After having left BA for the first time for 7 months (to return for only a couple more days after travelling), I arrived in Rio to meet up with one of my best friends a few days ago. We've done quite a lot so far, but the thing which has stuck out in both our minds as having had the most impact was the tour of one of the favelas (shanty towns).
Now, having seen the movie City of G-d, we were pretty apprehensive (even though it was am official tour) - and as such we didn't even take our cameras or money. It turned out to be... a mistake! Not a mistake to go, though , a mistake not to take money or cameras. In Rocinho, which is the biggest favela in brazil with approximately 200000 people, we saw hospitals, markets, children playing, winding streets with small shops, security cameras and houses with running water and electricity. Whilst some of these houses were often run down, it wasn't nearly as bad as in the movie and the police (perhaps with the Olympics and World Cup in sight) have really stepped up and vastly decreased the drug trade in the area.
We had an excellent tour guide, who took us up to the top of some of the buildings for amazing views - and at the same time explained that buildings are constructed by the locals and pop up as and when, with no respect for other people's property (as demonstrated by some windows being half covered by concrete etc).
My first impressions of rio have been pretty good - it's cleaner than BA although much more expensive - but what the favela citizens have done (with government help) has honestly been an inspiration, turning many of their lives from poverty and squalor to what the tour guide described as something 'approaching middle class'. For those who have heard one of my speeches, it'll probably find its way in there in the future. Anyway - work is over, travelling has begun!
Up next: episode x: Rio pt II (guest blog)
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