A Visit to the National Observatory

After a delicious Peruvian lunch at Lima Restobar in Botafogo, we didn't feel like going all the way back home to Barra, so Geraldo came up with the idea to visit the National Observatory. An advantage to being in Rio with a Carioca husband is that it's a lot easier to find those hidden gems that don't always make the top 10 in tourist guides.

The National Observatory was founded by Don Pedro I in 1827 to study geography and navigation and is one of the oldest scientific institution in Brazil. Presently it is responsible for the Brazilian Official Time and conducts research in astronomy, astrophysics, and geophysics. The entrance to the Observatory is one street in from the "Feira de Sao Christovao", a plain long brick wall with a plaque and a door that leads to an elevator, I wasn't expecting much. As the elevator door opened at the top, what a sight!

The first floor displays antique "scientific" tools in antique cabinets.(a steampunk's dream) These spectrometers, micrometers, seismometers, and other "meters", sextants and telescopes, were interesting to look at, though I had no idea how they were used and no explanation was given.

The rest of the beautifully restored building houses various exhibitions completely in Portuguese about astronomy, ancient navigation, astrophysics, and other scientific topics which was not too exciting, partly because of my lack of scientific vocabulary in Portuguese, but mostly because the exhibits were not very attractive or interactive. I quickly walked through it feeling bad for the hoards of school kids that have slowly walked through these rooms with their teachers droning on and on with only long written explanations on the wall to look at.

The building itself was more interesting than most exhibits.

We headed off outside and walked the grounds which were surprisingly quiet and peaceful. Various outbuildings housed telescopes which were open for the public and do show the stars on weekend nights. As I walked around, it dawned on me that even centuries ago, though it seemed scientists were using "rudimentary" tools compared to today's technology, they had to be very intelligent and were far more knowledgeable that your average jo at the time. These un-computerized instruments were advanced at that time and still function today, but not only that hold a mechanical beauty that no "modern computer" will ever have.

Beautiful grounds with old restored outbuildings

Wood roof and telescope

Beautiful tiles in the observatory

Funny elevator, with the Feira de Sao Cristovao in the background

Back down the elevator, we ended back to Barra with a pit stop in for coffee at La Bicyclette restaurant in the Botanical Gardens where I had the best "delice au chocolat" which didn't taste like condensed milk, as most chocolaty desserts here do, and two, okay, three bites of Geraldo's most delicious pecan pie! Two artisan breads in a bag later and we walked back through the backside of the gardens looking at the old houses and tree lined streets. A prefect end to a perfect day in the city!

An artist's VW

I spotted this on the wall of a house, ah! the days when bread and milk was delivered!

Easter Morning in Tiradentes

Most times living in Rio, I feel like I'm in a state of vigilance and alertness peppered with short stints of disbelief. The best way to take it down a notch is to head for the mountains. It's fresher, the air is clean and birds are everywhere. We spent five days in Tiradentes, a historic town in the state of Minas Gerais named after the famed dentist/military man/mining tycon, Joaquim Jose da Silva Xavier. You know in the 1700's it was okay to have more than one profession, but I guess Mr. Xavier was a hell of a dentist because that's the one title that stuck, though, in Portuguese and in French, Tiradentes literally translate to "pulls teeth". Ouch!

On Easter morning, my sister-in-law got up before the tourists and headed up to the Matriz de San Antonio Church to see the procession and I took these photos.

Most historic towns in Brazil have roads which were built by slaves with big slabs of rock- completely stroller-unfriendly.

On Easter morning, people decorate their windows for the procession.

 

 

A Frog Lunch and a Visit to the Plane Museum

So the morning started off with a plan to visit Madureira Park, but then as the temperature and humidity was rising, and my hang-over was threatening to break open my skull at the thought of standing in a giant cemented "park" without shade, and the plans changed. We decided that sitting in an air conditioned car and visiting the Museu Aeroespatial (about a 40 minute drive out of Barra) would be a better bet for all.

With our route mapped out on google map making sure we drove around Cidade de Deus, Geraldo started to reminisce about his youth and trips he made from Nova Iguacu to Barra da Tijuca with his mom and dad. (For those who live here, this was when the Sheraton Hotel was a camping ground and the Linha Amarella didn't exist) He remembered this one restaurant they would stop at every time they came home from the beach, as it was the first time he ate frog. And lo and behold there it was: Rancho das Morangos. As we walked in we could tell that the place hadn't changed in 40 years and it was still a family favorite. Without any doubt we ordered a frog and offered it to the kid, who looked at it with a smile and said, looks like a little guy, mom! Inexplicably, they both loved it!

Yum! Tastes like chicken he says.

It does look like a headless little guy!

You know me, I was fell in love with the 40 year old tiles on the floor!

