Brazil 2026 - Florianópolis miscellaneous (March 17-24)

A lovely suggestion for food and beach is the Barra da Lagoa Beach, on the east of the Island of Santa Catarina (Florianópolis City).  

We enjoyed a delicious and affordable seafood lunch at the Canal da Barra.

FROM WIKIPEDIA: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barra_da_Lagoa

Barra da Lagoa is a small fishing village in the city of Florianópolis, Santa Catarina, Brazil. The village is set on the mouth of a tidewater channel that flows in and out of the Island's sizable lagoon, the Lagoa da Conceição. The channel is at the end of a long beach made up of Praia Barra da Lagoa (English:Barra da Lagoa Beach) and Mozambique Beach which form a single 14 km stretch of beach.

Every year I get a cab downtown to meet up with some of my university friends. 

The drive along Beira Mar Norte during sunset is always mesmerizing. 

Friends since 1993 or for 33 years!

It's so good to have such awesome girlfriends. 
I am very lucky to have had these (and others) amazing and strong women in my life for so long! 

Shopping at our favourite Brazilian store: Farm Rio

https://www.instagram.com/farmrio/ 

This is my girls favourite Brazilian fast food: Giraffas. 
Pretty much every plate comes with rice and beans and salad. 

Açaí with banana and granola.

A day on the beach with my bestie and her son. 

We have been laughing this much since 1990, or for 36 years!
Now our children laugh with us!

Dea, te amo!

Another must do attraction is the sunset at Santo Antonio de Lisboa, in the north of the island.

Art crafts by the beach.

FROM: https://www.getyourguide.com/florianopolis-l246/florianopolis-sunset-in-santo-antonio-de-lisboa-t823481/

A tour unlike any other, unmissable and full of charm. We'll enjoy the best sunset on the island while sampling typical oysters and a traditional drink like caipirinha in the unique and unforgettable Santo Antônio de Lisboa, the second Portuguese settlement.
Considered one of the best places to visit on the island, it's full of culture, cuisine, leisure, and beautiful scenery.
Tourists are drawn to the neighborhood for its well-preserved Azorean architecture, notably the local church from 1750 and the houses listed as public heritage.

Us. 

This is so adorable, isn't it?

Downtown Florianópolis is also another island gem. 
Here is the Cathedral.

FROM WIKIPEDIA: 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Our_Lady_of_Exile_and_St._Catherine_of_Alexandria_Cathedral,_Florian%C3%B3polis

It is a Catholic church dedicated to Our Lady of the Exile, which functions as the cathedral of the archdiocese of Florianópolis, since its creation on March 19, 1908. The building is protected by the National Historical and Artistic Heritage Institute of Brazil.

The definitive colonization of Florianópolis began in 1673. In 1679, Francisco Dias Velho required the legal title of the lands, beginning the construction of a church dedicated to the Virgin Mary. It was small and built with limestone. Inside it, the founder of Desterro (today Florianópolis) was assassinated. In 1908 it was elevated to the condition of Cathedral.

One of Florianópolis symbols, the centenary Fig Tree, or Figueira.

The story tells that Figueira Centenária de Florianópolis was born in 1871 in the garden of Igreja Matriz, current Cathedral, and that it was transplanted 20 years later to the place where it is in Praça XV.

According to local folklore, whoever surrounds it several times will attract wealth, luck and marriage.

This is Felipe Schmidt street, one of the main commercial streets downtown.
It has a special meaning for me because my grandma lived just up the street for the last 30 years of her life. Her sister, who got to live to 104 years old, lived her ENTIRE life on Felipe Schmidt street!
The street was empty and the stores were closed because it was Florianópolis 353 anniversary - therefore a city holiday.

Art crafts everywhere.

A replica of the already iconic The Secret Agent  (film) public phone, orelhão. 

To finish in great style, we lucked out and encountered two amazing creatures in a creek, right across from a shopping mall (Iguatemi).

Here is one of the three alligators we saw.

And a very friendly capybara! 

What a treat!

Brazil 2026 - Beach and Santa Teresa (March 16)

 

Good morning, Copacabana Beach.

Before we left the hotel, a bit of reflexion...
When I was a kid, the hotels in Brazil used to have bibles by the bed side. 

Today I found an informative brochure about safe sex and HIV. 
"Condoms available at the reception."

