quarta-feira, 27 de janeiro de 2010
LEBLON - A NIGHT OF FUN AND CULTURE
segunda-feira, 21 de julho de 2008
RAFA - YOUR TOUR GUIDE AND BEST FRIEND IN RIO
Working as a tour guide in Brazil requires a lot of work and also lots of inspiration...You must be in love with your own land to provide such a good work to every guest you have. I am lucky because I mostly tour in
This blog is a cool way to get to know more about my work, and more about my personality...I will report many different situations, and I will write about places I usually make my tours. But if you want to be in touch directly with me, please feel free to write to my personal email address which is donrafainrio@yahoo.es
MY BIGGEST PASSION IN LIFE IS MY WORK. I am an independent tour guide, and believe me I put my heart in my work, I really love what I do, it is always a special moment being with so many different people, and show them the best of my land, making some dreams possible..this is the great joy of my profession. I always focus on the soul of Rio, when my guests choose Rio as a destination...I start to think where I personally like to go, where I personally like going when I want to have fun, what I like to eat, where I will find the people I want to be with, and the places where I simply meet with myself..these places should be quiet, unique, spectacular with lots of natural beauty.
Sure that coming to
I am completely away from GRINGO PLACES... I take my people to places that you will never find in travelogs..I make my people being in touch with real native people...My tours has a very strong “native profile”, if you know what I mean... I am the sort of a guide who hates talking in the microphone in a bus filled with foreigners dressing flowers shirts expecting when and where they will find the first monkey in the street...you will never see myself saying: COPACABANA IN THE LEFT AND SUGAR LOAF IN THE RIGHT...I will NEVER take my guest to places where I know it is obvious tourist traps...If the stores of Sugar Loaf or Corcovado need me to take my guests there, they will be done for...
I like doing what my guests want, and I always direct them to genuine and unique places, either for visiting or simply go shopping. I want to make any person feel secure that in
LIFE IS EASY AND I REFUSE TO MAKE IT COMPLICATED!
MY CAR AND SOME EXPLANATIONS! :)
It is not a luxury car so you will not have a limo when you come to see Rio! :) But it is a new and comfortable and air conditioned car. I bought my FIAT DOBLO in october!!! It is a very brand new vehicle and quite roomy. Enough for 4 people to spend the whole day with nice visibility and safety.
This will be your "home" (yes indeed, my car is the natural continuation of my house) during all the tours you will have in and out of the city of Rio de Janeiro! I can pick you up in the airport and take you back to the airport!
If you just need transportation for the famous places such as BUZIOS, PARATY, ANGRA DOS REIS, PETROPOLIS...Not a problem, my FIAT DOBLO will take you there! And of course, this is my working tour and believe me I am very proud of it!!!
So many people ask me about which vehicle I use for my tours, so it is the chance you have to see it and now you know how you will be an expertise about Rio!!!
So for more information about my tours or if you just want to go everywhere in Rio or outside of the State, please feel free to write to me and I will personally write to you.
My email is donrafainrio@yahoo.es
terça-feira, 3 de junho de 2008
RIO IN ONE DAY – WHEN YOU ARE IN ONE OF THE MOST FAMOUS PLACES IN THE WORLD BUT YOU DO NOT HAVE TIME!!!
Well you are in
First step, you have a guide, it happens to be me, otherwise you would never read this blog, and we can do the following.
Then we would have to decide your priority, which is more important to you seeing the Sugar Loaf or the Christ ????? Or we have to see which of the landmarks are less cloudy or free of clouds..
VERY IMPORTANT: IT IS NOT USE TO GO TO THE CHRIST WHEN THE MOUNTAIN IS COVERED WITH CLOUDS, IT IS A WASTE OF TIME AND A WASTE OF MONEY.
And remember…you have just one day…so let’s try to see as much as we can in one day…First of all we will drive through Ipanema with a little walking in the rocks of Arpoador and heading to Copacabana beach, then a little walk in the famous WAVING SIDE WALK.
Then we will head to the Bay Side and visiting the surroundings of Sugar Loaf mountains to see the first beach where the Portuguese navigators set foot in Rio for the first time, the Praia Vermelha, and a little walk in the Atlantic Forest, we will see many animals and all kind of plants walking in a path where just locals go, the PISTA CLAUDIO COUTINHO.
After that we will understand more of the city and finally realize that Rio is not only a fantastic beach destination, we will see the European Presence in the colonial and barroc constructions in the old part of Rio, and we will see important buildings and very interesting cultural centers like CENTRO CULTURAL BANCO DO BRASIL, THE MAGNIFICENT CHURCH OF CANDELARIA, THE NARROW STREETS OF TELLES, THE PRAÇA QUINZE WITH THE ROYAL PALACE, THE FERRY BOAT STATION, THE STATE CONGRESS AND CARMO CHURCH, THE ONLY PLACE IN LATIN AMERICA WHERE TWO EUROPEAN WERE CROWNED.
