Amazon & Carnival Explorer Cruise - Day 30: Rio de Janeiro Day 3

Tuesday, March 5

 

Today is our last day in Rio.  Val definitely has a cold as she got up this morning not feeling well and with all the symptoms.  We didn’t really have any plans for today, but thought we should see some of the iconic sights of Rio like Sugar Loaf Mountain, the Christ Redeemer Statue and the famous beaches.  However, we had heard that because of Carnival going on there would be lots of traffic and crowds at the various sites so we decided just to stay on board today and let Val get some rest and take care of her cold.

It was a very low key day with Val resting and sleeping and mostly stayed in the room with the exception of going to the Lido for lunch.  Late in the afternoon there was another street parade in front of the port that we watched from our balcony.

Off in the distance is one of Rio's famous favelas (shanty towns).

 

We had 300 people that ended their cruise in Rio and leave the ship, but added 300 new ones so we had to have another muster drill to accommodate them, also I believe there is a requirement that you have to have one every 30 days anyway.  Thankfully it didn’t take very long as it wasn’t very pleasant standing out in the heat.

After the muster drill, Val returned to our room and I went up on deck to watch us sail out of Rio.  It was a beautiful evening as we left the harbor and while the ever present heat and humidity was there, a cooling breeze that made it quite pleasant out on deck.  I felt a bit sad leaving Rio as we had a great time here and got a taste of what it meant to be in Rio for Carnival.  Other than our night in the Sambadrome we didn’t get to see the sights of Rio, but hopefully we’ll be back someday to see them.

I wandered around the deck for a while taking pictures as we sailed away from Rio and ran into Tony doing the same thing.  I chatted with him for a while and then headed back to our room to see what Val wanted to do for dinner.

Interesting contrast, a luxury cruise and an offshore drilling rig.

Looking past the front of our ship.  The building that sticks out is a museum called The Museum of Tomorrow.

We are on our way.

 

On top of the mountain you can see the Christ Redeemer Statue sticking out of the clouds.

Sugarloaf mountain sits at the entrance to the harbor.

 

Val did want to go to trivia tonight, but not to dinner in the dining room.  After getting ready we were off to trivia where we compared notes on our Rio activities with the rest of our teammates.  After trivia, we got a quick bite in the Lido for dinner and called it a night.  Rest seems to be one of the best medicines for a cold so Val went to bed early to get as much sleep as possible.  Luckily, the next three days are sea days so she won’t be missing anything by being sick.

We had a great time in Rio and were sad to leave, but we are looking forward to sailing up the Amazon in a few days and we are excited about that.

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.

Amazon & Carnival Explorer Cruise - Day 28-29: Rio Carnival and the Sambadrome

Sunday Night, March 3 and Monday Morning, March 4

We are now back from the Sambadrome and it was an experience of a lifetime so I thought it deserved a blog post all by itself.  So WOW what a night!!!  Now to pick up from where I left off.

... As Bob, Carol, Val and I walked out into the now light rain, we were a bit envious as the buses for the ship tour were parked right outside the ship near the gangway.  Since we had purchased our Sambadrome and shuttle tickets through a local tour company called DoBrazilRight, we had to walk through the terminal and across the street to catch our bus.  There was a large crowd of people getting on the buses, all a little bit nervous, but all very excited about the evening ahead.

When the bus was full, we were on our way to the Sambadrome.  There was a lot of traffic and street closures for the street parties that pop up during Carnival, but after a forty-five-minute drive we were there.  As you approach the Sambadrome, it is like arriving at a big stadium with the banks of light towering above everything.

We have been told that inside the Sambadrome during Carnival is the safest place in South America and it certainly looked that way.  The bus parking was in a fenced area that surround the outside of the Sambadrome and there was security, both military and local, everywhere.

We exited the bus and entered the concourse area of the Sambadrome and made our way to the sector where we had our seats.  Just walking through the concourse, you could feel the excitement and anticipation.  There was Samba music blasting through speakers and it seemed like everyone was happy and dancing and very friendly even to us obvious tourists.

Carnival and the samba school judging is the biggest event of the year in Rio.  It is much like our own Super Bowl, but even bigger because everyone is involved, if not in the Sambadrome then at the numerous street parties that pop up continuously for the entire week of Carnival.

It was a bit overwhelming for the four of us, but the staff and vendors couldn’t have been friendlier and more helpful. When we found our section, we were led right to our seats.  There was a lady there drying off the wet seats, which was nice as things were pretty wet.  Since this would be a once in a lifetime experience for us, we opted for front row box seats.  There are six seats in a box and we knew that the other two people would be tourists like us, but from another ship.  They soon arrived and seemed very nice, and spoke English which made things a lot easier.

The Sambadrome is a specially built venue specifically for Carnival.  There are bleachers on both sides that go high up, and then five rows of boxes at the bottom.  There is also what I guess is equivalent to our stadium suites in between the boxes and the bleachers.  They are large and covered and look like they might have bars in the back.  The parade area is polished white concrete just over a half mile long and forty feet wide.  The Sambadrome has a capacity of 90,000 spectators.

Section 7 where we were sitting was at the midpoint of the 1/2 mile runway.  This picture was taken from our seats looking towards where the parade starts.

