Aug 8, 9: Soccer, bike riding, softball and bike riding... Is there a running theme here?

The first week of school was fun for Diego- Success!!  We are just delighted.  Diego has made a friend, Ilan, whose mom is a teacher and dad is the headmaster at EARJ.  Ilan has been here for over a year and really knows the ropes of the school.  He encouraged Diego to come to soccer practice on Saturday and a softball game on Sunday.  The organization running Saturday soccer seems excellent, comprised of French and Brazilian players who are patient, fun and speak Portuguese, French and English.  For this first weekend Diego decided to observe and then hang with Ilan.  After practice, his parents took Diego with them for lunch and some time for playing.  Jim and Debbie headed to the Lagoa to check it out.  We took Jim's bike and rented one for Debbie, allowing them to ride the full perimeter.  Very cool since the weather was perfect and there were cold cocos all along the way.  We also located many places where we could rent a bike for Diego as well.  

Sunday we headed back to the EARJ field for a softball game.  We had understood that kids would be playing and that the US Consulate was sponsoring it.  When we got there, we were greeted by incredibly friendly people from the Consulate.  Jim just by chance happened to wear one of his Gamecock t-shirts.  One woman exclaimed, "you're a Gamecock!" and it was there that we met Jimmy and Susan Strong, as well as their 12-year old son, Mac (who also attends EARJ).  Jimmy is the US Consul General in Rio.  He and Susan grew up in Monck's Corner, SC and are total Gamecock fans.  Mac is as well and had spent the summer at the Steve Spurrier football camp.  Small world!  We had read that the new US Consul General was from South Carolina but didn't put two and two together until we all started to talk.  Susan and Debbie spent the entire game talking non-stop while Jim, Diego, and a few others kids and lots of adult men played softball.  It was fun to watch, especially when Diego got a hit, got to first base and eventually ran home to score!

After the game, we rode the bus to Leme beach, about 30 minutes on the city bus (for the equivalent of about $1).  The water was cold and the undercurrent strong but people were still in the water.  We walked along the beach to Copacabana where Diego suggested we rent bikes (YES!).  He got on those two wheels and went flying, saying how much he missed riding (since in SC we ride to Rosewood everyday).  Along the Copacabana Beach all the way to Leblon, one entire side of the main street is closed to traffic so that people can freely walk, bike, and skate.  People are moving here and we're joining along!

View of Dois Irmãos from EARJ 

EARJ field for soccer practice

Ilan and Diego holding up the Eiffel Tower

Cold cocos for Debbie and Jim at the Lago

Jim and his bike, brought all the way from SC

Cool branches

 The softball crew

Diego on first base

Debbie and Diego's rented bikes

The end of Copacabana Beach on a Sunday

Mmm, corn (milho na espiga)

Leme Beach

Aug 2, Jardim Botanico

The Jardim Botanico (Botanical Gardens) is another wonder of this city.  The entrance is a 10 minute walk from our apartment and once you enter, you are transported into huge, diverse gardens. Overall, the cultivated area has 9,000 botanical specimens belonging to around 1,500 species! From the Jardim's website: The Rio de Janeiro Botanical Garden opened in 1808, as par of the Portuguese research project and following previous orientations elaborated in Portugal. 

Exploring the gardens was a perfect way to spend the Sunday before Diego's first day of school.  

At the entrance is a very cool sundial

New beginnings

Battle with a fallen palm "leaf"

The classic and well-known palm-lined entrance walkway

Dinner at Gariota Gavea, a local open-air restaurant

The "fight", over in 30 seconds

Our apartment in Gavea

We moved to our new home in Gavea on August 1- Rua marques de são vicente.  It's really close to Diego's school and so he's only on the bus for about 7 minutes each day. This is the main reason for choosing this area, which is a little far from the beach for Jim (the next apartment will be much closer).  The owner is a wonder man from Denmark who is also the Chair of the Languages and Literature Department at the PUC, the local university.  We are getting to know and love our neighborhood.  One of the true treasures of this neighborhood is the Instituto Moreira Salles, where photography exhibits change frequently and movies of different genres are shown each day and night. The street where we live can be quite busy and the IMS is on the same street.  But enter (for free!) and you immediately feel like you're in a peaceful forest.  The gardens are spectacular and the home-turned-museum is open and light.  Jim and Debbie both plan to take our laptops there once in a while to work in the cafe and be inspired by the setting.

Our building; our apartment is on the first floor and has a large porch.

Diego's room; he even has his own bathroom, happy boy. 

Jim in his happy space

Our living room, dining room and porch (plus a desk where Debbie works)

Local grafite

Diego inside the A of the Gavea mall

Inside the apartment, the night before Diego's first day of school.

We miss you, Sylvester!!

This post really has no date, since we miss Sylvester dearly each day.  Thanks to Chayah and Yael, Enoch and Ann, Summer, Mari, Dante and Simon and everyone else who is helping to keep him very happy.

Another classic site, Pão de Açúcar (July 30)

We are trying to use every weekend for a new adventure and we're succeeding!  Pão de Açúcar was another classic site we had to experience in the first weeks of being here.  Pao or Sugarloaf Mountain is actually a set of three massive hills- Urca, Babilônia and Pão de Açúcar.  This time we went on a weekday, right before Diego started the school year, and so there were no crowds or lines.  The tram ride from the base to the first hill is steep and fantastic; the second level even moreso.  Once again we hit cloud cover and rode straight into the mist.  We couldn't see anything except the bright light of the sun, washed white by the clouds.  The cloud cover at the end of the day on Corcovado (across the water) was beyond belief.  One could just sit at the platform and watch the interaction of sky, water and land and it would change from one moment to the next right in front of you, almost like watching a well-made documentary, except this was live and totally unpredictable. 

This is what people used to ride on.

Cristo is the backdrop on top of the mountain

July 26, Rio Marathon

People seem to be exercising all of the time here, so the fact that the Rio marathon passed along the street below our casita seemed totally normal.  Runners came by over a period of several hours.  If we were runners, this would be a race we'd want to do.

Now THIS is Rio. July 25, Cristo Redentor

What can be said about Rio's most well-known symbol and revered icon, Cristo Redentor?  So much and so little because it inspires such awe.  This was one of the places Diego wanted to visit immediately.  And so silly us, off we went on a Saturday afternoon to one of Rio's most popular tourist sites!!  The train that rides up to Corcovado had a very long line and so we were convinced to talk a van.  Jim and Debbie were sure that we understood what was being said- that we'd get into a van, pay a fee, and be taken to the top of the mountain.  Oh, we caught some of the words but not all of the details.  Three vans and two more long lines later we were finally at the top.  The views on the way there were spectacular.  We hadn't realized that Corcovado was actually located within the Tijuca National Park, where vegetation is thick and the roads are twisting and turning.  The day started off as quite clear but as we climbed, clouds started to roll in.  We were able to enjoy an unobstructed view for about 20 minutes, and then we were literally inside of a cloud AND it began to rain.  Prepared gringos that we are, we pulled out our rain gear and stayed pretty dry, while others were soaked and chilled in their flip-flops, shorts and tank tops.

Experiencing Cristo in this way was surreal and spiritual.

Christ the Redeemer is an Art Deco statue of Jesus Christ in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, created by French sculptor Paul Landowski and built by the Brazilian engineer Heitor da Silva Costa, in collaboration with the French engineer Albert Caquot. Construction started in 1922 and He stands at 38m high.

The first photos show Rio in all its grandeur. It is truly one of the most beautiful cities in the world.