Cidade Maravilhosa
No trip to Rio would be complete without the mandatory trip to
Corcovado, the statue of Christ. Take the train through the jungle to the base of the statue, then walk up the 220+ steps and you are there. When I was there in October 2002, they were in the process of building an elevator and escalator, so you wouldn't have to walk up all the steps.
From the statue, there were amazing views of the city. While the size of the statue was quite impressive, what really impressed me was the statue at night. It stood on a mountain that was mostly covered with jungle, so you didn't see the mountain at night. At night, large flood lights pointed at it, causing the appearance of a glowing Christ floating over the city.
The view from Corcovado was incredible. On one side, you could see Sugarloaf Mountain and various harbors.
On the other side, you could see the Maracana soccer stadium (not in this picture), the Jockey Club (the track on the right side of the picture), the lagoon (foreground) and Ipanema (the developed area between the lagoon and the sea).
Tall and tan and young and lovely the girl from Ipanema goes walking and when she passes each one she passes goes ahhh When she walks she's like a samba that swings so cool and sways so gently that when she passes each one she passes goes ahhh
I had to stop and drink a choppe brahma (great beer!!) at the Garota de Ipanema. This was the bar that Antonio Carlos (Tom) Jobim and Vinicius de Moraes wrote the classic Bossa Nova song "The Girl From Ipanema". Just down the road from this bar was a music store that was filled with bossa nova and samba CDs. I bought quite a few of them.
Stretching the length of Ipanema beach was the boardwalk, which was made from thousands of tiles, set into this pattern. All along the boardwalk were kiosks selling iced coconuts and cold beer. What a great place to sit and people watch.
Beyond the far end of Ipanema beach, the "Two Brothers" mountain poked up above the city. This picture was taking on a foggy Sunday morning (notice how many people are already at the beach!!)
This is a picture of the same area, taken at sunset while sitting on the rocks of Arpoador, which is the area located between Ipanema and Copacabana beaches.
At the Copa..... Copacabana Music and passion were always in fashion ...
The boardwalk along Copacabana Beach. I read many warnings saying not to walk here at night, but I did anyway and felt perfectly safe (up until around midnight). After that, I took a cab. Of course, I wouldn't walk alone in my neighborhood after midnight either!
I spent a lot of time in Copacabana. I met lots of interesting people on the beach and in the adjacent bars and restaurants; I even saw a Gilberto Gil concert one night on the beach. I think everyone should experience a Brazilian concert at some point. It was great fun!!
One evening, I decided to go on an organized tour to a Rodezio (meat buffet) and catch a Samba show. I was in a group with a very fun couple from Spain and a woman from Sydney who had just spent the previous week walking the Inca Trail. This was a very fun crowd! And since the tour bus was taking care of all transportation, we didn't hold back on drinking Caiphirrinas!
The show was very Las Vegas style - touristy, but good none the less. The woman from Sydney and I were sitting in the front row, and the male dancers made sure to flirt heavily with us. We did not mind one bit!!!
The next morning, I decided to nurse my nasty hangover by spending several quiet hours wandering around the
Botanical Gardens.
At the end of this long line of palm trees is a fountain.
After wandering around the gardens for several hours, I decided to sit on one of the many benches. Within about 15 minutes, I was surrounded by marmosets - sort of like a cross between a squirrel and a monkey. 
It was interesting watching them run up and down the trees, and jump from tree to tree. Plus, they make interesting noises. It was very relaxing.
Another famous site in Rio that shouldn't be missed is visiting Sugar Loaf. To get there, you take a cable car. There are two stops. This photo was taken after the first stop, before riding to the top. At each stop are various overlooks, so you can see different parts of the city. At the top of SugarLoaf, there is a patch of forest, with well developed paths.
While the people on tours were herded through like cattle, I was able to take a couple of hours and explore all the trails, watch different birds and butterflies, and I even saw a few marmosets.
I also took a jeep tour of the Tijuca forest, which is located in the center of Rio. This picture shows bread fruits/jack fruits that were growing everywhere.
We also stopped at the "Monkey's Waterfall" which was right off the side of the road. There were several large crabs swimming in the water.
Another stop on the tour was the Chinese Vista, which was a memorial in honor of the Chinese immigrants that built many of the first roads through the Tijuca forest. On a clear day, you can see both Sugarloaf and Corcovado at the same time.
This was not a clear day and you couldn't see anything.
Yet, I thought there was a spectacular view!
Too bad my suitcase wasn't bigger ........ I would have liked to take a few of these guys home with me!!
There are several historic sites in La Asuncion, the capital of Nueva Isparta (the state in which Margarita Island is located.)
One of them is the castle of Santa Rosa which dates back to 1682 and was where Luisa Caceres de Arismendi, wife of one of the leading combatants against Spanish Imperialism was held hostage in 1816.
View of the lake next to the castle.
This cathedral is the oldest church in Venezuela. Construction was begun in 1570 and completed in 1621.
Inside the church are numerous headstones embedded into the walls. The cremated bodies of important members of the church are buried within the walls of the cathedral.
This is a typical governmental building, in Spanish colonial architecture.
This Church of the Virgin Mary in El Valle del Espiritu Santo is considered the most important pilgrimage destination in Venezuela. The outside used to be painted pink, but was recently repainted to this tan color. There is an ongoing effort to raise the funds to repaint it to the original pink.
One of the many stained glass windows in the church of the virgin.
A church at Juan Griego
Fishing boats docked at Juan Griego.
Fishermen returning with the day's catch.
Sunset at Juan Griego
One of the many other waterfalls flowing out of the tepuys.
Other waterfalls in Canaima. We later took a canoe ride up to them.
Canoe to take to the falls.
Once at the falls, we went for a short walk across the top of them
View of Sapo Falls from the hiking trail.
