Tails of Brasil--New Year's Eve

[Guest Gringo]

About 2 million people have congregated onto the crescent of Copacabana Beach. With very few exceptions, they are wearing white clothes, most are carrying flowers, and many have brought a bottle of champagne. It is customary to welcome the new year with white clothes to symbolize a new beginning. Kind of like wiping the slate clean. The flowers are a gift for Iemanja, the goddess of the sea.

 

Most of the time, the flowers for Ijemanja are thrown into the third wave that crosses your feet as you approach the edge of the water. Other times small gifts are placed on large tropical leaves and pushed into the ocean. Ijemanja is vain. She likes perfumes, cosmetics, and hand-crafted jewelry. If the wave carries the gift out to sea, she has accepted your offering and you will be blessed with happiness in the new year. If she rejects the gifts and they return to the shore, there can be problems. People pick up the returned gifts and throw them again into the sea with a bit more force. Sometimes small holes are dug into the sand near the shore. Inside the holes people place candles and maybe a bottle of beer (she likes to drink a little too). When the tide invades the holes, Ijemanja extinguishes the candles so you cannot see her drink the beer. Ijemanja has great powers and she is not to be toyed with. The flower vendors have a busy night ahead.

 

I had pretty much tired of fireworks. It’s been years since I've troubled the trip and parking to see a display. But I must say that the fireworks in Copacabana were hands down, bar none, no question, you bet your life, the BEST fireworks I have ever seen. Every half mile was another huge battery of explosives roped off. And they were all firing at the same time. Beautifully coordinated. I have never seen such-colors. I have never been so close to the explosions. Often the glowing embers would hit the beach itself. In addition to the fireworks, lasers and floodlights streamed across the night sky from Sugarloaf and Cristo Redentor, the Christ statue.

 

At midnight, a shower of champagne explodes over the crowd. The exodus begins. It is impossible to get a ticket for the subway. It sold out months before. Scalpers are getting $10 a ticket. Buses and cars are not allowed anywhere in Copacabana between 9PM and 6AM on new year's eve. It is good to have friends that you can stay with until the traffic resumes.

-

The morning papers detail a huge success with very little violence. Three people were killed by accidentally discharged fireworks and ten were reported to be pulled into the arms of Ijemanja and did not return from her embrace. I guess she didn't like the flowers.

[Guest bam]

a laugh-out-loud story if there ever was one - thank you

by the way if people live 50 years then for every 2 million people 110 die every day on the average

[+ Lucky]

Pretty interesting story, gringo. Thanks for the slice of life.

[+ Axiom2001]

ditto-- ditto-- ditto-- Lucky!

 

A Happy New Year to you and the rest of the respondents here!

[Guest Gringo]

thanks 4 the encouragement guys. i would recommend new year's eve in copacabana to EVERYONE.

[trilingual]

Ditto. And beautifully described, Gringo. After experiencing New Year's on Copacabana, Times Square just seems so banal. . .

 

Rio is perfect. The weather, since my arrival on 12/31, has been ideal. The threatened rain for the New Year's Eve party never materialized. Spent Reveillon at the beach with an old friend, then hung out after the dazzling fireworks display with him and friend of his he ran into on the median strip in front of Maxim's, then called it a night as I was exhausted from the endless flight from San Francisco. The only thing I can add to Gringo's account is to mention the finale of the fireworks display, when an absolute Niagara of falling fire envelops Fort Copacabana, at the far end of the beach, and the tower of the Hotel Meridien. Even though it's only a few minutes, it seemed like forever, and it makes a breathtaking climax to the evening. More later. . .

[Guest Ernani]

Gringo and Trilingual ! Don´t forget to tell them that in front of Copacabana Palace there were around 100,000 gays concentrated in this area up to the sand. Before, during and after the fireworks it was a good opportunity to pick up someone there.

* * * * * UNFORGETABLE !:9 :+ :7 }(