Rio had such a great vibe from the moment we touched down in the airport. We were so thankful that our long journey was almost over and was eager to get to our hostel, we wait a little longer in the queue for a taxi and from there I knew we would be there in 5-10 minutes. From here are holiday lifestyle begins and we couldn't be more excited.

With quite a list of things on the Rio itinerary after a good sleep and hostel breakfast the first port of call was the beach, Copacabana beach. A November day at 29 degrees was a real spot of luck, with views of the sugarloaf, youngsters playing football on the sand, beach vendors offering cocktails and fresh prawns and with a warm sea to splash around in. A day of lazing around on the beach, sipping smoothies, roaming around the streets and generally just seeing what this place has to offer, turns out, loads!! Hopefully we can fit it all in.

Day two we take a tour to the Favela, extremely interesting and good to see. We were guided by a chap who lived in the Favela so he was a real bonus for inside information. The locals were friendly and didn't seem to mind us peeping around their territory, even posing for photos. We walked right through and around the Favela, along the narrow paths and stairs in-between each house or shop. The guides joked that if we were to have anything nicked in Copacabana he would come back and buy it back from someone in the Favela. Crime here is high on a theft and drug level so walking around alone would not be advised but with our trusty guide we were fine. He spoke and introduced us to his fellow favela friends who all spoke to English so they were probably cracking jokes about us but never mind.

The hostel we stayed in was fantastic for information the reception girl very helpful and could book you up almost any tour for the following day. Close by was a food shop selling 'normal food' food that we hadn't seen for months so all this combined Rio was pretty exciting.

Day three we wanted to explore the Christ Redeemer, a little more long winded than we had hoped. With a 40 minutes' walk away and then a half an hour queue just to get your tickets booked for the next tram that left in three hours time was a bit tough. A tram would take you up to the Christ with a ride through the trees and then you can spend however long you like up there before queuing again to come back down. It was great to see the Christ Redeemer and the views of Rio from there were unbelievable however we couldn't help but feel this was more of a tick the box for us. Not overly interesting, it was an all day event, the views of the statue itself would have been better from the Sugarloaf and standing around in the heat waiting like sardines next to fellow sweaty tourists was not fun. All said, that we did it, maybe a bit more preparation for that one if I was to advise anyone; either take your views from the Sugarloaf or book early tickets up to the Christ prior, online or at their office.

We have decided to extend our three day stay in Rio to a five day one, there is so much to do here and even just chilling around the city is fantastic. With one more 'to do' on our list the following day we head Lapa.

Lapa is a neighbourhood in the city in Rio famous for its historical monuments and nightlife. Known for its lively cultural life where there is a concentration of many restaurants and bars where Brazilian artists and intellectuals would meet. It is famous for its many restaurants, bars and clubs where the various forms of local music can be appreciated.

We walked by the Lapa arches; The Carioca Aqueduct in Portuguese. The aqueduct was built in the middle of the 18th century to bring fresh water from the Carioca river to the population of the city. It is an impressive example of colonial architecture. Since the end of the 19th century the aqueduct serves as a bridge for a popular tram that connects the city centre with the Santa Teresa neighbourhood.

Five minutes from here up the hill you can find the famous Lapa stairs; Escadaria Selaron, also known as the 'Selaron Steps', it is a set of world-famous steps. They are the work of Chilean-born artist Jorge Selaron who claimed it as "my tribute to the Brazilian people". The stairs flooded tourists so getting a photo without someone's foot or selfie in the background was completely impossible, all the same, great to see and appreciate the tiled crafts ship work of the Chilean artist.

Our stay in Rio has been perfect, we have absolutely loved every minutes (minus the queuing next to sweaty people) and I would go as far as saying it is my number two choice of places where I could easily see myself living (following Canada). The cities laid back approach really had something about it, relaxed, vibrant and from our experiences, friendly, the people we cross paths with would jump in to help you with directions and never failed to say hello. Saying this, Rio is known to be one of the most dangerous cities in the world, however we were fortunate enough to not experience any of this and thoroughly enjoyed our stay there, I hope to return again at some point.