http://www.gringo-rio.com/Rio-blog.html This is the blog for the Rio de Janeiro travel site Gringo-Rio.com. Here I announce new material and updates as well as write about general stuff that is going on in Rio. en-us rio de janeiro Wed, 03 Mar 2010 20:07:46 GMT Wed, 03 Mar 2010 20:07:46 GMT gringo-rio.com http://www.gringo-rio.com/rio-apartments.html On this page you will find Rio apartments to rent. Small, cheap and clean apartments in the Arpoador area. Mon, 01 Mar 2010 17:22:30 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/rio-stories.html Here are links to Rio stories written by visitors.You can also share experiences and give useful tips by submitting one yourself. Mon, 22 Feb 2010 13:40:04 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/beaches-in-rio-de-janeiro.html The Beaches in Rio de Janeiro are definitely a must if you come here. The beauty, the multitude and the relaxed atmosphere has made them famous around the world. Mon, 22 Feb 2010 08:29:43 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/copacabana-beach.html All about Copacabana Beach. Who goes there? eiWhat is good? What is bad? A visitors guide. Also about the neighbouring Leme Beach. Sat, 20 Feb 2010 20:43:20 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/new-years-in-rio.html There are four stages in Copacabana: Principal Stage: (in front of Copacabana Palace) 18h: Orquestra Petrobras Simphonic Orchestra 20h: Religious Ceremony 20:05: Paralamas do Sucesso (MPB) 22:05: Lulu Santos (MPB) 00:00H: Fireworks 0:15h: Arlindo Cruz (MPB) 2h: Escola de Samba Academicos do Salgueiro 2h30: Beija-Flor de Nilopolis Satellite Stage: (in front of Rua Santa Clara) 18h: Cia. Aplauso 19h: AfroLata 20h: Cerimonia do Por do Sol no Palco Principal 20:05: Ed Motta (Soul) 21:20: Bangalafumenga (Dance) 22:35: Roberta Sa (MPB) 00:00h: Fireworks 0:15: Blitz (MPB) 2h: Escola de Samba Portela DJs The other two stages have Djs playing. Thu, 31 Dec 2009 12:26:40 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/learn-portuguese.html Do you want to learn Portuguese in Rio de Janeiro? Here you will find information about Portuguese courses. Also has online dictionaries and general info on the Portuguese language. Fri, 04 Dec 2009 12:00:37 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com The Summer Olympics have been granted to Rio de Janeiro, a decision that has created great expectations and speculations. More than bringing attention the hope is that the citys administration will have to resolve some of the many problems here, mostly in relation to safety, traffic and pollution. Vast amounts of money will be invested and we can all just hope that it will be put to good use. Sun, 15 Nov 2009 09:16:00 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/yoga-in-rio.html To practice yoga in Rio is easy. There are lots of options. Everything from outdoor meditation to hot yoga in a gym. Here is some info. Fri, 06 Nov 2009 03:00:29 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/paying-with-western-union.html Paying with Western Union is one of the more popular ways to transfer money internationally. This is a small guide to explain the procedure. Sun, 25 Oct 2009 12:13:18 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/foreign-exchange-in-rio.html What about Foreign Exchange in Rio de Janeiro? Where do you get the best rates? Which banks in Rio accepts your visa card and when are they open? Where is best to exchange traveller cheques? Mon, 05 Oct 2009 13:40:04 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/rio-carnival-2010.html When is Rio Carnival 2010? Here you can find out when Carnival is and for how many days, 2010, 2011, 2012 and onwards. Wed, 02 Sep 2009 11:15:42 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/Rio-blog.html Lately a law was passed by the government allowing foreigners that are iregular in the country to apply for a temporary working visa. Many excited gringos has contacted me asking about this, I can only say - take it easy. The law is actually directed towards illegal immigrants like from Peru and Bolivia, but it can be used by the Western "lifestyle" over stayers common as well. Noone has really decided how this law exactly will be applied, for now Policia Federal has suspended the applications for the Amnesty permanency until the 13th of July, but it may take a lot longer before they actually start. A few facts can be concluded though: 1) You have to have entered the country before the first of February. Applications should be made before the end of this year. 2) Your visa situation has to be irregular (visa expired, no registrered entry etc.) 3) The amnesty grants a 2 year visa that can be extended to a permanent visa at the end of the two year period if application is accepted. 