Day 4 in Mendoza – we arise early for a full day trip
through the Argentinian side of the Andes. We board a bus (last) and discover
we are once again the only English speakers...
Our guide, a wizened old woman
with a funny sense of humour, leads us through the valleys and mountains of the
surrounding Andean range. We sat next to a lovely couple who offered us the
traditional, social, drink of ‘mate’ (pronounced mah-tay), which is essentially
a large clay pot of very strong tea. I’d been wanting to try it for ages, but
as restaurants don’t sell it, you must wait for a local to offer it to you.
Finally! It was nice and strong, like a pot of green tea that had been steeping
for ages.
Anyway, our tour of the Andes was beautiful and the video
below will do a far better job of describing the journey. Driving up the
winding roads we see small grey, then tall white snow-capped peaks. We stop off
at a famous bridge (San Martin crossed it?), view Condors flying gracefully
thousands of metres high in the air, pass by an archaic iron-rich British owned
mineral spa, drive by a ski resort (only just out of season), and finish in a
small town high up in the mountains.
We grabbed a hot lunch, had a little explore of the snowy
landscape, and then headed back to town.
All in all a very picturesque and worthwhile venture into
the longest mountain range in the world.
Rio day 3. After another night of semi-disquietude, we
embarked on our journey to the 2 most famous landmarks in Rio – Christo Redentor
(Christ the Redeemer) and the Sugar Loaf Mountains. We plan our journey to Corcovado (meaning Humpback Mountain, upon which
Christo can be found) first, as we were told it can get very busy and hot in
the afternoon – and that Sugar Loaf boasts an epic sunset not to be missed. The
internets told us there was a bus company that would drive you up Corcovado for
a very reasonable price – sounds great right? We arrive at the designated spot
and lo-and-behold, there’s a salesman selling tickets for tours. In broken
conversation – he tells us that for Corcovado, it is R$26 (reais, Brazilian
dollars – pronounced ‘ray-uh’ or ‘hey-eye’ depending on who says it, and pluralisation). Of course
we get on his bus, and immediately after driving down the road, the driver asks
for R$80 each. Fortunately, when we declined, he let us out without hassle
(phew) – and we hopped into a taxi to Cosme
velho ($R70), the tourist train
station where you take a small train up Corcovado. Traveller tip – there is also a metro station a few minutes walk
from Cosme velho as well as a regular bus (more time), so it’s worth taking
public transport!
Taking the tourist train (R$52 each, including admission
[R$26]) we had a slow but enjoyable 20 minute journey through the jungle on
Corcovado. Emerging from the lush jungle we arrive atop Corcovado, with the
omnipresent Jesus looming overhead. Surrounding the foot of the statue was
perhaps 100 people – crowded, but not off putting – all taking pictures and of
course, Jesus-selfies. The statue itself was recently renovated (within 20
years) making it look immaculate and ominous. Even on a non-believer the presence
of such a large, powerful symbol is not lost. A modern wonder definitely not to
be missed if journeying to Rio. Statue aside, Corcovado also offers stunning
views of Rio and the surrounding bays and is well worth taking in the beautiful
vista.
After our striking stint with Jesus, we took the bus back to
Copacabana and decided to walk to the Sugar loaf. The walk was enjoyable (maybe
30-60 minutes), strolling through various streets and neighborhoods of Rio.
Arriving at Sugar loaf at around 4pm, we were there in perfect time to take in
the sunset at around 5:30pm. Riding the cable cars up the 2 small mountains
offers more stunning views of Rio – admittedly in very hot, cramped quarters.
Arriving on the first of the two mountains, you are surrounded by food and
drink shops, as well as benches and lounge chairs to relax and take in the
views. Journeying to the second (taller) mountain, gives you the opportunity to
wander through some native Rio flora in their ‘nature park’. We were lucky to
spot some lizards crawling around rocks before we came across what everyone
wants to see – wild marmosets! The cute little creatures were swinging and
jumping around trees, having a great time – until the crowds started to gather
around us, clearly interested in what I was filming! After the encounter with
the little primates – we observed, the best we could, the famous sunset.
Unfortunately much of the tall sugar loaf mountain was under construction
(surprise) so we could not capture the best shots.
We headed back down the mountains and decided once again to
walk back to Copacabana. At this point we have an hour long journey through the
darkening streets of Rio – and we felt completely safe. Most anecdotal stories
everyone seems to hear about muggings are just that – anecdotes. Rio has for
many years been a safe place to travel, and as long as you’re not flaunting
cash from your open front pockets, you’ll be alright. We arrived in Copacabana
– and suddenly decided, even though exhausted, to go to Lapa. Lapa is a very famous district for food and frivolity. We
take the metro north toward Carioca and emerge from the underground into live music and drunken revelry. We choose a restaurant with live music and grab
some drinks – chilling out to the sweet, sharp sounds of the band. In front of
the band were couples swinging, twirling, and dancing around, having a gay old
time. We decided – it’s in our best interest to leave the dancing to these
seemingly professional dancers. We eventually call it a night as our eyelids
began to droop, after a long fulfilling day, and hike back up those darn 10
flights of stairs.
