NOSSA SENHORA DO MONTSERRATE & PÃO DE AÇÚCAR

The Beans in Parque Lage & Edgar Bean in Maracanã

Yesterday afternoon, after visiting Christ Redemeer, The Beans went to Parque Lage, a public park in the city of Rio de Janeiro, located in the Jardim Botânico neighborhood at the foot of the Corcovado.

The land was formerly the residence of industrialist Enrique Lage and his wife, singer Gabriella Besanzoni. During the 1920s Lage had the mansion remodeled by Italian architect Mario Vodrel, with interior paintings by Salvador Payols Sabaté.

In the 1960s the land became a public park, with walking trails through subtropical forest. The Escola de Artes Visuais do Parque Lage and a café open to the public operate from the former mansion.

Later, the family visited the Estadio Mario Filho, aka Maracanã, because Edgar Bean wanted to know the most important Brazilian football stadium, place of unforgettable moments oferred by all the Brazilian football stars playing with their national team, especially Edson​ Arantes do Nascimento, aka Pelé, one of the most important players of the history of this sport.

More information: Visit Rio

Today, it's February, 12, an important date if you live in Barcelona or you're a science fan. For one hand, Barcelona celebrates the day of one of its three patrons, Santa Eulàlia. The Grandma, who is a special fan of this Mediterranean capital although she's Andorran, has wanted to remember this virgin and has asked for the family to visit Nossa Senhora do Monserrate do Rio de Janeiro, a Benedictine abbey in Rio where another popular virgin is adored.

The Beans at Nossa Senhora do Monserrate

The Abbey of Our Lady of Montserrat, more commonly known as the Mosteiro de São Bento is a Benedictine abbey located on the Morro de São Bento in downtown Rio de Janeiro. The Mannerist style church is a primary example of Brazilian colonial architecture in Rio and the country.

The abbey was founded by Benedictine monks who came from the state of Bahia in 1590. It is still operational today, along with the Colégio de São Bento nearby. The college, established in 1858, is one of the most important traditional educational establishments in Brazil and claims many famous alumni. The abbey includes the Faculdade de São Bento, with courses in theology and philosophy that are recognized by the Ministry of Education. Theological studies at the monastery are also affiliated with the Pontifical Atheneum of St. Anselm in Rome.

More information: Lonely Planet

For other hand, today is the 209th birthday of Charles Darwin the English naturalist, geologist and biologist, best known for his contributions to the science of evolution. Charles Darwin was in Brazil. He arrived in Salvador during the summer on February 28, 1832, after visiting Cabo Verde.

To homage this trip of Charles Darwin to the Brazilian lands, the family  has decided to visit Pão de Açúcar or Sugarloaf Mountain, a peak situated in Rio de Janeiro at the mouth of Guanabara Bay on a peninsula that juts out into the Atlantic Ocean. Rising 396 m above the harbor, its name is said to refer to its resemblance to the traditional shape of concentrated refined loaf sugar. It is known worldwide for its cableway and panoramic views of the city.

More information: Visit Brasil

The Beans climbing up to Pão de Açúcar

The mountain is one of several monolithic granite and quartz mountains that rise straight from the water's edge around Rio de Janeiro.

The mountain is protected by the Sugarloaf Mountain and Urca Hill Natural Monument, created in 2006. This became part of a World Heritage Site declared by UNESCO in 2012.

The name Sugarloaf was coined in the 16th century by the Portuguese during the heyday of sugar cane trade in Brazil. 

According to historian Vieira Fazenda, blocks of sugar were placed in conical molds made of clay to be transported on ships. The shape given by these molds was similar to the peak, hence the name.
 

A glass-walled cable car called bondinho capable of holding 65 people, runs along a 1,400 m route between the peaks of Sugarloaf and Morro da Urca every 20 minutes.

More information: Lonely Planet

Past vs. Present with The Grandma

The original cable car line was built in 1912 and rebuilt around 1972–73 and in 2008. The cable car goes from a ground station, at the base of Morro da Babilônia, to Morro da Urca and thence to Sugarloaf's summit.