We can eat after this fantastic marathon in
Lots of activity using a comfortable and modern car, a Fiat Doblo, good for 4 people, you will be in Rio with a very experienced guide who will be more than a guide, he will be your friend in the city, it will be a 6 or 8 hours tour and if you are just two people the tour will cost 150 american dollars, if you are 3 or 4 people, then the price will be 250 american dollars.
CHECK WITH ME IF YOU WISH A NIGHT TOUR, THERE WILL BE NICE OPTIONS EXCEPT ON SUNDAYS!!!
Feel free to write and get more details, my email is donrafainrio@yahoo.es
TWO DAYS IN RIO...WHAT TO DO...SIMPLE QUESTION, GET A LARGE INTRODUCTION AND GET REASONS TO COME BACK WITH MORE TIME
My mission is to introduce you the best of
If you do not know, CARIOCA is the name given for a person born and raised in
Back to our two days…
And we should start early our first day though I give you 3 options and you have to tell me when you want to start…
8 am, 9 am or 10 am
FIRST DAY
So we will start heading west of the city, going to Barra da Tijuca where we will visit a gorgeous private residential condominium to see a private beach called JOA..beautiful nature and dramatic landscape, it will provide us an idea about the ATLANTIC FOREST, then we will get through Tijuca National Park, visiting waterfalls, lakes and getting very deep inside our thick forest until we get to the Christ.
NOTE THIS TOUR IN THE
After visiting the Christ, a real must see place in Rio we will follow Santa Tereza, the first Portuguese settlement in Rio with its gorgeous big colonial houses, calm streets and thick vegetation everywhere, part of the HISTORY of Rio can be better understood there.
We will continue our day going to
We will have lunch in Niteroi in a very local restaurant where you will have the chance to try the best of Brazilian Food, the buffet also includes desert or you will have a second option, a lunch in a real fishermen village, you will have access to many delights of our best see food.
NOTE: LUNCH IS NOT INCLUDED IN THE TOUR.
Tour Guide fee will be 150 american dollars for two people or 250 american dollars for more than two people.
COOL HINTS: After the tour, maybe a little walk in the pleasant market of Copacabana located almost in front of OTHON HOTEL, it is also a nice opportunity to walk in the beach just like many locals do every afternoon. If you finish your tour during the afternoon, you must see the sunset in the rocks of Arpoador close to Ipanema.
SECOND DAY
Now you have quite a cool understanding about
SOMETHING VERY ESSENCIAL FOR THIS DAY – BRING A
We will walk in places where many tourist simply do not have any idea about its existence, places very close to the Sugar Loaf like Praia Vermelha where the Portuguese navigators set foot in 1501 and we will make a little hiking at PISTA CLAUDIO COUTINHO trail where we will be in contact with lots of treesm shady paths and many many birds and animals. It will be a great chance for us to feed our COUSINS…YES WE WILL SEE THE MONKEYS, but please do not be angry with me if you do not see any…but they hardly disappoint me!!!
Our next step will be a visit to the one of the top 10 most complete Botanical Gardens in the World - in Portuguese we say JARDIM BOTANICO - we will walk along pretty beautiful alleys full of giant trees, an amazon little lake full of flowers and fish, we will see lots of mango and jacko trees, and you will see a magnificent collection of orchids and cactus.
In the end of our tour we will have lunch in one of the busy buffets of
As a grand finale, we will end our tour at the Fort of Copacabana, an impressive 1905 construction which will give you unique views of Copacabana and Ipanema, and the hidden
We will use my car and we will walk a lot.
The full day tour will be 150 american dollars for two people or 250 american dollars for more than two people. (the car is good for 4 people!)
COOL HINTS: When you get back to the hotel, it is a cool chance for you to walk at
NIGHT TOUR
No trip to
The chance of getting to know the real night of
We generally take about four hours for a night tour, but of course we can go back to the hotel when you decide, but put your feet out of the hotel and find out more about this wonderful people called CARIOCAS.
The tour guide fee is only one, no matter how many people I take, it is 100 american dollars.
Two days tour and one night tour at least will give you two great samples of
donrafainrio@yahoo.es is my email, please drop me a line if you wish to have more details and also if you want to get some pictures of this tour!!!
RIO EASY IN THREE DAYS – ENOUGH FOR YOU TO FALL IN LOVE WITH RIO!!!
