The 10 hour flight from Lisbon to Rio was rather pleasant and I managed to make my way through 2 of the 3 Hobbit films as well as writing my Lisbon blog entry (3 times…technology teething problems in abundance).

We arrived at Galeao at around 6pm and whizzed through passport control…big win. However the joy was short lived as a combination of my insistence on getting a bus that appears to no longer be in service, and the horrendous Friday night Rio traffic, meant that we did not arrive at our Copacabana hotel until around 9pm local time.

An ‘upgrade’ to a front facing room was not well received due to the plethora of street bars that were in full flow. As a result we found ourselves moved to floor number 17 and a back facing room. No street noise but a low continual humming instead…we (I) got used to it.

Mirasol Copacabana was our home for the next 10 nights (the second longest stay in a single place behind our two week Coffee Farm Workaway that is scheduled for November). Having originally booked an Ibis for the majority of the stay a decision was made (diplomatically phrased that) to change our accommodation to a better hotel so that we could enjoy a little bit of luxury at the start of our honeymoon.

I had actually stayed in the Mirasol before when my sister Jenny had hopped off her Cruise duties for 24 hours back when I was studying at PUC in 2016. It had made a good impression then so it was a natural choice.

Overall we had a wonderful 10 day stay although the Rio rain (3 days were pretty much washed out) meant that we did not get to take advantage of the stunning rooftop as much as we would have liked.

Abi’s Rating: 6.7(?)/10 – “Noisy. Nice breakfast. Nice Rooftop. Nice people. Nice Gym. Nice location. Nice”

Mike’s Rating: 7/10 – Really good breakfast, excellent location and very helpful staff.

We took the weather for granted a little on the first day and spent it chilling on the rooftop. Having said that we had a lovely relax and it was perhaps needed after our travel exertions. We did also manage a walk along the beach and a little bit of jet lag ensured that we caught a beautiful sunrise in addition to a good sunset.

With the inclement weather hampering some of our plans throughout the week we also managed a fair few visits to the hotel gym which enjoys incredible panoramic views of Zona Sul.

Downtown

When I lived in Rio I only ventured into the Centre of Rio on a handful occasions. It certainly lacks the serenity of the the famous beach locations to the South and Abi felt that there were certain similarities between downtown Rio and Mexico CIty.

We went to the Museum of tomorrow (Museu de amanha) which is a building that in itself is an incredible feat of engineering. Inside, the museum gives a fascinating insight into the relationship between humans and the environment that we live in. There are a number of modern exhibitions and Abi and I even managed to win a Million Pound Drop style quiz game which we were very proud of. No tangible prizes sadly.

Las Escadas de Selaron (known more commonly as the Lapa Steps) are a most see but the area itself was not that appealing to us. Lapa is an incredibly popular area with those who enjoy going out and partying (I honestly have no idea why because it really isn’t a great place) so naturally it did not appeal to Abi or I.

We got some classic tourist snaps of the steps though and there are a growing number of tiles that are added to the Mosaic. Our personal highlights included The Mona Lisa, A Scottish Piper and, best of all, the Michelin Man.

Pao de azucar

The highlight of our trip to Rio was undoubtedly the morning that we spent at the top of ‘Sugar Loaf’. Having woken up one morning to clear blue skies we decided to jump in an uber and take the cable car up to Morro de Urca. It was blissfully quiet as we managed to ascend before the crowds of tourists arrived!

This attraction offers two different viewing platforms (one from Urca and the second cable car leading up to Sugar Loaf itself) and each provide stunning views of the Rio coastline. Words can’t really do the scene justice and pictures only go some way towards demonstrating the true marvel of this mouth watering landscape. I had actually forgotten how majestic the view from the top was and to further enhance the experience we saw a marmoset leaping through the trees that overlooked the ocean.

Mr Cheney

I love cookies. I would consider myself to be a cookie connoisseur and I can tell you for free that they don’t come much better than Mr Cheney. The now defunct tesco bakery cookies (if you know your cookies you know the ones) were top drawer but these little morsels of joy take the biscuit.

We managed three visits to Rio Sul (posh mall) just to devour a variety of cookies and there was a Brucey bonus waiting at the airport as we departed for the Amazon as we stumbled across a Mr Cheney Kiosk. Dreamy.

