Brazil travel guide

Corcovado

The distinctive statue of Christ the Redeemer, arms spread towelcome the world, is the symbol of Rio de Janeiro and one of theseven New Wonders of the Modern World. It rests on top of Rio deJaneiro's Corcovado Mountain, 2,330 feet (710m) above the beachesbelow, and is accessed via a miniature train that runs from theCosme Vehlo District through the Atlantic rainforest to the foot ofthe statue. The train ride offers stunning vistas of Rio, and theview from the summit is breathtaking.

Spread out beneath the statue is the Tijuca Forest, resplendentwith attractions to enchant visitors beneath the cooling canopyamong natural pools and waterfalls. There is, for example, theMayrink chapel, which features murals painted by Candido Portinari,one of Brazil's most well-known modern artists, and the Museu doAcude, housing colonial furniture and a collection of china fromthe East India Company.

Sugar Loaf

An iconic fixture of the Rio skyline, the Sugarloaf Mountain isknown worldwide for its sweeping views of the city below. Thesummit of the 1,299 foot high (396m) belvedere, named Sugar Loafbecause of its resemblance to the loaves of sugar used by thePortuguese colonists, can be reached by a two-stage cable car ride.The first stage takes visitors up 722 feet (220m) to the Morro daUrca, where there is a restaurant, amphitheatre, heliport andspectacular view of the Yacht Club and Botafogo Bay. The secondstage ascends to the summit for a panoramic view of the city, andthe whole of Copacabana beach. The Sugar Loaf cable car is a majoricon of Rio's tourism and a trip up the Sugar Loaf is a must forvisitors to the city.

Ipanema

Immortalised in a popular song, 'The girl from Ipanema', thisneighbourhood of Rio offers not only a legendary beach, butnumerous excellent hotels, a bustling nightlife, sophisticatedshopping opportunities, and quality restaurants, all within walkingdistance of each other. Ipanema, the name, incongruously, means'bad water', is famous for setting fashion trends, particularly inthe line of skimpy swimwear. Fashion followers should look out forthe famous bikini boutiques like Salinas, Blue Man, and Bum-Bum.Tourists should make sure to explore the Rua Garcia D'Avila to shopfor designer fashion, jewellery, and furniture. The nearbyAmsterdam Sauer Museum of Gems makes for an interesting tour aroundthe workshop. There are numerous other streets in and aroundIpanema to explore, including the eclectic commercial streetVisconde de Piraja, lined with speciality shops, bars, restaurants,and some of Rio's best boutiques. Visit the bohemian fair atGeneral Osorio Square on Sundays for wooden sculptures, handcrafts,exotic musical instruments, and artworks.

Copacabana

This famous Rio beach neighbourhood was just a smallfishing village until a new highway built in the early 1900sbrought crowds of visitors to these golden shores. The CopacabanaPalace Hotel first opened its doors in 1923, and since then thearea mushroomed with Neoclassical and Art Nouveau skyscrapers,penthouses, and apartments. Visitors still flock, as they havealways done, to the glamorous Palace Hotel, which is the place tobe seen, especially to have tea or a meal at the famed Ciprianirestaurant.

The beach itself white sand and calm water and isfestooned with kiosks. It is a popular spot for beach sports likesoccer and volleyball, and a good place to sunbathe. Copacabanabeach is particularly popular on New Year's Day. According totradition, visitors dress in white and congregate here to celebratein droves, with more than 2 million people crowding the beach.

The Meeting of the Waters

Where the dark waters of the Rio Negro join the lighter, muddywaters of the Rio Solimoes, an incredible natural phenomenonresults. The separate shades of water run side by side for a lengthof more than four miles (6km) without mixing. The separation iscaused by the difference in temperature, density, and flow of thewaters from each river: Rio Negro travels at about a mile (2km) perhour with a temperature of 72ºF (22ºC), while Rio Solimoes flows atbetween two and four miles (4-6km) per hour with a temperature of82ºF (28ºC). This phenomenon has become a major tourist attractionin Brazil, best accessed by taking an hour's journey by boat fromthe floating docks in Manaus to see the dramatically dividedwaters.

Lake Janauari Ecological Park

This park, an hour by boat from Manaus on the Rio Negro,provides visitors with a taste of the Amazon experience,encompassing 22,240 acres (9,000 hectares) of forest, lowlands, andflooded forest (igapos). Day package trips are available fromManaus, including lunch in a typical regional restaurant and avisit to the area's other main attraction, The Meeting of theWaters, as well as a canoe trip exploring the park's lakes andstreams. Visitors can also spot the symbol of the Amazon at LakeJanauari Park; the famous Amazon Victoria-Nympheaceae water lily,measuring up to seven feet (two metres) in diameter, is ubiquitousatop the still shallow waters. The beautiful flowers only bloom forthree days, changing colour from white to dark red beforedying.