Sure that
First day will be a large introduction of the city, and we can do it easily when you get to your hotel or right in the very first morning of your days in the city!!!
FIRST DAY
From the plane or from the first streets you get when you leave the airport, you will see Jesus Christ with his arms wide open telling you that YOU ARE VERY WELCOME to enjoy the best of Rio de Janeiro, so nothing better than pay a visit to the main hoster of Rio and we will see the Christ on the hill of Corcovado, it is a unique chance to see the city from the top of an impressive view point.
And we are not getting there as regular tourists who just reach the top of
This day will be a total off the beaten path day visiting places out of touristy spots..we will head west visiting wild beaches and a lot of natural sites. We will see the beaches of Barra da Tijuca, Recreio, Macumba, Prainha and Grumari, these are very unknown beaches with a lot of green, local people and fishermen villages where we can have the best of our see food.
This day you will realize that Copacabana and Ipanema are not the only beaches of
The tour fee guide will be 150 american dollars for two people, and 250 american dollars for more than two people.
SECOND DAY
Now you have quite a cool understanding about
SOMETHING VERY ESSENCIAL FOR THIS DAY – BRING A
We will walk in places where many tourist simply do not have any idea about its existence, places very close to the Sugar Loaf like Praia Vermelha where the Portuguese navigators set foot in 1501 and we will make a little hiking at PISTA CLAUDIO COUTINHO trail where we will be in contact with lots of treesm shady paths and many many birds and animals. It will be a great chance for us to feed our COUSINS…YES WE WILL SEE THE MONKEYS, but please do not be angry with me if you do not see any…but they hardly disappoint me!!!
Our next step will be a visit to the one of the top 10 most complete Botanical Gardens in the World - in Portuguese we say JARDIM BOTANICO - we will walk along pretty beautiful alleys full of giant trees, an amazon little lake full of flowers and fish, we will see lots of mango and jacko trees, and you will see a magnificent collection of orchids and cactus.
In the end of our tour we will have lunch in one of the busy buffets of
As a grand finale, we will end our tour at the Fort of Copacabana, an impressive 1905 construction which will give you unique views of Copacabana and Ipanema, and the hidden
We will use my car and we will walk a lot.
The full day tour will be 150 american dollars for two people or 250 american dollars for more than two people. (the car is good for 4 people!)
COOL HINTS: When you get back to the hotel, it is a cool chance for you to walk at
NIGHT TOUR
No trip to
The chance of getting to know the real night of
We generally take about four hours for a night tour, but of course we can go back to the hotel when you decide, but put your feet out of the hotel and find out more about this wonderful people called CARIOCAS.
The tour guide fee is only one, no matter how many people I take, it is 100 american dollars.
THIRD DAY
It is the second most important city in the State,
It is our last day in Rio but we can stay half of the day visiting the basic of
It is good that almost no travel books mention
Basic Niteroi we will cover the Bay Side Walk in Boa Viagem, we will have a quick visit to the Contemporary Art Museum, one of the last construction of our famous architect Oscar Niemeyer, this place give us incredible views of Rio, then we will visit a forest area close to São Francisco beach, this place is called PARQUE DA CIDADE, you will be surprised of so many beautiful things you will see from that simple view point. After that we can go to the fishermen
If we have the entire day, then we will cross the mountains and see the ocean side of
Going to
Three days in
The tour guide fee will be 150 american dollars for two people, and more than two people the fee will be 250 american dollars.
Write to me if you want to see more pictures and if you want to get informed with more details about this specific tour, my email is donrafa@yahoo.es
PARATY – THE CHARMING OLD CITY
Paraty has more than 300 years of glorious history in Brazil, for a long time the old town used to be a very important port for the Portuguese that once colonized the country; the Gold coming from the mountains of Minas were sent to Europe in order to avoid the pirates and the merchants of Rio, because of that, Paraty became rich, many people from all over the World settled down there, the little village got big colonial houses owned by powerful barons and farmers. The city in that time was a very important trade point in the Colony and its geographic formation provided an excellent natural harbor, also because of its vast fields of Sugar Cane, Paraty became famous for their spectacular Cachaça. Until today Paraty has the best cachaças in the country.
Among famous barroc and colonial destinations in Latin America such as Colonia del Sacramanento in Uruguay; Taxco in Mexico; Antigua in Guatemala; Cuzco in Peru or even the brazilian historical towns such Ouro Preto. Tiradentes, Mariana, and the coast old cities like
Paraty since its beginning had the power to make people fascinated about its spirit, the cobble stone streets, the old corners, the music coming from the bars, the children playing in the main square, the church bells, the pleasant ocean breeze and the slow rhythm of the city, absolutely untouched over the years. And not only for that….
