March 19, 2025

My friend, Rich Holman shared a comment on our first day in Rio de Janeiro and our trip to Sugar Loaf Mountain. Moonraker was a 1979 film so changes to Sugar Loaf but if you are a James Bond fan enjoy the clip below.

Tom,
There is a very famous scene in one of the earlier James Bond movies where the 7 ft. Jaws thug is beating up James Bond on the cable car going up to Sugar Loaf Mountain. It was in Moonraker and here is a link of that clip. https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=234451615245828

For our second day in Rio de Janeiro, we left the iconic sights and hit the streets for some well-known local attractions.

On first glance, the favela of Tavares Bastos. an impoverished barrio in Rio de Janeiro might not seem as the most hospitable neighborhood for Chongae and I to wander around. Whoever ventures to this area could mistake its somewhat shabby appearance with a crime-ridden favela. However, it is home to a hidden gem, whose visitors often dub it as the single most unique place in all of Rio. Perching atop an unassuming apartment block, The Maze is a breathtaking patchwork of art, strikingly peppered with a glut of stunning vistas. As part of the intricate tilework, ceramic tiles of all colors, shapes and sizes were painstakingly installed piece by piece to create dozens of murals and sculptures.

National Geographic described The Maze as having some of the most “unique and original” architecture in the world and The Maze Live Jazz concert has been cited 7 years running as World Top Jazz Venue by Downbeat Magazine.

Escadaria Selarón, locally known as the ‘Lapa Steps’ for being situated in the Lapa neighborhood of Rio is a set of world-famous ceramic covered stairs. They are the work of Chilean born artist Jorge Selarón who claimed it as “my tribute to the Brazilian people”. In 1990, he began renovating dilapidated steps that ran along the front of his apartment. It started out as a side-project to his main passion, painting, but soon became an obsession. He found he was constantly out of money, so Selarón sold his paintings to fund his project.

There is an interesting Holland America Line (HAL) connection to Jorge Selaron’s story. A German passenger went to the steps and met the artist and asked if he would like some HAL tiles. Years later when she returned, she learned that he had died in 2013 and was buried in a pauper’s grave. Touched by those circumstances she contacted HAL with the story and the CEO helped her to give him a proper burial. Salaron had lived in a rented room along the stairs and now there is a mausoleum with the HAL tiles decorating the stairs up to his room.

Next was off to the two must see beaches in Rio: Copacabana and Ipanema. Copacabana was a typical beach, but Ipanema has an interesting story.

Vinicuis Moraes was a Brazilian poet who frequented the Veloso Bosa Nova club with his friend song writer Tom Jobim for an afternoon cocktail. Each day a “tall and tan and young and lovely” young lady walked by the club on her way to the beach. Moraes and Jobim wrote the Brazilian bossa nova and jazz song “The girl from Ipanema” which won the Grammy for song of the year in 1965. It is believed to be the second-most recorded pop song in history, after “Yesterday” by the Beatles.

Years later Moraes revealed that Helo Pinheiro was “the girl.” She trained as an attorney and became a television personality. She is married and lives in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

Sambodormo is the epicenter of Carnival. It is a street lined by concrete bleachers with 13 grandstands that can seat 90,000 people! The 12 samba schools perform to see who will be named that year’s champion. Samba is only second to soccer in the passion of its followers. Each school parades for an hour and twenty minutes, so the Carnival runs all night long. Each school picks a theme, writes an original samba for the theme and the schools numbering between 4,000- and 5,000-members parade with a series of elaborate homemade floats with drum teams 500 members strong. It is considered the biggest celebration of Carnival in the world, with two million people per day on the streets. The competition is intense. Unfortunately, we arrived 20 days late, so we missed this year’s Carnival.

Chongae and I thought the next best thing was to try and visit one of the Samba Schools and as this year’s competition was complete the strict security details were over (until planning begins for next year’s Carnival) so we were able to see some of this year’s floats being dismantled. I also got to try on my costume to lead next year’s parade. (lol)

Thanks for traveling with us.