4) You have to be able to show that you can support yourself while in Brazil. Sat, 11 Jul 2009 11:07:13 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/rio-de-janeiro-web-cams.html I have gathered some Rio de Janeiro web cams on this page. Copacabana Beach web cam and Ipanema Beach web cam. Sun, 14 Jun 2009 13:39:29 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/pictures-of-rio-de-janeiro.html I have collected some of my best pictures of Rio de Janeiro on these pages. Come here to see this beautiful city in images. Fri, 12 Jun 2009 21:48:01 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/ipanema-beach-photos.html My Ipanema beach photos page is a celebration to one of the most beautiful places in the world. The photos are mone or contributed by some of my kind friends. Fri, 12 Jun 2009 19:46:09 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/copacabana-beach-photos.html These Copacabana beach photos are a mix of my own pictures and those of friends. I try to display the beauty, the people and the unique atmosphere. Fri, 12 Jun 2009 18:00:48 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/trindade.html The beautiful village Trindade is located near som beautiful beaches and embedded in lush Atlantic Rainforest. It is a perfect place if you want to get away for a few days and easy to reach from Rio. Thu, 07 May 2009 22:33:55 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/Rio-blog.html#Centro-Walking-Tour-and-Paraty Yes, more articles in The Gringo Times. Wed, 29 Apr 2009 16:54:54 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/Rio-blog.html#More-articles-in-The-Gringo-Times Two more articles that I wrote: The Christ Statue and Ilha Grande. Thu, 23 Apr 2009 10:47:54 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/scuba-diving-in-rio.html Many people want to do scuba diving in Rio. Here you can read about the best spots and how to get there. With general tips, addresses and links. Tue, 21 Apr 2009 10:48:18 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/Rio-blog.html#And-more.... Two new articles for this week: Ilha Grande and The Sugarloaf. Enjoy! Wed, 15 Apr 2009 12:11:41 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/Rio-blog.html#Two-more-articles-in-The-Gringo-Times I have written two new articles for The Gringo Times. One is about Ipanema Beach and the other Buzios. Sun, 12 Apr 2009 14:04:08 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/cabo-frio.html Cabo Frio is the biggest town in the lake district located east of Rio de Janeiro. It has some beutiful beaches and some decent surfing. Come here to learn more. Sun, 12 Apr 2009 13:44:48 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/Rio-blog.html#An-article-I-wrote-in-The-Gringo-Times I wrote an article that got published by a new interesting online newspaper called The Gringo Times, check it out! This is about the history and future of Arraial do Cabo, click the link below to get there. I will keep you updated on my blog whenever I publish something new. Mon, 30 Mar 2009 20:33:09 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/lunch-in-rio.html Eating out for lunch in Rio de Janeiro is normally pretty cheap. There are plenty of offers and many places only open daytime. Read more about it here. Wed, 25 Mar 2009 18:08:09 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/dinner-in-rio.html Where is the best place to have dinner in Rio? Here are some recommendations that are listed by neighbourhood. Wed, 25 Mar 2009 16:18:12 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/cafes-in-rio.html On this page I recommend some cafes in Rio. These are places where you can have a good cup of coffee and a slice of cake. Some of them have spectacular views and others lots of history. Wed, 25 Mar 2009 15:16:26 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/travel-links.html This is the travel links page of Gringo-Rio. Here you find links to other good travel resources around the world. Sat, 21 Mar 2009 18:48:05 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/brazilian-permanency.html Do you want to get a Brazilian permanency. Come here to learn all about the rules and your possibilities. Mon, 16 Mar 2009 14:05:10 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/privacy-policy.html This is the page that informs you about the privacy policy on Gringo-Rio. Fri, 13 Mar 2009 14:10:58 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/Rio-blog.html As from the first of January there is a new mayor and a new government in Rio de Janeiro. Now it is Eduardo Paes who will confront the same problems as Cesar Maia has done the last eight years. Most notably you can see how there has been an action for cleaning the streets from illegal street vending, beggars and street crime. It has gone so far though that they so far have had little success. Also I am sure that this cannot just be something you do every four years but has to be an on-going activity for police and social workers. An option has to be presented to the unfortunate souls roaming the streets, otherwise they will just eventually come back after they have fled the poor houses they are brought to. But that is just one issue to deal with. The growing favelas are a serious threat to the unique Atlantic rainforest that makes this city such a beautiful place. How hard can it be to stop someone building houses without permit, imagine someone building a hut in Central Park in New York... The traffic is a big problem that has a simple solution. Rio de Janeiro drivers are awful, since they manage to break almost all rules at their own fancy they manage to block intersections, lanes, pedestrian crossings, etc. etc. Get some guards out there and do not just fine people for talking in a cell phone. All drivers, including professionals, should be fined for blocking lanes, parking where you block traffic, blocking intersections and so on. The cost of having a guard at every major intersection will soon be compensated by all the money gained from the