#RiodeJaneiro further impressions

I have been based in Ipanema - a brilliant little hostel called The Lighthouse - recommended definitely.

Ipanema is regarded as up market Rio. It has a brasher adjoining neighbour - Copacabana. Together they make up the most famous areas in Rio apart perhaps from the Maracana Stadium.

All the guide books say Rio is safe enough providing you are wary and sensible but at the same time warning that crime is rife. Theft and mugging is apparently endemic. Is this a story out of perspective and self fulfilling - definitely not. It is real. Crime and violence is a major and apparently an increasing problem and maybe a problem too big to solve. Tourists be on your guard! I have felt Ipanema was fine. Sunday walking along Copacabana - colourful yes - vibrant yes - but I saw one fight and the whole atmosphere is "dodgy". It is not a place to relax. Anyway I get back to Ipanema asap -  a more sophisticated cafe bar culture and a much nicer atmosphere on the beach.

Despite the relaxed atmosphere as advised I take nothing to the beach other than the clothes I wear and a "canga" - a thin colourful beach towel which is very practical to use. In fact so practical I decide to buy one as a present for each of the 7 adult members of my immediate family. I speak to a beach hawker - one of many. He wants 35 pesos - about £7 each. I agree 7 for 175 pesos. Could I have got them for less. Possibly. Anyway I have no cash on me. I agree to meet in 30 minutes to give me time to go back to the hostel to get the money. I choose 7 colourful ones. A very proper market transaction. We shake hands. They will be great for the beach in Cornwall. Anyway the seller folds them nicely. Puts them in a plastic bag. Excellent. I then decide to spend a last half hour in the sun. The beach is busy around me. I stretch out in the sun and close my eyes. The carrier bag is by my shoulder. Not for long. I hear sand against the bag. I jump up. Some fucker has nicked it. How did they do it? I start to look around accusingly. Was it wandering hawkers tipping off the thieves. Did they kick it away and pick it up later. I am mad with indignation. I prowl the beach for a minute or two. Then I think even if I could identify the thief would it really be sensible to take them on. The answer has to be no although if I knew who it was I think I would have been on them despite my best advice. They are too professional. No sign.

Anyway the lesson. Give them a chance they will be on you. If you place yourself in a vulnerable position they will take it off you despite you. Everyone I have talked too including the Brazilian hostel owner had been properly mugged on more than one occasion. The hostel owner asked me if I had seen many old people around. The answer was no. The reason - they are in hiding - terrified of being robbed. This is no way to live. It taints so much about Rio.

OK that is a big negative rant. A positive one. The beach especially early morning is a fantastic place to be. Although there is a busy road behind the beach it is well back. It is not intrusive in any way. The beach is wide and long. Maybe 3 times longer than Sennen, Cornwall. It is thoroughly cleaned - the sand wonderfully soft and golden. The Atlantic crashes in - noisy and natural = it is surf beach on a good day. The tide line is a memorable place to jog along - the granite hump back islands that surround and the skyscrapers behind add to the atmosphere as does the all sorts of people doing their early morning thing. It feels special - Rio is iconic - is there a beach to be on that is more so? I have jogged for the last 4 mornings - often in the refreshing Atlantic fringes. I haven't stopped smiling. Just can't get over the wow! Just brilliant. Worth coming for this experience alone I think.

I have met some lovely Brazilian people while I have been here. When the language is not an issue I probe about life in Brazil. I do so with BRIC in mind - Brazil emerging as one of the world's fast developing and most significant economic power houses. They universally scoff at this. They are adamant it is all going wrong in Brazil. They seem even reluctant to be proud Brazilians. Why?

The answer is corruption at every level especially at the highest levels of government and corporate state giants, plus a diabolical crime trend and cost of living increases. Things are not getting done. Life is getting harder. There is so much disillusion. People really do not believe in their politicians. They are totally sick of the lies, manipulation and corruption.