The sunny Sunday was perfect beach day. 

Since the main beaches still had red flags, we picked this small and cozy beach called Praia da Urca, mostly visited by local families. 

The beach is only 15 minutes from Copacabana by cab, right beside the Urca Hill, where the cable car is. 

Although it's surrounded by the city, the Urca Beach has a super mellow vibe. 

It's perfect for kids. 

Sofia made local friends. 

It has a great view of Christ The Redeemer.

We spent our last hours in Rio in Santa Teresa neighbourhood, where we went for a late Feijoada lunch at the Bar do Mineiro Restaurant.

FROM WIKIPEDIA: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santa_Teresa,_Rio_de_Janeiro

Santa Teresa is a neighborhood in the city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is located on top of the Santa Teresa hill, by the centre of Rio, and is famous for its winding, narrow streets which are a favourite spot for artists and tourists.

In 1872, a tram line was constructed to connect Santa Teresa to downtown Rio de Janeiro, which further advanced the access to the neighborhood. The tram ran up the streets of Rua Joaquim Murtinho (named after Joaquim Murtinho) and Rua Almirante Alexandrino, crossing the Carioca Aqueduct. 

Initially, the tramcars were drawn by mules, before electric tramcars replaced the mule- or horse-drawn trams in 1896. The tramcars' colours ranged from green to silver and blue, but came to be painted bright yellow after complaints from residents who said that the tram "disappeared" amid the greenery of the neighborhood. The iconic yellow trams – or bondes in Brazilian Portuguese – have become a symbol of Santa Teresa.

I absolutely LOVE these guys! 

They are wearing rival soccer jerseys (Vasco and Flamengo), still are drinking together in this Sunday afternoon enjoying each others company at an improvised bar by the side of the road.

What a life!

Cultivar Café.
The best Pão de Queijo ever, according to Sofia. 
Thanks for Jennifer and family for the tip!

A couple days from the Oscars, celebrating Brazilian cinema. 

Northeast culture represented here as well.

Marielle Franco, the symbol of resistance and female power, ending our fantastic Rio trip on a high note.
Marielle, presente! 

FROM WIKIPEDIA: 

Marielle Franco  (27 July 1979 – 14 March 2018) was a Brazilian politician, sociologist, feminist, socialist and human rights activist. Franco served as a city councillor of the Municipal Chamber of Rio de Janeiro for the Socialism and Liberty Party (PSOL) from January 2017 until her assassination.

In 2016, Franco ran for a seat on the Rio de Janeiro city council in the municipal elections. As a black woman and single mother from the favelas, Franco positioned herself as a representative and defender of poor black women and people from the favelas. With over 46,500 votes, Franco was one of the 51 representatives elected, receiving the fifth highest vote total out of more than 1,500 candidates.

As a city council member, Franco fought against violence against women, for reproductive rights, and for the rights of favela residents. She chaired the Women's Defense Commission and formed part of a four-person committee that monitored the federal intervention in Rio de Janeiro. 

Working with the Rio de Janeiro Lesbian Front, Franco presented a bill to create a day of lesbian visibility in Rio de Janeiro in August 2017, but the bill was defeated by a vote of 19–17.

Brazil 2026 - Sightseeing in Rio (March 15)

We chose to do the most important tourist attractions in one day, with a group tour. They picked us up at the hotel and took us to the most important spots, took care of our tickets, meal and line ups. 

It's a convenient option for those who don't have too much time in the city, like us now.

First stop was the Sugarloaf Mountain, or Pão de Açúcar. 

FROM WIKIPEDIA: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sugarloaf_Mountain

Sugarloaf Mountain is a peak situated in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on a peninsula at the mouth of Guanabara Bay. Rising 396 m (1,299 ft) above the harbor, the peak is named for its resemblance to the traditional shape of concentrated refined sugarloaf. It is known worldwide for its cable car and panoramic views of the city and beyond.

The mountain is one of several monolithic granite and quartz mountains that rise straight from the water's edge around Rio de Janeiro. Geologically, it is considered part of a family of steep-sided rock outcroppings known as bornhardts.  

The mountain is protected by the Sugarloaf Mountain and Urca Hill Natural Monument, created in 2006. This became part of a World Heritage Site declared by UNESCO in 2012.

Inside the cable car.

There are two cable cars: to Urca Hill and to the Sugarloaf Mountain.

