Welcome

This blog starts from the time I spent in Baghdad 2006 to 2007, when I wanted to record some thoughts and give friends the inside mail on a crazy environment. Since then, after some time out from a broken ankle and between times working in London, I've been on the road again around eastern Europe, NZ and South America. So far. This continues with the hope of telling anyone who's interested about the new places I'm seeing and the people who make them interesting.

On the right you can find links to previous posts. I need to figure out how to get the order of current posts right. Maybe having used this for a few years it's the kind of thing I should have sussed...

Thanks for looking. Enjoy!

Wednesday 4 March 2009

Rio Part II. The end of the road. For now.

I´m back in Rio for a few days before heading back to London, work and the real world. Paraty was relaxed which was just what the medico ordered. I was a bit crook there - maybe my body was telling me something. Maybe it was telling me I shouldn't have gone at it like that in Rio, but maybe it was telling me I shouldn't have stopped....



I decided to treat myself for my last 4 days back in Rio and checked into a sweet hotel with a pool on the roof and waiters that emphasise the bowing. I figured it would be good for me to relax for a few days before heading back to work.

Corcovado has a commanding view over Rio, and since 1931 has been home to the iconic statue of Christ the Redeemer. At 130 feet tall and 98 feet wide, it's almost the biggest of its kind and took 9 years to complete. A cable car takes you to the top and back, full of tour group cameras madly clicking away as if the tour group's life depended on it, each click presumably being barely different from the last.



The views from Corcovado can be a bit hit and miss depending on how hazy it is. And it's usually hazy.



On one side towards the Macarana stadium was really hazy but on the other side, towards Ipanema and Copacabana was clearer.



Sugarloaf also has amazing views of the city and its beaches and hours passed quickly taking it all in. The sun set in a line back towards Corcovado which was pretty special.



The night lights are something too. It must be amazing to be a pilot and see the city lights in a night landing in Rio.



It's a city of contrasts, as cliched as that might sound. Like many big cities all over the world, there's an uncomfortable coexistence of uber wealth and desperate poverty. And with that comes plenty of crime. All of this set among one of the most stunning cities you can imagine.



There are birds with big wingspans that ride the thermal currents all over Rio, and you can spend ages watching them at Corcovado and Sugarloaf. I tried to get all National Geographic on them.





And like one of these I'll be taking to the air tonight back to London. It´s been an amazing few months so I can´t complain. I never made it to Bolivia, Peru or Colombia, but they´ll all be here for next time. I loved Argentina and of course BA. Patagonia was stunning and seeing it with my brother made it even better, and I ended up having a great time in Rio too. I'll miss good cheap steak and wine, the nightlife - la nocturna, being surrounded by different languages and las mujeres. I'll miss the lazy evenings and the big nights too.

But, as you do, I'm already thinking of next time.