Everyone has an idea of what Rio de Janeiro is like during the World Cup, with the massive parties on Copacabana, the violent protests, and the hordes of tourists. While living in Rio for a month I took my camera around everywhere, attempting to shed light on the other side of Rio, the real Rio, the one not seen on TV or in the newspapers. Here is my portrait of Rio de Janeiro.
Photos by Walker Dawson
There is not other way of putting it, Rio de Janeiro is one of the world’s best cities. It’s equal parts first world and third world, part European, part Latin, and part African. It flows to the beat of Samba and Funky, and enjoys hands down the greatest setting of any city in the world. It is far from perfect, the crime rate is high, the poor are mistreated by the military and police, and the economic disparities are some of the most extreme on the planet, but it is those exact tensions and contrasts that make Rio endlessly fascinating. At the end of the day, Cariocas (a resident of Rio) seem to put these differences aside in favor of white sand beaches, the warm Atlantic water and the vibrant nightlife.
The upper middle class neighborhood of Urca is an unexpected delight. It has beautiful treelined streets with local neighborhood restaurants and bars (make sure to check out Bar Urca where you can sit on the sea wall overlooking of Rio and the Christ the Redeemer statue). But what makes this neighborhood great is its setting. It is situated on the end of a narrow peninsula between the iconic Pão de Açúcar/Sugarloaf mountain and the bay.
This is the most typical of neighborhoods on this list, but it must be mentioned. This is what Rio de Janeiro is famous for; if you’ve seen this city in a movie or on a postcard, it was probably from Copacabana. Here lies one of the greatest stretches of urban beach anywhere in the world. One minute you are underground, packed like a sardine at rush hour on a crowded subway car, and the next minute you are riding waves in clear, warm water with white sands, palm trees and blue skies. An added bonus is that the people are beautiful, the juices are plentiful and otherworldly and the setting is spectacular. This is why people come to Rio, and I can understand why.
For a city of 12.5 million, the downtown of Rio may seem disappointing at first (the skyline could be compared to a mid sized American city such as Cincinnati or Denver), but what it lacks in soulless skyscrapers, it makes up for with history and old world charm. This is the historical heart of Rio de Janeiro, and some might argue all of Brazil, but this isn’t like the tacky tourist joints of the North End in Boston, or Midtown Manhattan where teeshirt shops outnumber locals, these streets are rough, with homeless men smoking crack, people shuffling through garbage and the walls are covered in graffiti. But pause for a second and you will find over 400 years of Portuguese and Brazilian history all around you.
If there is a crazier party strip in Latin America I’d like to see it. Lapa is where Cariocas of all walks of life come to party and be merry. The sounds of Samba flood into the street, strangers meet and begin dancing, people sip caipirinhas while chewing on grilled meat from migrants from Brazil’s Northeast, transsexuals sell themselves on street corners in skimpy dresses, and in the shadows crack dealers sell their goods. It’s a crazy mix that must be experienced, preferably with a sweet caipirinha in your hand.
This bohemian hood of narrow, 100 year old cobble stone streets is Rio’s crowned jewel. This is a neighborhood of poets, writers, artists, and those who inhabit crumbling, turn of the century mansions. This neighborhood would certainly take the cake as one of the worlds great neighborhoods. Make sure to check out Largo do Guimarães and Largo das Neves, two old squares with bohemian bars (Bar do Gomez) and restaurants (Bar do Mineiro). Our personal favorite is Largo das Letras, a wonderful place where music dances through a library like setting and caipirinhas flow freely.
Stay tuned for our neighborhood review of Sao Paulo.
A short video of our journey up one of Rio’s most dramatic peaks.
Music:
Sonida del Sol ft. Ryan Herr & Saqi by The Polish Ambassador.
Its hard to believe that my time in Rio has reached the half way point. I’ve been so preoccupied with the World Cup that I have yet to visit any of the classic tourist sites in Rio, which I’m totally okay with. Instead we’ve been catching the bus to Copacabana. Our first stop is usually a cafe two blocks from the beach.
A delicious fresh fruit smoothie, coffee with milk, and tasty ham and cheese pastry is my go to breakfast. The açaí and chocolate chip smoothie is my favorite, but you really can’t go wrong with any juice you choose.
Next we join throngs of fans from around the world headed to the beach to watch the games and soak up the warm winter sun. The Argentinians are the most obnoxious and the Chileans are the loudest. Chanting chi chi chi le le le, viva Chile!, non stop. Everyone, including myself has been really impressed by the number of USA fans in Rio. Aside from the aforementioned teams, we have been the loudest and biggest fan base, which makes watching USA games really exciting. One of the coolest and most unique aspects of the World Cup is that it brings together people from all over the world. Where else can you meet a bunch of Bosnians, Algerians, Colombians, and Nigerians in a matter of minutes?
There is a giant walled Fifa Fan Fest at the start of Copacabana beach sporting a giant screen, between game concerts and host of dumb activities to waste your money on. Fifa doesn’t allow soccer balls inside and the beer is way more expensive. So the best option is to avoid going inside and walk around to the beach side. There is nothing better than buying a Caipirinha from a makeshift rasta bar on the beach, and taking a dip in the warm Atlantic, all while watching soccer.