Meanwhile The Beans take advantage and visit this wonderful place and discuss about the occupational hazards of constructing an incredible structure like this on the top of a mountain, The Grandma takes profit and resolves some business in the Carioca capital before joining to the family on the top of Pão de Açúcar, a place very special for her, who as a great fan of James Bond and as a member of The Bonds family, can not forget Moonraker and the scene filmed here, in the bondinho.

More information: Interfaith Worker Justice (US)

Tonight, the family is going to enjoy the last night of carnival because they're going to travel to San Francisco, California, tomorrow morning.

A man's friendships are one of the best measures of his worth.
 

Charles Darwin

CHRIST THE REDEEMER: THE BEANS TOUCH HEAVEN

Nereyda Bean, Fantasia in the Sambódromo

Last night, The Beans enjoyed Brazilian carnival in the Sambódromo of Rio. Nereyda Bean was chosen as a new Fantasia Girl by the crowd and she could participate in the parade dancing over a carriage. 

After a great party, this morning, the family has visited Christ The Redeemer, perhaps, the most important symbol of Rio de Janeiro and one of the most popular monuments around the world because it is one of the New Seven Wonders of the World.

More information: New Seven Wonders of the World

It has been a special visit for Antonio Bean, because he's a deep religious man; for Manuel Bean, who is a professional climber and has had the opportunity of climbing up to the top of the statue; and for Nereyda Bean, who is fear to heights and has suffered a little. 

Manuel Bean on the top of Christ the Redeemer

The rest of the family has preferred to stay on the ground, taking photos and listening how The Grandma explained her personal memories about Rio in the past and how Carol Bean explained her ones in the present. It has been a wonderful experience.

Christ the Redeemer is an Art Deco statue of Jesus Christ in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, created by French sculptor Paul Landowski and built by the Brazilian engineer Heitor da Silva Costa, in collaboration with the French engineer Albert Caquot. Romanian sculptor Gheorghe Leonida fashioned the face. Constructed between 1922 and 1931, the statue is 30 metres tall, excluding its 8-metre pedestal. The arms stretch 28 metres wide.

More information: Mental Floss

The statue weighs 635 metric tons, and is located at the peak of the 700-metre Corcovado mountain in the Tijuca Forest National Park overlooking the city of Rio de Janeiro. A symbol of Christianity across the world, the statue has also become a cultural icon of both Rio de Janeiro and Brazil, and is listed as one of the New Seven Wonders of the World. It is made of reinforced concrete and soapstone.

Antonio Bean's selfie with Christ the Redeemer

Vincentian priest, Pedro Maria Boss, first suggested placing a Christian monument on Mount Corcovado in the mid 1850s to honor Princess Isabel, princess regent of Brazil and the daughter of Emperor Pedro II, however the project died due to lack of support. 

In 1889 the country became a republic, and due to the separation of church and state, the idea of the statue was dismissed. The Catholic Circle of Rio made a second proposal for a landmark statue on the mountain in 1920. The group organized an event called Semana do Monumento to attract donations and collect signatures to support the building of the statue. 

More information: Aleteia

What motivated the organization was what they perceived as 'Godlessness' in the society at the time. The donations came mostly from Brazilian Catholics. The designs considered for the Statue of the Christ included a representation of the Christian cross, a statue of Jesus with a globe in his hands, and a pedestal symbolizing the world. The statue of Christ the Redeemer with open arms, a symbol of peace, was chosen.

Old memories of Rio de Janeiro (1920's & 1930's)

Local engineer Heitor da Silva Costa designed the statue. French sculptor Paul Landowski created the work.

In 1922, Landowski commissioned fellow Parisian Romanian sculptor Gheorghe Leonida, who studied sculpture at the Fine Arts Conservatory in Bucharest and in Italy. Leonida's portrayal of Christ's face made him famous.

A group of engineers and technicians studied Landowski's submissions and felt building the structure of reinforced concrete, designed by Albert Caquot, instead of steel was more suitable for the cross-shaped statue. 

