rio – Deborah Ives, Solo In Style

Getting back into the swing of things

August 11, 2016April 3, 2021soloinstyle

I don’t mind admitting that I’m feeling a bit flat at the moment. It’s been 3 weeks since arriving back from my trip to Brazil and I just can’t seem to get back into the swing of things.

It’s not helped by the fact that all eyes are currently on Rio for the Olympics Games. I know it’s difficult for anyone coming home after a significant time away, but I can’t help feeling that my particular situation is made worse by being able to see ‘my beach’ through the window of the Beeb’s TV studio on a daily basis: the very studios that I watched being built on the Copacabana whilst I was there. I recognise it all. The pedestrian crossing in front of the Irish bar, the Rio 2016 official merchandise store where I bought my T-shirts and Olympic Havaianas, the promenade that I walked up and down every day, the beach bar where I drank many a caipirinha, even the flags that flutter in the wind. They are all so familiar to me and they all make wish I was still there.

5 things I’ll miss the most about Rio (plus a few that I won’t)

July 19, 2016April 3, 2021soloinstyle

I love large cities by the sea and, in my humble experience, Rio is the most beautiful one that I have visited (followed closely by Sydney and Cape Town). It lived up to my expectations in every way and despite many people telling me that I was crazy to go there, ‘Rio is so dangerous’, ‘You’ll get Zika’, ‘The country is broke and the government is corrupt, it will be depressing’, I could not have asked for a better experience. It certainly has a bit of an edge about it but use common sense and leave your valuables at home and you’ll be fine.

There are many things that I’ll miss about Rio but here my top 5.

Laid back and leaner – lessons from Rio

July 16, 2016April 3, 2021soloinstyle

I came to Rio for six weeks as part of a volunteer programme to mentor young entrepreneurs, but as I get ready to leave, I am very aware of just how much I have learned during my stay here. It’s fair to say that when I arrived I was more than a little wound-up (as my lovely, straight-talking teammate pointed out to me, as only a South African with Dutch, German and Greek influences can). I hadn’t thought it was that obvious but it was time to relax and go with the flow.

Wrapping things up

July 12, 2016April 3, 2021soloinstyle

It’s my final week in Rio as a Social Impact Consultant with _SocialStarters and time to wrap things up with my client, Horta Inteligente. Over the past six weeks we have worked together on a number of things – defining the product offerings, pricing, market research, website, business presentation – and this week we need to get everything finished, or at least into a state where I can be sure that Elisa can complete any outstanding elements when I’m gone.