Travel log - Rio de Janeiro (2)

Rio definitely have spectacular views and scenes. However, one thing I did not do is to walk around. I was told that Rio as a city is not exactly most safe place in the world. Even in Copacabana Beach where I stayed is considered not safe for tourist to walk along the beach. Petty crimes may happen as the street kids will try to steal your wallet or camera. The police as I was told by the locals would not do anything as they are below 18.

As a result, I have to resort to relying on my 18-200mm telephoto capabilities to capture some of the moments at the beaches, through the hotel balcony:



Beach volley ball is a norm here. You can see people playing the game right from wee hours of early morning into the evening as late as 8pm. According to my local colleagues, the local residents are a sporty lot not so much because of health conscious but rather because of vanity and conscious of their body shape!



I manage to capture this on my way to the airport in the last day. Apparently, sand castle building is also one of the major activity in Copacabana. And I must say, there was a lot of effort being put through, if you look at the picture !





These one is taken from the hotel balcony. The hotel is Sofitel Rio

Some other interesting shots I have taken as below is a local airliner about to land at the domestic airport which interestingly locates near the Guanabara Bay. The picture was taken at the peak of Sugar Loaf



One last place of interest I have been is the Cathedral of Rio de Janeiro. Conical in form and with a 96 metres (315 ft) internal diameter and an overall height of 75 metres (246 ft), 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.





I thought the architecture is quite unique...something you don't see in other parts of the world.

In summary, Rio is indeed an interesting place and very exotic from an Asian point of view. Scenery was beautiful and its layout is refreshingly different from you see around the Asian region. The main drawback however was that due to the city's safety reputation and lack of local guide + language barrier, a trip to Rio is likely to confine to the tourist spots at best.