Another nice Brazilian explained the problem with Brazil is Brazilians. Brazil is a samba society. Brazilians always look for the easy option. Opportunists in the worse sense. The same student explained that politicians are in the main corrupt but so are most people. Everyone is at it if they can. This is a harsh generalisation I am sure but it did not come from me.

In the news right now - Petrobras - state owned - the biggest company in Brazil. It has just been announced $60billion has been lost to fraud. There is no explanation. Revenues to the economy from this company is apparently crucial. The government are now planning welfare cuts to respond to the revenue loss.

No one wants the Olympics it seems simply because the man in the street does not benefit. Money feathers the nest of the rich elite - they learnt that from what happened from the world cup - the opposite of legacy.

On a lighter note - beach football. It is a great spectacle. On the shoreline - groups of 4 or 6 playing keepie up - girls join in too and can hold their own. There might be dozens of groups at a time. They are very good - all the skills - chest, knees - back heels - back of the neck. Great stuff. I joined in one - got a bit carried away. Crapo! One thing I did notice - the ball is not fully inflated - it makes it easier to control - the ball flattens on you rather than ping off. I had a laugh with a guy at the hostel. He said a lot of people have skills on the beach but they are crap on the pitch!

It is no news Brazil is football crazy. What is surprising is crowds at their premiership games are poor. It is all TV. As a country they have not got over the 7 - 1 world cup defeat to Germany. It hurt their psyche. I spoke to 2 Brazilians who now hate football. The reason - the country is going to pot but so many people are so wrapped up in football they are either unaware or don't care.

Two final observations - Rio buildings not very impressive. Plenty of modernish smallish skyscrapers and some poorly maintained older buildings mainly in the French style.

My final thought. Brazil has everything. Oil, gas, gold, minerals, massive areas of fertile land, a wonderful coast - tourism, the Amazon. What are they making of it. Definitely not enough. Brazil has so many advantages but corruption, endemic crime a polarised political situation and mananna is undermining what could and should be achieved. I am not optimistic about Brazil's future.

The Lagoon

Sugarloaf

Garota de Ipanema - the bar where the famous song Girl from Ipanema was written.

Across to Christ the Redeemer from the top of Sugarloaf

Petrobras headquarters. Fantastic building although one put in the list of the world,s most ugly buildings. A major corruption unfolding there now that might bring down the countries President.

Cafe society - French style.

Typical building scenes in the Rio.

More old and new.

Lapa - heart of Rio's night time music scene.

#ChristtheRedeemer Rio

Got to Rio de Janeiro yesterday morning. What a buzz. I was a bit zonked after a long journey from Iguazu.

The sun was out. I have booked to stay in the district of Ipanema. It is adjacent to Copacabana but has a reputation for being a bit less earthy and hopefully a bit safer from the muggers! It feels like it is. In fact it feels like a really great place. My hostel in less than 5 minutes from the brilliant beach. More on Rio later. For now a visit to to the iconic Christ the Redeemer - towering over Rio from the top of Corcavado mountain.

It is a must place for a visit. Yes of course for the views but in reality for most of us to get the T shirt - ha!

It is a busy place. It is possible to walk to the top but that would be a hard hot slog. Like most people I took the funicular railway. It cost approx £15 and there are queues but not too long to the top.

The views of Rio are amazing but impossible to capture on camera. You are also close to the statue so hard to photograph given its height. Plenty of people were trying - often lying on their backs.

Despite the crowd and to some extent the madness of it a great place to be. Definitely a memory in the memory bank.

Thank you lord xxxxx

Hard to get a view from the base of the mountain.

It is massive.

Lots of people but it didn't matter. Seemed like a shared experience. Millions of photos going on.

Ipanema in the middle on the seaward side I think!

Copacabana top right and Sugar loaf mountain top left.

#Iguazu Falls

Iguazu Falls are on the border of Argentina and Brazil. They are spectacular by any standard of nature. They now appear on some lists of the 7 wonders. There are a number of ways to measure the world's largest falls - height, width, volume of water, number of falls etc. Iguazu wins on width and number of falls I think and is right up there with every other criteria.