Our bellies beyond full as Brazilian lunches dictate, we arrived at the airplane museum just a short drive later. As usual, my expectations were low, given that the train museum excursion was a major flop, but once inside I was quite impressed. Greeted by a bust of the Franco-Brazilian flight pioneer, Alberto Santos-Dumont, the ground floor displays life-size replicas of the first planes he invented, the 14 BIS and the Demoiselle among others, an exhibition of the history of Brazilian Women in the Airforce and a room full of weapons, which we skipped.

There is a collection of airplanes on the runway outside.

The 14 BIS, the first fixed wing aircraft flown by Santos-Dumont on Oct.23, 1906 for which he won a world record.

A "Demoiselle" that Santos-Dumont invented and flew in 1907 around Paris to visit his friends. Imagine!

Beautiful propeller display.

Exhibits of the Brazilian Air-force's role in the World Wars and in modern times can be found on the second floor, but the Santos-Dumont exhibition was my favorite. There are several original artifacts and I was swept up in how exciting it must as have been to be in Paris at that time, looking up into the sky at this man in a panama hat sitting in a basket floating around the Eiffel tower in a giant balloon.

Santos-Dumont flew his first balloon (named Le Bresil) which he designed in 1898

Marketing material for the sale of a "Demoiselle", a mere 7500F which was about the price of a car at that time. Santos-Dumont gave away the plans for free and 50 were produced.

Inside this copper statue is the heart of Santos-Dumont!

It took me a while to get through this exhibit because unfortunately, it was not translated into English, (some of the exhibits are), and the boys had already headed off to the hanger where dozens of airplanes are on display. My boy was so excited to find me and show me everything that he thought was "so cool, mom".

Engines.

Inside one of the planes

We finished our visit just before the rain came down.

I highly recommend this visit to my friends in Barra, it's fun for the whole family, but be sure to read up on the history of Santos-Dumont ahead of time, it's enchanting and incredible! I asked the boy what his favorite part of the museum was and he said without a pause, the engines!!!! (oh, man, like father, like son)

A Breath of Fresh Air in Buenos Aires

At which point does old become beautiful? When is something just plain "old and ugly" and when does it pass that point when we want to preserve it? It's rare for me, having spent a big chunk of my life in Vancouver, a city that is constantly exfoliating itself, riding itself of anything older than a few decades to make space for a newer, shinier layer of shoebox condos, to see anything survive long enough, beyond that point when the old and ugly becomes beautiful again.  Yes, it's a young city, ridiculously young, and desirable and this means it never has to time to settle, to get over it's growing pains and mature.

I'm pondering this upon my return from Buenos Aires, once referred to as the "Paris of South America", and since I've never been to Paris, or Europe for that matter, you can imagine how the city charmed me. The cooler, overcast weather allowed me to relax and take in the architecture, the cafes on every corner, windows brimming with pastries, the successions of green parks, museums, theaters, fountains, and churches, a marked break from the sweaty heat of Rio, and it was my perception that the "portenos", (the people of Buenos Aires) reflected this cooler weather, a little quieter, less agitated, and less blindingly bright as the Cariocas.

My eyes feasted on the largeness of the old towers in Centro, the ultra wide avenues, and the busy plazas and also on little details like ornate art deco doorhandles, mosaic tile floors in the entrances of restaurants, and weeds growing out of old houses as we toured the city by taxi, subway, bus and on foot. Sure, we did the touristy things, mostly activities that pleased the kid, and a little part me wanted to run inside every museum, spend long afternoons in cafes reading, and catch a show, but I also knew that I couldn't resent the fact that my kid would not get much out of walking around the Museum of Fine Arts as much as me or sit quietly while I sipped on a glass a wine with my feet up, and so I let the city give me what it wanted to offer even if it meant sitting on the subway people watching and going to the bakery every afternoon to fill up on pastries.

With our bag of sweets, a bottle of wine and a few easy things to pop on the stove for dinner, every night we returned to an old apartment with a tiny elevator which the boy took responsibility for, insisting on operating the two metal accordion gates and pushing the buttons. A solid iron vault door which we opened with a medieval key lead onto a living room with high ceilings and a wall of french doors with a close view of the neighbors across the street. On one hand, I loved the apartment, I loved that it wasn't a cookie cutter hotel room, I loved the old hardwood floors, the layers of paint on the moldings, the warped, rattling, single pane windows, and the idea that I could imagine an Argentinian family having lived in it, but on the other hand, I longed for a comfortable bed, puffy towels and room service. The place was definitely on the verge of "it's old enough to be cool, but has so many little issues." For me the "issues" were more "quirks" and for the four days we spent there, the old apartment was part of spending time in the history that Buenos Aires offers which Vancouver could never offer in the same way.

Thank you Buenos Aires, you really are a breath of fresh air.

The Buenos Aires Zoo, built in 1888 was a delight, not only to see the animals but the beautiful cages and pens.

Patagonian Mara mama with pup

La Boca

The parliament "Casa Rosa"

Recoleta Cemetery

Turkey Sandwich-it's been so long since I've had turkey!

Me wearing pants!

Watching the ants on the ant highway

Protest in front of cathedral

Play time!