From Ben Miller.
For some, Carnaval is a time of letting go of all inhibitions – the chance to party, dance, dress up in costumes, indulge the id, and let loose. The parties, parades, blocos, and craziness dominate Rio for several days. For that reason, most people who don’t LOVE Carnaval get out of town – vacations, the beach, the mountains… Lots of churches have retreats. We had a stay-cation. So for us, Carnaval was surfing at the beach, volleyball in the park, a day at Rio Water Planet (did I mention it’s Latin America’s largest water park?), high stakes poker, a couple of movies, and hiking up the Pedra da Gavea.
Most people have heard of Sugarloaf and the Christ statue overlooking Rio. And those are both definitely cool things to do. But the Pedra da Gavea is amazing. It towers 842 meters (2,762 feet) above the coast separating two beach neighborhoods (Barra and Sao Conrado). And while it was a fairly strenuous hike (pretty much a constant 45 degree angle all the way up), very much worth it. I can see why they recommend using ropes though – a 20-30 foot stretch of 80 degree scrambling up a crack in the rock, with a couple hundred foot drop off over the ledge. Guess who didn’t bring any rope!
