I moved from the concrete jungle of Bangkok to an actual jungle in Brazil. The best part so far? Rio de Janeiro monkeys that came to visit me every afternoon.
Rio de Janeiro Monkeys
When I first moved to Rio, I lived on the fifth(ish) floor of an old mansion right outside Vidigal.
It was love at first sight for the balcony… The rest of the details kinda sucked.
And the best part of the balcony (aside from the comfortably-fits-six-adults blow up kiddie pool I “installed”) was the monkeys that came every day.
It was the highlight of my afternoon every day.
I became minorly obsessed and would save bananas and mangos to feed them.
One night I dreamt (yes I was seriously dreaming about the monkeys, that’s how enamoured I was with them) that they brought me a monkey baby to be mine.
The next day, a mom monkey showed up with a baby on her back! I about passed out.
No, she did not “give” him to me and no worries I didn’t try to steal him. But still – so cool!
My daily monkey-feeding continued until I moved from that house.
The monkeys are still one of the coolest things I’ve experienced in Rio.
And no – they never bit me. But a few did get too comfortable and helped themselves to the fruit in my outdoor kitchen a couple times.
But monkeys in Rio aren’t confined to Vidigal – they’re everywhere! Some popular places to see them (and easy to reach) are Morro da Urca and Morro do Leme, as well as any part of Tijuca forest.
Have you seen Rio de Janeiro monkeys? Would you feed them by hand?
Necessary Details: Rio de Janeiro
A short vacation in Thailand turned into a life abroad with a canceled ticket home. Nearly a decade later and after living in Bangkok, Rio de Janeiro, Puebla, and Puerto Vallarta, Steph is on to her next adventure and living back in beautiful, cosmopolitan Mexico City. She is living, traveling, and working (both as an expat therapist and an international health insurance representative) around the world to find the beautiful, inspirational, and interesting while sharing it with you!
