Rio de Janeiro Reports

[The Cane]

For an accurate and up-to-date summary of how much cash you can withdraw from bank ATMs such as Bradesco and Santander, see my posts in the "Real versus Dollar and other currency issues" thread.

[One Eyed Man]

Something I forgot to mention. I was walking with a buddy down NS on the way to Cervantes. He needed to change some money so we walked into some random exchange place. The rate there was as good as my Charles Schwab card. I think it was 4. 16 for 1 USD. I have had Schwab for a while and had HSBC (is that place still around in Brazil?) for years before that, so I really have not changed money in Rio since the Help days outside of once with the airport porters a couple of years ago.

HSBC sold its Brazil business to Bradesco. Last December, I used the Bradesco ATM and I believe I got a reduced fee. HSBC is saying it wants to come back to Brazil now. Just don't go to Santander: they only let you take out are $500 a day.

[SherlockBones]

Nice hotel. Is Rio Porto Bay girl friendly?

According to at Safado69's comment a few posts down, Rio Porto Bay is guest-friendly. Happy to confirm this for myself on Oct 31st.

[Mr Enternational]

As an occasional drinker of caipirinhas at the beach in Copacabana, I was concerned about your fake sugar comment.

I was saying for people like me whose body can no longer take much natural sugar which caipirinhas have a shit ton of, bringing my own artificial sweetener was indeed an excellent substitute.

[Jimmy Boy 99]

Snip. Anyway, I don't remember if it was you or Sperto that mentioned having caipirinhas made with fake sugar, but I finally remembered to bring my Equal this time and ordered my drinks without sugar. That was a great tip. Thanks.

As an occasional drinker of caipirinhas at the beach in Copacabana, I was concerned about your fake sugar comment. Did a search in the Brazil thread for fake sugar and did not find any previous posts about that, so I don't know where you heard it. What fake sugar are you talking about? The only fake sugar reference I could find on Google is that it is artificial sweetener. Isn't that more expensive than real sugar? Given the amount of the stuff they put in the drink, I doubt they would use the more expensive product.

[WyattEarp]

51 has always been my favorite. As you can see by the receipt I posted, I also bought a bottle of Ypioca for R30 to try out. EVERYTHING has insect parts in it. That is just a byproduct of being human and eating shit here on earth.

"In a regular-sized 16-ounce jar of peanut butter, the FDA will allow up to 136 insect fragments and four rodent hairs."

"For every 100 grams of ground cinnamon, it's OK to include 400 or more insect fragments (legs, heads, wings, thoraxes, etc.), and 22 or more rodent hairsa substance the FDA charmingly refers to as "rodent filth."

Anyway, I don't remember if it was you or Sperto that mentioned having caipirinhas made with fake sugar, but I finally remembered to bring my Equal this time and ordered my drinks without sugar. That was a great tip. Thanks.

If you hang out out with Brazilians, they will make fun of 51. They will say its for gringos. For me, it's a bit harsh. If you make caipirinhas, the sugar will mask any harshness. However, I do like sipping on a smooth cachaca.

Sperto must know muddling the mint with sugar releases more oils from the mint. There's a bit of natural chemistry in a good caipirinha. I've tried sweetening caipirinhas with Equal. Stevia works better.

[Mr Enternational]

It tickles me that some people go to extremes to find the currency exchange where they can get 50 reais more for their euros or dollars. If the exchange rate is in the right ballpark, I just change my money and don't think about it anymore.

Something I forgot to mention. I was walking with a buddy down NS on the way to Cervantes. He needed to change some money so we walked into some random exchange place. The rate there was as good as my Charles Schwab card. I think it was 4. 16 for 1 USD. I have had Schwab for a while and had HSBC (is that place still around in Brazil?) for years before that, so I really have not changed money in Rio since the Help days outside of once with the airport porters a couple of years ago.

