Arcos da Lapa, Aqueduto da Carioca

We were up for breakfast at about 8.30am.  It was a delicious buffet that even included crispy bacon!  Afterwards, we went to the room.  I did some writing and tried to get Penguins up to date.  Mark rested.  He says he feels better, but he's still exhausted and very weak.

At about 3pm, we went for a walk.  I wanted a closer look at the aqueduct at the end of the road we are staying on.  We saw it from the taxi yesterday.

The Carioca Aqueduct, also known as Arcos da Lapa, was built in the middle of the 18th century to bring fresh water from the Carioca River to the population of Rio.  It is a typical example of colonial architecture and engineering.  It is 270 metres long and 64 metres high. Since the end of the 19th century, the aqueduct had served as a bridge for the Santa Teresa Tramway that connects the city centre with the Santa Teresa neighbourhood uphill.  A tram went over while we were watching, but I didn't get a very good photo.  We intend to come back to explore the Santa Teresa area.

Sadly, the arches under the aqueduct are used by some of the city's homeless population.  There were clearly drug deals going on as we walked by.Lue lisää