Showing posts with label Rio de Janeiro. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Rio de Janeiro. Show all posts
2.07.2010
a bicycle serenade
While in Ipanema, I saw this guy fixing bikes on the sidewalk (the Bike Man Ben of Rio?). Seeing as how I serendipitously ran into more of my brethren, I asked him if he would take a picture of me with my bicycle.
Instead he gave me a song.
He mentions his band (which is supposedly on myspace) at the end of his song, but unfortunately Eu não falo português, so if someone can chime in with a translation, muito obrigada!
1.29.2010
When in Rio, Ride in Red (in the Rain)
Summer in Rio de Janeiro, obviously means beach days, but who knew it also meant rain. Wet weather frequented many of my vacation days, though as is typical of tropical showers, they never lasted more than an hour or so. So flocks of bronzed people are on and off the beach as if it had a revolving door.
We decided not to make any excuses for the weather and take some rent-a-bikes out for a spin. In our hood, we found Mr. Bike For Rent, who lives at Rua Miguel Lemos, #10, just a couple blocks from our "hotel" (read Love Motel with hourly rates, thanks for [NOT] telling us, Lonely Planet) in Copacabana, who fixed us up with some shiny mountain bikes for R$30 per person for 4 hours.
Holly and I had quite coincidentally selected red dresses for the ride, so to make the greatest impression from the bike lane, we insisted that Linda and Tamika coordinate accordingly.
Rio is one of the few cities in Brazil with bike lanes, not just along the tourist beaches of Copacabana and Ipanema, but all along Guanabara Bay to the Botafogo and Flamengo districts. I already told you about crossing the tunnel to get from Copacabana to Botafogo.
The bike lane in Rio did not disappoint. Not only were the views of the Cidade Maravilhosa just that - marvelous, but the scenery on the bike lane itself was quite amusing as well.
I call this Rio de Janeiro Cycle Cheek.
We met Fabio somewhere in Botafogo as we all pulled to a halt at the bike stoplight.
Because he was dressed appropriately, we let him join our group.
Fabio lives in the hillside neighborhood of Santa Teresa and bikes to and from work in Ipanema. His boss even installed a shower for bike commuters! He also leads large groups of cyclists on bike tours on Sundays.
Then came the flood.
We stopped for a beer at a barraca when it started pouring, waiting for the rain to cease.
After about five beers and no signs of dry weather, we were too drunk to care about getting wet, but didn't want to be drunk and not so in charge of our bicycles in the dark in the City of God.
By the end of the ride, all the ladies in red had to wring out their dresses. A great first bici-aventura in Brazil, with many more to come!
We decided not to make any excuses for the weather and take some rent-a-bikes out for a spin. In our hood, we found Mr. Bike For Rent, who lives at Rua Miguel Lemos, #10, just a couple blocks from our "hotel" (read Love Motel with hourly rates, thanks for [NOT] telling us, Lonely Planet) in Copacabana, who fixed us up with some shiny mountain bikes for R$30 per person for 4 hours.
Holly and I had quite coincidentally selected red dresses for the ride, so to make the greatest impression from the bike lane, we insisted that Linda and Tamika coordinate accordingly.
Rio is one of the few cities in Brazil with bike lanes, not just along the tourist beaches of Copacabana and Ipanema, but all along Guanabara Bay to the Botafogo and Flamengo districts. I already told you about crossing the tunnel to get from Copacabana to Botafogo.
The bike lane in Rio did not disappoint. Not only were the views of the Cidade Maravilhosa just that - marvelous, but the scenery on the bike lane itself was quite amusing as well.
I call this Rio de Janeiro Cycle Cheek.
We met Fabio somewhere in Botafogo as we all pulled to a halt at the bike stoplight.
Because he was dressed appropriately, we let him join our group.
Fabio lives in the hillside neighborhood of Santa Teresa and bikes to and from work in Ipanema. His boss even installed a shower for bike commuters! He also leads large groups of cyclists on bike tours on Sundays.
Then came the flood.
We stopped for a beer at a barraca when it started pouring, waiting for the rain to cease.
After about five beers and no signs of dry weather, we were too drunk to care about getting wet, but didn't want to be drunk and not so in charge of our bicycles in the dark in the City of God.
By the end of the ride, all the ladies in red had to wring out their dresses. A great first bici-aventura in Brazil, with many more to come!
1.03.2010
We´re not in Rio anymore, Toto.
As soon as I got off the bus in Sao Paolo, I hopped in a cab to my hotel, only to be greeted immediately by a glue sniffer. EVERYONE, including my cabbie, told me to be extremely careful in this neighborhood. I was warned about Rio, but somehow I feel this is worse!
Tomorrow I will be riding around Sao Paolo with Renata Falzoni, to whom I was introduced by Gary Fisher last time I ran into him at the market in SF. So I can give you the full report of Brazil´s largest city by bike later this week. Tonight, I am trying to get through the night unscathed!
Biking in Rio seems to be on the up and up. My friend Holly was our tour guide for the week. She led us through a tunnel that she used to ride through all the time when she lived in Rio 10 years ago. On the other side, we realized, when a fellow urban cyclist was laughing at us, that a bike lane through the tunnel had been added! The day we rented bikes, we met another urban cyclist named Fabio on the bike lane that encircles Guanabara Bay. He leads group rides in Rio on Sundays, up to 50 people. When it started pouring down rain so we all ended up taking shelter and drinking beers instead, which made riding back to Copacabana soaking wet a little easier. Rain or shine, the views of the mountains, the water and the Christo from the bike lane are spectacular.
No photos until I get back to the states. Tchau!
Tomorrow I will be riding around Sao Paolo with Renata Falzoni, to whom I was introduced by Gary Fisher last time I ran into him at the market in SF. So I can give you the full report of Brazil´s largest city by bike later this week. Tonight, I am trying to get through the night unscathed!
Biking in Rio seems to be on the up and up. My friend Holly was our tour guide for the week. She led us through a tunnel that she used to ride through all the time when she lived in Rio 10 years ago. On the other side, we realized, when a fellow urban cyclist was laughing at us, that a bike lane through the tunnel had been added! The day we rented bikes, we met another urban cyclist named Fabio on the bike lane that encircles Guanabara Bay. He leads group rides in Rio on Sundays, up to 50 people. When it started pouring down rain so we all ended up taking shelter and drinking beers instead, which made riding back to Copacabana soaking wet a little easier. Rain or shine, the views of the mountains, the water and the Christo from the bike lane are spectacular.
No photos until I get back to the states. Tchau!
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