Blog Five: Rio de Janeiro
[20th November 2025]
Everyone is on deck to view our arrival in Rio, and the scene does not disappoint. We agree that the three most spectacular cities we have visited so far have been New York, Istanbul, and now Rio de Janeiro. We have been lucky enough to arrive in and leave all three on a big boat, and it seems to us that really is the best possible way to do it, as the city unfolds gradually before our eyes, as the sun climbs and the day heats up.
Rio must have achieved a world record in superlatives and hyperbole. We are keen to find out whether it lives up to that billing in our brief experience. We exit the boat in a semi-disorganised throng – everyone wants to get off in Rio – and take our first steps on Brazilian soil. We’ve hired a driver, Dani, to give us a private tour in his nice car.
First on the agenda is to drive from the cruise ship terminal to the working class barrio that surrounds the world-famous Maracanã Stadium, the Brazilian Mecca of world football. Immediate impressions of Rio are very favourable. It’s a public holiday, so the traffic we anticipated isn’t there, and we cruise through the hotch potch of building styles with little impediment, arriving early for our stadium tour.
Until a couple of days ago, it looked unlikely that we’d be able to do a tour, as the final available slot began just as our ship was scheduled to dock. However, a further slot opened up and the ever-dedicated Fiona snapped up two places, although it took her nearly an hour and a half to achieve that. My wife is wonderful.
The outside of, and the immediate internal spaces in, the Maracanã are unprepossessing. The stadium itself now seats 79,000 spectators, though its record (official) crowd is 194,000, and it is widely held that there were actually over 200,000 fans in the stadium that day. We step out onto the pitch side on a beautifully sunny spring day in Rio, and climb up to sample the view from the stands, as well as visiting the museum, which contains so many memories of fabulous Brazilian players and teams.
The Maracanã is a municipal stadium, and is home to two of Rio’s major clubs: Flamengo and Fluminense. Our guide Dani accompanies us on the stadium tour – he is a Flamengo fan, born in the local barrio. He sets what is to become a pattern for the day, by ignoring any queues and removing those annoying spring-loaded barrier tapes, saying something to the attendants, then ushering us through. He must have done the tour 100s of times, but we all enjoy it – even Fiona.
In 1953, the famous Edinburgh Hibees were invited to the first (unofficial) World Club Championship in Rio, and Hibs played three matches in the Maracanã. A semi-legendary story is attached to this event, and to Hibs’ alleged effect on the subsequent tactics of the Brazilian National Team. Anyone who is interested in a summary of this tale can follow this link for more information!
After the Maracanã, it’s into the car for a trip across town to a much more affluent part of the city, Botafogo, home to another of Rio’s four most famous football clubs (the other being Vasco da Gama). We catch the two-stage cable car ride up to the top of Sugar Loaf Mountain, packed like sardines into each car, but nobody seems to mind.
The views from the top station, over Copacabana Beach and Red Beach on one side, and Botafogo and Flamengo Beaches on the other, defy adequate description. Comfortingly, black vultures circle overhead as we take in the panorama. Looking down on the bays full of small craft, Dani informs us that, interestingly, all four of Rio’s major teams began life as sailing clubs, with football added as a later activity.
We squeeze back down in the cable car and it’s off to the barrio of Lapa, which Dani describes as “bohemian,” to see the Selarón Steps (Escadaria Selarón). This staircase began life as a set of nondescript concrete steps. A Chilean artist (Jorge Selarón) set down roots in Rio and, as his tribute to the Brazilian people, in 1990 he set about renovating the steps outside his apartment. He started to cover the steps in fragments of ceramic tiles in the colours of the Brazilian flag – green, yellow, and blue. This work turned into an obsession, which he sold his paintings to fund, until he had finally covered the steps in tiles, ceramics and mirrors. He then set about tiling the walls in red, the colour of the Chilean flag.
The area is thronged with humanity, and it is noticeable that Dani drives up two very narrow streets rather than dropping us to visit on foot. For “bohemian” we read “distinctly dodgy!” Eccentric characters loom up every few yards, some not looking entirely connected to this universe. He doesn’t actually ever quite stop the car, and soon we are off to the beach, to sample the world-famous Copacabana sands.
On the way, I have a slightly confused conversation with Dani about signs at traffic lights in Rio. Turns out that drivers in many districts are given dispensation to drive through red lights between 10:00pm and 5:00am, “for safety reasons.” I don’t ask how running red lights can be regarded as safe.
It eventually dawns on me that it is the safety of the driver and other occupants of the car that is at issue. Not stopping at red lights avoids the possibility of car-mugging and carjacking incidents. Fiona has already noticed that he locks the car every time we get in. He is keen to project an image of Rio that, to some extent, debunks the city’s hazardous reputation, but he obviously isn’t taking any chances.
We alight on the famous wavy cobblestone walkway adjacent to the beach at Copacabana. The place is thronged with people playing football, volleyball, swimming, eating, drinking, and hanging out with friends. We take a quick foray onto the sands for a couple of photos, then we are off again.
We swing downtown to the Centro barrio and stop at the Theatro Municipal in Placa Floriano, an opera house which was built in the early twentieth century, and is considered to be one of the most beautiful and important theatres in Brazil. The building was inspired by the Paris Opera of Charles Garnier and its outside walls are inscribed with the names of classic European and Brazilian artists. It forms one side of an impressive square where we get out and take some photos – Dani must reckon we are on safe enough ground in this part of the city.
Time is getting on so we end our tour and return to the cruise terminal after a wonderful day discovering Rio – time may have been brief, but we feel we packed a lot in. We part company with our guide with a hearty “Vamos Flamengo.” Other football clubs are, of course, available.
My dozen favourite images from our day in Rio de Janeiro are included in the gallery below. Click on a thumbnail to see a bigger image. If you’re using a mobile phone, turn your screen sideways to see the bigger image to best effect.
Image Gallery
