Centro, Culture and Coffee

Thursday was our first proper outing on the Metro, and it turned out to be a very pleasant surprise. Easy to use, simple to pay, just tap and go with a card or phone, much like the London Underground, and clearly signposted throughout. It was efficient, calm, and got us into Centro quickly and without fuss.

Centro felt immediately different from the beach areas. The streets were busier with office workers and business people, giving the area a more purposeful, weekday rhythm. Our first stop was the Church of Our Lady of the Candelária, where we arrived just as preparations were underway for a confirmation ceremony. We stood discreetly at the back as lines of teenage boys and girls, dressed in cream, waited excitedly while families looked on proudly. It felt like a small, quietly human moment, and we slipped out before the ceremony began.

From there we walked to the Museum of Tomorrow. The building itself is striking, a photographer’s dream, its bright white structure blazing against the blue of the sea. Adding to the scene, nearby naval officers were standing in formation, creating an almost surreal contrast between architecture, water, and ceremony.

Inside the museum, we paused to ask whether we qualified as seniors. On confirmation, we were waved through with free entry — a small victory for me, though my wife was less impressed at how easily this status was awarded. In true senior fashion, we then made a beeline for the café and the toilets before tackling the exhibits. Some displays felt closer to modern art than anything especially informative, but the highlight was the 360-degree cosmos dome, where you lie back on cushions and look up as images and sound surround you — immersive and unexpectedly calming.

We continued on towards the docks to see the Mural das Etnias, an enormous and impressive piece of public art created for the Olympic Games and covering some 3,000 square metres. The wider waterfront area felt full of potential — already attractive, but with the sense that it could be developed much further with more cafés, bars, and places to linger.

Passing the aquarium — which we deliberately skipped, preferring not to visit attractions involving animals — we headed instead for the ferris wheel, a familiar favourite. It was on the pricey side for a 15-minute ride, but the views across the docks and the vast container ships being loaded made it worthwhile.

Hunger eventually won, and we took a chance on Deguster Café, which was buzzing with office workers from nearby L’Oréal and Subsea7 offices. Packed with young professionals, the noise and energy made it clear this was a popular spot — and with good reason. We loved it.

Retracing our steps, we headed to São Bento Monastery. Even as fairly seasoned visitors to monasteries, this one was a little unusual to access — entering via an office and taking a lift felt oddly functional. Once inside, though, the church was magnificent and well worth the effort.

Still going, we made our way to the Portuguese Library. Some had described the surrounding area as sketchy, but we didn’t feel that ourselves, though we also didn’t linger outside. The library itself is beautiful and highly photogenic, though realistically a short visit of around ten minutes.

By then, coffee was essential. A short walk brought us to Confeitaria Colombo, where we happily embraced its tourist-trap status. Sitting beneath the mirrors and chandeliers, eating cake and drinking excellent coffee, it was easy to see why this place has served royalty and Rio’s elite for generations. My standout choice was the brigadeiro.

Finally, thoroughly walked out, we hopped back on the Metro for a quick ride back to the apartment and a very well-earned rest.

Reflection

In some ways the day felt like a classic list of tourist stops, churches, museums, murals, landmarks, the sort of itinerary that can sometimes blur into one long walk between highlights. But in this case, it really worked. Each place offered something different, whether it was a quiet human moment in the church, the scale of the waterfront, or simply sitting with coffee and cake in an old institution like Colombo. Moving through Centro at a weekday pace, using the Metro, and sharing space with people going about ordinary working lives gave the day more texture than a typical sightseeing loop. It may have been a box-ticking day on paper, but in practice it felt varied, interesting, and very much worth the effort.

Walking the Length of Copacabana

Friday was meant to be a quieter day, a chance to ease off after a full-on week of travelling to get here and working our way through Rio’s main sights. The plan was a relaxed morning on the beach, but rain followed by heavy, dark clouds quickly put an end to that idea.