[Nordico]

51 has always been my favorite. As you can see by the receipt I posted, I also bought a bottle of Ypioca for R30 to try out. EVERYTHING has insect parts in it. That is just a byproduct of being human and eating shit here on earth.

My favourite whisky is DYC. It's the cheapest brand you can find in a bar in Spain, but I like it more than JW Black. The benefit of drinking cheap shit is that in a bar you probably get what you order, but if you order some premium brand, there's no guarantee that you get what the label says.

There could be many reasons for people to buy at duty free shops; they are lazy, they are afraid the bottles may break in their suitcase (never happened to me), most people are already up to their free baggage allowance limit, they finally remember the cousin who takes care of the cat etc.

I calculated that my next trip every waking hour (just airfare and hotels) cost me 56 reais, meaning every hour I waste doing some stupid shit, I pay 56 reais to do that.
It tickles me that some people go to extremes to find the currency exchange where they can get 50 reais more for their euros or dollars. If the exchange rate is in the right ballpark, I just change my money and don't think about it anymore. This of course is not applicable to cachaca, which you can find in every corner store in Brazil.

[ThadMax]

Thanks for the feedback, Rio Rob. I ended up booking a suite the at the Rio Porto Bay, which has a balcony as well. Recent TripAdvisor negative reviews for the Pestana Rio gave me pause for concern.

Nice hotel. Is Rio Porto Bay girl friendly?

[SherlockBones]

Just my 2 cents, while the Marriott or Hilton are a little bit nicer than the Pestana you can get more for your money at the Pestana. For example the Marriott basic rooms are very small, most have no view and windows don't open. On the other hand for about the same money at the Pestana you can get an ocean front suite with a huge balcony, this goes over great with the girls to hang out and party plus you might like it yourself. The bar on top of the hotel has some working girls on weekend nights and I have seen during the day at the pool. Just a little FYI.

Duty Free. About the only thing I drink that is made in Brazil these days is beer and wine from the south. Sure today they make some better Cachacas than in the past but when I arrive in Rio I go to duty free and buy couple of bottles of high end whisky for the room. This is what I drink for the most part, savings are better on high end whisky and they are good quality with less hangover and headaches.

Thanks for the feedback, Rio Rob. I ended up booking a suite the at the Rio Porto Bay, which has a balcony as well. Recent TripAdvisor negative reviews for the Pestana Rio gave me pause for concern.

[Rio Bob]

Thank you for the heads up! I will cancel my reservation and look at either JWM or Hilton. Much appreciated!

Just my 2 cents, while the Marriott or Hilton are a little bit nicer than the Pestana you can get more for your money at the Pestana. For example the Marriott basic rooms are very small, most have no view and windows don't open. On the other hand for about the same money at the Pestana you can get an ocean front suite with a huge balcony, this goes over great with the girls to hang out and party plus you might like it yourself. The bar on top of the hotel has some working girls on weekend nights and I have seen during the day at the pool. Just a little FYI.

Duty Free. About the only thing I drink that is made in Brazil these days is beer and wine from the south. Sure today they make some better Cachacas than in the past but when I arrive in Rio I go to duty free and buy couple of bottles of high end whisky for the room. This is what I drink for the most part, savings are better on high end whisky and they are good quality with less hangover and headaches.

[Mr Enternational]

Most of us will find it funny that someone will even buy cheap crap to take out of the country. If prices are so good, why not take better. Sort of like buying the fake name brand polo shirts in Centro with the Made in USA labels. Anyway, 51 always gives me a headache. I think it is all the impurities (like insect parts).

51 has always been my favorite. As you can see by the receipt I posted, I also bought a bottle of Ypioca for R30 to try out. EVERYTHING has insect parts in it. That is just a byproduct of being human and eating shit here on earth.

"In a regular-sized 16-ounce jar of peanut butter, the FDA will allow up to 136 insect fragments and four rodent hairs."

"For every 100 grams of ground cinnamon, it's OK to include 400 or more insect fragments (legs, heads, wings, thoraxes, etc.), and 22 or more rodent hairsa substance the FDA charmingly refers to as "rodent filth."

