Rio, Part 3

Sandy beaches filled with nubile ladies can get husbands in major trouble -- mine sneaks peeks with the aid of dark glasses. So eye control's a must, and swimming's safe if you watch the locals -- not that there's a problem doing that. Copacabana and Ipanema are the best-known beaches, but the 12 mile stretch of beach of Barra da Tijuca deserves a look. It offers a chance to try hang gliding off the cliffs too. Need more exercise? Tennis clubs welcome visitors. If you golf you'll find two great courses under the mountains -- our choice is the Gavea Golf and Country Club, home of the Brazilian open. Your hotel can set this up.

Shopping (if you're a jewelry fan you know you're in trouble when the shops start to send their limos to pick you up even though most hotels have at least two jewelry shops) hazards the family plastic. Emeralds -- do I love emeralds -- and a host of colored stones are much, much less expensive than anywhere else we've been. So you can get both the necklace and the earrings, yes? There's wonderful summer and resort clothing -- buy your summer outfit in the winter and you're a year or two ahead. There's even better leather. There's even a Sunday "Hippie Market" in the park in Ipanema for those who like to bargain. So it's "shop until you drop."

Fortunately, you're never far from food breaks. You can find European meals in a host of restaurants international and otherwise in hotels like our favorite La Pergola Restaurant in the Copacabana Palace at the beach -- ask for the Bahian shrimp and coconut chowder. You can also find, and should ignore, the Golden Arches.

We like to "eat street" during the day and save our food dollars for special lunches or dinners at top spots. We start our day with fruit, a coffee and pastry. A fruit drink or more coffee handles mid-morning. Share a stand with Cariocas and you can wash down nifty meat pies or sandwiches with a host of exotic juices like tamarind at lunch. Small local restaurants, many with sidewalk tables, serve wonderful all-you-can-eat barbecue -- it's called "churrascaria." You won't recognize all the bits and pieces so we taste first and then ask. Another treat's Brazil's national dish, Feijoaoda, made from black beans.

However, Rio glories in its splendid fish dishes from the Bahia and other coastal areas. Shrimp, squid, all sorts of fish come alone or in delicious combinations like those served at Sol & Mar. So we check buffets where we can graze through the list. Much of this will seem a bit salty at first -- in this climate you probably need more salt than at home. Then there are deserts. Boy, are there deserts!

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