Rio de Janeiro, Brasil - April 2011

In April of 2011 I made a trip to Rio de Janeiro, Brasil - a business trip to give some software training to one of our customers down there.  Rio is one of the most beautiful cities in the world (IMHO) and I really didn't think twice about going down there, even though training is not something I usually do.

Our clients, Odebrecht, put me up in a nice hotel in Niteroi - just across the bay from Rio. I was initially expecting to work in their office but there were rumors that one of their rigs was in port. When I walked out the back of my hotel I was very surprised to see the rig sitting a few hundred yards offshore. The rig was new, having just been built in Abu Dhabi and it was undergoing final fitting out before going to work offshore Brasil.

The Norbe VI Rig as seen from my Hotel

The Rig at Night - Corcavado in background

I had not visited a rig in years - it has become so difficult these days to get on board a rig without having all the required safety training and certifications - so this was a real treat.   On the first morning I was taken by boat out to the rig and then I was winched up onto the rig in a basket on the end of a crane. The basket device is actually something called a 'Billy Pugh Transfer Net' - named after its inventor.  It's biggest claim to fame outside the oil industry was when it was used to pluck various Apollo astronauts out of the ocean after completing their mission.  It was certainly an interesting and exciting way to go to work, particularly with the view of Sugar Loaf, Corcovado and downtown Rio in the background.

Hoisting aboard the Rig

The actual work was fine though it morphed from a training session to a software redesign session. I came back with a long list of things that they needed adding or changing.  More work for us which is a good thing I suppose.

The Norbe VI

After my stint on the rig, I did get to check out a few tourist type things.  I was staying in Niteroi.  Niteroi is just across the bay from Rio and it is linked to Rio by ferries and by a bridge. It is not as affluent as Rio and it is the more industrial port area. Nevertheless it is a nice area, with great views across the bay towards big city.

Street scene in Niteroi

On one of my morning runs (actually my only morning run), I stumbled across this wonderful building - more like a space ship than a building. It was designed by Oscar Niemeyer and houses a contemporary art museum. By all accounts the building is much more impressive than its contents.

Contemporary Art Museum - Niteroi

Niemeyer's Contemporary Art Museum

Something I wanted to do while I was here was visit one of the favelas in Rio so I signed up for a tour on the Saturday afternoon.  Just wandering around the favela as a tourist is not quite what you want to do as a tourist - it might not be too safe to say the least.

It was an interesting look at a different side of life in Rio. I was worried about it being a little too voyeuristic but these tours are becoming fairly common now and they are promoted as being run by Favela residents and allegedly they do give some money back to the community. Whether that is true or not I don't know.

The Rocinha Favelea

I was picked up in front of the Copacabana Palace Hotel (one of the best hotels in Rio and a striking contrast to where we were actually going) and whisked off up the hill to Rocinha where the housing changes from super expensive to extremely poor in the matter of a few meters.

Typical multi level construction

According to the guides, the slum areas are governed by a mafia-like organization of drug dealers and crooks and even the police don't venture inside. They said that these mafia types at least organized things in the community and got a few things done, while the local government did precious little for the residents. The houses are a chaotic jumble climbing up the hillsides. Hardly anyone has a proper address as the streets and buildings are somewhat free-form, electricity is just stolen by tapping into the power lines, and when you need a new house or a room, you just build it on top of an existing one (4 or 5 levels high sometimes).

If you need electricity, just take it!

That being said there were parts of the Favela that were quite attractive - very colorful, some quite modern, and some with great views of Rio and the Ocean.  Obviously some money is being put into their development.

A more colorful and modern section

Everyone was quite friendly and I didn't sense any hostility or lack of safety.  As can be seen by the photo to follow with a bunch of kids and families.

Yours Truly and some kids in Rocinha

On the following day, Sunday, I did the more standard tourist things - the downtown area, Corcovado, Sugar Loaf, Copacabana, etc. It was a nice day out with lots of wonderful sights. I took lots of pictures. Then on my return to the hotel prior to going out to the airport, I was taking a taxi and I realized that I needed some more money to pay for the ride. I asked the driver to stop at an ATM, and then foolishly got out of the taxi, leaving my day pack in the cab. When I completed my transaction and turned around from the ATM, the taxi had disappeared along with my pack. I guess he figured that whatever was in the backpack it was more valuable than his $20 fare. He was right - 2 cameras, an iPhone, lots of miscellaneous bits and pieces. I am up to over $2,000 on the insurance claim.

That made for a sour end to the trip and a lack of photos of from that day. I can't believe I was so stupid as to do that, usually I am very careful, but I had been getting along fine with the taxi driver and I trusted him. Oh well - there's a lesson learned there. And it could have been a lot worse - I did not lose my passport or my credit cards so I was still able to fly home.