A Day of Wonderfully Mixed Treats in Rio!

Tuesday, June 4, 2019

Rio de Janeiro

A Day of Wonderfully Mixed Treats in Rio!

Bom Dia from Rio de Janeiro!

Rain has been dogging us since our arrival in this vibrant city. But, being the seasoned travelers we are, we know how to dodge it in the most effective ways. Today was a good example.

Awake at about 8.00 (Llew—for me, its still 5.30 am), I got down to a bit of blogging. Also downloaded The Times of London to find out what Trump has been up to in London. Then it was time for brekkie (as the rain came down) with muesli and passion fruit yogurt. Dressed (I wish I had thrown on a cardigan as it turned cooler as the day went by), we were out. Armed with our public transport card, Llew and I found Gloria metro station at the bottom of the hill that is Rua Candido Mendes and rode it for one stop to Cinelandia. Had it not been raining, we’d have walked there, of course. Our aim was to wait out the rain at the Museum of Fine Arts which is open today (as all museums are in the city). Since it opens at 10.00 am, we had about a half hour for a quick coffee.

Coffee at Amelhino de Cinelandia:

This coffee-shop was recommended by the guide book Llew carried along, as a good place to get a coffee while seated on the pavement watching the artistic world go by in the space outside Cinelandia metro station right opposite the Municipal Theater. As it turned out, the sogginess of the day drove us inside but the coffee was hot and good and we found fine use of our time as we planned our day—given the vagaries of the weather. Half an hour later, we were ready to stroll across the street to the Museum to begin our browsing into the world of Brazilian fine arts.

Exploring the Museum of Fine Arts:

As happens in many parts of the world, Llew and I were allowed free entry into the Museum of Fine Arts on the strength of my Metropolitan Museum ID card. I have been to this museum before (four years ago) and I remember how much I had loved it and its collection. It is a vast space, set in what was obviously a palace for the exterior (in Baroque mode) and the interior details (fabulous plaster of Paris cherubs, family crests, crown molding, etc.) tell of its former use as a colonial building. It was only the efforts of a bunch of Rio artists that led to its conversion into a fine arts museums. There are vast halls and galleries inside and what also looks like a judging chamber in a small court.

Here are my highlights—the ones that caught my eye.

1. The lovely Cast Courts: There are two of these. They feature plaster casts of some of the world’s most famous sculpture from some of the most famous museums in the world. What caught our eye was Laocoon and His Sons and The Wrestlers from the Vatican Museum, Venus di Milo and The Winged Victory of Samotrace from the Louvre and Michelangelo’s The Prisoner from the Academia in Venice. 
2. Absolutely stunning ceramic vase—the largest specimen I have ever seen, it had an entire gallery to itself. There was no literature available about it in the room and so I have no idea what it is all about. It depicted Beethoven and seemed to be devoted to a musical theme—there were Harmony and Music personified as 18th century women, seated at a harpsichord at the base of the vase. The size, the detail, the creativity and craftsmanship were so intense that if I had not seen one more item in this Museum, I would have had my fill of artistic delights for the day. It was simply brilliant and I took many pictures. Imagine a towering vase (at least 5 feet tall) placed on a towering pedestal. The background is glazed cobalt blue, the lavish embossed three-dimensional decoration all around it and on its base is in soft shades of sky blue and white. It is quite the most glorious example of ceramic art that I have ever seen (and I am a real lover of ceramics). It reminded me a little bit of the gorgeous staircase in the Victoria and Albert Museum in London that, I believe, is the work of either Proctor or Gamble (or both).     
3. Interactive Wall of Glass Bottles: This was such a fantastic piece of art installation that I fell in love with it and had to become a part of it at once. It is a mirrored wall that contains glass shelves. On the shelves are glass bottles with various colored glass stoppers that look like perfume bottles. On the lower two shelves are smaller bottles with cork stoppers in small sizes. In each of the bottles, you will find something tucked. I read the label and it explained that visitors are welcome to place something in a bottle that represents ‘scent’ or our olfactory sense. In this way, the art work will grow and become interactive. I loved the concept and searched in my pockets for something I could add. I found a discount coupon for purchases from the Boots store at Heathrow airport in London that would give me discounts on their No. 7 range of skin products (which I use). This was simply perfect. It represents the sense of smell that attracts me to these skin cosmetics which was in-keeping with the thematic concept of this installation and it represented a ery personal part of who I am. We inserted the little coupon into the bottle (never to be removed again) and were given a sheet of paper on which we had to give details about our addition. Each bottle has a number at the base—so the curator, in the end, will know exactly what the contents of every single bottle on those shelves are all about. Isn’t that a simply fantastic idea? I loved it!
4. A series of glass art by Josely Carvalho. These were objects in blown glass that were scattered all over the Museum in a special exhibition. They features very delicate glass objects in curving, globular shapes that were usually placed on a bed of what looked like fine salt. Smaller—really tiny—glass beads then filled some of the hollowed crevices of the objects. It was all very ingeniously conceived and because I love glass (almost as much as I love ceramics), I found it all quite delightful.
5. An untitled work by Anish Kapoor. This featured a huge mirrored concave bowl with shining reflective surfaces that was placed against a wall. Anish Kapoor who was born in Bombay, India, and made London his home, is also responsible for the Acelor Mital Orbit sculpture in the Queen Elizabeth II Olympics Park in Stratford in London. 
6. On the top floor are the bulk of the paintings of which we liked the two large canvasses—one of which was by Pedro Americo on the Battle of Avai (which is considered the largest painting in the world done on an easel). The artists depicts himself in the foreground wearing a cap with the No. 33 on it. 
7. A another huge canvas depicted Victor Meirelles depiction of The Battle of Guararappes done in 1878.It is also huge and very impressive.
8. Judith with the Head of Holophenes. I do not remember the name of the painter.
9. The First Mass in Brazil. I loved this painting then and I loved it this time too. It is by Victor Mereilles and it depicts the Jesuits arriving on the shores of Brazil and saying their first mass at a hastily-erected altar while the natives look on.
10. The machete depicting Gloria (the Glory of the Republic) by an Italian sculptor whose name I do not remember was very attractive to me. Imagine my thrill when I saw the real thing in Gloria Park at the end of the day when Llew and I got off the bus and made our way home.There were many other paintings of this kind for the Museum is devoted to Brazilian historical art and its many forms.

