is good. I think you should bring some but also your credit cards work well and are safe. There are ATMs that will work with your bankcards here. Citibank gives the best rates but HBSC and Banco do Brazil also will take international cards. BTW, here in Rio, the Banco 24hr (ATM) closes at 9:00pm due to safety reasons. So get all your money you need out during the day. Don't bring travelers checks because they will kill you with the rates. When changing cash, CitiBank has been the best. The Amex office in Copacabana is good and "Cambios" which are the tourist agencies all over the city can be good and bad. It is best to check the rates online and then go change your money.

A word on cost of things here in Rio.
Right now the Dollar is trading very high over three to one. This has caused inflation here and the cost of living has gone up about 25%, gas by about 35 centavos (Brazilian cents) per liter. Imagine going to the store tomorrow and finding that everything has gone up by 25% but your salary is the same. Ouch, so expect things to cost a little more down here. So the high dollar makes it a great time to come but there is some balance.


The cost of many things here is negotiable and it is customary to do some negotiations so feel free to try and bargain.


The Simpsons?
If you have not yet seen the episode where the Simpsons head to Rio, you need to before you come. That way when Brazilians get angry with you about it you will have an idea of what they are talking about. I hadn't and I was very confused about this.

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OK get off the plane, show your passport & visa to be stamped. Keep that little green paper they give you in a safe place because you will be screwed when you try to leave if you don’t have it. (If you lost it show up 3 hours before you plane leave to straighten it out) Go get your stuff & you will now need to go through customs. You will either have a person standing there picking people at random or you will press a buzzer red you get searched green you don’t.

How to get searched by customs.
Bring a lot of stuff. If you pack in boxes and not bags you will get searched all boxes will be x-rayed and opened. If you bags are huge they might want a look.

How much can I bring?
A lot, the record for us is 7 boxes, 2 bike boxes, and two huge duffel bags. They of course searched everything. But, we paid no taxes.

What can’t I bring?
I have no idea. I mean guns, drugs and crap but other than that they have let us in with everything so far; computers, tvs, vcrs, microwave, video cameras, and even a scooter!

Ok out of customs, this is here you will feel the heat, you will be attacked by gringo hawks immediately. Don’t be scared and just ignore them. Shoe them away like bats! The will not hurt you! They will try to get you to change money and get you a cab. If you do either you will get ripped off. If you don’t have any Reals ($R) then walk to the three cab counters and pay by credit card. If you have Reals go up a level and get an incoming cab that has to leave the airport anyway and insist on the meter.

Here are your general costs:

Barra $R35 - $R60
Copacabana $R25 - $R45
Ipamina / Legoa - $R35 - $R60

It is good to get directions in Portuguese to where you are going before you leave.

Getting around.

Do I need to be able to speak Portuguese?
Before, I moved here I could only say maybe 10 words, so you can do what you need here without any Portuguese. Don’t not come just cause you can’t speak yet. You can get around and in some areas better than others. Barra. Ipanema, Leblon seem to the most English friendly to me. Copacabana is where the most Gringos go but it also seems to be where the most crime is. Trouble can always be found in Copacabana 24/7 don’t stray from the beach unless you know where you are going. I would avoid staying there if you can. On the other hard if you like a little trouble Copacabana is the only place to stay.

The more Portuguese you know the more you will get out of your trip and the more fun it will be. As you learn more and more this place just gets better and better.


Can I get by without Portuguese and a little bit of Spanish?
Yes guys who come hear and speak Spanish pick it up much quicker.

At the schools you will be amazed at how many guys do speak English and they are very helpful. Soon you might feel dumb cause you only speak English.


Transportation
Transportation I think is very good in Rio. The buses run all day and night very frequently they are very cheap and relatively safe. I would avoid very crowded busses and ask around where you are to see which lines head to bad areas. Unlikely that you will need to take them anywhere you want to go. There are also larger “tourismo” busses they are a few Reals more but are nicer and have AC too. There are also what we call terrorist vans, they are little VW vans. They are everywhere and go everywhere. They could be scary maybe sometimes, but I have never had a problem and take them quite often.

Cabs are cheap too they will try to give you the run around but there is not much you can do about it. They like to get grouchy sometimes but there are a lot of cool guys that are good people. Only tip the nice guys. Try to get them to always run on the "metro" or the meter.

There is a subway here in Rio too. But it only goes to Central if you need to go there to renew your visa or something go by bus or Cab. It is just easier and safer, but I have never been on the subway so I can’t really tell ya much about it.

Where