NON-SEXUAL FUN in Rio

[BlkSuperman]

I know some of you noticed who's writing this post and are probably thinking, "what does this sex crazed tramp know about any non-sexual activities happening in Rio when all he does is get pounded out 24/7 on every trip he takes?" Well, the answer to your question is, "I only get pounded out 22/7 (smile) when I take these trips. The other 2 hours I use to explore these beautiful travel destinations."

Let's start with my favorite place to eat breakfast in ipanema. The place is GRINGO CAFE. The owner is an ex-pat from California. His name is Sam. He is the nicest guy and very helpful to Americans who may need assistance while in Rio.

I met him new years eve and he spoke about falling in love with Rio and deciding to make the permanent  move there and open up his restaurant. The food, especially the breakfast, is great.  His desserts are addicting. When I say desserts, I mean cheesecake, red velvet cake and other goodies he has at his restaurant.

Before my hubby and I took our 12 day trip over to Rio we reached out to Sam because we wanted to find a gym to workout at while we were in Rio. I hit Sam up on FB and he responded within a day and asked that I contact him on whatsapp.

Sam is such a helpful guy. Within 2 days He told us to go to smartfit and buy a $6 day pass to gain access to the gym. There is a kiosk at the front door of the gym and all we needed to do was use our credit card and we could workout. 

Smartfit is all over Rio and they all have the same kiosk and for $6 a day you can workout, cruise all the sexy beautiful men and peek at the guys who are busy on their cell phones tending to their grindr messages. SCRUFF is also a VERY POPULAR app in rio. I actually saw a billboard advertisement for scruff in ipanema.

Rio also Has the orange itau bicycles all over the place. Omg..I love renting these bikes and exploring ipanema and copacabana. What I found out about the bikes on my last trip is, if you rent a bike from station 1, you DONT HAVE TO return it to station 1. You can return return the bike to station 5, 6, 7, 10, 100. 

To rent the bikes, go to the bike stand where the bikes are stationed,  touch the screen at the stand, press the English option and follow the simple instructions. At that time, you can rent up to 4 bikes (depending on how many people are riding with you) for a small fee. It's very inexpensice.

They will flash a code on the screen. I snapped a picture of the code just in case we forgot. My husband and I Input our code and took our bikes. 

We walked out of our apartment one afternoon, took an uber to the SHOPPING RIO SUL MALL. instead of going Into the mall, we found a bike stand and rented 2 bikes for the hour. If you go over the houR they will charge you extra but we didnt care. The bike ride was VERY NICE and we had a shit load of fun.

We rode the bikes in front of sugarloaf mountain. The views were breathtaking. We stopped along the way and took pictures.  I'm so happy we decided to do the bike ride because we saw so many interesting parts of Rio that we probably would have never seen because we are always in uber speeding past these various sites.

Along the bike route were beautiful greenery, picturesque views of the mountains and beautiful water. I know I said this post was going to be non sexual, but the half naked men along the bike route made this ride even more interesting. 

The men there are just so beautiful.  And they love showing off their sexy bodies and I love looking at their bodies and dick prints. Half of them dont wear underwear and are so carefree about not wearing any.

About 15 minutes into our bike ride, we saw a man climbing a tall tree for coconuts, found a soccer field where some of the most gorgeous guys were playing their favorite sport. We also found a skate board park with ramps and beautiful brazalian men with no shirts having a ball doing tricks on their  boards. 

This saturday bike ride made me fall deeper in love with Rio. We rode through tunnels and on pedestrian bridges to get back and forth to either side of the street. We were out for a good hour and fifteen minutes enjoying the cool weather and taking in all the beautiful scenery.

After our bike ride we went to SHOPPING RIO SUL mall. It's a huge mall with lots and lots and lots of stores and a HUGE FOOD COURT. We decided to eat at the food court and walk this massive mall. 

The next day, Sunday, we took an uber to cinelandia. I told my hubby that I wanted to take the street tram to see more of Rio. In order to ride the tram you need to use your debit card to buy a tram card. The tram is very clean and modern.

We sat on the tram and rode through downtown Rio taking in all the sites. We jumped off one train line and got on another to see as much as we could. The tram is the most inexpensive, relaxing way to see downtown Rio for about $10US pp. 

The tram takes you through business loops, residential neighborhoods and other areas of interest. There are about 3 or 4 train lines so make sure you get there around 11 in the morning if you want to get a full day of exploring In. The tram ride is amazing. You can get on and off if you like.  Just dont lose your card or you will have to buy another.  