That's the 13 kilometers bridge between Rio and Niterói city.

FROM WIKIPEDIA: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rio%E2%80%93Niter%C3%B3i_Bridge

The Rio–Niterói Bridge, officially the President Costa e Silva Bridge, is a box girder bridge spanning the Guanabara Bay, connecting the cities of Rio de Janeiro and Niterói in the State of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is currently the second longest bridge in Latin America, after the Metro Line 1 bridge, and the 48th longest in the world in 2020. From its completion in 1974 until 1985 it was the world's second-longest bridge, second only to the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway.

The spectacular view from the Sugarloaf Mountain.

FROM WIKIPEDIA: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sugarloaf_Mountain

The name Sugarloaf was coined in the 16th century by the Portuguese during the heyday of sugarcane trade in Brazil due to sugar imports from the Portuguese conquest of Goa, according to historian Vieira Fazenda. Blocks of sugar were placed in conical molds made of clay to be transported on ships. The form of the peak reminded them of the well-known resulting "sugarloaf" shape, and the nickname has since been extended to be a general descriptor for formations of this kind.

FROM WIKIPEDIA: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sugarloaf_Mountain

A glass-walled cable car (bondinho or, more formally, teleférico), capable of holding 65 people, runs along a 1,400 m (4,600 ft) route between the peaks of Sugarloaf and Morro da Urca every 20 minutes. The original cable car line was built in 1912, rebuilt around 1972–73, and rebuilt again in 2008. The cable car goes from a ground station, at the base of Morro da Babilônia, to Morro da Urca and thence to Sugarloaf's summit.

The next stop was at Lapa and the famous Selarón Steps. 

FROM WIKIPEDIA: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Escadaria_Selar%C3%B3n

Escadaria Selarón, locally known as the 'Lapa Steps' (Escadaria da Lapa) for being situated at the "Lapa" neighborhood, is a set of world-famous steps in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. They are the work of Chilean-born artist Jorge Selarón who claimed it as "my tribute to the Brazilian people".

In 1990, Selarón began renovating dilapidated steps that ran along the front of his house. At first, neighbours mocked him  for his choice of colours as he covered the steps in fragments of blue, green and yellow tiles – the colours of the Brazilian flag. It started out as a side-project to his main passion, painting, but soon became an obsession. He found he was constantly out of money, so Selarón sold paintings to fund his work. It was long and exhausting work but he continued on and eventually covered the entire set of steps in tiles, ceramics and mirrors.

Running from Joaquim Silva street and Pinto Martins street, officially known as Manuel Carneiro street, the steps straddle the Lapa and Santa Teresa neighbourhoods in Rio de Janeiro. There are 215 steps measuring 125 metres (135 yards) long, which are covered in over 2000 tiles collected from over 60 countries around the world. No sooner than one section of the steps was 'finished', Selarón started work on another section, constantly changing it so that it was an ever-evolving piece of art. Selarón considered the work as "never complete" and claimed that "This crazy and unique dream will only end on the day of my death".

Originally, tiles for the work were scavenged from various construction sites and piles of urban waste found on the Rio streets. But in later years, most of the tiles were donated by visitors from all around the world. Of the 2000+ tiles, 300-odd were hand-painted by Selarón depicting a pregnant African woman. Selarón didn't comment on this except to say that it was a "Personal problem from my past"

It has also featured in numerous music videos such as Snoop Dogg's "Beautiful", as well as U2 also filming there. It is considered an iconic tourist attraction of Rio de Janeiro with travellers from across the globe visiting it every day. In 2009 the steps were featured in Rio's 2016 Olympic bid video "The Passion Unites Us". The steps were also featured in the show The Amazing Race (the 18th American season, and later the fourth Latin American version, the second Norwegian season and the third Chinese celebrity season) where teams were tasked to find a tile resembling a route info sign.

After Lapa, the tour drove by the Sambódromo, where the carnival parade happens every year.

And took us to the Maracanã Stadium. 

FROM WIKIPEDIA: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maracan%C3%A3_Stadium

The stadium was opened in 1950 to host the FIFA World Cup, in which Brazil was beaten 2–1 by Uruguay in the deciding game, in front of a still standing record attendance of 173,850 spectators, on 16 July 1950. 

