My good friend and world traveler Pericles Nova did a tour of Favela in Rio, Brazil. Quite a number of people around the world have a not so good perception of Favela. But I bet after watching this video and reading a report by Pericles, you will have a change of mind.
Santa Marta has over 6000 inhabitants living in around 1600 houses. Most of the people climb the 782 steps to get to their houses even though there is a tram working on the favela. Despite the tram, I decided to climb all the steps and walk through the streets and alleys just like a local.
My guide and I started our way to the top of the hill, and I discovered that the favela was as vibrant as the colors of the houses, with many children playing on the streets and people going up and down.
As we climbed, Santa Marta started to show its downside: very poor infrastructure with many unfinished houses one on top of the other, many tangled electrical wires, and very dirty streets full of dog poop.
It felt like I was in a labyrinth and if it were not for my guide I would have gotten lost easily. However, I was also enjoying this experience and I was glad for the opportunity to take a closer look at the favela and especially for demystifying old concepts.
After around 20min we arrived at the most famous spot in Santa Marta: the slab of Michael Jackson. The set location couldn’t be more ideal for his political song “They don’t care about us.” His presence there was a huge turning point for the favela and the video clip called the world’s attention to one of the biggest problems in Brazil.
From the slab the view is just spectacular!
I spent some time standing at the top analyzing the enormous contrast between the very simple houses of the favela with their blue water tanks on the roofs, and the modern high-rise buildings just a few meters away… Rio is a city of contrasts; one is the economic inequality!
As we continued to climb the steps, I started to realize the bright side of living in a favela: life seemed so laid-back and everyone knows and talks to each other, that is not very common in big cities.
Life in the favela seemed to move at a slow pace and looked to be a worry free environment even though I am sure the people have daily struggles like everyone else.
The tour not only broke paradigms and stereotypes that I had, but also unveiled a united community where its inhabitants are proud of their roots and proud of where they live.
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