Blog Post on City Tour

Michelle Navarro

On Saturday morning, the group met at our hotel lobby for the Carioca Tour. Everyone was very excited to see the astounding sights and spots that we usually hear about when Rio de Janeiro comes to mind. I was looking forward to visiting Christ the Redeemer because it is such a well known statue that I never imagined I’d be fortunate enough to visit. We could have not gone on a more perfect day. Blue skies made our pictures look as if they were edited. My favorite part however was visiting the small chapel at the base of the statue where I joined in prayer. After the Christ the Redeemer stop we visited the Parque Nacional da Tijuca, where we got to see a beautiful waterfall and met the Brazil wood or the Pau brasilia, the reason behind the naming of Brazil. Our tour also allowed us to visit the Santa Teresa neighborhood and the Escadaria Selarón. It was amazing to see my hometown Chicago and Mexico represented even when it feels so far away. The tour overall was an amazing experience and will be something I will always remember. Thank you so much to our amazing tour guide.

Group walking through the Santa Teresa neighborhood
On our hike through Parque Nacional da Tijuca
One of our first group photos at Christ the Redeemer
On our way to start the tour.
Students at the Tijuca National Forest
UW students at the famous Selarón tiled steps