The geography/geology - the Upper Iguazu river meets a great lump of hard basalt rock. It spreads over the surface  - by 3000m. Over this area there are many small islands that divides the water into over 300 waterfalls. The water falls off the basalt cliff into the Lower Iguazu river up to 80 metres below.

The sight - the noise especially and the water mist are something you need to experience first hand to enjoy. A great privilege to see. I could not stop wondering where does all the water come from - day and night 24x365 etc etc !!!

The few mob photos can never do Iguazu justice of course!

#Argentina - Buenos Aires - some insight.

Argentina is a massive country in area - suprisingly perhaps - the 8th largest in the world. It has a population of just over 40 million of which not much less than half live in the Buenos Aires area. Not suprisingly therefore Argentina is the least densily populated country on earth overall.

Here is some stuff background info I have picked up through walking tours, chatting to guides and of course reading while Argentina has my interest - as I am here. Usual desclaimer - I might not be dead accurate on everything - ha!

Well first of all the area of Argentina was not an area the Spanish Conquistadors were very interested in. When Napoleon conquered Spain it eventually followed the country of Argentina became independent. Gradually it became apparent Buenos Aires was well located as an access route into South America. It saved going all around the bottom for one thing. Anyway Argentina became successful - huge - perhaps the world's biggest exporters of wheat, soya and meat of course. Much was concentrated on Buenos Aires. In a 50 year period - 1870/80 to 1920/30 the elite in Buenos Aires became fabulously wealthy through trade and their rake off.

In this short period Buenos Aires as we see it today was largely built. There are no "old" buildings in BA. They were never built. What there is is large numbers of magnificent buildings - palaces - theatres - municipal buildings - but all built in the critical 50 year period. Many are copies, many are immitations of European buildings which the relatively suddenly rich wanted to ape as seen as sophisticated and tasteful.

After the golden 50 years Argentina's and by definition Buenos Aires fortunes have been a roller coaster. There have been some massive downs and while things have stabilised in the last 10 years and Argentina is in the big league in many ways it is still trying to get back to its glory days and falling well short.

So a more up to date account.

The world was affected of course by the Great Depression of the 1930's and then there was the second world war. BA went into decline. The fabously rich mainly lost out.

Step in the Peron's. God like to some. The wonderful - the tragic Eva Peron (Duarte). The new President and his beautiful wife of the people. The Peronisters swept to power to help the poor. They encouraged massive immigration to man the factories. They tried to improve welfare and housing and working conditions. Things boomed again for a while. However the Perons were hated too. Society polarised. Left and right. They also were heavily criticised for their glamour and personal excesses. Ultimately Argentina was spending money it didn't have. Things starting falling apart. Then a military coup and of course Eva died tragically young. The Peronist legacy lives on today. So does the polarisation of politics. Argentina still struggles to find a government of unity.

I visited Buenos Aires famous cemetery. It is not full of graves but lanes of mausoleums. All the great and good are there including 19 ex presidents. I found Eva Peron's family mausoleum. (see the photo below).

Since the Perons Argentina has had a very unfortunate political history - inept leadership or military juntas.

Argentina is still trying to deal with the aftermath of the "dirty war" when up to 30000 left wing political activists were rounded up and never seen again. Many were young men. Bodies have been found.

One junta was lead by General Galteri. He did two things to deflect the public's attention from how bad things were getting. They staged the 1978 World Cup which they could not afford to do. They actually won it which helped for a while. The other thing Galteri did was invade the Falkland Islands or as they call them in Argentina - The Malvinas.

As part of a walking tour of Buenos Aires our guide first pointed out a clock tower given as a gift by the British to celebrate the centenary of Argentina's independence - I think in 1902. It looks a bit like Big Ben. Built directly in front of the clock is a substancial memorial to the Argentines lost in the battle for the Malvinas. It carries all the names of the 600 plus that died. There are 2 soldiers permanently on guard in very impressive red tunics. This was saying something loud to me.

