Beach life

Since the weather has been cloudy and rainy lately I thought I'd post about something I think most you would like to know about are how the beaches are in Rio. Well they're f**king fantastic.

Ipanema & Barra...

If it's a weekend and it's sunny and the skies are clear, then you can be guaranteed that the beaches all over Rio will be packed. Mostly I've been hung Ipanema beach so I can really only talk about Ipanema beach at the moment, but I'll let you know how Barra is once I've gone. Posto 9 is where all the young people hang out (and where alot of people smoke weed), Posto 8 is for the families, Posto 7 and around Arpoador you'll find alot of surfers and at Posto 8.5 you'll find the gay section which is easy to spot because of the rainbow flags. Pretty much anywhere you go here you'll see some beautiful bodies.

At Barra I've noticed that there's alot of kite surfers and surfers. The waves here don't break as close to the shore as they can along Ipanema beach. And I've been told that the place to be is near Pepe beach where alot of fighters and girls hang out.

Beach Vendors...

You can buy food, drinks, beer, beach towels, hats, sunglasses and hire chairs and umbrellas all at the beach. Pretty much anything you'd want is catered for you. Vendors are constantly walking up and down and will try to sell you all kinds of knick knacks, you can bargain a bit with them too if you like.

Prices are reasonable for everything and I don't feel too bad if I pay a little extra because these guys are working there asses off. There's been times where I've been at the beach at night (10pm etc) and had vendors walking up trying to sell some beach towels. If I had money at the time I would of bought one out of sympathy for the guy, talk about working long hours!!

You will also finds lots of little kiosks lining the sidewalks alongside the beaches. The offer a seat and some shade out of the sun and sell alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages. Some even have a little grill/kitchen to cook you up something. You'll also be able to find tents on the beach closer to the sidewalks, where you can hire chairs, umbrellas and buy more food and drinks. Pretty much you got everything covered when going to the beach, just bring a few $$ and you'll be fine.

Bikinis...

You know I had to make a little comment on this. Some of the bikinis that the girls wear are tiny! But who's complaining? Apparently it's illegal to go topless in Brasil so I guess they made up by wearing as little as possible. The girls here show a lot of cheek and I would say it takes a bit getting used to, but how long do you need to get used to looking at some fine bodies all day? Oh, and it's perfectly normal for a straight guy to stroll along in a pair of speedos here. Proof that not everything can be perfect.

At night...

At night the beach is deserted. Even though the little huts are still open (I think some are open 24/7). It's nice to go down with a few friends for a night swim although be careful of strong currents. I also find it's well lit and relatively safe to walk along at night, but don't take my word for it. Last Friday I went down to the beach with the Piratas hostel crew for a Beer-b-que which was very awesome, and Rafa really cooked up a storm. Beers and bbq on Ipanema beach makes for an awesome beginning to a Friday night!!