If you need to exchange money in copacabana go to BLAME IT ON RIO travel. The owner is Bobby.  Hes an ex-pat from Florida. Bobby is so sweet. He opened a thriving business in Rio that does money exchange,  countless tours and he even has a laundry mat to wash clothes. He actually gives the best exchange rates in copacabana.  Bobby also likes Snyders pretzels so If you go, take him a bag and tell him,  "Coach sent you."

If anyone knows of anymore placew of interest to add, please share for the newbies and also some of us who may have gone to Rio, but not ventured off the beaten path.

 

 

 

 

[SolaceSoul]

15 minutes ago, BlkSuperman said:

Let's start with my favorite place to eat breakfast in ipanema. The place is GRINGO CAFE. The owner is an ex-pat from California. His name is Sam. He is the nicest guy and very helpful to Americans who may need assistance while in Rio.

I met him new years eve and he spoke about falling in love with Rio and deciding to make the permanent  move there and open up his restaurant. The food, especially the breakfast, is great.  His desserts are addicting. When I say desserts, I mean cheesecake, red velvet cake and other goodies he has at his restaurant.

Gringo Cafe in Ipanema is great! It was right down the street from my last few apartments. It is one of the few places in Rio that actually gets American comfort food right. The TV is always on an American station. And the piped-in 80s music is the best! It’s not a common place for brasileiros, however. You’ll find many expats eating there, plus foreigners who have visited or lived in USA and a handful of tourists. I often try to take my favorite Brazilian boyfriends there to give them a taste of well-prepared American comfort food (which, believe it or not, many have never before experienced). But I try not to go there too much, because when I travel abroad, I aim to immerse myself in their culture. But yes, introducing Brazilians to (a good part of) American culture can be exhilarating as well!

[BlkSuperman]

And the piped-in 80s music is the best! 

@SolaceSoul, yasssssssss! I forgot to mention the 80's music. I was there on my last visit a few weeks ago and another American guy with his family and I started singing and reminiscing about the songs being played while we ate breakfast.

[SolaceSoul]

1 hour ago, BlkSuperman said:

Smartfit is all over Rio and they all have the same kiosk and for $6 a day you can workout, cruise all the sexy beautiful men and peek at the guys who are busy on their cell phones tending to their grindr messages. SCRUFF is also a VERY POPULAR app in rio. I actually saw a billboard advertisement for scruff in ipanema.

SmartFit is a nice commercial gym (with great equipment and nice eye candy). But if you want a free gym / workout experience overlooking the beach / ocean (with just as much eye candy potential), simply go to the outdoor gym at Arpoador (edge of Copacabana and Ipanema, near Posto 7). I call it “The Flintstones Gym” because all of the weights are made of concrete. 

There are also a free beach gym at Posto 12 in Leblon 

[pauleiro]

Beco (no boca) das garrafas in Copacabana

[pauleiro]

When you book on Airbnb, they send you a list of (non sexual) fun you can do in Rio. Examples : 

If you are lucky and good watcher, you can see some of these  turtles in Leme (where people fish)

 

Climb the sugar loaf with a guide

Parapente or Deltaplane is great fun and show spectacular views of Dois irmaos (2  brother hill) and the beach (where you land)

[pauleiro]

Niemeyer s masterpieces in Niteroi, in particular the museum. Art exposed there is not interesting. The building (style and location) is. Best is to take a bus or uber or taxi to go and come back by boat to Rio Center

 

Wild (and also wild in a different meaning as far as the nude beach is concerned on week ends) beaches around Rio

Bohemian Rio in Lapa and Santa Teresa

[pauleiro]

Helicopter tour (if you book and pay the helicopter tour for two, you can do whatever you want in the back seats)

Rio street art can be found everywhere (not much in Copa and Ipanema ...). The more street art you see, the most dangerous area you are in ...

[pauleiro]

Favella tour

Caution : many readers on this forum recommend NOT to do this tour as it can be dangerous

 

[pauleiro]

Sao Joao Batista graveyard

In Botafogo. Many famous people are buried there (9 former President, Santos Dumont, Heitor Vila Lobos, Carmen Miranda, ...) The largest graveyard in Rio. 

[axiom2001]

Paulerio-- thanks for posting.  My amigo and I have taken some of these marvelous experiences: the helicopter ride was exhilarating, esp if boarded in Flamengo/Leme nearest a great restaurant that had lots of ambiance and stunning views from afar and tasty food.  I did this twice: once with my traveling amigo; the second time was with a guide I'd met while going on a trip with gay men to "the Green Isle."