The outer layers are soapstone, chosen for its enduring qualities and ease of use. Construction took nine years, from 1922 to 1931 and cost the equivalent to $3,400,000 in 2018 and the monument opened on October 12, 1931. During the opening ceremony, the statue was to be lit by a battery of floodlights turned on remotely by Italian shortwave radio inventor Guglielmo Marconi, stationed 9,200 km away in Rome but because of bad weather, the lights were activated on-site.

More information: Daily Mail

Corcovado is a mountain in central Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The 710-metre granite peak is located in the Tijuca Forest, a national park. 

Aerial view of The Beans and Christ the Redeemer

The peak and statue can be accessed via a narrow road, by the 3.8 kilometre Corcovado Rack Railway, which was opened in 1884 and refurbished in 1980, or by the walking trail on the south side of the mountain that starts from Parque Lage. 

The railway uses three electrically powered trains, with a passenger capacity of 540 passengers per hour. The rail trip takes approximately 20 minutes and departs every 20 minutes. Due to its limited passenger capacity, the wait to board at the entry station can take several hours.

From the train terminus and road, the observation deck at the foot of the statue is reached by 223 steps, or by elevators and escalators. Among the most popular year-round tourist attractions in Rio, the Corcovado railway, access roads, and statue platform are commonly crowded. 

More information: Visit Rio

It is good to be tired and wearied by the futile search after the true good, that we may stretch out our arms to the Redeemer. 

Blaise Pascal

RIO DE JANEIRO: OLHA QUE COISA MAIS LINDA...

The Beans arriving to Copacabana Palace

The Beans have just arrived to Rio de Janeiro in Brazil. After a flight of fourteen hours, resting eight of them, the family is ready to enjoy the city and its carnival. The family is going to rest in the Copacabana Palace tonight and tomorrow, they're going to go to their own residence in Santa Teresa.

Rio de Janeiro or simply Rio is the second-most populous municipality in Brazil and the sixth-most populous in the Americas. The metropolis is anchor to the Rio de Janeiro metropolitan area, the second-most populous metropolitan area in Brazil and sixth-most populous in the Americas. Rio de Janeiro the capital of the state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil's third-most populous state. Part of the city has been designated as a World Heritage Site, named Rio de Janeiro: Carioca Landscapes between the Mountain and the Sea, by UNESCO on 1 July 2012 as a Cultural Landscape.

More information:  UNESCO

Founded in 1565 by the Portuguese, the city was initially the seat of the Captaincy of Rio de Janeiro, a domain of the Portuguese Empire. Later, in 1763, it became the capital of the State of Brazil, a state of the Portuguese Empire. 

In 1808, when the Portuguese Royal Court transferred itself from Portugal to Brazil, Rio de Janeiro became the chosen seat of the court of Queen Maria I of Portugal, who subsequently, in 1815, under the leadership of her son, the Prince Regent, and future King João VI of Portugal, raised Brazil to the dignity of a kingdom, within the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil, and Algarves. 

Rio stayed the capital of the pluricontinental Lusitanian monarchy until 1822, when the War of Brazilian Independence began. This is one of the few instances in history that the capital of a colonising country officially shifted to a city in one of its colonies. Rio de Janeiro subsequently served as the capital of the independent monarchy, the Empire of Brazil, until 1889, and then the capital of a republican Brazil until 1960 when the capital was transferred to Brasília.

Rio de Janeiro is one of the most visited cities in the Southern Hemisphere and is known for its natural settings, Carnival, samba, bossa nova, and balneario beaches such as Barra da Tijuca, Copacabana, Ipanema, and Leblon. In addition to the beaches, some of the most famous landmarks include the giant statue of Christ the Redeemer atop Corcovado mountain, named one of the New Seven Wonders of the World; Sugarloaf Mountain with its cable car; the Sambódromo, a permanent grandstand-lined parade avenue which is used during Carnival; and Maracanã Stadium, one of the world's largest football stadiums.

More information: Lonely Planet

 

The Beans in Copacabana, Rio de Janeiro

Copacabana is a bairro -neighbourhood- located in the South Zone of the city of Rio de Janeiro. It is known for its 4 km balneario beach, which is one of the most famous in the world.

