With its lush peaks, breathtaking beaches and urban ambience, the cidade maravilhosa (marvelous city) occupies one of the most spectacular settings on the planet. Cariocas (inhabitants of Rio ) are no less striking. Sensual and free-spirited, with a love for samba and celebration, they welcome visi­tors to their tropical city, sharing beaches, caipirinhas (cachaca-fueled cocktails) and their wild Carnaval with all who are willing to fall under the Carioca encanto (spell).

In spite of its many charms, Rio de Janeiro , with over 7 million inhabitants, has its share

of problems: poverty, violence, drug abuse and police corruption are widespread.

Don't miss people-watching on the beaches of Ipanema and Copacabana, samba dancing in Lapa, the ride up Pao de A4ucar, a stroll through Santa Theresa, the view from Cristo Redentor and football madness at Maracana.

HISTORY

The city earned its name from the ignorance of an explorer named Gaspar de Lemos. The Portuguese sailor entered the huge bay (Baia de Guanabara) in January 1502, and mistak­ing it for a river, named it Rio de Janeiro ( January River ). The French were actually the first settlers along the bay, establishing the colony of Antarctic France in 1555. The Portuguese, fearing that the French would take over, gave them the boot in 1567 and remained from then on. Thanks to sugar plantations and the slave trade, their new colony developed into an important settle­ment, and grew substantially during the Minas Gerais gold rush of the 18th century.

In 1763, with a population of 50,000, Rio replaced Salvador as the colonial capital. By 1900, after a coffee boom, heavy immigra­tion from Europe and internal migration by ex-slaves, Rio had 800,000 inhabitants.

The 1920s to 1950s were Rio 's golden age. It became a romantic, exotic destination for international high society. Brasilia took over as Brazil 's political capital in 1960, but Rio remains the cultural capital of the country.

ORIENTATION

Rio is a city of unusual urban diversity, with beaches, mountains, skyscrapers and the omnipresent favelas all woven into the fabric of the landscape. The city can be divided into two zones: the zona norte (north zone), con­sisting of industrial, working-class neighbor­hoods, and the zona sul (south zone), full of middle- and upper-class neighborhoods and well-known beaches. Centro, Rio 's business district and the site of its first settlement, marks the boundary between the two, and a number of the important museums and colonial buildings are there.

The parts of Rio you are most likely to explore stretch along the shore of the Baia de Guanabara and the Atlantic Ocean . South from Centro are the neighborhoods of Lapa, Gloria, Catete, Flamengo, Botafogo and Urca - where the striking peak of Pao de A4ucar (Sugar Loaf) dominates the landscape. Fur­ther south lie the neighborhoods of Copa­cabana, Ipanema and Leblon, the first and only stop for many travelers to the city.

Other areas of interest include the quaint, colonial neighborhood of Santa Theresa on a hill overlooking Centro and just south of there the looming statue of Cristo Redentor (Christ the Redeemer), situated atop Cor­covado and offering fabulous views of both zones of the city.

Aside from the bus station, Maracana football stadium and the international airport, most travelers have few reasons to visit the zona norte.

Lonely Planet produces an excellent city map for Rio de Janeiro , and Riotur, the city's tourist information center, provides free street maps at their offices. For tour­ist maps of Brazil and the region, check kiosks in the center of town. For physical and topographical maps, head to Editora Geografica Paulini (Tel: 0xx2l-220-0181; Rua Senador Dantas 75, Loja 1).

GETTING INTO TOWN

Rio 's Galeao international airport (GIG) is 15km north of the city center on Ilha do Governador. Santos Dumont airport, used by some domestic flights, is by the bay in the city center, 1 km east of Cinelandia metro station.

Real Auto Bus ( Tel: 0800-240-850) operates safe air-con buses from the international airport (outside the arrivals floor of terminal 1 or the ground floor of terminal 2) to Novo Rio bus station, Avenida Rio Branco (Centro), Santos Dumont airport, southward through Gloria, Flamengo and Botafogo and along the beaches of Copacabana, Ipanema and Leblon to Barra da Tijuca (and vice-versa). The buses (US$2, every 20 to 30 minutes) run from 5:20am to 12:10am , and will stop wherever you ask. You can transfer to the metro at Carioca station.

Heading to the airports, you can catch the Real bus from in front of the major hotels along the main beaches, but you have to look alive and flag them down.

Taxis from the international airport may try to rip you off. The safest course, a radio taxi for which you pay a set fare at the airport, is also the most expensive. A yellow and blue common (comum) taxi should cost around US$25 to Copacabana if the meter is working. A radio taxi costs about US535.

If you arrive in Rio by bus, it's a good idea to take a taxi to your hotel, or at least to the general area you want to stay. Don't try walking into town with all your gear - Rodoviaria Novo Rio (Tel: 0xx21-2291-5151; Av Francisco Bicalho), the bus station, is in a seedy area - and traveling on local buses with all your belongings is a little risky. A small booth near the Riotur desk on the first floor of the bus station organizes the yellow cabs in the rank out front. Say where you want to go and the clerk will write a price on a ticket, which you then give to the driver of the first cab in line, paying the stated fare. Sample fares are US$12 to the international airport and US510 to Copacabana or Ipanema.

Local buses, should you decide to take them, leave from stops outside the station. For Copac­abana, the best are Nos 127, 128 and 136; for Ipanema, Nos 128 and 172. For the budget hotels in Catete and Gloria, take No 136 or 172.