The Traveling Martens

Rio, Brasil

Leblon neighborhood, Copacabana Beach, Sugarloaf Mountain, and Christ the Redeemer

We flew into Rio at night and headed to the Leblon Inn. The Leblon neighborhood, just a few blocks from Copacabana beach, is full of little restaurants, bed and breakfasts, and rental units for vacationers. We ate at a fun restaurant there called Sushi Leblon, a trendy sushi restaurant there.

We woke up each morning and went for a walk along the boardwalk of Copacabana beach. There were surf lessons, volleyball lessons and a muscle beach outdoor gym right on the sand. Rio seemed very healthy with everyone being active and eating lots of fruit (helpful when wearing very small bikinis). We headed to Pao de Acucar (Sugarloaf Mountain) and took the cable car to the top. With the city having been built in and around the mountains, you have to head here to view all sides of the city. The scenery is amazing, with the beaches below on one side, the city along the hills around you, and the mountains (including the Christ the Redeemer statue) just beyond. We did a dinner at a local place on a bay with our friend Bernardo and had another great meal of meat, beans and rice.