Sleep? Who needs sleep when you’re in another country for two nights? Or, another continent in this case. Another business trip had me traveling to Rio de Janeiro last week and my on-the-ground time was three days and two nights with most of that time devoted to business meetings.
Rolling Off the Plane in Rio de Janeiro
Whether it’s one hour or ten hours spent huddled in an airplane coach seat, my face, body, hair and even under my fingernails are magnets for traveler’s slime. If you’ve traveled – even once – you know what I’m referencing. Once the cabin door closes, traveler’s slime is that light dirty film settling over every inch of your body. Simply and not so eloquently, it just makes you feel gross.
The Solo Travel Girl Can’t Say No
My in-flight time to Brazil was just under 12 hours with about 10 of that between Charlotte, N.C., and Rio de Janeiro. When I rolled off the plane in Rio I was covered in so much traveler’s slime my skin was crawling. Yuck! Entering the hotel my colleague – who arrived a week prior – could smell me coming and encouraged me to take a shower before embarking on a walking tour of Rio’s City Centre with Carioca (native of Rio) and a Gringo-Carioca (not sure if that’s an official term but he’s an American who lives in the city).
A hot shower and uninterrupted sleep in a horizontal position were my priorities but in true Solo Travel Girl fashion of carpe diem, I quickly de-slimed and slapped on some makeup in order to take on this Brazilian city.
Exploring Rio’s History by Foot
I must say, in a blink of an eye we wandered over Rio’s black and white mosaic-tiled sidewalks (pretty to look at but killer on heels, I imagine ankles have been broken) and saw quite a bit of the city. Architecture is stunning with no two buildings alike. We visited churches, museums, what they call Colonial-looking alleys (in reference to the days Portugal was in power, I say it looked like Venice, Italy) and even an indoor area that has a bit of excavation.
Photos in this post represent a small sampling of what we took in. Sacrificing sleep was a good call because who knows what life will bring. I’m looking forward to a return visit to learn and see more about this Brazilian city which has now come into the international spotlight with World Youth Day 2013, 2014 World Cup and 2016 Summer Olympics.
Related Posts
How I Stayed Safe in Rio de Janeiro
Muddling My Way Through: Things to do in Rio de Janeiro
Learn How to Prepare a Brazilian Meal with Cook in Rio
Lost in Brazilian Portuguese Translation
Getting a Business Travel Visa to Brazil
