Began the day in a 6 person dorm room with our noses a few feet from the ceiling, ended it in a much more luxurious suite with room for a small pony. After filling a bag of clothes to be left in the Vidigal favela, jumped in a taxi to Santa Teresa. Taxi driver did well to get us to the general area but had to stop a few times for directions - quite a successful trip given the winding cobbled streets of Santa Teresa. After settling in explored the streets by foot, perusing some shops and lunching in a particularly atmospheric cafe.
Continued wandering until we reached Selaron's tile covered stairway linking Santa Teresa to Lapa. Marvelled at the stairway and thousands of tiles from the world over for some time before being ushered in to Selaron's studio ( and shop!) - we ended up buying one if his less bizarre paintings, which he later signed for us, posing for photos on the steps.
Checked out the Lapa arches and the streets in which samba parties appear by night, before swiftly returning to the safety of the tiles and away from the unsavoury types hanging about and pestering us around the arches.
Struggled back up the steep hill to Santa Teresa, went for dinner, then for a beer at a lively old-European style bar, people overflowing out on to the street.