fines. The result: Less space between the cars which gives smoother faster transit and less pollution. It really is a no-brainer. Pollution of the ocean: This is a lot harder but you have to start sometime. What is needed is a comprehensive evaluation of where the dirt comes from and then slowly but steady improve the situation. Mother nature is very forgiving and I am sure you would see good results in just 10 years. Wed, 21 Jan 2009 13:13:23 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/Rio-blog.html Make Rio more tourist friendly: It already is a fantastic place but you could do a lot to make it even better. Get rid of prostitution in Copacabana. This activity attracts crime and other unhealthy elements. Make the streets in the tourist intence areas safe 24 hours. Create children friendly bathing zones in Copacabana (one close to Arpoador maybe?) by land fill. Make a lot more pedestrian crossings (pedestrian bridges?) and limit the speed to 30 on the beach avenues when it is not rush hour. I am sure many families would consider Rio a great place to go if Rio was safer and cleaner. Is there any better money for Rio than that which come from abroad? I will not even touch the area of crime and drug trade, it is too complicated. My belief is that Rio need money to improve. A simple way to get that money is from tourism. With that money the city can improve education, social health care and so on. By resolving the steps above a lot more tourists would come and Rio would become even more fantastic. Hakan for Mayor! Wed, 21 Jan 2009 13:13:23 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/helicopter-around-rio.html To go in a helicopter around Rio de Janeiro is fairly expensive but a really cool thing to do. There is no better way to get dramatic views of the city. Tue, 20 Jan 2009 23:11:04 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/Rio-blog.html Officially the Rio Carnival 2009 starts on Saturday 21st of February and go on until the Tuesday 24th. It is probably better to see Carnival as starting on Friday 20th and finishing on Wednesday 25th when the judges announce the winners of the samba competition; Why? Well this is more or less the "party nights". On Saturday after Carnival there is also the Winners Parade where the schools that did best will parade one last time. Another way to look at this is that there is a Carnival season starting in January when increasingly more and more festivities occur until culminating on Carnival Tuesday (also known as Fat Tuesday). To get a complete experience of Carnival in Rio you should probably stay here all the way from New Years until after Carnival. Then you would get to go to a lot of great street parties and also get a feel for how there is a build up of energy in the different samba schools, a build up that climaxes in the parade. 2009 Carnival Parade Schedule - Here is the official schedule for the schools in the top division 2009: Sunday February 22nd: - 21h Imperio Serrano - 22h Grande Rio - 23:10h Vila Isabel - 00:15h Mocidade - 01:20h Beija-Flor - 02:25 Unidos da Tijuca Monday February 23rd: - 21h Porto da Pedra - 22h Salgueiro - 23:10h Imperatriz - 00:15h Portela - 01:20h Mangueira - 02:25h Viradouro When Is Best To Go To Sambodromo? - This is easy; If you have money, because it is quite expensive, you go on either Sunday or Monday. Get there early (around 6PM) to be able to get good seats. If you have less money but still want to experience the parade live you can go to the second division school parade on Saturday 21st or the Winners Parade on Saturday 28th (no need to get tickets in advance for the two latter), that is a lot cheaper. Bring an umbrella and a pillow to sit on. Mon, 05 Jan 2009 06:01:16 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/Rio-blog.html This will be my 6th Christmas in Rio de Janeiro. I do not have a problem with the climate being warm, no snow or all that. It is the food I do not like and in particular the dried cod: Bacalhau. But I am not writing this to slander that traditiom, I just wanted to tell you a little about it. The tradition they say is Portuguese but that is not entirely true. It was food used in Europe before the era of refridgerators and ice. The vikings used it on their travels but it really kicked off in the 18th century. The combination of cheap salt and vast amounts of fish in Canada, Iceland and Norway made it a profitable commodity. The salting and drying process made it very durable and cheap to transport. That is how it became popular and it is now part of many cuisines around the world among them the Brazilian. In Brazil almost all cod is imported from Norway who not only have good quality but they also have the fish. In many parts of the Atlantic the cod is gone due to over fishing. Because of this it is quite expensive, you could say that a poor mans food has become a delicacy for people with money. In Norway it is not common to eat dried cod anymore, it is mostly produced for export. The Norwegians prefer fresh cod. Sat, 20 Dec 2008 13:08:11 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com About a week ago it was announced that Ronaldo will play for a Brazilian club again. After many years of playing in Europe he signed a contract with the Sao Paulo club Corinthians. Which is actually the only club he has played professionally for in the country. What is really surprising is that