This morning, we took the mini bus with Pedro and Marianne to visit Rocinha,Rio’s largest favela which has emerged as one of the popular tourist destinations inspite of being well known for its drug related violence in the past.
Exploring the favela with someone actually living there is a completely different experience. Marianne first took us for a gastronomical tour to show us what goes into making the national dish of Brazil, Feijoda. A Stew with beans, beef and pork. When I found out that Pig’s ears also went into the dish, I reconsidered trying it.
Most of Rio’s favelas have been built on the hills surrounding the city as a result of which the roads are narrow and steep which make it difficult to walk .
The best way to get around is taking the local favela transport, a motor taxi . It’s incredible riding on these motor taxis which is basically a bike ride on the steep winding roads. The view just keeps getting more stunning as you go right to the top. Eeshit was so engrossed taking some fabulous shots from the back seat, that he lost his way and had us all worried but he found us soon enough.
Exploring Rocinha with Pedro who lived there was a different experience. I got a better understanding of the way of life there. It was interesting to see the eclectic mix of people living here,working in different fields, from different backgrounds who had all adapted to this challenging way of life. The energy around is different from the other parts of the city. There is this community spirit which ties everyone together inspite of their race. The cultural diversity within the stark polarity of Rio’s classes is instantly evident when you visit a Favela . The Favelas also have their own distinct style of music called Funk which was popularized in 1980’s in these neighborhoods. It was considered a medium for the poor people living in the favelas to express themselves and discuss topics like poverty , social injustice, violence etc.
On our way, we met a man who offered to show us his house which supposedly had a fantastic view. And was he right ! The colourful stacked houses on the hill looked gorgeous against the backdrop of the ocean. A breathtaking view that I would pay to see. An organized chaos. The guy loved Chris so much that he gifted him a jersey of his favoruite local football team. He then went onto proclaim that his whistle was one of the loudest we would have ever heard. We took up the challenge and tried to whistle our loudest but nothing was even as close to the shrill from his whistle. Very random but very entertaining.
In Rocinha, people have created a world of their own. It’s vibrant, alive and personally did not seem the least bit intimidating since we had Pedro and Marianne with us. The place is largely self sufficient with everything you need under the sun available. It’s safe to explore favelas if you have someone showing you around. It’s best if you go with a local. But the sense of feeling unsafe as a tourist is generally lurking around especially when you are carrying filming equipment.
I seem to be passing of as Brazilian, which makes me happy :)
It’s extremely humid today . During lunch, I try a Caipirinha, the national drink of Brazil made with cachaca. Every Brazilian knows how to make one. I don’t know if it was the weather or the general excitement, but I was buzzed after 2 drinks and I decided to stop.
After lunch, Marianne decides to give me a Samba lesson in the middle of the road. I can hear some music blasting in the distance so that helps us. Her lesson is pretty simple. If you don’t like cockroaches, you’ll pick up sooner.
Step 1- Kill the cockroach
Step 2- Twist your hip (with the get away bitch swag, in Marriane’s words)
To everyone’s surprise, I had my black heels tucked inside my backpack.
When you are in Rio during carnival, you need to be mentally prepared to dance at any given point. And you never do samba in Flip flops . Pedro also showed me some of his Funk moves which was basically shaking your booty, a lot. I loved it!
This impromptu Samba lesson with Pedro and Marianna made me realize that Brazilians seem to have this natural rhythm in them. It’s great that here, you are not stared at weirdly if you are dancing on the streets. It seems like the most natural thing to do especially when Carnaval is right around the corner.
We spend the rest of the evening on the Copacabana reviewing our first day of filming and just soaking in all that we had experienced!
