On this day of August 1^st, 2014, the sky is blue, the sun is warm and gentle, and the sand of Copabacana is white and inviting. How can one resist the pleasure of simply lying down and enjoying the moment, the scenery, the spectacle of the waves coming and going, leaving a trail of white foam. The water is still a little bit on the chilly side, but it is quite bearable. And besides, chilly water is good for the skin, isn’t it?

Naturally we will end up spending most of the day at the beach, which is all the more pleasant that there are actually few sunbathers today. As they say, it does not get any better than this!

Late afternoon, we decide to go back to the hotel for a refreshing shower and then head for the famous Pao de Açucar to watch the sun set.

URCA

Urca is the district which lies at the foot of the moor named Pao de Açucar. It is a quiet, residential district with some beautiful houses facing the bay. Wandering around, we haphazardly encounter a Brazilian couple who happens to speak impeccable French. The two happily seize the opportunity to tell us about how pleasant it is to live in Urca, a neighborhood conveniently located close to the center of Rio but a lot less touristy than the Copacabana and Ipanema districts.

Most of the houses in Urca are small, not ostentatious at all, and were built at the beginning of the 20^th century. In the bay, fishing boats, some of which are painted with bright and cheerful colors, are anchored, waiting patiently for their fishermen.

Far in the background, across the bay and the city, the Corcovado is standing proud atop its spectacular moor, and watching over the entire city, as always.

We find a cute little church sitting at the bottom of the ‘Sugar Bread’ moor. A painting featuring the colors of the Brazilian flag make for a nice, vivid contrast against the white walls of the church.

A little bit further on our way, we discover a cute, quiet little beach, almost hidden, cozily nested at the far end of peaceful Urca. Looks like it is the neighborhood beach, and it is fair to assume that it is probably a little bit more crowded on weekends!

Time to head back for the station to hop on the cable car up the Pao de Açucar to catch the sunset.

PAO DE ACUCAR

The famous moor stands at a height of 396 meters. Down at the cable car station, a maze of lanes, just like at Disneyland, has been set up for the usual long queues of tourists. But it is winter season, and there is no waiting line as we come up. All excited, we barely take time to admire the beautiful street paintings on the walls along the way.

To go up the Pao de Açucar you need to ride 2 different cable cars. The mid-level stop provides a nice opportunity, besides of course getting used to the altitude, to get a first view of the landscape. One can walk around the platform and get a peak all around in the various directions. The view is so spectacular already that this stop surely must have been designed to allow the unprepared visitors to catch their breath!

 

So, now that we have been psychologically prepared, we hop on the second car to the very top of the moor.

 

From the top of the Pao de Açucar, the view is indeed absolutely fabulous! The whole city of Rio de Janeiro is spreading right under our eyes, a totally unique scenery of beaches and areas of buildings regrouped and cuddled in between the dark, mysterious moors. Flamengo, Leme, Copacabana, Ipanema, the Pedra de Gavea with its flat top, the Corcovado, the Centro area…. Indeed one has to catch one’s breath for a moment to fully grasp the really incredible panorama.

As the afternoon is closing, with the promise of the eagerly awaited sunset, there is quite a large number of people already on the platform, and quietly but surely, everyone is regrouping closer to one another near the fence, taking their positions and getting their cameras ready. A couple of benches have been set up for sitting. Clearly there will not be enough room for everyone! The good spots are highly valuable. Luckily we were among the first ones arrived and we manage to secure excellent positions. We now just have to wait, as the sun is still a bit high and the sky an immaculate blue.

We check our cameras, make sure everything is working properly, batteries charged, lenses cleaned. We have time for a little snack of cookies. The color of the sky has started to change, the excitement is building. The crowd is getting denser, but the atmosphere is really cool and friendly. It feels like an open-air music festival, with the crowd anxiously waiting for the show to start.

The sun is now descending. The cameras fire off like crazy, and a gazillion photos are taken every second. Feels like a Hollywood star has arrived for some kind of world premiere.

The spectacle is truly magnificent.

When the sun has finally disappeared, it is about 5:30 pm. The scenery is now a magical display of lights all across the city and the bay. The crowd spontaneously bursts in cheers and applause, dazzled by the beauty of the moment which just took place.

We sit still for a bit longer to enjoy the view and the moment to its full extent. But then it is getting dark, and all things must come to an end eventually, even the best of times.

Slowly we make our way down, fascinated and mesmerized, and a lot richer than when we came up.

Diner at the roof top of our hotel. We check on our good friend the ‘’Corco’’, to make sure it is still watching over the city of Rio de Janeiro. Well, yes, of course it is.