Our guide was a bit hesitant. I was the only Brit in the group. She looked at me and said I am now going to talk about something which is difficult to talk about! It is very political. I smiled at her. I don't think anyone else in the group had much idea about what was to come.

She started by saying that everyone in Argentina believes the Malvina's are rightfully Argentinian. They learn this at school from a very early age. They also have a national holiday - Malvinas day which is a big deal apparently. They believe the Island's were stolen from them in the 1820's illegally. Nothing will change this national view.

Her mood was somber when she described the 1982 Falklands war. Her point of view was anger at the Argentinian junta who made the decision to invade at the cost of so many young Argentinian lives. Apparently most were conscripts doing national service - some as young as 18. Her point was it was a slaughter - a mismatch taking on the powerful British. We were always going to win and everyone else was on the Brits side too.

I was staggered by her understanding and also quite chastened by how raw the subject is and remains to Argentinians. We are now starting to drill for oil there (and one of Argentina's major economic problems is they have to import all their petrol and oil!) Talk about oil on water!

Anyway I remember the 74 day war very clearly. It was incredibly dramatic. It dominated everything. I had to point out it was far from a certain outcome. The Falklands were 8000 miles away. Our task force was stretched to the limit. We commandeered the QE2 passenger ship as a troop carrier! Argentinian jet fighters had French Exocet missiles. We lost ships as a result including HMS Sheffield with terrible fires and of course SS Atlantic Conveyor. The battle of San Carlos Bay. What is true is once British Troops got on to the Falklands - their famous "yomp" - death of Colonel H Jones etc they were far superior troops. Battle of Goose Green. The Brits lost many lives. It was a truly significant moment in our history. Margaret Thatcher was brave in her determination and will to uphold international law. It made her reputation as the "iron lady". Britain was rightly proud of what it achieved.

There has been a political reconciliation with Argentina. Our guide said she had nothing against the UK but the Malvinas are theirs and should be handed back to them. Argentina is still trying to press its position through the international court system. I wanted to talk about self determination of the Islanders and that there are plenty of examples in the world where land ownership is not logical. I wonder how Canada feels about Alaska now?

The last thing I want to mention - Argentina's money. Argentina it seems has always had a debt crisis or rampant spiraling inflation. Around 2000 Argentina defaulted on its international debt. It was the first country to do so I think. The economy entered depression. This was catastrophic for many Argentinians. Subsequently Argentina has gradually stabilised and the current government started repaying historical debt. However it seems the people and business have little faith in their currency. People save in US dollars. There is  "blue" market for them. The current exchange is officially 8 to 9 Argentinian Pesos to one US $. However go into Florida Ave for example and you hear people saying " cambio cambio". They will buy USD notes off you for 12 maybe 12.5 pesos per 1$. Is is sort of illegal but everyone does it. It makes a big difference.

The other odd thing about their money is their largest note is 100 pesos - about £7. Consequently you see people with bundles of notes. I bought something for 21 pesos. Quite often you get let off the 1 peso. Anyway I was asked for it. I found a 2 peso note. No one has a peso coin. I got a sweet instead. A sweet for a peso is common practice!

Argentina is a colourful place to visit. Buenos Aires has charm and is vibrant at times. Much of it has had better days - there isn't the money to maintain all the grand buildings built at the turn of the century - follies now in many ways.

I attach a few photos from my mob.

The Court of Justice. A very chequered history and still a place which attracts plenty of protests

A typical plaza.

A gift from the British.

The Falkland's War (Malvina's) memorial.

Street food. Meat of course!

BA's original skyscraper copied from New York

Many beautiful churches built as family churches in the golden period. The skyscraper above was built to block the view from this church by a jilted lover.

Copied from where. Greece or Rome?

Buenos Aires cemetery filled with rich family mausoleums.

Eva Peron's family mausoleum.

and her plaque on it.

Tango on the streets on Sunday market day.

