TOURISTS, HEAT, WATER, AND A FAUX PAS

TOURISTS, HEAT, WATER, AND A FAUX PAS

Today, we enjoyed our hottest temperatures yet as we joined hundreds of other tourists on a cog railway to climb Hunchback Mountain to see the landmark statue of Christ the Redeemer. The railway climbed through a man-made rainforest, the largest urban forest in the world. Unfortunately, it was planted with some non-native species notably the invasive jackfruit tree which has dominated to the detriment of native trees. An elevator and escalator took us to the top to see the impressive statue. We fought our way through the hordes and managed to get some pictures of it and the amazing views. On our way back we actually managed to see some wildlife - a Northern Anteater had fallen (or climbed down) from a tree and was wandering up a concrete path. To show you how into wildlife our guide was, she thought it was an armadillo! From there we drove through the ritzy Ipanema district to our hotel. After a quick trip to the grocery store and a bite of lunch, we changed into our bathing suits for a walk along the beach. The waves today were enormous and we were soaked by some of the larger ones. The surf was truly roaring. The waves reminded me of some of the film footage I saw of the Phuket tsunami. On our return headed for the rooftop pool for a swim and the Internet access that allows me to update this blog. The faux pas happened when Norma came back from the mandatory before-pool shower with her soaking wet cover-up in her hand saying "Guess what I did?" That started the giggles.
Tomorrow, we board the ship.