Showing another side of Rio’s favelas

Rio de Janeiro is a city known for many things. The samba was born here, and the carnival held every year is the largest and most famous of its kind in the world. Most foreign travellers stick to a plotted area of Rio when they visit, shunning the slums that surround the city’s affluent and urbanized centre.

What some don’t realize is that these less than desirable places are where the samba was really born, and where the revelers at the Carnivale all come from. Even a large number of local Brazilians are either afraid to enter the favelas or they certainly have no desire to do so. But is it possible that the outskirt communities of Rio are getting too hard a rap?

It is true that beyond the statue of Christ the Redeemer, in the North valley, the perceived danger of drug gangs controlling turf is a real life problem. Locals are used to stray bullets and drug lords ordering shop closures. There are on the other hand, some so-called slums where more and more foreign visitors are visiting and enjoying. Some have even chosen to stay on a longer-term basis with host families.

These areas offer an old-world charm of a tight-knit community that is all but lost in our 21st century megalopolises, and some guesthouses and walking tours of Rocinha, one of the more well-known slums, have begun operations.