We took the metro today from the Botafogo station near our hostel down to the station close to Ipanema beach – it was our first time using the Rio metro system and we managed to NOT get lost! It costs about 93 cents to ride the metro to any station on the line. We usually take cabs everywhere so this was a big step for us in terms of being a little more brave and venturing out into parts of the city we haven’t seen before.
We walked along the signature black and white patterned sidewalk that lines the coastline all the way from Ipanema to Copacabana beach. Although it was overcast, it was still hot and there were a ton of people out.
We’ve been to these beaches before in 2014 so we had a good time reminiscing about all the familiar sights. We stopped at one of the many food shacks along the beach and ordered our favorite drink in Rio – the caipirinha. Nothing is better than a real caipirinha in Brazil.
After a nice dinner with family and friends at Opa’s in Palo Alto, the girls made it to San Francisco International airport at 3:30 a.m. for their 5:55 a.m. flight to 
Thanks for the hike yesterday, girls! I hope your new boots are working out well. Here’s a couple more pics from our trip to 
