Rio De Janeiro

April 21, 2025

Farewell Argentina, Hola Brazil. Where it is currently raining at a rate that makes Scotland feel like a desert, despite being a ridiculous 24° even at 10pm. I'm not sure I've ever been on the 37th floor of a hotel before but with a view along Copacabana Beach I'm sure I'll cope...

Tomorrow, a city tour here. The guide has suggested raincoats. The Scottish crew have laughed.

Those of us of a certain vintage will remember when Bond movies were released every two years, with the book locations increasingly replaced by an exotic vista. According to lore, the Broccoli family chose a location and then worked out how to place Bond into it. Those of us of a certain vintage will also probably remember the fight with Jaws (the man, not the shark) on a cable car below Sugarloaf Mountain in Rio in Moonraker. (That particular film also featured Bond hang gliding off the Iguazu Falls, while Jaws went over them, but that detail had escaped my memory). At the time of filming, the cable cars had only been in situ for a few years; a pretty impressive coup for the city and a memorable backdrop.

Those of you who've spent time with me in Chamonix will also remember that cable cars and funicular railways are not exactly my favourite thing. The other iconic landmark of the city - the great statue of Christ the Redeemer - is reached by funicular. It's been an interesting day....

The number of people spent their holiday with their back to the view, while they took that all important selfie, or had photos taken of them…. What a waste. At Christ the Redeemer there was an actual queue for a perfectly posed photo in front of the statue. Instagram has a lot to answer for.

Whilst I'd been able to see the statue before breakfast from my room (it's smaller than you think it is), low clouds had covered the hilltops before we got there. Rio is built around numerous steep mountains, which are still covered in tropical rain forest. All of the official residential properties sit in the flatter plains between them, with only the lawless favelas snaking up into the greenery. Although the most notorious favela now sits under the watchful eyes of the police headquarters built on the high pass between two summits above the favela itself.

In Buenos Aires I felt safe walking alone in the evening in the city centre, despite the dumpster divers and barefoot sleeping homeless people. Here, not so much. It feels different, darker, despite the sunshine. There's more litter, more broken pavements, more traffic horns - your average Rio driver probably wouldn't feel too out of place in Mumbai. It's also confusing geographically, with the city neighbourhoods curving around an endless series of bays and lagoons, roads almost doubling back on themselves.

But it's stunning. And here's today's random fact, it's the only place that has ever been the capital city of a European country, whilst not being in Europe. Blame Napoleon for invading Portugal and driving out the royal family.

I'm reasonably sure that Rio is the only capital city that has an urban rainforest as one of its parks. To be accurate the Tijuca National Park is only partially in the city; much of the city's rainforest is not in the park, and the park is much bigger than the bit in the city. Remarkably it's also one of the oldest and most successful rewilding projects in history.

In the early centuries of colonisation, the local forests were cleared for fuel, coffee plantations and other agriculture. However with the loss of the forest, many of the small streams that provided the city with its water supply were also lost, along with their ability to absorb sudden rainfall, leaving the city vulnerable to both water shortages and flash floods. So in the 1860s, six slaves were put to work planting over one hundred thousand trees over a quarter century. And now, the forest looks like it never left. Even one of those original trees survives to this day, towering above its neighbours. According to the jeep tour guide, it also grants one wish if you ask politely. A Polish girl on the tour had been hoping to see monkeys; presumably that's what she wished for as a family suddenly appeared in the trees above, chattering and jumping.

In the afternoon, a leisurely stroll along the beach to a distant fort at the other end of Copacabana. Although no longer an active defence base, the large 20th century guns capable of firing over 14 miles are still in situ. Oddly enough, it also has an excellent cafe overlooking the beach, so that's where I choose to have an early dinner. I could get very used to strawberry caipirinha, but I also think that one is quite enough, that sugar cane spirit is fierce.

So now I'm back at the hotel, listening to the samba drums at the numerous beach bars and wondering how late a Friday night in Rio goes on for. Also wondering how much chaos the Heathrow closure is going to cause. It feels impossible but I'm supposed to be on a plane tomorrow evening....

I've a long tradition of paddling in new seas as I find them. So this morning, pre-breakfast, I wandered along Copacabana and got my feet wet. Actually most of me up to my waist got wet, the waves were bit ferocious. Some things have to be done... Yes, the water absolutely *was* that colour, and entirely clear.

It also made sense to go to the matching fort at the other end of the beach after breakfast. Said fort being at the top of a 100 metre hill surrounded by more rainforest. It was a very slow walk as a result. Which meant I got to see this little fellow in a tree, while his big brother raided the nearby bin without a hint of guilt. And the butterflies, giant ones with brilliant blue wings the size of a hand. The views over the city were spectacular.