went to Rio de Janeiro for the long weekend. it was fucking awesome.
it's so infinitely superior to Sao Paulo in almost every aspect, it's not even funny. the dramatic natural setting, with the lakes, hills, forests and bays, and the city, nestled there in between, like specks of paint on a privileged natural canvas, is just unbelievably beautiful. everyone is gorgeous. they have a bit of a (charming, obviously) Portuguese twang to their Brazilian accent.
loved the time at the hostel. first time i met and hung out with a large hostel group. dunno if i was lucky or had simply been doing it wrong so far.
hiked/climbed (last 20-30 meters) up Pedra da Gavea (840 metres high), awesome experience, i think i will try to incorporate this kind of stuff into my future trips, when possible.
the big-city-ish central district was completely unexpected. i've never been to NYC but what I saw in Rio was more or less what i imagine that city to be like in the busy avenues with tall buildings and shit.
beach was great (hard to believe this is what they call winter!), and the nightlife is varied, from street stuff in Lapa (a lot like Lisbon's Bairro Alto), to samba stuff to fancy-pants dance clubs with the usual pop music.
all in all, easily one of the best trips i've ever done, right up there with my favourites from Mexico and France. if you get the chance to visit Rio, do it!