PARATY has green mountains,,delightful mountains with full of natural secrets such as impressive waterfalls in the jungle, very old coffee and sugar cane farms, families who are taking care of these amazing properties over many generations.
Going to Paraty you will be placed in the past of Brazil, you will be surrounded by absolutely gorgeous islands and desert beaches, and you will feel like a nature ranger strolling around greeny paths and you will see the real taste of a native environment away from tourist. The city now is famous world wide but it still holds lots of nice secrets that will make your trip unique.
Coming to Paraty is like having a package of 4.The city itself, the mountains of Serra da Bocaina in Cunha, the wild and ever green beaches of Trindade and the mysterious islands of this spectacular Bay.
TOUR GUIDE FEES: 100 AMERICAN DOLLARS – FULL DAY FOR 2 PEOPLE
160 AMERICAN DOLLARS – FULL DAY FOR 3 AND 4 PEOPLE.
TRANSPORTATION COSTS – 300 AMERICAN DOLLARS – ROUND TRIP
sábado, 26 de abril de 2008
PETROPOLIS - HISTORY AND FUN IN THE MOUNTAINS
When we read more about
Our Emperor Dom Pedro, The Second, was one of our most important character in our History and a real progressive man for that period of our life. He was the son of a very clever and famous Austrian Princess Leopoldina and educated by one of our most brilliant brains in our History, the Prime Minister José Bonifacio. No doubt that he would become an incredible man who about more than 150 years ago he paid salary to the slaves, he was to one who finished slavery in
So if you want to see a lot of History and lots of fantastic mountain landscapes, a visit to
It is a full day tour and we can use my car to reach
For further information feel free to write to donrafainrio@yahoo.es, I will be honored to answer you!
domingo, 6 de abril de 2008
BUZIOS – PARADISE WITH STYLE
Think about a place with gorgeous and clean beaches, some of them quite wild where you can spend special moments in total privacy, think abut a place with pleasant ambience full of beautiful people all around, think about fantastic food in very charming restaurants; imagine yourself under the sun in a big schooner or in a private speed boat close to unique landscapes; now just picture in your mind cool nights in the best Pousadas in brazil with lots of comfort with a spectacular feeling that you are at home. All this and much more you can find in Buzios.
Buzios, an excellent beach resort two hours drive from
So many beaches to choose, from calm and sparkling blue waters inlet bays to open oceanic beaches. To stay in Buzios you will not know what to choose..so many charming Pousadas (cottages) with high level services and comparing to
The village became famous when Briggite Bardot that little and absolutely unknown fishermen village to spend some days…she liked so much that she bought a house and invited her famous friends…and Buzios got the fame and today it is one of the most popular beach places in South America.
To get there we can use my car and it takes 2 hours to arrive in Buzios. You can have the option of spend one whole day there or also stay overnight. I will help you and assist you in every decision you take! Buzios is quite faraway so if you decide to go here, the full day will be 200 AMERICAN DOLLARS for two people and 300 AMERICAN DOLLARS for 4 people.
Great to spend one, two or three nights..some people like Buzios so much that they simply spend a week there…There will be always something nice to do in Buzios, it is a place with many beaches, incredible stores for great days of shopping. Once you are in Rio you have to know where Brazilians go, and you will find out so many unique places and BUZIOS IS FOR SURE YOUR PLACE IN ANY TRIP TO RIO DE JANEIRO!!!
For more information, write me an email at donrafainrio@yahoo.es, I will gladly tell you how to get there!
NIGHTS OF RIO AND YOU HAVING FUN LIKE A CARIOCA
We will have dinner in a FOLK'S FESTIVAL held in the suburbs..it is a sort of stadium where people go to have fun, thousand of people from the North who came to Rio looking for better opportunities, and the only place they have for fun, it is there...and the place is magical, with the BEST FOOD EVER..it is a place where no tourist ever have gone and not even heard about this place..and I love having dinner with my guests and friends there...
After that we can go to the Samba House...actually we live our samba, and in the houses of Lapa samba is a sort of celebration..and we will meet with native people dancing samba and real samba bands performing! So this could be our night tour...You will see
You will see places like FEIRA DO NORDESTE and a vibrant samba house CARIOCA DA GEMA...
REMEMBER THAT BRAZILIAN DO GO OUT LATE SO DINNER IS ALWAYS AFTER 10...YOU WILL BE BACK TO YOUR PLACE BY 2:00 AM OR IN THE FOLLOWING DAY, IT WILL DEPEND ON YOUR ENERGY!
The tour will cost 100 american dollars!