quintessential rio de janeiro

While we were in Rio de Janeiro, my family and I went to Christ the Redeemer and Sugarloaf Mountain.

First thing in the morning, we went to Christ the Redeemer. It was a beautiful day, skies were clear, and we were able to beat the crowds. Our guide told us that the statue is a compass. The statue is facing the east, the back faces west, and the arms point to north and south. The views are spectacular.

BUT…

Why is this a Wonder of the World? Unlike Chichen Itza and Machu Picchu, which are both very spread out and lots of thinking and planning went into building it, Christ the Redeemer was very…simple. The Statue of Liberty is taller and has such an important meaning behind it. Why isn’t it a Wonder?

Our guide told us the only reason that Christ the Redeemer became a Wonder of the World is because of a great marketing campaign! It was a nominee for a new Wonder, and the government of Brazil told everybody to vote for Christ the Redeemer because they would get a lot of tourists if it won. And, they didn’t keep track of the votes, so many people could vote more than once.  

After we saw Christ the Redeemer, we rode the cable cars to the top of Sugarloaf Mountain. When you get to the top, the views of Guanabara Bay and Copacabana Beach are amazing, just as spectacular as the views from Christ the Redeemer. Our guide told us Sugarloaf Mountain was featured in a James Bond movie called, “Moonraker,” in which Jaws (a character in the movie) bites the cables and then the cable cars crash into the mountain. That was fictional, but many people came to the cable cars after that to see ‘where it happened’.

So whether you decide to do Christ the Redeemer, Sugarloaf, or both, you get amazing views of all of Rio de Janerio!