Walks · Rio de Janeiro · English
4 narrated stops, 13 minutes of stories, 2.6 km on foot. Press play at each stop — no app needed — or open the walk in Avsha and let the stories keep coming as you move.
Stop 1 · 3 min
In short: Coffee barons built palacetes in Santa Teresa to showcase their wealth and escape tropical heat. The neighborhood is also home to the Bonde, a bright yellow tram that has been the oldest operating electric railway in Latin America since 1877.
↓ 1.2 km · 18 min to the next stop
Stop 2 · Escadaria Selarón, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil · 3 min
In short: Chilean-born painter Jorge Selarón created the staircase. Beginning in 1990, he spent twenty-three years decorating the 215 steps with over two thousand tiles from around the world until he was found dead on the steps in 2013.
↓ 350 m · 5 min to the next stop
Stop 3 · Arcos da Lapa, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil · 3 min
In short: Completed around 1750, the Arcos da Lapa were built as an aqueduct to carry fresh water to Rio's city center. In the late nineteenth century, the structure was repurposed to support the tracks of the Santa Teresa tram.
↓ 1.0 km · 15 min to the next stop
Stop 4 · 3 min
In short: During the maré de sizígia, the Atlantic Ocean enters the historic center because the streets were built below the high-tide line. This 18th-century urban planning uses seawater to wash away dust and refuse, acting as a natural sanitation system.