Around the World 2025

We had a 7:45 meeting time in the Lounge for our “Highlights of Rio” excursion, which meant a quick breakfast in the room. We met our group and trooped over to the bus staging area for our ride out to Corcovado and a trip up to the Christ the Redeemer statue. It’s about a twenty-minute ride through jungle-covered slopes to get to the top. Once there we piled out and the four of us chose to climb the 220 steps to the viewing platform rather than queue up for an elevator. It was cloudy, but the clouds moved around enough to give us shifting views of the city below. It’s a spectacular view from the top, which explains the crowds. The Instagrammers who need to strike their pose, take a shot, review it, and repeat, didn’t make it any easier to move around. We had a full hour at the top, which was frankly more than we needed, so we grabbed a snack and a drink at the little café on the lower level.

Once back down to the bottom we took the scenic route back to the dock. We passed through some of Rio’s fancier neighborhoods and then along Ipanema and Copacabana beaches. These are justifiably famous as you get not only nice beaches but a breathtaking setting with the jungle-covered hills behind the hotels and high-end residences. Our guide pointed out that if you want a picture of Rio in a nutshell, look to the north end of Ipanema, where you get the beach, the hills and jungle, a 5-star hotel, and a favela clinging to the slope behind.

When we returned to the port we immediately grabbed an Uber to the metropolitan cathedral. We’d seen pictures of this in the lecture on Rio we had attended on board and were intrigued. It turned out to be one of the highlights of our whole Brazil experience. The building looks like no other church I’ve ever seen. Designed by architect Edgar de Oliveira da Fonseca, it was begun in 1964 and completed in 1979 and done in a style that recalls the ancient Mayan pyramids. Elizabeth and I were immediately taken both by the look and the openness of the building. There is a huge open entrance with no doors that invites you inside. Once inside you are in a massive round space with no interior walls, only the sloping exterior meeting far above your head. We’ve seen many churches on our travels, but none that felt as inclusive of its community as this one. To top it off, it was raining as we came in and the sound of the rain running down the stepped outside walls was magical. It was like being inside one of those rain sticks that have the beads that rattle when you flip them over. Really a memorable experience.

We Ubered back to the ship for a late lunch, after which we gave the boys the afternoon off. Liz and I walked down to the Museum of Tomorrow, both to get a closer look and to get a bit more exercise. While I don’t really love the aesthetic of the place, it’s undeniably cool and impressive. We took a lap around the building, which let me pick up a couple of new birds: Masked Water-Tyrant and Saffron Finch. Then it was back to the ship for our 5:00 departure. We sat out on the balcony and watched Rio and Brazil recede until sunset.

Liz was quite sad to leave Rio. It’s a reality of a trip like this that you aren’t going to have very long in any one place, and we could have happily stayed much longer in Rio. A city of 12 million people, it has its problems and the locals will be the first to tell you that. But it also has a variety of people and cultures, architecture ranging from Portuguese colonial to art deco to that amazing modern cathedral, and a stunning geographical setting. Both Rio specifically and Brazil in general surpassed our expectations. We spent 15 days exploring Brazil – several of them sea days, granted – and barely scratched the surface. It’s a massive country with a lot to see.

But for now it’s onward to Uruguay!Leia mais