The district was originally called Sacopenapã, translated from the Tupi language, it means the way of the socós, the socós being a kind of bird, until the mid-18th century. It was renamed after the construction of a chapel holding a replica of the Virgen de Copacabana, the patron saint of Bolivia. The name may be derived from the Aymara kota kahuana, meaning view of the lake.

Copacabana beach, located at the Atlantic shore, stretches from Posto Dois to Posto Seis. Leme is at Posto Um. There are historic forts at both ends of Copacabana beach; Fort Copacabana, built in 1914, is at the south end by Posto Seis and Fort Duque de Caxias, built in 1779, at the north end. One curiosity is that the lifeguard watchtower of Posto Seis never existed. Hotels, restaurants, bars, nightclubs and residential buildings dot the promenade facing Avenida Atlântica.

Download Rio de Janeiro by The Grandma

I'm moving to Rio permanently with my family. It's one of the places left in the world where people still live with a big charge of poetry on a daily basis. I feel we've kind of lost that here in Europe. 

Vincent Cassel

CAROL BEAN: OUR GIRL FROM IPANEMA TALKS ABOUT RIO

Quem nasce lá na Vila

nem sequer vacila

Ao abraçar o samba

que faz dançar os galhos

do arvoredo e faz a lua

nascer mais cedo

Lá, em Vila Isabel

quem é bacharel

Não tem medo de bamba

São Paulo dá café

Minas dá leite

e a Vila Isabel dá samba

Hi, I'm Carol Bean!

Today, I’m going to talk about Brazil, specifically, Rio de Janeiro, la cidade maravilhosa.

First, we are going to do a route across the more important touristic sites. 

-Copacabana: The most famous beach. It is fantastic! People of the all the world, samba on live, açai -more in the typical foods-, white sand and cool water over 40 degrees.

-Escadaria do Selaron: This staircase is well known because it is made with a mosaic of bright colors such as red, yellow, green...  This staircase connects two districts, at the beginning this La Lapa and when you go up there is the Santa Teresa district. 

La Lapa is a bohemian district of the center with more typical pubs to dance all the typical dances of Rio. Forro is danced in the pubs like Estudiantina Musical, Os Democraticos,  or Leviano.
 

Another dance is samba gafieira...

   

There are two types of funk: funk and funky de favela.

Funk...

Now, it is fashionable among young people to do passinho competitions:

Funky de favela...

Santa Teresa is the oldest district of colonial Brazilian times. There are two ways to go up to the district: Walking or in the Bondinho to enjoy and travel to past.
 
But, now is Carnival! We are going to enjoy the parties in the streets with Os Blocos, the future samba schools that want to be able to parade in the Sambódromo but now they belong to the school category. They have to be known in order to have more partners and they do it doing parties in the streets during all the carnival.

On the other hand, those that are already samba schools like the Portela, Uniao da Ilha, Mocidade already parade in the Sambódromo. The parade of the samba schools lasts about 2 hours each with approximately 2000 components.

Watching parade with the music at full volume and the skin bristles is an unforgettable experience and how we dance so much, walk and have fun, we're very hungry.  Let's taste typical and delicious meals of Rio!

Carol Bean with Portela in Venetian style in 2015

-Feijoada: Black beans and various types of meat -legs, pork, rib, sausage...-. This dish was created by the slaves, when they only had the feijao that are the black beans and their owners gave them the leftovers of the meat they ate, then, they all gathered and put together the pieces of meat that each one had received from its owner.

When you have eaten the plate the custom is to eat a slice of orange, since it lowers all the fat from the mouth and throat and to drink a caipirinha. All this, we will eat in one of the samba schools while we are listening to samba on live and the carnival is celebrated.

-Angu: Corn flour and various meats -liver, sausage, rib...- with beer in the angu does Gomes, the most typical bar where all the sambistas go to recover their strength to continue with the party, but if we want to eat something fast, at every step on the street we will find a good barbecue with meat skewers.

Well, time to enjoy has come!

 Brazil has its own fashion identity. Many very talented Brazilian designers show every season at Sao Paulo and Rio fashion weeks. 

Gisele Bundchen

FROM VENICE TO RIO DE JANEIRO, SHADOWS & LIGHTS

The Grandma with Ana Bean's Venetian Mask

Shadows...