 

Bob and Carol

Here we are waiting for the start of the parade.  Val already has glitter on her face, which was applied by the two very nice Brazilian ladies in the box next to our.

If you booked your tour with the ship, you were seated in section 9 which is called the tourist section.  Since we booked it through DoBrazilRight, we were in section 7 and surrounded by Brazilians with a smattering of tourists.  We were a little nervous about this and thought we might be resented for “crashing” their party, but we couldn’t have been more wrong.  They were very welcoming and friendly, and happy that we were interested enough to attend their big party.

In the box next to us were a couple of young Brazilian women who spoke only a few words of English, but went out of their way to make us feel welcome and help us understand what was happening.  Of course, being in Brazil, all of the announcements were in Portuguese, but they helped us understand what was going on as best they could.

These are the ladies in the box next to us, they couldn't have been nicer to us.

It was still raining lightly and actually stopped for a while, but when we took off our rain gear it started up again.  The parade start was postponed from 9:00 to 10:00 so while we waited, we enjoyed the sights and sounds of the Sambadrome.  There was loud samba music playing through the PA system and everyone was dancing and laughing.  A little bit of rain didn’t dampen the excitement and enthusiasm of the Brazilians, if anything it just heightened the anticipation.

While we waited, the ladies passed out glitter for any of us that wanted to get in the spirit and put it on our faces.  One of the ladies’ husband was on one of the floats so she was very excited.  As we approached the start time, fireworks started going off at one end of the Sambadrome and the crowd became even more excited if that was possible – it meant that the parade was ready to start.

The fireworks started and we knew the parade was soon to start.

The timing was perfect as the rain had stopped and the temperature was very pleasant.  As the first samba school started down the parade area, the music  for their particular samba school came blasting over the speakers and you couldn’t help but being caught up in rhythm and singing as it seemed to just sweep you away.  The crowd was dancing and clapping and singing along.  Our small group of tourists weren’t quite as carefree, but the feeling of excitement, energy and pure joy was infectious.

As the parade went by, the sound, color and dancing just overwhelmed the senses and you were swept away by the excitement of it all.  Each samba school takes about forty-five minutes to parade the length of the Sambadrome and then after a fifteen minute break, the next one starts.  I had no idea how many participants and floats there are in each school and at first thought they were running all the schools one after the other, but it was all just the first samba school.

This is a picture I found that shows the immensity of the parade.  We were seated in the front row on the right, just beyond the light blue paraders.

There are four or five different, elaborate floats interspersed with colorfully costumed groups of school members dancing and singing.  Each samba school has their own music and theme, and the costumes and floats reflect and interpret the theme.  Each school is judged on ten categories overall including their enthusiasm and ability to engage the crowd, and they obviously work very hard at it. As I’ve said before, their enthusiasm and the reactions of the crowd are infectious.  For more information about the samba schools and the judging, follow this link.

Our box seats were right on the edge of the parade with only a railing separating us from the dancers and floats, you could literally reach out and touch them.  They all loved to be photographed and mugged for the cameras.  The number of dancers and people on the floats runs from about 3,000 to 5,000 participants for each club.  You multiply that by the seven samba schools that perform over the course of the night and you get an idea of the size and scope of parade.

The best way to describe the parade is through some of the many pictures we took. We were totally immersed in the color, music and dancing, and I'm afraid pictures won’t do our experience justice, but hopefully you'll get an idea of what we're talking about.  A note on the pictures below; despite the bright lights, it was low light photography and there was lots of motion so many of the pictures aren't as sharp as should be, but they do capture the spirit.

 

The third samba school parade ended about 2:00 AM and the rest of our group wanted to leave.  Val and I didn’t really want to go. We wanted to stay at least for the fifth parade and see the husband of the woman in the next box, but we decided to stick with the group and leave with them, so we said our good-byes to our new friends and we were off to find the shuttle back to the port.

As we walked through the concourse and back to the bus exit, it looked like everyone from the various ships in port decided it was time to leave too as it was packed with people.  Besides our group, there were the excursion shuttles from our ship and the other ships, as well as other private tours, it was like a zoo, but finally our shuttle arrived and we were on our way back to the ship.  It took a long time to get back because when we neared the port, the streets were blocked due to a street party going on so we had to take a roundabout way.  We finally got to the port and we were back in our room just after 3:00 AM.  Neither of us could really get to sleep as we were still full of the excitement of the evening, but I think we finally dozed off by 4:00.

If you haven’t noticed already, we loved our night at the Sambadrome!!  It is one of those experiences of a lifetime that you never forget.  Our retirement travels have taken us to many wonderful places and given us the opportunity to have many experiences of a lifetime, but this one will rank up there with the most unforgettable ones.  When we booked this cruise, we did so because we thought that being in Rio during Carnival was something we couldn’t pass up.  I didn’t even know whether I would even enjoy it as the thought of listening to samba music for hours on end didn’t really sound appealing, but I was as wrong as I could be.

First off, I could have listened to the music all night, and along with the color, excitement, energy and obvious joy and excitement of the Brazilians, it made it a truly awe-inspiring experience.  I will stop trying to convey my excitement about this and just suggest that if anyone who reads this has the opportunity to be in Rio for Carnival and attend the Samba Parade in the Sambadrome, don't pass it up.