The venue has seen attendances of 150,000 or more at 26 occasions and has seen crowds of more than 100,000 as many as 284 times. But as terraced sections have been replaced with seats over time, and after the renovation following the 2016 Summer Olympics and Paralympics, its original capacity has been reduced to the current 73,139,  but it remains the largest stadium in Brazil and the third largest in South America after Estadio Monumental in Argentina and Estadio Monumental in Peru. Fluminense and Flamengo still own the all-time club record attendance, with 194,603 spectators supporting its clubs in the world famous Fla–Flu derby in 1963.

The stadium is mainly used for football matches between the major football clubs in Rio de Janeiro, including Botafogo, Flamengo, Fluminense, and Vasco da Gama. It has also hosted a number of concerts and other sporting events. 

t was the main venue for the 2007 Pan American Games, hosting the football tournament and the opening and closing ceremonies. The Maracanã was partially rebuilt in preparation for the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup, and the 2014 World Cup, for which it hosted several matches, including the final. It is also set to host matches for the 2027 FIFA Women's World Cup, most likely to host the final. 

It served as the venue for the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2016 Summer Olympics and Paralympics, with the main track and field events taking place at the Estádio Olímpico. The stadium was also chosen to host the 2020 and 2023 Copa Libertadores finals.

We also visited the Rio Cathedral. 

FROM WIKIPEDIA: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rio_de_Janeiro_Cathedral

The cathedral was designed by Edgar de Oliveira da Fonseca in a modern style based on Mayan architectural style of pyramids. The current cathedral was built between 1964 and 1979 and replaced as seat of the Archdiocese a series of churches that had served as cathedrals since 1676, the most recent and notable of those being the Church of Our Lady of Mount Carmel of the Ancient See, now known as the Old Cathedral, built in the 18th century, and that had been declared Rio's cathedral in the early 19th century.

The New Cathedral, as it is sometimes called, is located in the center of the city. Conical in form and with a 96 metres (315 ft) internal diameter — 106 metres of external diameter — and an overall height of 75 metres (246 ft). Inside, the area measures 8,000 square meters and sufficient 5,000 seats (it has a standing-room capacity of 20,000 people).

The cathedral's four rectilinear stained glass windows soar 64 metres (210 ft) from floor to ceiling.

Finally, the most grandiose attraction: Christ the Redeemer! 

We chose to take the train up, through the second largest urban forest in the world, the Tijuca Forest. 

You come out of the elevator and there HE is!
It's so impressive!

The view of the Lagoa Rodrigo de Freitas.

FROM WIKIPEDIA: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christ_the_Redeemer_(statue)

Christ the Redeemer is an Art Deco statue of Jesus in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, created by French-Polish sculptor Paul Landowski and built by Brazilian engineer Heitor da Silva Costa, in collaboration with French engineer Albert Caquot. Romanian sculptor Gheorghe Leonida sculpted the face. Constructed between 1922 and 1931, the statue is 30 metres (98 ft) high, excluding its 8-metre (26 ft) pedestal, and faces east. The arms stretch 28 metres (92 ft) wide. 

It is made of reinforced concrete and soapstone. Christ the Redeemer differs considerably from its original design, as the initial plan was a large Christ with a globe in one hand and a cross in the other. Although the project organizers originally accepted the design, it later changed to the statue of today, with the arms spread out wide.

The statue weighs 635 metric tons (625 long, 700 short tons), and is located at the peak of the 700-metre (2,300 ft) Corcovado mountain in the Tijuca National Park overlooking the city of Rio de Janeiro. This statue is the largest Art Deco–style sculpture in the world. A symbol of Christianity around the world, the statue has also become a cultural icon of both Rio de Janeiro and Brazil and was voted one of the New 7 Wonders of the World.

Back to Copacabana, the majestical Copacabana Palace. 

Sofia has promised to bring me back here to stay at the most luxurious hotel in Rio, sometime in the future.

FROM WIKIPEDIA: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copacabana_Palace

The Copacabana Palace, A Belmond Hotel, is a historic luxury hotel in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, facing Copacabana beach. Designed by French architect Joseph Gire, it opened on August 13, 1923. It is owned by Belmond Limited. It has 243 rooms (116 apartments and 127 suites), in the main and annex buildings. The hotel has been voted the best hotel in South America multiple times, including in 2009, when it won the World Travel Award. 

Copacabana Beach never sleeps.