...have experienced many other cultural/nonsexual activities and experiences that I shall forever remember!  

[axiom2001]

5 hours ago, pauleiro said:

Favella tour

Caution : many readers on this forum recommend NOT to do this tour as it can be dangerous

 

I took my first tour of two or three favelas with Sr. Marcelo Armstrong-- the man who's been given credit for beginning tours to the favelas.  ...liked it very much.  There were only four of us which made for a somewhat intimate experience (nonsexual) for us.  The second had a religious bent per our guides: I did NOT like the atmosphere at all.  Try to go but in a smallish group or perhaps 1-1 (local and you).

...the Tijuca Forest as well as those fabulous botanical gardens are two other alternatives and great places to visit as well. 

...meandering throughout Santa Theresa-- ride the bondi-- walk-- observe-- visit-- go to that restaurant that came to power after Samantha visited a few years ago-- walk those stairs (NOT ALONE) from Santa Teresa to Lapa.  Snoop Dog and Pharrel (sp) did a music vid a few years back while standing on these stairs.  At the time I thought Pharrel was a carioca because I did not know of him.  

There's lots to do while in Rio de janeiro!

[Riobard]

On 7/27/2019 at 10:06 AM, BlkSuperman said:

We rode the bikes in front of sugarloaf mountain. The views were breathtaking. We stopped along the way and took pictures.  I'm so happy we decided to do the bike ride because we saw so many interesting parts of Rio that we probably would have never seen because we are always in uber speeding past these various sites.

Along the bike route were beautiful greenery, picturesque views of the mountains and beautiful water. I know I said this post was going to be non sexual, but the half naked men along the bike route made this ride even more interesting. 

The men there are just so beautiful.  And they love showing off their sexy bodies and I love looking at their bodies and dick prints. Half of them dont wear underwear and are so carefree about not wearing any.

About 15 minutes into our bike ride, we saw a man climbing a tall tree for coconuts, found a soccer field where some of the most gorgeous guys were playing their favorite sport. We also found a skate board park with ramps and beautiful brazalian men with no shirts having a ball doing tricks on their  boards. 

This saturday bike ride made me fall deeper in love with Rio. We rode through tunnels and on pedestrian bridges to get back and forth to either side of the street. We were out for a good hour and fifteen minutes enjoying the cool weather and taking in all the beautiful scenery.

-----

The next day, Sunday, we took an uber to cinelandia. I told my hubby that I wanted to take the street tram to see more of Rio. In order to ride the tram you need to use your debit card to buy a tram card. The tram is very clean and modern.

We sat on the tram and rode through downtown Rio taking in all the sites. We jumped off one train line and got on another to see as much as we could. The tram is the most inexpensive, relaxing way to see downtown Rio for about $10US pp. 

The tram takes you through business loops, residential neighborhoods and other areas of interest. There are about 3 or 4 train lines so make sure you get there around 11 in the morning if you want to get a full day of exploring In. The tram ride is amazing. You can get on and off if you like.  Just dont lose your card or you will have to buy another.

You evidently rode up right through the Flamengo shore. If you missed them, next time consider two things at your fingertips. My usual neihbourhood, so glad you discovered it as an alternative beach ride.

Our Lady of Glory on the Hill church (c 1733?) for the view; access to inside is rare and usually I find the most likely on Sunday mornings or in conjunction with the other times of the Mass schedule when congregants attend. 

Catete Palace and its Museu de Republica. The gardens start at the cluster of soccer fields and the palace is at R. do Catete (extends north to Gloria) and R. Silveira Martins. 

-----

The tram light rail transit (VLT) you graced is a great method of exploration and many of the stops in its southeasterly sections are essential sightseeing attractions. You can also use paper currency in the fare machines to load the card once you have the card, but you would want small denominations to prevent overloading your card value and the machines have zero capacity to return bills or coins.

-----

Oh, and those animal faces dress you up to the tens, not that you need it.

[BlkSuperman]

3 hours ago, Riobard said:

Oh, and those animal faces dress you up to the tens, not that you need it.

What animal faces??? Are you being disrespectful??? Those are our natural looks...LMAO!!!

thanks for the compliment. I have no idea where the places are you speak of. I take it you live there? On our next trip we will have to take a break from our, "OTHER ACTIVITIES," (did I just type that) and find the places you're talking about...

Thanks for sharing. I will be in touch before our next visit. I love exploring Rio....

[Riobard]

Not a resident, just very familiar with the Catete/Gloria enclave, where I try to stay out of the way of collisions between Noah's Ark and Snapchat.   ;-D