Rio de Janeiro

As described by LP, Rio really is the Cidade Maravilhosa!
Planted between lush, forest-covered mountains and breathtaking beaches, the Cidade Maravilhosa (Marvelous City) has many charms at her disposal.
We love it. The busy beach of Copacabana, where everyone is keeping active. Running, biking, surfing or using the outdoor gym. Latest at lunch we realize why… Is there any food that is not fried or covered with cheese? But who cares, t-shirts are optional and shorts very short, even for the beach police. Without their impressive batons, you wouldn’t recognize them as police.
We visit the top of the Leme fort to get a view from above – still marvelous. We see our first wildlife, the very cute marmosets (Seidenäffchen). After a quick lunch of fried fish and a “salad” made out of tomatoes and onion, and a quick nap, we go for another view from above, the Pão de Açúcar. And we queue. The sun sets and we still queue. Finally into the gondola, feeling slightly relieved that it was built by Italians with Swiss electronics, it’s a long way down. Up we go, queue some more for the upper gondola and drinks. By now it’s pitch dark but the view is great. More queuing on the way back and finally in the hotel.