Favala Party and then I rocked out with JC on a Rock

We went to se JESUS! He's doing great by the way. He lives on a really tall rock at the top of a hill in Rio de Janerio.

But before we went to see Jesus, we went to a favala party. Whats a favala party you might ask? Well first you need to know what a favala is. A favala is a poor community in brazil. They usually live in one story houses and can't afford proper housing. They just patch together any materials they can find, and hope the weather doesnt get them. There are tons of Favalas all over Brazil, since most of the population is poor. Usually the favalas are on the hills, and they just keep climbing up and up as far as they can afford to go. The government owns the land, and doesnt stop the people from building because they have no where else to go. Its really sad to see them driving through the city.

They also get a really bad reputation. They are where poor people live, yes. But also, they are often run by drug gangs. If there is fighting of the gangs, sometimes stray bullets fly and people die because their houses are made of little pieces of wood and bullets just fly everywhere.

However, usually they arent that bad. Tourists are told never to go into a favala, and I can see why. People are poor and desperate, so of course there is a chance they might get robbed. But, you might also get robbed at the beach, so its really no big deal. There are some tours that go into the favala, and they are safe, and show you what life is like in a favala. I didnt go on a tour, but mariannik did and I'll wait to see how she makes out. (I decided to go to the beach that day)

Buttt, we did do something in a favala. We went to a party! Well not so much a party as it was a giant dance warehouse filled with techno music. It was nuts! We went with a tour group and stayed till 4 in the morning. I was sooo tired by that point, and I wasnt feeling so well (this whole carsick thing) so I didn't drink either. It was a great experience tho! We had a huge group of foreigners with us, and we had VIP access to the top floor overlooking the crowds.

We had great people with us, and I made some great Brit friends, and Isralie friends. I really like Isralies, they guys really looked out for the girls at the 'party' and made sure no brazillian dudes got unwantedly too close. Brazillian guys are very touchy, and wisper stuff in your ear as you walk by...(I had no idea what they were staying, but usually it gave me the creeps) One guy even went so far as to pull my hair to get my attention. All I know is if that happened in canada I think I would turn around and slap the guy. But I was well protected with my group of big strong foreign men.

So we had an awsum time! But at 4am I was more than happy to leave. The next morning I woke up at 8.30 and realised it was sunny... sooooo....

We went to visit JC! (Jesus Christ) He's often hidden behind clouds cause in brazil, theres not just one layer of clouds, but like 30. They're everywhere! We got out of bed, got ready and took a bus to the train that goes up the hill to Jesus. The train was nice, and didnt take that long to get up there. Once on top there was a ton of clouds, and I was so sad!!! I wanted some good pics with jesus! But for about 15 mins the clouds cleared and we got some shots. Of course they are on my camera where the battery is dead, so I'll post them later. But I still love Jesus!!

The End