May 31st, Rio Day 1
After roughly 30 hours of travel, including an 8 hour layover in Charlotte, the Dins arrived in Rio on May 31st, exhausted but hyped for tour! We checked into our AirBnb, which was right on the famous Copacabana Beach, and headed out to explore the city. At dinner we tried some Brazilian food staples: mandioca frita (fried cassava), farofa (toasted cassava flour), and caipirinha (a cocktail with our favorite fruit: limes!). We did some quick late-night rehearsing to prepare for our first tour gig the following morning.
June 1st, Rio Day 2
Bright and early the morning of June 1st, we donned our casual Dins attire and headed to an elementary/middle school in the neighborhood of Guadalupe: Instituto Bola Pra Frente. There, we had a lovely time performing for the students, witnessing the talent of our Brazilian peers in the Art and Social Transformation (an organization created to promote the arts as a means of uplifting the residents of Rio’s favelas), and experiencing the traditional martial art capoeira, which the students performed for us.
After saying goodbye to the kids in the afternoon, we headed back to our AirBnb for a quick change and ride to Christ Church Rio. We headlined an hour-long gig in the beautiful church with our friends from Art and Social Transformation and made some more Brazilian friends afterwards. Special thanks to Wainer, who made this day possible for us!
June 2nd, Rio Day 3
The Dins kicked off our final day in Rio with our very own van tour of the city. We visited Rio’s human-made and natural wonders—Christ the Redeemer, the Metropolitan Cathedral, Escadaria Selarón (the Selarón staircase, decorated with beautiful mosaics), Sugarloaf Mountain—and learned about its history and culture from our expert tour guide. In the afternoon we headed to Barbosa Müssnich Aragão (BMA), a law firm with a stunning view of Christ the Redeemer, for a gig and cocktail mixer. We enjoyed pão de queijo (bite-sized cheesy bread rolls), Guaraná soda, and delicious G&Ts made especially for us!
