Amazon & Carnival Explorer Cruise - Day 29: Rio de Janeiro Day 2

Monday, March 4

…. OK, back to reality.  We finally woke up around noon after our late night, but we could still feel the excitement of our night at the Sambadrome and that’s all we could talk about.  Reality finally set in and we were off to lunch to join the real world again.  As we ate in the Lido, we heard many conversations going on from people who had attended the parade last night and some of the comments were surprising to us.  Some said it was too loud, others said they didn’t like the music and others said it just wasn’t what they expected and didn’t really care for it.  Although I was really surprised by their reactions, everyone is different and certainly entitled to their opinions.  The vast majority of comments were from people who just loved it and like us, thought it was an experience of a lifetime.

After lunch we returned to the room and Val suggested we get off the ship and walk around a little bit.  

Not nearly as many people out today, this is looking from the terminal into a plaza area

Another of the great murals.

After being out for a while we heard some drumming and noise and saw a lot of people coming down the street so we went to investigate and found ourselves in the midst of a street parade.  They were mostly young people dressed in various degrees of costumes singing and just having a good time as they flowed down the street.  The costumes were not like the elaborate ones we saw last night, but more of the homemade style.

We found ourselves in the midst of a street party.

 

Val and I were taking pictures and a young couple walked over and started talking to Val.  The young woman was a Brazilian and spoke very good English so she started talking to Val about what Carnival meant to the Brazilians and how they celebrated.  She was delighted to hear we had been to the Sambadrome and when we told her how much we enjoyed it, she was even more excited.  It was evident to us from the Brazilians we talked to that they loved sharing Carnival with travelers and wanted everyone to enjoy and participate in their big party.

After posing with our new friends for pictures and getting a Brazilian kiss (a kiss on each check) from the young lady, the young couple moved on with their friends and we continued with our photos.  Just like at the Sambadrome last night, people loved to get their pictures taken and would often run up in front of us and pose.

We noticed that wherever the street party went, they were followed by an army of push carts selling all sorts of food and drinks.  We followed the parade into a plaza area and after watching the festivities for a bit we decided to head back to the ship.

After going through the usual security check, we were back in our room and spent the rest of the afternoon resting and recuperating.  I spent quite a bit of time downloading the numerous pictures we took at the Sambadrome last night.  I also spent quite a bit of time trying to write a blog post and put into words our experience in the Sambadrome.

Around 5:00 we heard drumming going on and when we went out on the balcony and saw there was another street party going on.  This one was more elaborate with more drummers and singing.  They didn’t stop at the plaza area this time but went all the way down to one of the main streets where everyone stopped.  Having the streets blocked and traffic stopped seems to be somewhat normal and it didn’t seem to really bother the drivers so I guess it is all in the spirit of Carnival, but I think I might get a little impatient.

We felt like going out and joining the festivities again, but it was time for dinner and we needed to be off to trivia.  None of our team showed up, so there was no trivia for us tonight.  The ship had brought on some dancers and drummers for a show tonight, but it was an early show since the performers had to be off to the Sambadrome to join their Samba School right after their performance.  We weren’t planning on attending, but when no one showed up for trivia, we rushed off to catch the show.  The showroom was full, but we found some seats way in the back in the balcony and watched the show from there.  It was an OK show, but compared to what we saw last night, not nearly as exciting.  The performers were very good, but it just wasn’t the same.

After the show, we went to dinner and then ended the night early.  The casino wouldn’t be open as we are in port, so we called it a night and because we were still tired from the night before we went to bed early.  Val said she has had a sore throat on and off the last few days and is starting to feel like she has a cold.  It seems like it is impossible not to catch something on a long cruise as you are in constant contact with a large number of people.  Tomorrow is our third and final day in Rio.