Quick Travel Tip: We found our awesome place on AirBnb and could not be happier. Many other people we talked to did the same and also highly recommend it. If you are coming to Brazil definitely check AirBnb for your accommodation.
I’m not sure what the reporting has been like back in the States, but there have been very few protests here in Rio. The majority of Brazilians appear to be really enjoying the cup so far. Everyone is rocking Brazil jerseys, lots of Brazilians from all over the state of Rio show up at the Fan Fest cheering on other teams and party, restaurants are packed with people watching the games and there are Brazil flags everywhere. However, there are plans to stage a protest at Maracana this Sunday to prepare for the big one on the day of the final, which takes place at Maracana.
That being said, the World Cup has done little to quell the brutality of the police. It has simply directed attention elsewhere. The other day a little boy was shot in a favela near us. He didn’t die, but Patrick fears that he will disappear tonight. The same cops that shot him are working again and he thinks that they will attempt to get rid of the evidence. While the pacification of Rio’s favelas has made a few safer, ultimately it has just pushed the violence to the once quiet and peaceful suburbs of Rio as the drug dealers flee the city.
Rio is so crazy because there are people living in Barra de Tijuca, suburban sprawl on Rio’s west side that is nicer than Miami, completely oblivious to brutality and unaccountability of the police on the north side. Its as if you are traveling internationally between to vastly different countries when you take a bus from Barra to Maracana. Never before have I experienced such stark contrasts, astonishing inequality and immeasurable beauty.
Patrick joined us in the living room as we kicked back and watched the end of the friendly between Fluminsense and Italy. As we cracked open a couple nearly frozen Antarctica beers, he explained that he usually doesn’t drink beer, however he was growing anxious about upcoming protests and World Cup. On Tuesday a group of Indios are planning to retake Aldeia Maracanã, a castle like building adjacent to Maracanã Stadium. They were forcibly removed in 2013 and relocated in preparation for the World Cup. The government intended to build a shopping center on the site, but they have been lagging so far behind in construction that the building is still standing.
As Patrick rolled another long joint to calm his nerves, he mentioned that the Indians were not the only people forcibly removed from the area around Maracanã in preparation for the World Cup. In fact, over 1000 families had been kicked out of the Favela do Metrô, the neighborhood located below where we are staying and the stadium. The government wanted to kick more people out to build a giant parking lot, but some community members fought back and won the right to remain in their homes. The government sidestepped the issue by building a unnecessarily gigantic metro stop and a overpass, accepting that if they can’t demolish the whole neighborhood they can at least block tourist from seeing it.
When a families home is destroyed, the government relocates them to outskirts of Rio, areas “dominated by paramilitary groups. made up of crazed firefighters and police officers. It’s like a concentration camp, no schools, no nothing, just forrest all around.”
This is not an isolated incident, all across Rio the government is demolishing neighborhoods,constructing unnecessary highways and noise barriers to create the illusion that Rio is just Copacabana in preparation for the World Cup and Olympics. They are spending billions of dollars to fuck over the poor in Rio instead of using the money to improve social services in underserved communities. Pacification Police (UPP) have invaded the favelas closest to tourist areas. Although the came to bring peace, all they brought was violence and life under a military occupation.
In 2007 there were 20,000 police in Rio, now there are 100,000. Police are stationed on every corner, but it is as dangerous as it has ever been. The UPP routinely get high on cocaine at night and shoot people with cellphones believing that they are armed.
Brazil did not have a culture of protest, however Rio’s residents are quickly realizing that increased enforcement is not the way to go and the resentment and protests are growing rapidly. During the Confederations Cup last year, a preparatory tournament for the World Cup, what started out as a 200 person protest over increased bus fares grew into movement of 1 million strong in just 20 days. It opened many people’s eyes to the injustices of the government and the protest movement has been amplifying ever since.
Hours and joints kept passing by as we watched Patricks crazy videos of the protests in Rio. Eventually we ran out of beer and decided to hit up the pizzeria on the corner. As we stepped out of the house, the cop who lives next door gave Patrick a dirty look. Patrick had decided to rock a shirt with the World Cup logo, but instead of a ball, the football player is kicking a bomb. Underneath it says ‘fuck the World Cup’. The lady working at the pizza place told Patrick come by during the World Cup, because they’ll have specials and open up earlier than usual. “I’ll be filming the protests,” Patrick responded, “you should have a special that when you buy a pizza you enter to win a gas mask.”
Patrick has been filming with black bloc protesters for the last seven years. His production company is the biggest one of its kind in Brazil showing the struggle from the people’s perspective. He is always at the protest’s front lines, getting the most insane footage and producing journalistic videos, posting them online the same day, and selling the footage to new agencies around the world. If you are looking for protest footage or connections in Rio, he’s the only guy to talk to. He has is no competition. Now he pays four people to film here in Rio and two in Sao Paulo.
There is an unbelievable amount of pressure on the Brazil team to win the World Cup. If they are kicked out early Rio will explode in anger. The government must be praying frantically for a win so that all the destruction and pain caused by the World Cup can somehow be justified and the country doesn’t plummet into chaos.