#Uruguay A trip to Colonia

Got there. A journey from Santiago Chile on the Pacific side of South America to Buenos Aires on the South Atlantic. More about Buenos Aires in the next blog.

From Buenos Aires you can cross the River Plate estuary or Rio del la Plata to Uruguay in just a few hours on a ferry -(Busquebus).

For practical reasons I ruled out an extended visit to Uruguay and also the longer round trip to its capital Montivedo. Instead I arranged a day trip to the picturesque coastal town of Colonia.

It was Saturday. This was going to be a gentle leisure day for me.
The ferry was a big one. Bigger than the IOW ferry. The crossing 3 hours. The sun was out - little breeze. Sat on the top deck the whole way. The River Plate at this point is extremely wide. Quite a bit of commercial traffic. The river is brown - alluvial mud I guess.

Most of the others on the boat are day trippers too I think. I people watch.

The world has gone "selfie" mad. It has been a constant feature of my time away. What can be hilarious is the preparation for the pose. I don't mean a funny one - but adjusting the smile - opening the eyes wider - turning the head a little. Deadly serious. Perfect. Instantly on Facebook.

Another ritual is Matte. Just about every couple or small group seemed to be at it. You need the equipment. A special cup or bowl, a silver sucking straw and a flask of hot water. The cup is infused with Matte a bitter herbal green tea. Hot water is poured on by the dispenser for the day. The pot and straw is sucked on by the first beneficiary and then handed back for topping up and passing to the next one in the group. The process goes round and round in circles. They share the same straw and bowl. It is everywhere in BA and across Argentina and Uruguay apparently. Shops are crammed full of the bowls, straws and flasks? They can be very lovely and of course expensive. Curious.

One pain is currency. I am not a mega fan of some aspects of the EU but the euro does make going from one country to another very easy. They do not have the equivalent in South America. I have to get some Uruguayan Pesos. What do I need. Lunch. A beer maybe. Difficult not having enough. Shockingly bad exchange rate in reverse. However not dealing with big enough sums to make any real difference but it is an intellectual challenge!

I am on a day trip. How many times do they need to look at my passport!?

Colonia is lovely. A bit like I imagine Cuba. Quiet, picturesque, colonial style. Shabby chic. Old cars by design I think. It is a relaxing place to wander around especially with a camera. How typical is it of the rest of Uruguay. Well it is only 22000 people so probably not very although Montivedio with its beaches sounds lovely too. (now I am curious to find out more about Uruguay). I do remember England beat them in the quarter finals of the 1966 world cup. Their tackling and foul play caused a scandal - ha!

Just a quick word about lunch. I had time to kill. I have some currency. One restaurant - parilla - steak house - is heaving with locals. I have to wait for a table. Watch the action. Flames cooking the steaks etc visible in the busy kitchen. Great platefuls go by. My turn. I order classic steak I think. The waiter seems helpful and relaxed. He doesn't prompt me or say anything. My lunch arrives. To my surprise just two massive bits of meat cooked medium rare as recommended. A small pot of relish too. No chips or salad. Just meat. For those that know how I eat - yes it took me ages! Anyway the meat was so tasty. In the end like many South Americans it is only about the meat. I was full and smiling.

A beer watching the sunset. It comes in very cold litre bottles.

A lovely day. Better get back to Argentina - ha!

Wide muddy waters of the Rio del La Plata

Approaching Uruguay. Lots of little Islands.

Colonia's landmark.

My dad had a beige one of these.

Lunch.

Sun almost down on a day trip to Uruguay.

Matte. Tastes a bit bitter and looks grim - but a very social habit.

#Santiago Chile - thoughts - observations

Santiago is massive. 6 million people. For some reason it does not feel like it. I am only here for a short time. I regret it. It has so much of interest. My thoughts are jumbled so I will set them down in no particular order.

Before I do so I would like to acknowledge - first the Eco Hostel - a really nice place to stay and secondly Free Walks Santiago - our guide Franco - really gave us so much in 4 hours. Brilliant.

