Friday Postcard: View from Santa Teresa, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Odds are that if you visit Rio you’ll be staying in Copacabana or Ipanema, in Zona Sul, Rio’s South Zone. While these bairros, or city districts, are undeniably beautiful and appealing, do yourself a favor and visit the artsy, bohemian neighborhood of Santa Teresa.

Santa Teresa is located in the hills just outside of centro, Rio’s downtown. Back before tunnels and Avenida Atlantica opened up Copacabana (which was only about 100 years ago), Santa Teresa was where Rio’s wealthy preferred to live. The elevation and breezes helped to keep life bearable in those days before air conditioning.

Although today most of the wealthy have moved to Zona Sul, Santa Teresa is now home to an energetic, artsy crowd, and you really haven’t seen Rio unless you pay a visit. Sunday afternoons are a great time to come. Catch the bonde, or trolley, behind the Petrobras building downtown. The ride is only 60 centavos (about 35 cents at current exchange rates) for a seat, and free if you stand on the running board and hang on!

Hop off at the second stop, at Largo dos Guimarães. Facing uphill, on the left and up those stairs lies the library, where you will find samba music and feijoada on Sunday afternoons. Wander up and down along the bonde tracks, checking out the restaurants, bars, and shops. You’ll also see some truly inspired graffiti murals.

Be sure to take a camera along. You’ll want to get some pictures of your own from the heights. In the picture above, you can see the cable car ascending to the top of Pão de Açucar, or Sugarloaf. At its foot is the harbor where the wealthy park their yachts. The areas wrapped around the harbor are Botafogo and Flamengo. You can clearly see the division between Botafogo, in white, and adjacent favelas, or slums, like Catete.

Interested in learning more about Santa Teresa? Visit www.VisualTravelTours.com, where you can see previews of my tours of Rio.

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