Copacabana Fort

One of our rainy day activities was a trip to Copacabana Fort, the old naval base that now serves as a cadet training facility. We got some good views of Copacabana as well as enjoying a delightful afternoon tea in Confeitaria Colombo.

Itaguai

Our trip to Rio miraculously coincided with the Brazilian National Cricket Championships. I had managed to get myself into the Carioca Cricket Club squad and I was very excited to return to the Corridor of Sun Certainty in Itaguai! Unfortunately the knee injury that I had sustained a couple of weeks before departure put paid to any participation which was a great shame.

Nevertheless Abi and I enjoyed a lovely day on the Polo Ranch – turned cricket field – as 6 teams battled it out over the Saturday and Sunday. We spent a day in the glorious sunshine, and although at times the standard on show was a little village, it was great fun and I managed to catch up with a few old friends!

Goin’ the Christ

I am a great believer in planning ahead and the majority of the time it pays dividends but on the (extemely) rare occasion that I don’t get it quite right then it can look a little bit silly.

With the hike to Cristo closed because of a series of robberies we were left with the choice between train and van. We plumped for train and I booked it for the Tuesday afternoon with the forecast looking promising. It was cloudy. Really cloudy…so much so that when we arrived at the train station there was a big “sem visibilidade” sign.

Luckily there was no harm done as we got our money back and instead managed to visit O Cristo Rendentor on our final day in Rio. The weather was superb and we were greeted with sensational views from the top. We even managed to sneak on an earlier than anticipated train which massively reduced our wait time at the bottom…great success.

Even though it was my third time up there, it was still pretty remarkable with the vast expanse of the city of Rio de Janeiro occupying the panoramic views atop the hill known as Corcovardo.

Sadly the afternoon did not go according to plan as I might have put us on the wrong bus which took us on a long winded tour of zona sul without managing to return to Copacabana.

Salt was rubbed into the wound when Abi washed a large proportion of her clothes in anticipation of our trip to the Amazon…only to discover that the laundrette was closed so no drying facilities were available. Not to worry we found one online a 30 minute walk away…it was closed.

I also made a small error when it came to choosing our final evening in Rio sunset spot…not quite where I intended but it wasn’t too shabby and we had fun messing around with the Pano.

Not an ideal end to our stint in Rio and worse was to follow in the evening…

Caca no sapato

A tricky last day in Rio ended in disaster as I became a victim of a local money making scam.

With the sanctuary of our hotel 20 meters away a scruffy looking man began waving a cloth at me. I politely declined but Abi informed me that I had something on my shoe (espadrille, blue, found in the garage the day before departure). I brushed it off as “just a leaf” because there are an abundance of trees in the middle of Copacabana…not.

The man continued to wave his cloth at me and so I looked down at my shoe and to my horror discovered that there was actual faecal matter splattered on top of my prized (£5 from amazon 3 years ago) espadrille. I instinctively wiped the shoe on the Mirasol outdoor carpet (sorry lads) and Abi (barely able to control her hysterical laughter) reliably informed me that the man had plucked a ‘poo bag’ from a collection inside the box he was carrying and deposited it on my shoe. The crafty bugger had then attempted to clean my shoe for a fee. The cheek of it.

We ascended to the 17th floor with tears rolling from Abi’s eyes (I was far less amused). A salvage attempt was made on the espadrilles. Poo was washed off (was it human – I hope not…was it dog – I hope so…will we ever know – we will not) but tragically I decided to throw them in the bin in a fit of rage.

The delinquent had not managed to take any of my money…but he had taken my dignity and that was painful. Not as painful as no longer having espadrilles but painful nonetheless. We learn and we move on.

Quite literally in fact as that particular episode brought the curtain down on our 10 days in Rio de Janeiro. There were massive highs but the inclement weather brought some frustrating lows and as a result Abi did not quite get to see the City at its best. Alas we cannot change the weather…

Next Stop…The Amazon.

#WhatOddsPaddy offers an insight into how well married life is going and the odds of a divorce taking place. This was a long stint in Rio and rain days in close quarters can cause friction. Even more friction can be caused by erroneous bus choices and laughing at your partner when they have just been shat on by a passer by.

1500/1.

A week in 40 degree Jungle heat awaits….expect these odds to plummet faster than the Argentine Peso.