There was a four hour delay in clearing the ship at the port. We were told that the health officials were "reviewing paper work." This was not surprising in light of all the news about infections on cruise ships. Finally we were deemed healthy and we left on a tour of the city and trip to Sugarloaf mountain.
The area near the port is known as "little Africa". Africans were enslaved in Brazil for over three hundred years. In 1888, the second emperor abolished slavery. The African influence is still reflected in the colourful Brazilian culture. The Portuguese influence is still apparent in the city's architecture and language. Hundreds of thousands of Portuguese immigrants found prosperity in Rio. The Portuguese Royal Family lived here during the time of the Napoleonic wars.
Rio de Janeiro is the second largest city with a population of 7 million people. It was the capital at one time, but in 1960 the ultra modern city of Brasilia was established as the capital. The city is laid out around Guanabara Bay, which is lined with the iconic beaches of Copacabana, Iponema and Leblond.
Inland from the beaches, granite mountain peaks encircle the city. "Christ the Redeemer" is a 40 metre (130 foot) tall statue atop Corcovado Mountain embracing the city with open arms. It was very cloudy the day we visited. Christ the Redeemer was in the clouds in the distance.
Sugarloaf rises from the water's edge and is visible from all over the city. Glass paneled cable cars run up to the summit at 396 m (1,299 feet). In the 16th century, sugar was shipped from Brazil in conical clay molds - hence the name of this granite peak.
As we returned to the ship in late afternoon, we could see the preparations for Carnival celebrations beginning. People in colourful costumes were gathering the streets.
We did not choose to attend the huge celebration at the Sambadrome exhibition centre. We look forward to hearing about it from the large group who left at 9:00 p.m. in the pouring rain to be part of the crowd of thousands.