Every now and then you meet a group of people who just want to experience and take everything in while visiting Rocinha. This group of Aussies and 1 Maori Kiwi knew they were in for a fun time. They are here in Rio visiting for a health convention and holidays for 2 weeks.
Jody met the group of Jenni Furbi, Sebastian Aristos, Deb Knapp and Dean Kini in Copacabana and brought to see our wonderful community. All with smiles on their faces wanting to absorb Rocinha. They heard about us through a friend and as Jenni said, "We want to see every part of Rio, not just the tourist areas". Deb added "Its nice to feel so welcome and everybody is friendly".
As they made their way through the streets and alleyways, Jody was able to fill their heads will all the information about how the favela operates. They arrived at Spin Rocinha Dj School where they were able to find out more about what we do. Deb Knapp really enjoyed the visit as she met the three mascots of our Dj School, Joy, Joao and Jaki. Deb works in animal care so meet more furry friends was awesome.
After the Dj School they walked down the hill to a place called Trapia to eat lunch. Sitting by the window on Via Apia, they could watch the life activity and people watch in the main street of the favela. I joined them and great conversation ensued.
After eating we descended to the footbridge. While on the entrance to footbridge, Jody had mentioned and pointed to a place where he gets his hair cut. We started talking about prices of services in the favela. Dean asked about dentists and I told him we have many here. He showed me that two of his teeth were loose and he wanted the pulled as they were bothering him and he could not chew properly. I told him of my dentist and asked if we could go. I already knew the approximate prices so I let him know what the cost would be to remove the two teeth. As soon as we walked in within 5 minutes, Dean was in the dentist chair. I translated for Dean and explained that two "extractions" would cost 70 reais each tooth. The dentist offered to make a plate which would cost 100 reais. So, he got his teeth taken care within 30 minutes and a total cost of 240 reais. He will need to return tomorrow anytime after 2pm to pick up the prosthetic teeth.
Dental care is very inexpensive here but well done. As you notice in the foto, the room is clean and the dentist is wearing a head cover, mask and gloves. We may live in the favela, but hygiene is still very important here. I think Dean is very happy with the work he had done, all in under 30 minutes.
After the dentist we went to the top of the footbridge to take more fotos and chat. The tour ended up starting with the intent of being 4 hours but ended up close to 7 hours. Everybody had a wonderful time and this group next week plans to stay in Rocinha for a day or two.
Thanks for your visit Deb, Dean, Jenni and Sebastian, and hope to see you next week!