There were a bunch of other works that caught my eye and, had I more time, I would no doubt have spent the entire day on this lovely collection. But we had to leave and before we strayed too far from the grand area filled with Baroque 19th century buildings, we decided to encircle the Municipal Theater to take in, once again, the design that was inspired by Paris’ Opera Garnier. The rain had stopped and we thought it sensible to take advantage of good weather—who knows how long it would last. So off we went to Copacabana.

Exploring Copacabana—One of the World’s Most Famous Beaches:

We took the metro from Cinelandia station to Cardeal Arcoverde station from where we walked for about ten minutes before the beach at Copacabana came into sight. Needless to say, in the winter, with the frequent wet spells this city has been having, there was no one on the beach. We had one of the world’s most famous beaches entirely to ourselves as giant jade waves lashed the shore leaving foamy frills behind. We enjoyed the sight of the many islands that dot the sea off the coast of Rio and behind us, the curvature of one of the snazziest water fronts in the world. The beach is wide and the sand pristine. A few pictures later, we were off. Since neither one of us had carried swimming gear or intended to take a dip, all we did was admire the grandeur of the waterside buildings.

A Rest in the Copacabana Hotel Palace:

I do recall tasking a rest, when I was in Rio the last time, in the Copacabana Palace Hotel that has played host to some of the world’s most recognizable people from heads of state and members of royalty to sportsmen and entertainers. There is a Wall of Fame on the first floor that can be accessed via a very pretty staircase that leads from the spiffy marble lobby. We climbed the stairs and spent a while looking at the pictures before we took a bit of a rest on one of the sofas dotting the lobby on the top. It was good to be able to have a bit of a sit-down as the damp sand did not even allow us to enjoy that small pleasure when we were at the beach.  

Lunch at Copacabana Fort:

It was lunch time and we were both hungry by this point and decided to take the advice of our friend Rosana who suggested we eat at the restaurant at Copacabana Fort which lies at the extreme end of the beach on the promontory that juts out into the water. She said that while the military and naval bases there are closed to the public anyone can enjoy the cafes.

Since it was a very long way to the Fort from where we were, we hopped into a bus that went along the inner street and dropped us off not too far from our desired spot. At this point, we were afforded even more stunning views of the entire C-shaped curve that is the beach of Copacabana. In fact, by this point, the sun was out again and we were able to get some lovely pictures of one of the ritziest parts of the city.

We then made our way on foot to the entrance of the Fort. As they did in Goa, so too in their other colonies, the Portuguese chose these locations to build forts to keep conquerors and enemies away. This one is very well-preserved and we discovered, soon enough, that it contains a lovely Museum of Military History which is also open to the public. However, we were famished and were ready to eat a horse—so it was to the restaurant that we headed.

And when we got there, we realized that it was actually a small branch of the Confiteria Colombe that we had visited yesterday at its flagship location. Not to be daunted, I ordered my first caprinha—the national cocktail that Brazil has gifted to the world. It is made from cashew fruit juice liqueur (similar, I suppose, to feni in Goa), lots of sugar cane juice and lime juice and is served with plenty of ice. Llew had a glass of wine and the two of us decided to share a giant panini with smoked turkey and ham which came with a small side salad. It was the perfect lunch as we watched other visitors tuck into what looked like giant pastas and salads. With our lunch done and a much-welcomed rest, we were able to move on to the next item on our agenda—but after taking beautiful pictures of ourselves on the parapet facing the grand Copacabana beach.

Visiting the Museum of Military History:

Although it was not on our agenda, we thought that since we were actually passing by the entrance of the Museum of Military History, we ought to visit it. Again, this is the sort of place that lends itself to much time-spending and quiet contemplation. It is a beautifully laid-out and well-curated space filled with life-size mannequins dressed in military costume through the ages as well as a plethora of objects and items that comprise memorabilia of the history of Rio warfare. Students and school children would find this place fascinating, no doubt. We did a quick round of some of the vignettes, strolled through many of the galleries to take in the manner in which the Portuguese engaged with their enemies to acquire and hold on to the colony of Brazil. Through it all, the language (I suppose), made me think I was in Europe. It was with difficulty that I had to keep reminding myself that I was, in fact, in Latin-America.

