I want to dedicate this post to our taxi driver in Rio. Luiz is an amazing guy who has the advantage of speaking English (enough to make us laugh at least) and Spanish too. He is proud of his carioca origins (native inhabitants of Rio) and who shares his love for his city. His taxi is endowed with a DVD player and 2 screens (with a remote control which freaks me out every time he uses). He started his tour with a formal touristy DVD in English language to avoid us looking at the bad weather but he never stopped speaking and showing us, by pointing with the fingers while driving, beaches, places, favelas, mountains, local girls … It was amazing to see how easy it was for him to jump from a subject to another while driving : talking about history, national and international politics, saying jokes, speaking to his colleagues over the radio and, the best part, listening to our discussions to catch any appointments or occasion to offer his services. He told us that few years ago he attended a 2-years course funded by the city council to learn English. He also has a small notepad where he used to write small sentences in Arabic and other languages I guess to astonish customers. Other ways are used for the same purpose, such as the Special Police Operations Battalion of Rio in action video in the war against Favelas’ gangs or a concert of local music or U2 (don’t ask me why U2).

Of course, in terms of planning, he was a king. He never stopped suggesting new places to visit, drinks to try, flats to rent, and even sports to try. I think there isn’t better than a taxi driver to give you a feeling of local people and their dreams and opinions.

While going to the airport, I remember asking him a lot of questions about his family, the taxes, and the cost of life in Rio. Luiz likes the fact of having his entire family living with him including his mum (he told me grandma but I think he’s wrong) and even the girlfriend of his older son who is “a good man like his father”. Luiz has even internet at home but he wasn’t able to spell exactly his email address. Later on, he gave me again his business card (for the 5th time in 2 days) and asked me to come back again with a group for a real tour in a sunny period and he will take care of us.

If one day you go to Rio, you should contact him (I don’t advise to contact him by email): Luiz Tours +55 2199456542 luistour@hotmail.com