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Communication
Rio’s international airport is located on Ilha do Governador about 25 km from Copacabana and Ipanema. There are one smaller airport in the center of the city for the flights to Sao Paulo and some other domestic destinations. Outgoing passengers on international flights pay an airport tax in Rio of 36US$ and 7,5 US$ on domestic flights. Please take care with the copy of the entry form you received from the immigration police at the airport. It will take a long time and a lot of hassle to get another one. 

International Airport Information Tel. (55 21) 3398-4526, 398-4527.
Domestic airport Information Tel. (55 21) 2210-2457.

Taxis have meters in Rio, but try to avoid tours or excursions from taxi drivers. If you can, use the Cootramo radio taxi (Tel. 2560-5442) or Transcopass (Tel. 2560-4888) instead of the yellow cab.

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Money
Real is the name on the currency in Brazil (plural Reais). One Real is made up of 100 centavos. There are a green one Real note, a blue/purple 5, a red 10, a brown 50 and a blue 100. You can exchange money at exchange shops (casa do cambio), hotel front desks or banks. At exchange shops you get the best rate. US$ cash give you a better rate than a traveler check. Major banks, restaurants, hotels and shops accept major international credit cards, such as American Express, Dinners Club or Visa. Visa is the best card to use for you travel in Brazil, but be a little careful with were you use it. Bank hours are Monday through Friday from 10.00 to 16.00, except public and bank holidays.

Try this link to the currency converter at Yahoo Finance

Click here to enlarge


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Tipping  in many restaurants and bars are included in the bill (10%). If not it will be stated at the bottom of the bill (servico nao incluido). Most services are tipped in Brazil. There is recommended that tips range from 10% to 15%. For luggage at the hotel and/or airport, figure 1 US$ per suitcase.

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Telephone
GSM cellular telephones don’t work in Brazil. The International Direct Dial (IDD) code for Brazil is 55. The city code for Rio de Janeiro is 021 (don’t use the 0 in International calls).Fax can be sent from any large post office in Rio. All number witch started with 3 has another 3 infront of the number now, all other numbers has a 2 infront of the phone number.

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Post
Postal services works pretty god in Brazil. Usually airmail letters or postcards to USA and Europe arrive in about a week. The postal rate is 1,05 RS$ for an international letter or postcard.

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Electricity
The electrical current in many cities in Brazil is 220 volts, except the states of Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo and Pernambuco where it is 110 volts. (Some hotels do have 220 volts in the rooms). Bring a converter if you need some electronically device.

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Safety
Rio isn’t so dangerous as the reputation says, but try to remember the following advices to stay out of hassle. Hotels offer safety deposit boxes in their rooms. It is recommended that travel documents, jewelry and other values will be kept in them. Keep only what is necessary for daily use with you. Only carry a towel, sun block and a small amount of money to the beach, nothing more! Don’t exchange money in the street. Look after you luggage all the time. Try to avoid walking at dark streets at night, use taxi. Don’t go to the beach at night even if that is a big temptation. Be careful with the strong undertow when you swim at the Atlantic beaches. There are a flag warning system Red – dangerous / White - Water is safe, lifeguard on duty.

In case of hassle call direct to Rio Tourist Police, Tel. 511-5112 or visit them at, Av Afranio de Melo Franco Leblon (It´s opposite Scala)
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Visas
Visitors from certain foreign countries will require a visa, which is usually processed within 2 working days by applying to the nearest Brazilian Embassy or Consulate. You need a passport valid for at least 6 months, one passport-sized photograph and a round-trip ticket.

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Climate and dressing
Rio de Janeiro has a tropical to semi tropical climate. Summer runs from December through March and winter from June through August. The temperatures ranging from 25 degree Celsius to 42 degree Celsius in summer and 16 to 25 degree Celsius in winter. Many restaurants and nightspots are not restrictive on the dress code, although some require formal wear for the evening. For sightseeing and other outdoors activities, light summer clothing is most practical. Light cotton shirts, shorts, dresses and trousers are ideal during the day. You don’t need to bring a jacket if you are not going to stay here during the winter.

