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Level 7

Rio De Janeiro - Downtown , the other side of Rio

Downtown Rio , From Marina De GloriaDowntown Rio , From Marina De Gloria

Downtown Rio is just as wonderful as its famous beaches . So don't think that you will spend all your time on Copacabana and Ipanema and just dismiss downtown Rio.

Rio has some amazing art galleries and museums. I cannot tell you how many i went into ,Centro Cultural Municipal Parque das Ruínas - Or Cultural Opera House at the park of RuinsCentro Cultural Municipal Parque das Ruínas - Or Cultural Opera House at the park of Ruins

Centro Cultural Municipal Parque das Ruínas - Was an amazing place I found by accident. One of the things i always do when exploring a new city or town , is make my way to the highest point I can get to , as usually on the way one always finds amazing places , and when you get to the highest point , you look around , soak in the scenery , and then always see another highest point , and I would make my way to that one.

I found this opera house at the top of the St Theresa Hill. It was open to the public and had some spectacular views of the whole of Rio from the very top of the building. This was the residence of  Laurinda Santos Lobo. She would invite all manner of people to her house , artists , intellectuals and poets , After her death the house stood empty and went to ruins for over 40 years before the Rio Municipality bought the building . 1997 the former house was transformed into a cultural center, designed after the winning project of architect Ernani Freire, who kept the structure of the ruins and added a contemporary look.The inside space of the Parque das RuínasThe inside space of the Parque das Ruínas

 

I was especially blown away by the Private Collection of works at the Top of St Theresa's hill . Museu da Chácara do Céu -  If you take a walkway into the trees of the house next door you will see the most amazing collection of artworks that you can get up and very close to. Bodins , marats , Degas , Vermeers , Picassos , and loads more ..  Be totally amazed at this astounding collection . The house and every room is under surveillance , so although the art work is hanging on the wall , you could touch it , but i would not recommend it as someone is always watching


S tTheresa Rio JaneiroS tTheresa Rio Janeiro

 

Poet , Photographer , Artist , Videographer , Sailor .
Rio de Janeiro, State of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
5 comments
Connect Moderator

Re: Rio De Janeiro - Downtown , the other side of Rio

Awesome post @Mongoose thanks for sharing. It is always interesting to see the gems that travellers have found on their travels. Things locals might know about but perhaps don't reveal.

Google Vendor

Re: Rio De Janeiro - Downtown , the other side of Rio

Cool post, thank you for sharing it with us @Mongoose. What did you like the most and what was the best part of your trip?

Due to the volume of private messages Google Moderators receive, I do not read or respond to private messages. Please post publicly so others may benefit from your discussion. If you require urgent assistance, please tag a Google Moderator. Thank you!
Level 7

Re: Rio De Janeiro - Downtown , the other side of Rio

 

Lapa , Downtown Rio , Dance in the street , SambaLapa , Downtown Rio , Dance in the street , Samba


I figured out that Rio is not what it seems to be. Its extremely layered and very complex.. Sure I might have a few things wrong , but what I started to figure out was this strange beautiful hidden side to Rio.
Its like a City that has this public , presentable touristy face , but if you look a bit deeper and take the time to listen and you start to see pretty amazing things.
Local artists often paint pictures of Rios Downtown streets with Kites fluttering in the air.  Now the tourist love there pictures , but if you know WHY those kites were in the air , its pretty scary.
Local kids were hired by Drug Dealers to Fly their little kites way above the house to warn the drug dealers of incoming police units. In my walks around the city , I would often hear kids excitedly talking and a Kite would pop into the air in a road just ahead of me. I always suspected that the kids were warning the crime lords nearby that I was approaching . I  always have a very fast walk and aggressive type body language when talking these rough streets. . My Camera would be in a special bag under my arm , my one hand across my chest and holding my camera that was not visible. I think about it now , It must have looked like i had my hand on a gun in a hostler , In my 2 or so months there , I has only harassed once ( and Rescued by three massive Transvestite Prostitutes who I always greeted when crossing the park into the city. , I bought the three some beers as a thank you while trying to fend off some very frisky hands , but I love people like this , they have lived hard lives and if you treat them right , they will look after you in a weird way)The Locals looking after the StraysThe Locals looking after the Strays

