SOUTHEAST BRAZIL - Brazil - page 84

SHOPPING IN RIO

R esident Cariocas have turned

hippest boutiques, Rio's residents
have fallen in love with the expe-
rience of shopping in the larger
malls, such as Rio Sul and Barra
Shopping Center, the largest
shopping and entertainment
complex in Latin America.
The historic districts of Centro
and Copacabana (mainly the
area along Avenida Nossa Senhora de
Copacabana) cannot be overlooked, as
it is here that most of Rio's quirky, spe-
cial interest shops are found. The
Hippie Fair is the best place to buy arts
and crafts items, trinkets, curios, and
souvenirs to take home as gifts.

shopping into something of
an art form and use it as an
alternative form of entertainment
when they are bored with the
beach. Visitors will be pleased to
find out just how far their money
goes in Rio's stores, especially
when it comes to buying items
that have been manufactured in Brazil.
This includes top fashion clothing, beach
and sportswear, leather goods, jewelry
and numerous other items. Until the
1980s, the best place to shop was along
Visconde de Pirajá in Ipanema. Although
the area is still considered to have the

Handy bag and
matching flip-flops

Center have branches of
virtually all the top Brazilian
retailers as well as some
familiar international names.
The two giants malls are not
the only shows in town, and
malls in every shape and size
can be found all over Rio,
including the popular Fashion
Mall in São Conrado.

JEWELRY

Brazil has huge deposits of
precious and semi-precious
gemstones, and in some
cases, holds more than 90
percent of the world's total
supply. This has turned Brazil
into one of the most impor-
tant manufacturers of jewelry,
both traditional and modern,
and has made Rio de Janeiro
into one of the jewel capitals
of the world.
The two market leaders,
H. Stern and Amsterdam
Sauer , have stores in most of
the city's major hotels, and at
the airport. They also orga-
nize special jewelry tours at
the Ipanema headquarters.

Rio Sul, one of the two giant malls dominating Rio's shopping scene

OPENING HOURS in Copacabana and Ipanema

is the Rio Sul mall, which is
located on the main artery
linking the Sugar Loaf end of
Copacabana to Botafogo and
the city. Rio Sul has more
than 400 stores, plus restau-
rants and cinemas. It also
runs a free bus service that
picks up shoppers from all
the main hotels along the
beachfront and drops them
back with their purchases.
Of course, there are always
plenty of taxis at Rio Sul.
Barra Shopping Center (see
p86) , the largest shopping
and entertainment complex in
Latin America, can almost be
treated as a tourist attraction
in its own right. At last count,
the mall had close to 700
stores. It also has a good
selection of bars and restau-
rants, and entertainment that
includes a modern bowling
alley, an 18-screen multiplex
cinema, and a gaming area
known as Hot Zone. Both Rio
Sul and Barra Shopping

Most stores in Rio open from
9 or 10am in the morning
until 6 or 7pm in the evening
Monday to Friday, and
between 9 or 10am until 1pm
on Saturday. The big shop-
ping malls, such as Barra
Shopping and Rio Sul, stay
open from 10am to 10pm
Monday through Saturday and
from 3 to 9pm on Sunday.
Most supermarkets are open
from 8am to 10pm Monday to
Saturday, with a limited
selection remaining open
on Sunday. There are also sev-
eral 24-hour supermarkets
scattered throughout the city.

SHOPPING MALLS

Two giant malls have
dominated Rio's shopping
scene since the 1980s and
offer just about anything
people could want under one
roof. The closest and most
convenient for visitors staying

H. Stern, offering a wide range of
traditional and modern jewelry