The housecleaner at the hostel I stayed invited me for an unforgettable night in one of the local favelas, far away from the tourist areas. Despite the weapons, drugs and alcohol shown at the street party that night people where happy to see a foreigner visiting their local community to hear their story not the one of media.
An important aspect of visiting poor areas is to realise that not all of them are as dangerous as media portrait them and I find it important to talk to locals to hear their stories. That night I danced on the streets the whole night with the rest of the people. I don’t want to undermine the issues and violence happening, but everyone is far from violent and I’m not really the victim.
Rio de Janerio can be dangerous but it’s also a culture explosion and a really interesting destination.