Rio de Janeiro, Brazil - Favelas

Favelas are improvised houses usually made out of bricks an mortar.
Some favelas are much cleaner than they look.




Old buildings near the centerof Rio.









Lots of detailed grafitti in Rio.




A closer look at the average favela.




Looking south toward the Niteroi bridge and the sugarloaf.




The Sugarloaf




Pico da Tijuca, the highest point in Rio de Janeiro, with it's head in the clouds.




Pico da Tijuca from the airport.




Gol Airlines, the airline managed worse than a lemonade stand.
This was the scene at the airport while a planeload (my plane) of angry brazilians screamed
at the only guy there to answer questions, who, unfortunately, knew absolutely nothing.

Here's why they were screaming;

Our plane to São Paulo arrived on time, they had us all get on the plane, everything was going as planned, no stress. Then a guy came over the intercom, telling us to get off the plane, because this plane was now going to Brasilia. Then they said that the plane that was supposed to go to São Paulo was still in maintenance, and it was only going to take 20 minutes. I asked the lady at the gate, and she told me the same thing and to just wait... OK cool, no stress, I'll just do as I'm told and wait.

An hour goes by, and now I'm already late for my connecting flight to Floripa. So I just sit patiently waiting for them to advise us what to do next. Then I hear a bunch of Brazilians swearing at the top of the lungs, (in Portuguese) "Son of Bitch!, this is bullshit! Can you believe this?!! Take it up the butt!" etc.. I walk over to see what was the matter and then I see the passengers of my plane yelling at this guy. I ask what happened... a guy explained to me that by law, all airlines have to resolve all problems within 4 hours or they will get hit with a huge fine. A planeload of passengers heading for Brasilia had been waiting for almost 4 hours, so the company, GOL took us off our plane and gave it to the Brasilia passengers to save their asses from the whopping fine.

Then the guy I was talking to asked me if I had a connecting flight, I said I did, and then he was like "Oh shit, you better hurry downstairs and tell them that..". Gol didn't even mention that over the intercom, they just waited for me to come to the information desk, this after telling me to just wait two times.

Then, after waiting in line at the ticket booth for an hour, they tell me to I have to take a taxi to another airport. All this time, there were Brazilians yelling in the background, an old lady was screaming at a guy because he had lied to her (which he really did), she told him that it was the passengers that paid their salaries. It was true, they actually lied to the people a few times, and then hid from them. I know lemonade stands that have better management.

If I wouldn't have asked the passengers at the complaint booth, Gol airlines would have never said a word to me.

So we took a taxi to the other airport, and the old people in the back seat went on and on, about how this should have never happened and how it was the worst thing that had ever happened to them in their life. Then they remarked how they couldn't believe that the American (me) was still taking pictures out the window during all this turmoil, I just sat quiet taking the rest of the pictures on this page. Luckily everything went well after that, except my friend Juliana had to wait for 2 hours and got a ticket waiting for me at the airport. Good 'ol GOL airlines even told her that I wasn't flying that day... THANKS GOOOOL!!

They should hire some more advanced monkeys... being smart's haaaaaard.




Pico da Tijuca




Favelas below, A Floresta da Tijuca, and the Tijuca Peak.




Cristo Redentor




Favelas - (Slums)




Sugarloaf