Join the carnival crowd
RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil – Everyone knows Rio de Janeiro’s carnival is supposed to be the greatest party on Earth. But to many, the hordes of sweaty, scantily clad bodies on display can be as intimidating as they are inviting.
The city’s reputation for violence and the difficulties that arise from not speaking Portuguese make it even more important that tourists get some guidance about how to jump in.
For the carnival itself, which started Friday and ends Tuesday, there are basically three ways to celebrate: party in the street, watch the Samba parade from the stands, or – for the truly fleet-footed and daring – dance in the parade itself.
Most of the larger samba groups allow tourists to join their contingents as long as they wear the costumes, known as “fantasias.”
The groups sell the elaborate costumes – which can cost anywhere from $282 to $1,412 – to revelers over the Internet and at the city’s larger hotels, delivering them to the customer’s doorstep.
“In my opinion it’s one of the most fantastic celebrations on earth. If you’ve seen anything about it on television or in print, it’s all that but 20 times better,” says Arthur Martinez, a retired U.S. Postal Service executive from Indio, Calif., who got his first taste of Rio’s carnival back in 1978.
“It takes about seven minutes to get into the mood. The samba is just so infectious,” he says. “You don’t have to learn to samba, but it’s a good idea if you do.”
A capacity crowd of 88,500 watches from the stands of the Sambodrome stadium, where top-tier samba groups present their elaborate parades, the centerpiece of Brazil’s annual carnival celebrations.
But most of the dancing goes on down below, on the stadium’s nearly half-mile-long runway, where the city’s top 12 samba groups each mount 80-minute long spectacles featuring hundreds of drummers, thousands of dancers and about a dozen over-the-top parade floats.
For tourists, the biggest problem with trying to watch the celebrations is that the Sambodrome is in a tough part of town, and parade tickets usually sell out months in advance. There are still plenty of tickets available through travel agencies and scalpers, but at a hefty premium.
Coimbra Sirica, a public relations executive from Northport, N.Y., chose to go through a travel agent – who provided transportation to and from the stadium – because she wanted her young children to experience Rio’s carnival without worrying about security.
“I love the country, I love the music, but I have some concerns about safety,” she says.
An easier and cheaper way to celebrate is to take part in Rio’s street carnival.
No tickets or costumes are required to fall in behind one of the many “bandas” and “blocos” that ply the city’s streets during carnival time.
“Bandas” play hits of carnivals past, while “blocos” write a new song for each carnival which they repeat endlessly.
Fans of the Carmelitas bloco like to dress as nuns. The group parades on Friday night, attracting a good-sized crowd to the hilltop Santa Teresa neighborhood.
The Cordao de Bola Preta, one of the city’s most traditional carnival bands, packs the city’s center on Saturday morning, making it a favorite for families with young children.