Yesterday was Sean's birthday and in preparation we had picked Orlando's brain about good places to visit that night.

The weather was a bit overcast but that didn't stop us from hitting the beach. If was a national holiday so we weren't the only ones. There were plenty of sunbathers and skim boarders as well as beach volleyball and beach tennis games going on. We got some celebrationary coconuts and chilled out for the afternoon before heading out that night.

Orlando had recommended Lapa to us for nightlife. In fact he had a saying - Ipanema is twice as expensive but half the fun, which went a little way to explaining why our previous Saturday night had been quieter than we expected. So Sean, Maire & I got the bus to Lapa, along with a rag tag group of nationalities from the hostel.

Where seveal hundred people had occupied the area of Arcos do Lapa for last Friday's street party, there was about 20 on that night. We walked about for a bit and met the local toothless crack addict but there was nothing going on.

Fortunately the night was saved by some locals who directed us to a free, open air jazz concert, which turned out to be class. There was a stage in the middle of a small plaza, with a nice backdrop of some gothic buildings - the only problem was we didn't bring cameras due to our last visit to Lapa. The beer was cheap and the vibe was good so we stayed until the end.

Today was our favela tour. I wasn't sure about doing one of these as it didn't sit right to be taking a tour around a disadvantaged area, essentially treating poor people like zoo animals. Some of the tours are taken in a van also, further decreasing the interaction. But thanks to a few recommendations we heard of a guy who is from the favela and lives in the favela who gives the tours - if it's acceptable for him to give tours, then it's acceptable for me to go.

Zezinho was our guide and he was good but also a lot to take sometimes. For starters, he's white, fat, speaks with an American accent and is covered in tattoos. We later learned that he was born in the favela, later moved to San Francisco, but lost his way, which both meant he had been homeless and that he became disillusioned with his life, then moved back to where he was born - La Rochina. Rochina is the biggest favela in Rio, but not the poorest.

Our group of six took a local bus to the top of the favela and we took a short walk through along the main street, road number one, meeting some artists along the way. Zezinho took us to a friend's rooftop where the view was impressive - we were able to take in all of the favela and Zezinho continued giving us his local knowledge about the workings of the favelas and their association with the gangs.

Anywhere else, probably in the world, this rooftop would be prime real estate: on a hill top; looking down onto the beach; nestled between two of the cities nicest neighbourhoods. But in South America, views count for nothing: prime location is at the bottom of the hill, not the top. Many of the favelas (of which there are over 100 in Rio) occupy the hills of Rio with the nicer areas occupying the flat.

Zezinho decided to vary his normal route for us and take us through the poorest part of the favela. As we made our way through the winding streets, some so narrow I could touch both sides with my elbows, we saw things you would expect and things you wouldn't.

The first thing you notice is that it's not all wooden shacks. In fact, we didn't see any wooden shacks on our tour, although there are a few in Rochina. The vast majority are small, concrete houses piled two, three or four high with either corrugated iron or tile roofs. We walked over open sewer drains; saw dogs roaming the streets, although that is nothing new to us on this continent; drugs being openly dealt on a table, on one of the busiest streets in the area; gang members wielding automatic machine guns and walkie-talkies. Plenty of poverty.

But there also wasn't. There were hairdressers and electronics shops; TVs and music in a lot of houses, including one blaring ACDC; a boy of about 10 playing a 30-something year old man at FIFA on a PS3; a bank; Bobs Burgers, the Brazilian version of McDonalds.

So there was lots of contrast. It was Zezinho himself who commented on the PS3, saying you can afford a games console but not to send your child to school (it was the middle of the day on a Thursday).

We were under instruction from our guide to only take pictures in certain places he said were safe. Unknowingly, we may take a photo of a gang member, which would see our cameras taken and potentially get Zezinho in trouble. The population of Rochina is about 300,000 and the gang members account for about 3% of this population. There were gang members about, but the most troublesome people were the unaccompanied kids. A group of them tried unsuccessfully to grab Seans sunglasses and bottle of water. When it came to me, a few of them climbed my back and grabbed my legs while another grabbed my bottle of water - I was happy to give it up for them to leave me alone.

You forget that it is mostly ordinary people that live here, despite all the horror stories. Even Brazilians forget this - Zezinho was contacted by a newspaper, to take a tour and they asked him "is it safe?" and "what about the gangs?"

Zezinho himself is a bit hard to take. When meeting strangers he would ask them if they loved Rochina or which football team they followed, even though he said he didn't follow football. But there were people who called his name from across the street, stop to shake his hand or wave at him. He said this was because people were happy about his tours because they were authentic and showed the real Rochina, as oppose to other tours that scare people even more and don't interact or support the community.

Zezinho himself was running a DJ school and on the tour we met several local artists and the local surf instructor, who had just had a student signed to a professional contract.

So we saw plenty, and definitely had our eyes opened. Our guide spoke a lot about how proud the residents were to live there, but at the same time the conditions could be improved.