At the Copa, Copacabana...

We've had an exciting few days in Rio. We are staying in a hostel with many like-minded travelers who all enjoy to go on adventures together, plus there is a bar with happy hour in the hostel so it is very conducive to making friends. Last night we went out with our housemates in the Lapa neighborhood. It was quite an experience, and the group was out until 3 or 4 (some later!). There were several clubs crowded with people but also tons of street vendors for food and drink, and impromptu dance parties happening on the street. Imagine the party culture of Vegas but with way more people and more friendliness. Carnavale starts next week so we thought maybe there was more going on in preparation for that, but our hostel guide said that it is basically like this every weekend.

Today we are hanging out at the beach with a new American friend. We have run into a few other hostelmates but the beach is so crowded and so huge that even though we were three blocks from our hostel (on a direct line to the beach), we couldn't find many peoe even when we tried. We did some body surfing and wave jumping as well as napped, read, and played cards.

Now we head back to the hostel to make dinner and leave by 9:15 PM: taxi to the bus station, bus to São Paulo, flight to Santiago, bus to the bus station, bus to Valparaiso, Chile. We should be at our hostel in 24 hours. Wish us luck!Read more