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was rather impressive. We took a taxi to pracco de 15 Novembro, the centre of the old colonial part of the city, but that was quite run-down and did not feel quite so safe, but certainly interesting from an architectural point of view. We decided not to stay long and took another taxi to Santa Teresa, very near the hotel in a less touristy area which was recommended in our guidebook, but the taxi driver didn't agree and repeatedly told us that it was not a good idea to go there on our own. We ignored him, assuming he had some ulterior motive. On arrival we discovered that he was right as it looked even more scary and deserted, so again we headed back to the safety of Copacabana Beach.

We booked a half-day excursion to Sugar Loaf Mountain, rather than just getting a taxi there. Well, that's what we expected anyway. We were picked up from the hotel in a coach and taken first for a tour of the city, football stadium and cathedral. Brazilians seem to be very keen on football and couldn't understand why we would not be interested in their stadium. We finally arrived at Sugar Loaf Mountain, located at Praia Vermelha, and took the famous trip by cable car, as seen in the Bond-film, Moonraker. It is in two sections, first going to Morro de Urca and the mid-way station with its gardens and view points, then a short walk past a cafeteria where lots of friendly salespeople tried to convince us that we really wanted our pictures on a souvenir plate. The second leg took us to the peak, Pao de Acucar, 396m above sea level. There were breathtaking views of Guanabara Bay and the city, or at least there would have been had it not been raining and very misty. It was still an incredible experience despite the weather and amusing to watch the cable car disappear into the fog.

In the evening we walked along Ave. Atlantica, next to Copacabana beach, to Churrascaria Palace, for a meal. Like so many restaurants in Brazil it was a high quality buffet and barbeque with huge a selection of meat that kept arriving at the table. I ate far too much, but there was such a great selection it was difficult not to.

We took another half-day excursion, this time to Corcovado and Tijuca. We really should have just got a taxi on our own rather than a tour, after our experience the previous day, but we had already paid for this one. We were picked up and taken to the Cosme Velho Railway Station. The fenicular railway starts here, climbing through the Tijuca rainforest to the steps of the famous statue

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