Today, The Beans have left Venice. They have been in the city during few days enjoying the Carnevale and the most important, enjoying the kindness of Venetian people. Once you have visited Venice it's impossible to forget it for the rest of your life.

It has been a special visit, especially for Ana Bean, who is a great lover of the city, and for The Grandma who lost her lover in this city some decades ago and she has never found him. The search continues and she won't give up but time is running against her and because of this, she's sad and a little depressed and she has bought tones of Super Glue and Bitumen of Judea -nobody knows why, things of old people...-

More information: Corto in Venice (Italian Version)

Hopes...

By the way, The Grandma has received a great surprise from Ana Bean that she will never forget. She has recovered her lost faith and her interest in continuing her particular search of Corto Maltese.

How sad Venice can be.
It's too lonely to bare,

when you have lost the love

that you discovered there.

Charles Aznavour

Lights...

The family is happy because they have spent some unforgettable days in the capital of the Veneto and they're going to visit Rio de Janeiro, another must, if you're talking about spectacular carnivals.

They have been practising some English to try to full their time. It's a long flight again and they must fight the jet lag with their better guns: reading, cinema and expositions. They have revised Past Simple (To Be and To Have) and some Social English before Carol Bean had explained her experiences in Rio de Janeiro some years ago.

More information: Past Simple (To Be) & Past Simple (To Have) 

Carmen Miranda

It has been an incredible exposition accompanied by some typical Brazilian music and food. The Beans have received their first classes of samba thanks to Carol Bean, who is an excellent instructor, and have tasted some chocolate delicatessen thanks to Natalia Bean.

Finally, the family has chosen The Queen of The Beans and Carol Bean has won this recognition meanwhile, The Grandma has started to remember again and full of nostalgia has remember one of her favourite actresses of her childhood, Carmen Miranda, the Brazilian star, singer and dancer whose sister, Aurora Miranda, participated in Walt Disney's film The Three Caballeros. 

The Beans have been talking about their favourites films and the list is long: Pinocchio, Fantasia, The Aristocats, Lady and the Tramp, Dinosaur, The Beauty and The Beast, Mulan, Brave, Peter Pan, Aladdin, Bambi, The Lion King, Balto, The Princess and the Frog... everyone has a favourite film joined to special memories of it.

More information: The Telegraph

Look at me and tell me if I don't have Brazil 

in every curve of my body. 

Carmen Miranda

CARNIVAL IN TENERIFE: CREATING YOUR FAKE PROFILE

Ready to enjoy the Canarian Carnival

The Bonds have just arrived to Tenerife Island in Canary Islands. They are going to stay four days in the island enjoying the carnival, one of the most famous around the world.

There are three kinds of carnival. For one hand, you can enjoy the pro-protest carnival, where people wear different costumes and are critic with real characters o situations, especially, politics and religious. You can find this carnival in places like Vilanova i la Geltrú or Sitges, in Barcelona. For other hand, you can enjoy another carnival, a great coloured-party where people sing and dance without stopping. You can find this carnival in places like Rio de Janeiro in Brazil or Tenerife Island in Canary Islands and finally, there is Venice. Venice is Venice.

More information: Canaval de Tenerife (English Version)

Carnival is a synonymous of costumes and fake identities, and this is the reason because of the family is starting to prepare their own fake profiles.

The Bonds have wanted to visit the lucky islands because of Montse Bond, who has an old friend in the island, Nikka and she wished to visit her but they're not only going to participate in the carnivale, the family wants to climb up Teide, the Canarian volcano and visits two more islands: Hierro and La Palma, two volcanic islands very important for the future of the planet.

These two visits are the reason because of The Bonds are assisting in that moment to a conference about occupational hazards. They want to climb up volcanoes and walk across high dangerous sismic zones and they need to know as things as it was possible about protection against these dangers.

More information: ILO List of Occupational Diseases

Next Monday, The Grandma is going to talk about ecology, nature and colours to prepare a new day about environment.

It's a party that's being organized; it's not a protest. 

The carnival is not like it was a long time ago. 

Before it was do as you like, take to the streets.
 

Michel Martelly