In recent years I have started travelling to destinations more exotic (or simply further away) than those in Europe or North America. Places which pose a slightly greater challenge to reach and spend time in. Places without a Ryanair ready tourist infrastructure. In the last three years I have been to Nigeria (for a wedding); India (for a solo trip); Thailand and Cambodia. South America had long been on my wish list but plans to go there had never been more than an ephemeral ‘One day’ wish. I always considered it to be a place that I’d need to visit as part of an organised tour. I was somewhat intimidated by rumours of danger.

Until this year when I decided that ‘One day’ meant 2026, and that I didn’t need to be part of a larger group other than with a friend. And that I was well able to organise the trip myself.

We decided that our first stop was the city of the cheesy Peter Allen; Barry Manilow and Frank Sinatra songs – Rio de Janeiro. And what while there we would be located at the Copacabana beach.

We arrange to meet in Lisbon Airport. I had a ten hour layover before our 11.30pm flight to Brazil. This meant an excursion into the city. Waiting to exit the airport I found myself in a slow moving but aggressive queue. Listening to the voices around me I realised that everyone in the queue was from the UK.

‘Is this the UK queue?’ I innocently asked a surly man ahead of me.

‘It’s the non-EU queue’ was his taciturn response.

Like a middle-aged gazelle I skipped out of that queue towards the electronic gates with my Irish passport to make my way to the Metro station that would take me to town.

My trip into Lisbon was brief – it lasted four hours. I went to the Alfama district to see the cathedral which was impressive but lacking the gaudy razzmatazz of a Spanish or Italian church. I also visited the chapel where St Anthony was born. I have no idea who St Anthony is, but he sounds like a very important Catholic saint.

We landed at Galaeo Airport in Rio de Janeiro at 5.30am and after immigration and bag collection took an Uber to the hotel arriving at 8am. Our heavily tattooed receptionist Juan was super sorry that our rooms wouldn’t be ready until 2pm but stored our bags while we ventured to the Botanic Gardens – a serene way to spend a few hours. I had paid for a coffee in the airport upon arrival in Brazil. When I tried to pay the entrance to the gardens to my horror my bank card had been frozen. Being extremely tired after an overnight flight it took me a few hours to check my text messages where I discovered that the bank had merely halted my card due to suspicious activity. A cappuccino in Rio de Janeiro was a tad more adventurous than the chicken and coleslaw sandwich from Spar in Limerick that my card is usually used for. We chanced our arm and arrived back at the hotel at 1pm but to no avail. The room was still not ready So we wandered down to Copacabana Beach which was a few hundred metres away and had a strawberry caipirinha at a beach bar in the 30 degree autumn sun while the samba band played.

After an early first night we had a favela tour planned for the morning of our first full day.

A favela is an unplanned urban development built in the hills surrounding the planned section of a Brazilian city. They tend to be impoverished and outside the realm of police control and instead ruled by gangs. The houses within the favelas are built by the residents. The higher up in the hill your house is located the less likely it is that services like running water are present (electricity is always present as favela dwellers who work for the electricity company will hook you up to the grid – for a fee.

Rocinha close to Copacabana is the largest favela in Brazil. Home to 200,000 residents it is controlled by the Red Command gang – a drug trafficking and arms dealing organisation which controls the district. A few years ago the rival drug gangs in the favela were removed by the police and now the Red Command gang have an understanding with the police – so long as there is no petty crime in the favela the Gardai will not enter. Meaning it’s fairly safe for tourists. Petty crime against tourists will require a police response inside the favela which the gang does not encourage

The tour of the favela I had booked for 10am was cancelled by the guide at 10pm the night before due to a personal tragedy. I declined his offer of a tour at the same time the following day, Being a person of class I decided that 24 hours is too short to get over a tragedy. Instead I booked a tour of the Santa Marta favela at the same time this morning.

At 10am at the designated spot we arrived. At 10.05 a woman who seemed chemically altered approached and whispered ‘I live near here’. I resisted the urge to inquire why that would be of interest to me. The very serious Bavarian woman was also waiting asked her ‘Are you our guide?’

‘Yes’ replied the woman.

And then the local stallholder selling fruit juice shouted ‘Don’t go with her, she is not a guide’. At 10.20 we decided to leave as our actual guide had not appeared. I shudder to think where the lady would have taken us. To have our personal belongings removed I suspect.

We took an Uber to the Selaron Steps – a famous stairwell decorated in beautiful tiles by a Chilean artist as a tribute to the city. It has become a popular attraction in Rio.

After lunch I took a solo stroll on Copacabana promenade. I had heeded the warnings and dressed down. Apparently petty crime is a risk but avoidable if you take the same safety precautions as you would any where.

At 4.30pm we gathered at the Jesus and His Father Universal church back in Rocinha. Third time lucky for a favela tour.

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