visited Ipanema beach, which has some great views, especially of the sunset.
Our 4th and last day started with a trip to Tijuca National Park. We organized a guided tour, since availability of Uber at the national park seemed very limited. We climbed to the top of Tijuca peak in about an hour and a half. The views of Rio and the mountain ranges were great.
We thoroughly enjoyed our four days in Rio. Our next place to visit was the Amazon rainforest.
We flew from Rio to Manaus (via Brasilia). We organized a 4 days guided tour of the rainforest with Amazon Gero Tours in Manaus. We had a great experience with Gero Tours.
We started with a boat ride from Manaus across the Amazon river. The meeting of the Negro and Amazon rivers with different colors was quite a sight to see. The boat dropped us across the river and from there we traveled by van to the Paraná do Mamori river. Our last leg was another boat ride to our lodge, on the Paraná do Mamori River. We stayed at the Amazon Rhanna Lodge,
We spent 4 days exploring the rainforest around Manaus. We did 2 jungle walks and multiple boat rides. One of the evenings was spent in Piranha fishing.
We had amazing sightings of birds like the Hoatzin, the Limpkin, Black Collared Hawk, Kingfishers, Anhinga and much more. We saw spectacled caiman, green iguana, piranhas and more.
After an incredible 4 days, we did the boat ride / van ride back to Manaus Airport. Our next place to visit was São Paulo.
In São Paulo, we started with a walk in the Ibirapuera Park. The park is elaborate and definitely worth a visit.
Our next visit was to the Monastery of Saint Benedict.
Our last stop for the day was the São Paulo Museum of Arts. The exhibits are great and have paintings of famous painters.
On our second and last day at São Paulo, we visited the São Paulo Cathedral.
We thoroughly enjoyed our trip to Brazil. Starting from Copacabana beach, Tijuca peak trek, jungle walks in the Amazons and finally museums articulating the history and culture, Brazil is a great place to visit.
My Travels - by Sivamani 