Anyway, I don't remember if it was you or Sperto that mentioned having caipirinhas made with fake sugar, but I finally remembered to bring my Equal this time and ordered my drinks without sugar. That was a great tip. Thanks.

[One Eyed Man]

I just came back from a week in Rio. This time, I stayed in Copa and had a mix of civilians and pros. Didn't even make it to Centro.

Hotel: Pestana Atlantica. Honestly, this wasn't my first choice--I booked because everything filled up for the Rock in Rio Fest. It turned out to be a gem. I had a nice, clean room with a sliver of an ocean view. Breakfast included, though it was the same good every day. I didn't even know it was girl friendly until I read it here today. There are a lot of tourists in and out, so it shouldn't be a problem. I had no trouble at all bringing a civilian in. There is a cool bar with rock music and live bands just down the street. I think it is my go-to place now.

The Girls: First, I went to all three places in Nossa Senhora de Copacabana 583: on the 2/3/4 floors. The one on the 4th floor is like the places in the office buildings in Centro. Got the line-up, picked a girl who was just my type: tall, full figured, big boobs. She was professional--CBJ--but we broke the bed. The 3rd floor was a local's place with one big room--missed it. The second floor also has a local's place, but I dared to enter. You need Portuguese here. Found an attractive girl and had a good session (R $165). CBJ as well. The manager was a little sleazy and didn't return my change (or couldn't do arithmetic.).

By the way, the 22 place on Siquera Campos closed, but I didn't read about it on the Forum.

Linda's Massagem: This is a nice, clean place. Found a nice girl who was exactly my type. Are $200. BBBJ. A made a reservation and she met me at the door. I also got a soft massage with lotion afterwards. You tend to think this is a low-end place because there are guys on the street corner handing out flyers. Would definitely return.

Monte Carlo: I went just to have a look around and ended up buying some drinks for a girl that a Brazilian guy introduced. I also saw a tall, exotic-looking girl I sessioned with last time, but I had already just been at 583, so I wasn't up for it.

Photoaccompanhantes: I found some great girls here. The website makes it easy to send them a message on WhatsApp to see if they are available. You follow up to get their address and rate. There are some girls working out of NS Copa 945 (and 1023), and I found one with great skills who charged are $150. I repeated with her the next day, and it was even better.

Beach: The weather was cool and rainy when I arrived, but got better. My favorite fixer at hooker beach was complaining that there was no business and even took a couple of days off. Please throw them some business if you're there.

Transportation: Uber works like a charm and is super cheap. Uber from the airport was just $10. It makes it really easy to get around.

I also went out with a middle aged woman who likes to sleep around when her boyfriend (and benefactor) is out of town. Big red flag that I should have known better about: she wanted a "present" but didn't specify the amount, and the evening ended badly. I also met a lovely girl on Tinder, but she was in the process of getting divorced and made out vigorously with me and that was that.

OEM.

[SherlockBones]

It's not, do not waste your time and money. I found out the hard way a couple years back. Fortunately it was only a two night stay. Pestana and Rio Porto Bay are though and they are in front of the beach. If you have JW Marriott or Hilton budget those are also girl friendly.

Thank you for the heads up! I will cancel my reservation and look at either JWM or Hilton. Much appreciated!

[Exec Talent]

It always tickles me how people run around buying stuff at Duty Free when 15 times out of 10 the shit is more expensive than it would be if you buy it in town. Of course I have known this forever so I stopped by the grocery store and bought me a bottle of 51 cachaca before leaving town. It was 12 reais. When I got to the airport and looked in the Duty Free to make the comparison, the same damn bottle was 39 reais.

Most of us will find it funny that someone will even buy cheap crap to take out of the country. If prices are so good, why not take better. Sort of like buying the fake name brand polo shirts in Centro with the Made in USA labels. Anyway, 51 always gives me a headache. I think it is all the impurities (like insect parts).