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CARNIVAL!

Posted from Rio De Janeiro, Brazil by Daryl, 23 Feb 09 at 05:39

We tried to go and see Jesus at the top of the mountain but the queues were horrendous It was obvious a miracle wasn`t going to happen so we gave up and took 2 cable cars up Sugar Loaf Mountain instead. The views were spectacular, Rio must be the most beautiful city in the world, amazing coastline and lots of green bits. The 36C temperature takes a bit of doing.

Chris talked (with difficulty) to some locals about getting black market tickets to the Sambadrome (you can pay anything up to 200 pounds a seat).Off we went to a sleazy bar to meet a scalper called Phillipo who sold us a pair of tickets for a tenner each. We headed off to the Sambadrome which is where the real carnival takes place. The tube was packed full of Cariocas in enormous fancy dress outfits, laughing and dancing in the steamy atmosphere.

Luckily the tickets were kosher and we got in. There were thousands of people, all dressed up to look silly, singing and dancing to the deafening beat- and that was just the audience.

The procession starts in the evening and goes on all night, involving 6 or 7 samba schools, each comprising about a thousand people. The costumes are completely over the top with head dresses the size of dining tables and floats as big as houses, some 3 storey. These were all lit up with moving parts, like a writhing octopus and robotic spaceman and covered with gyrating bodies.The energy seeps into your bones and your body resonates to the beat, the sky an explosion of fireworks. As the grand finale to our trip we couldn`t have done any better.
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Posted by Liese on 23 Feb 09 06:50
Writhing octopus and robotic spaceman .. much like Bishop Middleham on a Friday night - except for the 'moving parts'. BM doesn't do those. Hope you've got loads of photos of you both samba-ing in a steamy atmosphere just to prove you've done it. Life will be quite empty next week when we can't catch up with your adventures. Amazing, love L x
Posted by Jenny and Steve on 23 Feb 09 14:19
Your excitement and the atmosphere at the carnival fizzes off the page!

What effect is this going to have on Bakewell carnival now???

You'll need a bigger garage to work in just for the hats!
Posted by Colette on 23 Feb 09 14:43
Thanks for keeping us so entertained in the last few months. You seem to have managed to cram so much in and have left tangible evidence of your visits to various places on the Grand Tour!! Different why to geo-caching!

Enjoy your last few days and thanks again for fantastic and educational news items on your site!!
Posted by Pam and Michael on 23 Feb 09 15:01
The Northerners soap Coronation Street and the Southerners soap Eastenders continue to enthral but sadly the Midlanders soap Greenflies comes to an end this week.



We will certainly miss the tales of those pesky little Green critters hanging on to the undersides of the leaves in our computer book.



Yes the tales of Mrs Bean will now be confined to the new soap starting next week under the title of Derbyshire Disasters. We wish her well in this one !



Seriously though we can’t believe that your world tour is nearly at an end. Where is the next holiday destination, the Moon perhaps. How will you adjust to life back in Bakewell. We trust there will be a Bakewell Blog otherwise we will have withdrawal symptoms.



Have a good journey home.

Posted by Lorraine on 25 Feb 09 08:33
Thanks Daryl for letting us join you on your wonderful start to retirement. Life will be a little duller for all of us when the Greens Fly home, but I'm sure you'll think of something else to entertain us with.
Posted by Ginny & Kevin on 25 Feb 09 11:58
Rio tomorrow, 31c & cloudy; Bakewell tomorrow, 5c & cloudy. Hmm... At least you'll have HALF of it! What a spectacular finale to a fantastic adventure. We've thoroughly enjoyed being two of your myriad travel companions. Thanks for being such delightful storytellers. Good luck with the homeward flights. Love from us.Xx
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