Ronaldo always have claimed that he wanted to end his career in Flamengo because that is where his Carioca heart belongs. In just one day he went from being a future hope to a traitor. It will be really interesting to see what happens when he plays at Maracana for the first time. Fri, 19 Dec 2008 15:40:19 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/portuguese-dictionary.html Free online Portuguese dictionary? There are plenty of translation services available. This page has the best of these resources listed. Thu, 11 Dec 2008 13:49:54 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/portuguese-language.html This page is about the Portuguese language and in particular the Brazilian variation. Portuguese grammar, general structure and a little bit of history. Thu, 11 Dec 2008 13:35:32 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com Rio de Janeiro is wonderful and I really do like the Carioca. But there is this one thing... In the beginning I thought I was imagining but after hearing it from quite a few other foreigners I am certain: The Carioca goes chicken racing on the sidewalks! It is true. Not only that, if you steer out of their way they will change their path to push you even further off your path. In the beginning I did not know how to handle this. Many times I ended up on the street or squeezing past a shop window. After a while, still at this time I thought that I might be imagining, I started to challenge myself. That was the solution; my more than average size made most sidewalk kamikazes steer out of my way. My new tactic has worked perfect until today; I only have to be careful outside of gyms and Jiu-jitsu clubs... But it still is an enigma for me. Why would the Carioca behave like that? To that I do not have an answer. Mon, 08 Dec 2008 18:29:04 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/sambodromo.html A full description explaining the Samba Parade Competition in Sambodromo during Carnival. Also explains how to best get the cheapest tickets and where to sit. Mon, 08 Dec 2008 18:14:50 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/concerts-in-rio.html The show for Madonna in Rio de Janeiro was announced as fully booked a few weeks ago. They released another batch some week ago and now there are more tickets available. You can buy them at the music store Modern Sound at Rua Barata Ribeiro 502 in Copacabana or from www.ticketmaster.com.br online or by phone through their call center at 4004-1007. The prices are between 180 to 300 R$. The concert is held in the Maracana football stadium on Sun 14 Dec and Mon 15 Dec, both days it starts around 8PM. The tour is called Sticky and Sweet. //Hakan Thu, 04 Dec 2008 08:38:22 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/Rio-blog.html A wave of bedbug infestations have troubled hotels and hostels in Rio the last few months. After further inqueries I have found out that it is a world wide problem. Australia, Russia, Sweden all have had many new cases. Only in Stockholm 2007 more than 500 cases were reported. The word bedbug is a bit misleading, in Swedish it is actually called translated to English:"wall lice" which more accurately describes this sinister bug. During daytime it hides in cracks were it also lay eggs. Around midnight they come out to suck blood. Attracted by the carbonmonoxide of your breath it catches you sleeping. In the early morning they return to their homes. This has lead to the misconception that they are invisible, the adult is about 4mm and easy to detect with a flashlight. Typical bites are in groups or in lines and they itch. They are not dangerous and do not carry any diseases. They are called "percevejos" in Portuguese. The big problem many establishments now are facing is how to get rid of them. In the 1950 s they were almost extint due to use of DDT that actually also killed the eggs. Today you have substances that kill the living bug but nothing that kill the egg. This means getting rid of them is really hard. First you have to seal all cracks (they can enter anything wider than a creditcard) then spray with insecticide. Wash all the beddings and clothes in hot water (over 60 degress Celsius) three times (the eggs will then die) or freeze the clothes one by one. Just washing in cold water or drying will not be effective! When ever new bugs hatch the process has to be repeated until there are no more eggs (the trick is to kill them before they lay eggs). After about 6 weeks of this all bedbugs and eggs should be gone. The big problem is that since these little critters hide in backpacks and clothes (this is how they have spread around the world) there is no stopping them coming back. Yes, it is a big problem. Another misconception is that they are attracted to dirt, it has nothing to do with it. Clean or dirty; with cracks and food (you) they will thrive. Last I would like you to give you an advice. If you have been bitten by bedbugs when traveling there is a big chance they are in your clothes. To avoid bringing them home make sure to wash them in hot water, freeze or throw them away to avoid bringing the problem home. Sun, 23 Nov 2008 13:38:39 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/Rio-blog.html Right on the beach, in the middle of Copacabana; you have one of the more controversial establishments in Rio de Janeiro. Starting out in the eighties as a traditional discotheque it