should you stay while training at the various academies?
A good idea is to contact the school before hand maybe you can stay with one of the guys. This is the best because they help you out a lot and you can help them out with some money. They also know the best places for you to stay in the area or email me and I will do my best.

Can you help me find a place to stay?
Sure just send us an email and let me know what your budget is and what school you want to train at.

Weather.
The weather in Rio is always comfortable. You might in the winter time (July & August) want a light jacket or a sweatshirt. In the summer (January and February) it will be hot hot hot! All the rest of the year you will find things very comfortable. It does rain a lot so you might bring something water proff to wear.

PAGE 3

The food in Brazil is great. Healthy low fat usually and lots and lots of it. You can always find good stuff around and it is pretty safe to eat most things. You must try acia but don't eat too much after you fall in love. You can get sick from it and I suggest you get banana in it too it seems to help.

You have to try the Brazilian barbeque called Churrasco, the juice bars are not to be missed either. There are all kinds of great fruits that they don't have anywhere else. There is great seafood and other local dishes to be had as well. If you need to have any supplements in your diet you need to bring them because they could be hard to find or expensive.

OTM Favorite Restaurants:

Barra

Juice Co.
Ave Olegario Maciel

Rialto
Above Barra Gril on Ave Das Americas

Gula Gula
Ave Das Americas

Guadna Mania
Ave Olegario Maciel - These guys sponsor a lot of fighters so we like to support them.

Bebe Succos
Ave Olegario Maciel - These guys sponsor a lot of fighters so we like to support them.

The Loft
Ave Das Americas - These guys sponsor a lot of fighters so we like to support them.

Barra Grill
Ave Das Americas

Torrao

Proquao


Leblon / Legoa / Ipanema

Natual Gormet

Bebe Succos

Polish Succos

Gapaloco

Safety.
I live in Barra and it is really safe here. I have however been from end to end of this country and have always found people to he very friendly and always helpful. You should have some street smarts however. Being flashy, loud and stupid can get you hurt or robbed. No cop is going to come running up to help you here in fact you should avoid cops at all costs in my experience we have been robbed by them more than the people here.

Do not carry your passport around. Get a copy before you leave and carry it around. I keep a nice crisp Ben Franklin in my wallet. It will get you out of most any trouble you have with the cops and a good back up it you ever need it. (Everyone takes dollars everywhere.) It is best to just pretend that cops are not there and don't make eye contact with them. Most important don't be stupid and get yourself in a situation where you might have to deal with them. They are not like American cops and don't play by the same rules. In fact there are no rules and you really do not want to end up in a Brazilian Jail.

Hide the bulk of your cash and keep a little cash in one pocket just in case you get robbed. For the most part I think you will find Rio to be a safe and fun place. However from time to time, especially in Copacabana you might get robbed. Sao Paulo on the other hand to me is much scarier, but I have not spent a lot of time there yet.

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The level of training here in Brazil is on a different level than in the states. The shear number of black belts is amazing. You will get to see performances on a daily basis by world-class fighters who are pushing the level of the game everyday. It is great fun to play with the super technical guys and tap tap tap. That is the biggest difference between Rio and the USA. There are so many brown & black belts training along with many more tournaments sometimes weekly. This makes the games evolves much faster here technically, but the basics are always the basics and it is good to polish them up here too.

Try to leave your ego at home. You will beat some guys and not others. Here it is not about who you can tap, it is about getting better. It is not cool to sit around the school and brag about who you tapped. You are a guest at these schools don’t just go in trying to kill everyone your first day. Work your way in to classes and then pick up your training. Too many times I have seen guys come down and try and train like mad men. Many guys get hurt in their first week and miss training for the rest of their trip. If you get hurt here you will not be a happy person and you will feel real stupid.

Sitting around the school talking about who tapped who is considered rude, gringos tend to do this a lot. I did.

Training at multiple schools.
There is something's about this that can be hard for us as foreigners to understand. Teams here are very important here and they are a tradition that goes with the sport and culture here. If your instructor recommends you train at a certain school I would stick there and respect his wishes. If you are down here to check out a few schools you should not try to train at different school at once. Meaning, do not train at one school at night and another during the