• The people in SA are short. I am tall by Chilean standards!
• While Santiago feels cosmopolitan there is no evidence of multi culteralism. I have not seem one person in muslim dress in the one month I have been in S America.
• Santiago is flat. The traffic is reasonable and modern but as you will see in the the photos air pollution is still high.
• Chile is doing OK. Copper mining is its major earner. It is now overtaking Argentina economically.
• Downtown and central Santiago has some rough edges but it is great to move around. Lots of plazas and pedestrian areas. Cars do not dominate.
• Chileans work hard. They look tired. I have been told the constant concern about earthquakes and tsunami hangs over them although they are well prepared apparently.
• They have an obesity problem too. Maybe economic wealth is a factor. Their food is a factor!
• Chilean food is on the whole basic. Meat dominates. They have a major sweet tooth. Cakes. Chocolates. Beer with fanta!
• Typical dish being eaten everywhere. Chips covered in slices of meat or fried chicken. Fried onions. Fried eggs. Often with rice and bread rolls and a jug of ribena type drink. Very cheap.
• Chile has a very up and down history in the 20th century. President Allende elected by the people. Loved by many. Hated by many. Overthrown by a military junta led by Pinochet. Nixon involved concerned Chile was going to become a Cuba.
•  A film called No nominated at the Oscars about bringing down Pinochet. I want to see.
• Their revolutionaries sound so much more attractive than our leftwing politicians!
• Pinochet let the UK use bases in Chile to attack Argentina during the Falklands war. Very bad relations with Argentina as a result. Thatcher indebted to Pinochet helped him in exile when the rest if the world wanted to try him for war crimes. Not our greatest moment.
• Chile suffers from the haves and have nots. Not a unique problem of course but a very real division expressed passionately by our guide.
• They are football crazy. They speak Spanish. Two nights running I have watched the Champions League semis. Each semi involved a Spanish team. The whole bar cheering for the German and Italian teams - not the Spanish! It says a lot.
• Santiago claims to have the best sea food in the world. It is not directly on the Pacific coast but comes to Santiago quickly. I spent some time in a fish market fish restaurant. The wine is so cheap too. Dinner cost 8000 Chilean pesos. Otherwise £8!
• Legs Coffee. Chile is not good for coffee apparently. Some years ago some one decided to try and make drinking coffee more attractive. The formula. Small stand up tables or narrow counters. Coffee served by girls in the shortest skirts possible. An unbelievable sight but in the main tasteful. The girls pamper the men if they want it and get tipped well. This is mainstream Santiago and only in business hours. A more recent development is coffee houses (not alcohol) with blacked out windows where the waitresses have very little on. Same rules. Business hours only. Amazing what some guys need.
• Shown the house of Pablo Neruda - Chilean Nobel prize winner for poetry. He is one of their greatest heroes. He wrote an ode to conger eel soup which I had in the market out of respect. Something else to google when I have the time.
• June - Chile hosts the Copa America cup. I liked Peru but I am supporting Chile!!

A few photos :-

Apparently Santiago's most hated building. Yes built by a Spanish mobile phone company to look like a mobile phone!

The Spanish conquer. No reins. Represents no control.

The magnificent Santiago Cathedral. Apparently the Catholic Church is losing membership massively now.

Allende loved by many. Hated by the right wing. Fights every Sept 11th.

Presidential Palace where Allende committed suicide under attack from Pinochet's military junta.

The Chilean flag. 1/3 rd the size of a football pitch. 

Above Santiago at San Cristobel.

Looking down on Santiago from San Cristobal. Evident smog but a big factor is the errupting volcano in the south of Chile.

Chilling

Useful to speak different languages

The end of a lovely day. Fantastic sea food served cold with squeezed lemon and bread to mop it up. Chilean chilled white wine. Go for it Dave - you only live once! The bowl was massive including razor clams and oysters. On a par with Armona and that is saying something.

A sad selfie watching the football. I am supporting the Spanish team - Barcelona. All the Spanish speaking Chilean's supporting Bayern Munich. A mad world!