Tudo bom. Tudo bem.

Another day in this magical place. Early start to Rocinha, the largest favela in South America. Despite what we hear/ the abundance of bad press that these favelas get, it was actually a really cool place full of culture and vibrance. Sure, we were told to put our cameras away at times because we were "on the streets with the drug dealers" but other than that everyone seemed perfectly pleasant. We learned that some people never leave the favela as it seemingly has everything that they need -banks, schools, supermarkets, the lot. 

Only in the last few years has Rocinha become 'pacified' meaning that it is controlled by the police but this apparently has resulted in a rise in crime and a lot of corruption within the force. And speaking of crime, I was stunned to hear that Brazil doesn't have a juvenile criminal justice system so under the age of 18, you're basically let off scot free irregardless of whether you steal or murder. It's no wonder that some of these kids spend their youth doing the dirty work for the 'big brothers' of the favela. 

After a frozen acai pot with granola (London must adopt this) and a walk through the market, we left Rocinha and made our way to Maracaña to watch Fluminense play Vasco da Gama. It got off to a dodgy start with us having to shelter behind a gas station as locals were throwing concrete slabs at the police (who we've found out aren't the most popular) but it calmed down and soon we were amongst the thousands filling the stadium. 

I've been to footy matches before and always love them but I've never experienced  anything quite like this. The sheer volume of people, the drumming and the die hard support for their teams was pretty amazing to watch.

And if that wasn't enough, topped it off with more churrasco. It's time to detox. 

Tudo bom. Tudo bem. Everything's good. 

Iguazu to Rio.

Not quite what we were expecting from Igauzu falls - in pictures you don't usually see thunderstorms and brown murky water crashing all around. The storm made it pretty powerful to say the least but was a bit of a shame not to see the falls in all their glory. 

Igauzu itself is a bit of a dump but we cheered ourselves up with beers and games of Perudo. Flight the next morning to the magnificent Rio. 

I'm a little bit in love with Rio. Move over for now BA, you've got yourself a contender. Anywhere that combines a bustling city and beautiful ocean is getting off to a good start. Add in warm locals and churrasco and you've got yourself a winner. 

We had an amazing day -Ipanema beach and coconut water, national park, Christ the Redeemer and more selfies than I've ever witnessed in one place, Lapa's beautiful steps, Santa Teresa artist haven and finally Sugar Loaf at sunset. This city truly is stunningly beautiful, feeling pretty lucky to be here.