Instead, we headed out for a walk along Copacabana, and as these things often go, what started casually turned into something more substantial. We ended up walking the full length of the beach, from Copacabana Fort all the way to Leme. It turned out to be a surprisingly satisfying stretch, the sea on one side and the steady rhythm of the promenade underfoot. We stopped briefly at Mureta do Leme for a drink and some fries, taking in the view across Leme and back towards the Fort, before setting off again. By the time we reached the end, we’d clocked around six miles and felt every step of it.

After some grocery shopping, the afternoon slowed properly. We spent time relaxing on the sun terrace, and I may have had a short sleep before the evening. Dinner, unfortunately, was the low point of the day. At Açougue Vegano, the food was easily the weakest of the trip so far, with dishes that felt more like reheated microwave meals, which as it turned out, were also being sold directly in the dining area.

The walk back offered our only slightly uneasy moment of the day, when we passed a small group of men arguing in the street. We kept our distance and moved on without issue, but it stood out simply because it was the only time all week that we felt the need to be more alert.

Despite the false start to the day, the long walk along Copacabana ended up being its own reward, unplanned, tiring, but quietly satisfying.

Gardening Day

Saturday became our “gardening day,” starting with a visit to Parque Lage, followed by the Botanical Gardens. We timed it well, arriving at Parque Lage right at 9am. The queue for the café was still relatively small, although we hadn’t initially realised that much of it was for people wanting their Instagram-style photos of the pool, the house, and Christ the Redeemer framed perfectly behind.

Once the photos were done, we managed to get a table and quickly ordered coffee and breakfast. The service was excellent and impressively attentive, the waiter noticed we were sitting in direct sunlight and, after watching us squirm for a few minutes, suggested moving to a shaded table. The food was first rate, some of the best we had all holiday. The French toast was outstanding and very much recommended.

There is a small charge to access the rooftop area, although as seniors we were waved through free of charge. From above, there were even more carefully framed photo opportunities, the pool, café, and surrounding mountains laid out beautifully below. The gardens themselves were surprisingly interesting, with man-made grottos and even small tropical fish tanks tucked away inside some of them.

From there, we walked just under a mile to the Botanical Gardens. The grounds are expansive and immediately impressive, especially the long avenues of towering palm trees, yes more opportunities for Instagram moments, though undeniably striking. We spent a very enjoyable couple of hours wandering through the gardens, including the orchid houses, before beginning the walk back towards Ipanema.

Our return route took us past the jockey club and the horse racing track before joining the lagoon path. By the time we reached the apartment, a short rest was definitely needed before heading out again, this time for a Bloco party, Simpatia é Quase Amor.

In truth, we arrived a little too early. The street vendors were still setting up, and there were hundreds of them, lining the roads with carts, coolers, and speakers. Then the crowds began to arrive. I don’t think I’ve felt more out of place in quite some time. Barely clothed young people, drinking enthusiastically, dancing freely, and fully committed to the moment filled the streets. A handful of other older tourists hovered near the edges with us, looking slightly awkward and faintly alarmed.

Eventually the parade arrived, music blasting from a double-decker bus, with dancers and tambourines following behind. “Is that it?” my wife asked once the very short procession had passed. For us, it was. We decided to cut our losses and retreat in search of something more our speed, ending the evening instead with food and margaritas at Espaço Zagut, a far more suitable and comfortable finale to the day.

Reflection

The day felt like two completely different experiences stitched together. The morning was calm, green and unhurried, gardens, shade, long walks, and moments that invited lingering rather than rushing. By contrast, the Bloco party was loud, crowded and unapologetically energetic, a reminder that Rio celebrates life very differently depending on where you stand within it. While we admired the joy and colour from a safe distance, it was also reassuring to recognise our limits and choose something that suited us better. In the end, the day worked not because everything went to plan, but because it showed us, quite clearly, what kind of experiences we enjoy most, and when it’s perfectly fine to step aside and watch rather than join in.

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Around the city

Centro, Culture and Coffee

Walking the Length of Copacabana

Gardening Day

First Days in Rio

Exploring Beyond the Beaches