has now for many years been the home for big scale prostitution, catering the many foreigners in town. This type of business always attracts less reliable people and of course crime. Robberies, drugs and general decay has circled this establishent for years. Many people living in Copacabana and Rio for these reasons want them to move. It is not easy though; the amount of money in circulation is so big that the economic interests has managed to put a brake on any attempt so far. The latest suggestion was to move it to Arpoador, the neighbourhood inbetween Copacabana and Ipanema. Since this only would be to move the problem it was soon discarded. Maybe closer to the tunnel to Botafogo? You already have a redlight district and it is already a quite dodgy area. The centre, far away from residential buildings? The positive effect on a move would probably be drastic for the neighbourhood: A good first step towards a safer Copacabana. Sat, 15 Nov 2008 14:57:00 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/board-shops-in-rio.html Today I bought a used surfboard (7.1 feet), some wax and a leash. This cost me 450R$. The store also has cheap rash shirts (a neopren reinforced is 100R$). All prices are excellent and the owner is very helpful and friendly, he also speaks English. The stor is called Surf City and is located on Avenida de Contorno about 1000 meters from Praia do Forte. I can highly recommend it! Tue, 04 Nov 2008 18:55:21 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/accommodation-in-rio.html Finding cheap accommodation for a longer stay in Rio de Janeiro is not always easy. Most of the furnished apartments are quite deer. A good alternative (if you are ready to share space) is to hire a room in an apartment. The international site easyroommate are nowadays worldwide and I found that they have quite a lot to offer in Rio. Go to http://www.easyquarto.com.br/index.aspx Since you can choose various languages it is easy to search; the hard part would be talking to the actual person renting out (if you do not speak Portuguese). In my view this is not such a good option for a two week stay. Better for students that come here with a tight budget and stay a few months. /H Mon, 03 Nov 2008 15:11:24 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/airline-tickets-in-rio.html Today me and my friend Mathias bought tickets with Gol. But boy oh boy was that hard! After spending quite some time in front of the computer on Friday we realized it was necessary to have a Brazilian credit card; something I do not have. So we went to a travel agent in Cabo Frio to arrange it there; no success. In that travel agent they did not accept international credit cards as well. I thought it would be no problem since my wife has a card and she would arrive on Friday evening. Only when we tried we had no success. We then went back to Cabo Frio now with Nadjas credit card. We found another travel agent that could help us. They actually work with international visa cards. Only trouble was that buying the tickets at a agent they charged another 250R$ on top of what we would have paid on internet. After discussing a little with the travel agent it became clear that the site of Gol is extremely dysfunctional and that it is almost impossible to purchase online as a private person. He sold Gol flights almost everyday because of this. To sum it all up: What kind of business strategy is behind not only rejecting all potential international clients online but also having a site that does not work? Someone will not win the employee of the year! Sat, 01 Nov 2008 21:33:36 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com New cases of Dengue fever has been reported in Angra dos Reis, a town located 150km west of Rio de Janeiro. Hopefully this is not the start of a new epidemic. Maybe the measures taken just a few months ago against the most recent surge will still be effective. Since Angra dos Reis is the most popular port to catch the Ilha Grande ferry lots of tourists pass by. Your best protection is to avoid getting bitten. If you have fever in high peaks, pain in your joints or behind your eyes; go see a doctor straight away. Tue, 28 Oct 2008 20:22:52 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/weather-in-rio.html After a few days of drab, rainy weather the sun is on its way back. The amazing thing is how everything changes: When it rains the Cariocas avoid to go out and look a bit depressed, when it is sunny everyone smiles and the streets are full of people. There is a saying that the Carioca is made of sugar; she melts in rain. I have always wondered if these extreme changes in character makes the sunny days better. There is a balance; if you are down and blue when it is raining it gives you an extra push to be happy and gay when it is sunny. Well enough about that; now I am off to the beach! Tue, 21 Oct 2008 13:13:03 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/weather-in-rio.html The weather in Rio de Janeiro. This page hos forecasts for the whole state of Rio as well as surf reports. Also informationa about the climate in Brazil and useful links. Wed, 15 Oct 2008 20:26:29 GMT http://www.gringo-rio.com/rio-surf-report.html This Rio surf report has information about the current surf conditions in the whole state of Rio de Janeiro. Also about general conditions throughout the year. Wed, 15 Oct 2008 20:12:10 GMT