Adolpho Ducke Botanical Garden

This vast forest reserve, covering more than 39 square miles(100 sq km) to the east of Manaus, provides tourists with theopportunity to discover what lies beneath the dense Amazonrainforest canopy. The park building complex contains plantnurseries and an exhibition of the woods of Amazonas, as well as alibrary and an eatery. A network of trails has been created in theforest, and local youths are trained and employed as guides todirect visitors along the paths (although not all of them speakEnglish). It can be difficult to get into the Amazon for a genuineexperience of the rainforest and this vast botanical garden offersa convient oppertunity for close look at the unspoilt forestworld.

Estádio do Maracanã

Proudly hosting the opening and closing matches of the 2014Soccer World Cup and 2016 Olympic Games ceremonies, and still thelargest soccer stadium on the continent, Rio's Maracana has seenmany records set.

The stadium currently hosts local soccer league games, and isthe home of the Brazilian soccer team. But with a capacity of morethan 78,000, the Maracana is more than able to host internationalacts visiting Brazil as a performance venue, with Madonna and SirPaul McCartney among the big names who have played here. Inside thegrounds is a Hall of Fame honouring soccer greats such as Pele,Roberto Dinamite, Romário, Valdo, and Bebeto, all of whom have beenhonoured by having their footprints cast in the sidewalk. A guidedtour takes visitors through the hall, where they can enjoy adisplay of historical photographs and a great panoramic view of thecity, among other things.

Ibirapuera Park

The Parque do Ibirapuera is a large park near the centre of SaoPaulo with many interesting features, including a planetarium, aJapanese pavilion, a gymnasium, the Obelisk of Sao Paulo (a symbolof the Constitutionalist Revolution of 1932), and the CicilloMatarazzo Pavilion, which houses the Museum of Contemporary Art andis typically the venue for large events like the São Paulo ArtBiennial and São Paulo Fashion Week. The park is home to many othermuseums, including the Air Force Museum and Folklore Museum. Italso has jogging and walking trails and a picturesque lake.Generally the park is a good spot to explore for those wanting abit of holiday exercise or some fresh air in the heart of thissprawling city.

Santa Teresa

Having had their fill of the beach, tourists seeking the 'realRio de Janeiro' should make a beeline for one of its most iconicneighbourhoods, Santa Teresa. Located at the top of Santa TeresaHill, the neighbourhood is famous for its winding, narrow streets,its 19th century architecture, and its amazing array ofrestaurants, bars, art galleries, and eclectic shops. A populararea for local artists and tourists alike, Santa Teresa is bestreached using its historic tram service, which runs up the hillfrom the centro (departing from Largo da Carioca square). The tramline, the only one of its kind in Rio, runs right through SantaTeresa's picturesque streets, offering magnificent views of thecity below. By all accounts, no visit to Rio de Janeiro would becomplete without spending at least a few hours in Santa Teresa.

Rocinha

Even though Rio de Janeiro is one of the world'sforemost holiday destinations, with great beaches, vibrantnight-life, and significant tourist attractions, the hard fact isthat it remains a city of gross economic inequality, as typified byits sprawling urban slums (favelas), the largest of which, Rocinha,is home to nearly a quarter of a million people. For touristslooking to get to grips with this social reality, a local namedZezinho runs widely-celebrated tours of Rocinha, the favela inwhich he grew up.

Those worrying that it will be a typical,voyeuristic, seen-from-the-back-of-a-Jeep experience can lay thosefears to rest: the great strength of Zezinho's tours is that theyare conducted out of love for Rocinha, and a desire to share itsculture with foreigners. As Zezinho says, 'It is easy to seepoverty or poorly built houses, but what I love about Rocinha isthe spirit of the people'. All who take part in his tour of Rocinhaagree that it's a valuable, moving and humanising touristicexperience. There are also other guides and companies offering goodtours of the various favelas. It is important to book inadvance.

Football Museum

Even for non-football fans, Sao Paulo's Museu doFutebol (Football Museum) is a must-see tourist attraction. TheBrazilian team has been unquestionably the most delightful andsuccessful national team in football's history, and the sport issupported with religious fervour throughout the country. The beautyof Sao Paulo's Football Museum, housed within the Pacaembu Stadium,itself an icon of the city, is that is takes a modern, interactiveapproach toward its exhibitions, with holographic displays,touch-screen information panels, and various other multimediainstallations.

Highlights of the museum include the 'History of theWorld Cup' section, and a display introducing Brazil's 25greatest-ever players (the Anjos Barrocos, or 'Baroque Angels'). Anappreciation of what football means to the country is vital togetting to grips with Brazilian culture, and Sao Paulo's FootballMuseum is a wonderful introduction in this respect. Be sure tobudget at least two or three hours for the museum, as there's a lotto see.

Julio Prestes Cultural Center

This cultural centre and concert venue is located in what wasonce the Julio Prestes Train Station, an imposing and meticulouslyrestored building. The highlight of the centre is the Sala SaoPaulo, a concert venue which seats nearly 1,500 people and is hometo the renowned Sao Paulo State Symphonic Orchestra (OSESP).Specifically designed as a venue for symphonic and chamber music,the Sala has world-class acoustics and is the best place forclassical music lovers to catch a concert in the city. Other eventsare also hosted at the cultural centre, including a vast variety ofmusical concerts, with pop and rock featuring alongside thetraditional, classical offerings.