"Beach Culture in Rio" a Brazil Travel Page by scarm

I have been travelling to Brazil for five years, and love the place. I was lucky enough to live in Brazil for a couple of years and have quite a bit of information about this wonderful country. This seems as good a place as any to put it, so here we go!

January and February are the hottest months of the year, and you can expect 40 degrees plus in most places.

In Rio, the best close-in beach for tourists is Ipanema, as it has the best services and is relatively clean and upscale.

Better to pick a spot farther from Arpoador, as this is the place that the busses bring people from the outskirts of Rio to go to the beach. Flamengo and Botafogo are not clean, Copacabana is a bit seedy and the water is less clean.

The beach culture in Rio is very interesting. The Cariocas (residents of Rio) usually go to the same area of the same beach every time.

These areas are called Postos, and they are named for the service posts along the beach, which have show and toliet facilities. Each of these postos has a number, which the Cariocas use to tell each other where they will be.

For example, one might say, "we will be at Posto Nove (post 9) on Saturday", and in this way, they arrange meetings. If you were to go to Posto Nove every Saturday, and you sat in the same spot, you would see the same people week after week, and this brings a kind of safety to your situation, in that the people look after each other.

One of the best things about the beach in Rio is that you do not need to bring anything with you, as you can buy all of the necessities there. Best to purchase a wrap (thin cover up), which you can use to lay on, or to brush the sand off, or to cover-up before going back to the hotel. These are very efficient, as they do not stay wet long.

Vendors keep you well supplied with the necessary items, like suntan lotion, water, beer, all types of food, and you can rent a chair and an umbrella for a very small sum.

One of my favorite things to do is to rent a bicycle on Sunday in Copacabana or Ipanema, and to ride along the beach, and perhaps a spin around the Lake (Lagoa Rodrigo de Freitas).

Sunday is important for this activity because the three lanes of road along the beach are closed to traffic all day Sunday, which makes navigating much easier. Plus the people watching is wonderful.

For those who have a car, the distant beaches can be very well worth the effort. Try Praina or Grumarí, which are beyond Barra de Tijuca, and are next to a nature preserve, and very beautiful, but you would need to bring an ice chest and your own sun shade.

Better yet, if one has the time, are the beaches of Niteroi, the city across the bay, which has beaches to the north of the city that are remarkable and clean, and very safe. This requires a drive across the toll bridge, which is a wonder in itself. My favorites are Camboinhas, Itacoatiara and Itaipuaçu, but these are for the more adventurous of tourists.

If one is interested in going to one of the more distant beaches, I would recommend getting up very early, and being on the road before 8:00, as there is quite a bit of traffic, and you would want to get there fairly early in order to get a good parking spot.