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Health
It’s suggested that you drink mineral water and avoid tap water in Brazil. Be careful with the sun. Use high sun block even during cloudy days. Here are the address and telephone for English speaking doctors in Rio:

Tel:(021)  516-1557
Fax: (021) 233-4529
Dr. Antonio Carlos Sousa Junior (Tel. home: 225-2362)
Dr. Leronardo Ponce de Moura Rua
Miguel Couto, 124 - 2. andarCentro - RJ

If you need a dentist in Rio:
Dr. Valda Paulis Dzelme
Dr. Alicia PaulisRua Francisco Sá, 23/301
Copacabana Tel: (021) 513-3025

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Language
The official language is Portuguese and English are spoken in major hotels and airports. On the street the knowledge of English are not so god.

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Food and drinks
Traditional Brazilian cuisine has been favourably compared to those of the other great cuisines of the world and offers a similar complexity and diversity of taste and dishes. Among the more famous regional dishes of Brazil are those from Bahia and Minas Gerais states which are served at a number of restaurants in and around Rio. Dishes with such exotic names as moqueca, vatapa, camarao a baiana and tutu a mineira. Rio for its part has what is considered to be the most traditional dish of them all, the feijoada, a type of stew. Which is traditionally served at Saturday lunch, by restaurants and hotels. Another popular dish Brazilian dish in Rio is the barbeque. Barbeques comes in all shapes and sizes from the corner galleto, serving barbeque chicken and steaks at the counter, to the churrascaria rodicio, a barbeque house which for a set price serves as much of the many varied barbequed delicacies as the costumer wishes.

Rio also has its traditional drinks, many of which are based on a locally produced sugar cane spirit known as cachaca. Chachaca is the basis to fruit batidas and also the caipirinha, a drink that is the established accompaniment to the feijoada.

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Beach life
The importance of the beach to Rio de Janeiro should never be underestimated. The city’s 90 kilometers (56 miles) of beaches are an integral part of the Rio lifestyle, some of which – such as Copacabana and Ipanema – are amongst the planet’s most famous strips of sand. Of the world’s major cities, Rio is unique in having beaches run through its very heart. They are beaches in the pure sense, as well as being a center of entertainment and relaxation for the residents and visiting population. A population, wherever they are in the city, they never are fare from the sand and the sea. They are never far from the sand or the sea. Participant sports abound on the beaches. Soccer, volleyball, gymnastics, and more traditional Brazilian sports like peteca and futevolei, are played out on the sands of Rio while out to sea, it is surfers and wind-surfers that rule the waves. The pavement and paths that run along the top of the beaches are the playground for the city’s cyclists, roller skaters and the people who simply want to walk, jog or sit and enjoy the scenery from a bench or the comfort of a small beach bar. The beaches are also the site for many of the city’s major sporting events with championships as diverse as volleyball, soccer, swimming and even tennis taking place on courts and in stadiums especially constructed on the sand. Likewise, musical extravaganzas and free concerts can also be seen throughout the year on the beaches of Rio, culminating in the New Year celebration which attracts many millions of people to the beaches to commemorate the arrival of the new year and witness one of the world’s truly spectacular fireworks displays.

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Nightlife and entertainment
Whatever time of day or night, there is always something happening in Rio de Janeiro. It is a city – like all great cities- that never sleeps. It is a city rich in alternatives for entertainment and relaxation, which at night offer the perfect counter balance to the frivolity of the beach or a hard day spent working at the office. In Rio the night gets under way as darkness falls, although for the Cariocas it is a question of the later the better. Cariocas rarely eat out before 9 pm and most restaurants in Ipanema, Copacabana and other parts of Rio only starts to fill up after 10 pm. Eating out is considered a n entertainment in its own right in Rio and the options

range from the most sophisticated, award winning French and Italian cuisine in equally sophisticated settings, all the way to the humblest of corner bars serving local snacks and delicacies which are washed down by an ice cold draught beer or one a variety of natural juices. Rio has hundred of world class restaurants which offer just about every imaginable type of cuisine in a wide diversity of settings.

A popular option in Rio is to pass the night at one of the cities many bars, which offers live music. Rio also has plenty of nightclubs, like the famous Help discotheque.

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