Walk around the city and one sometimes comes across a Park that would be full of cats or dogs .  There was hundreds of cats in the one park , and some very kind souls in the surrounding flats would come down and feed and take care of these abandoned or unwanted cats. What I found so wonderful was that some old men would be playing games of Chess in the shaded areas , and surrounded by cats , a cat on a guys lap here , a little girl would be petting a curious affectionate cat while mom looked on. Although these animals were strays , they were looked after and given affection by locals in the surrounding flats. This was just the normal everyday thing   , it wasn't an issue or a problem ..Whenever i say these ladies helping the cats , I would always greet them , "Hola , Nao falo portugues " ( I don't speak portuguese) and give them what ever change i had in my pocket and say gato cats .. thank you . My money would be graciously accepted and I sometimes got embarrassed as  one lady would tell her friend , and then i would be given a hug and thank you ...  This is the side of Rio that many don't see , it such a wonderful and beautiful side of the Locals.

A Beautiful Church , down town RioA Beautiful Church , down town Rio

If you visit downtown , poke your head into every church that you can , politely knock  if door is closed and if the door is not locked be totally blown away. One would find two stunning ornately and rich ly very stunning interiors , th churches would be right next to each other. Both Catholic , one to maybe a Saint Jerome , and the other to The Virgin Mary.
I was able to find out that Rios beautiful churches survive from donations from locals looking for blessings and penance. BUT if one looks a little closer , many of the Churches have Two Religions . The old nature god and goddesses , a mix of gods brought from Africa when slaves were brought to this city and then also a strong Catholic  presence . A Stain would be the patron of a church , but quietly and unobtrusively superimposed over an old nature goddess. Tithes or offerings would be placed or offered to statues or egafies in the Church and I sometimes would see Black Candles  burning and spluttering in hidden corners of the outside walls of the church.
I do stand to be corrected by it seems that the Catholic Church knew that they would never be able to survive and be able to afford the upkeep of all the churches in the city , so this strange true would be in place  allowing the old gods and the new one to be worshiped under the same roof.
On Fridays there would be ladies who dressed in brilliant white lace tops and head bands would sell food stuffs with strong hints of Caribbean foods. The Friday ladies would be collecting and generating money for some of the many old nature worshiping religions . I always marveled how similar the fridays ladies would resemble Voodoo Priestesses I would see in Haiti many years ago.

Nothing is simple in Rio , If you look you will see many solutions that the locals have devised to make Rio what it is today. Its not perfect . but this city has deep beautiful multi layered history and manages to always be half in the fantastical musical and magical past and still be pushing its corporate and industrial side to a modern bright future


Poet , Photographer , Artist , Videographer , Sailor .
Level 6

Re: Rio De Janeiro - Downtown , the other side of Rio

really impressive @Mongoose. As a Brazilian, I think this a great contribution. People from around the world tend to know only Rio and only Copacabana. Great job!

Former Google Contributor

Re: Rio De Janeiro - Downtown , the other side of Rio

Hey @Mongoose

 

Good post. Thank you for sharing 🙂 

 

Just wanted to let you know that I will remove the Portuguese language label from your post, because you are writing in English. The label should reflect the language in which the post is written. 

 

You are more than welcome to write in Portuguese, or any other language, as you know, all languages are welcome on Connect. You can find posts in a particular language here: How do I find posts in my preferred language?

Due to the volume of private messages Google Moderators receive, I do not read or respond to private messages. Please post publicly so others may benefit from your discussion. If you require urgent assistance, please tag a Google Moderator. Thank you!