   The weather was still holding out by the time we finished lunch and decided to scale the heights of the Sugarloaf Mountain. And so began our long journey to get there. 

Getting to Sugarloaf Mountain (Pao de Acuar):

It was a longish walk from the Fort of Copacabana to the Metro station to get the train to Botafogo (which means Cable Car and which is the name of one of the city’s most famous football teams). However, find it we did and off we went on to our destination. 

I remember getting out of the station and finding (with linguistic difficulty), a bus right outside the station that would take me to Urca (which is the place to which one needs to head for an excursion up Sugarloaf Mountain). But this time, we were led to a place a good few blocks and on a street far away from the Metro stop. It turned out to be the 107 bus which one of the bus drivers told us to take. Luckily, a bus was pulling up to the bus stop just as we got there. We jumped in, paid the fare in cash and then enjoyed a ride along the lovely Rio waterfront past beautiful mansions that are now either universities or museums or cultural and educational centers before we arrived at the last stop—Urca.

Once we were there, I did recognize the street and we walked along it to make a sharp right and arrive at the base where tickets for the cable car ride up the mountain can be bought. At about 4.00 pm, most of the crowds for the day had left and we pretty much had the place to ourselves with just a few other visitors ahead of us. We purchased our tickets and followed the route to the embarkation point of the cable car. This was one of the more exciting parts of the excursion because it is not often that one gets the opportunity to take such a ride. The last time Llew and I had done this had been in Seoul, South Korea, when we had taken the cable car up to Seoul Tower from where we had magnificent views of another stunning city.

Exploring Morro de Urca and Sugarloaf Mountain:

As it turns out, the cable car ride up is undertaken in two stages as there are two tiers of mountains to scale before one gets to the top. The two mountains are separated by several hundred meters. As we awaited the car, we were offered a lot of facts on the TV screens that drew your attention. 

The ride to the first tier takes barely three minutes. As the city receded beneath us, it also got darker as twilight fell swiftly over the city and the seascape. We did not spend too much time on this tier—the Morro de Urca—as we did want to get to the final attraction before we lost all light.

So off we raced to the embarkation point for the next tier to Sugarloaf Mountain itself and we were up there in another three minutes in another cable car. Come to think of it, we arrived at this point at the right time—just when the day was dying and dusk was bringing on night-time. The lights started to come up all over the city by the time we reached the top and we were able to get a sense of the day and night time effects from this towering vantage point. In the distance, across the bay, we could see Corcovado and the sculpture of Christ the Redeemer reduced to Lilliputian proportions—no larger than an inch (this was the exact same sight I had seen when we were landing in Rio—so I was not mistaken).  

Unfortunately, the winds were so fierce when we were at the top that it was all we could do to brave them as we took a few pictures and returned to the more sheltered parts of the mountain. We got lovely glimpses of Copacabana Beach and Leme Beach from the top as well as the various lit-up sculptures along the sailing marina in another sheltered cove that was completely dotted with sailing boats. In the distance, across the long bridge that connects mainland Rio with the island of Niteroi, we could see the faint outlines of Oscar Neimeyer’s newly-designed Opera House. It was really more stunning to look at Rio from this point than it had been from Corcovado—that had been my opinion when I had visited, four years ago, and it remained my opinion. 

By the time we had taken our fill of city sights and photographs, darkness had well and truly descended upon the city and we were ready to get down to the base again as the summit was far more uncomfortable (wind and weather-wise) than we would have liked. Still, we were so grateful that there was not a drop of rain and that we were able to continue our sightseeing for the day without a major disruption in our plans.

On the Bus Back to Gloria:

All we had to do then was find a bus that would take us back home as we were really beat by this time and ready to sink down into comfortable sofas again. Luckily, we discovered that the same 107 bus that got us from Botafogo and which terminated at Urca made a turnaround and returned to the city via Gloria. This was simply perfect as it eliminated having to change from bus to metro to get home.

The ride home was simply lovely as we wound through so many picturesque neighborhoods of this beautiful city. Eventually, we arrived at Gloria which I recognized from spying the Church of Our Lady of Gloria high on Gloria Hill. We rang the bell to get the bus to stop and then all it took was a walk across Gloria Park to get home, This was when I spotted the grand sculpture of ‘Gloria’ (the Glory of the Republic) that I had seen in much smaller version in the Museum of Fine Arts in the morning. We took a picture of it and then we continued to get across the park to arrive at the supermarket from where we picked up supplies before getting back home.

We then spent about half an hour with our friend Rosana before she left to go out for the premier of a film made by her friend. Llew and I pulled out the signature burger that we had brought with us from McDonald’s and it made a good light dinner with some fruit before we went to bed feeling as if we had made the most of another wonderful day in Rio.

Hopefully, the weather will continue to hold out tomorrow.

Until tomorrow...