University of Arkansas Office of Study Abroad: Rio de Janeiro

My name is Karen Brown and I am studying abroad in Rio de Janeiro:

Although we have been in Rio de Janeiro for a week and a half, it feels as if we’ve been here for much longer. We are getting to experience so much of the city, it feels as if we should be native Cariocas (the name for people from Rio)! Our days have been busy, spending the mornings listening to guest speakers and passing the afternoons and evenings sightseeing and exploring the city.

IBMEC is the name of the business university where we are attending the lectures. Topics range from Brazilian politics and economics to the business environment and are given by both academics and professionals. In Brazil, as in most other places in the world, the concept of a “university” is much different from in the States. IBMEC is a several story building in the middle of downtown Rio, called O Centro, where students attend classes and participate in small business groups, which they operate completely. These businesses give them the experience they need to start successfully once they graduate. There are no dorms, dining halls, or athletics (most Razorbacks would shudder at the thought) at the university and the students either live at home or in an apartment and commute to school daily. All of the students we have met have been incredibly warm and welcoming and more than willing to show us around their university building.

Last week, we visited an amazing neighborhood called Lapa. The streets are lined with 19th century buildings. Their facades are covered in colorful, artistic graffiti. The centerpiece of the neighborhood is a centuries old aqueduct that ran water from the mountains to city. Lapa is known for its nightlife with fantastic bars and clubs. Rio Scenarium is the most famous club in Lapa, if not the whole of Rio de Janeiro. The premise was originally an antique shop before the owner decided to transform it into a night club. It’s a massive, three-story club, with different music on each level and thousands of pieces of antiques covering the walls and floors.

Street in Lapa

I don’t know if it’s all the walking we have been doing, or the change of pace from eating Brough food for the past two years, but I have been devouring my entire plate of food at every meal like a starving woman! The food is amazing! Brazil has excellent meat and my favorite has been a dried and salted meat called Carne Seca with Yucca Root. A type of restaurant that is very popular here, and which I have come to love, is a “kilo restaurant”. These restaurants can range from cheap to very pricey, but always seem to have excellent food. When you enter, you are given a ticket, then you go to a buffet-style area and get as much or as little food as you want. The food on your plate is weighed by the kilo, so the more your plate weights, the more you pay. Salads are obviously cheap and the system creates an incentive to only get the amount of food you think you will eat.

Today was a wonderful day of sightseeing! We went to the top of the Sugar Loaf, a very tall mountain next to the bay that affords a spectacular view of Rio and the coast. I can barely describe the view, so I think I’ll just post pictures. There are a few hiking trails around the top were we got to see these tiny monkeys hoping from tree to tree. We walked around the base of the mountain by the sea and watched the waves pound into the rocks below. At the end of the day, we ate a great restaurant overlooking the ocean and the Sugar Loaf in the distance. A perfect way to end the day!