b'Christ the Redeemer, stands with arms NEW SEVEN WONDERS OF THE WORLD list spreadwide,keepingallbelowsafe from evil. The views from this height CHRIST THE REDEEMERareamazing.Hotelslooklikebuild-ing blocks and people resemble ants. Even the famous Sugarloaf Mountain is dwarfed in the shadows of this Christ of the Andes.Whenbuildingthestatue,arough road was constructed to enable crafts-mantobringmaterialstothetopofthemountain.Madefromreinforced concreteandcoveredwiththousandsofsmall, soapstone triangles, the construction Christ the Redeemer atop Corcovado.of the statue isRio de Janeiro is the most visited cityunder very hot sunrays. Some of the mostawless. In total, the work of art stands sixtymetres(197feet)inheight,andin the southern hemisphere and is knownfamous landmarks, in addition to the giant weighsmorethanelevenhundredforitsnaturalsettings,carnivalcel- statueofChristtheRedeemer,are Corcovado tons.Thehandsandheadaretheebrations, samba, and the bossa nova.Sugarloaf mountain with its cable car; onlysectionsnotbuiltonsite.TheyBeaches,suchasCopacabanaandthe Sambdromo, a permanent grand wereconstructedinRioandcartedIpanema, bring visions of beautiful peo-to the top.ple strolling along white sandy shores,Please turn to page 48THE TOP OF THE WORLD Did you book a trip online and now havea must for anyone travelling to SouthFUTURE TRAVEL CREDIT VOUCHERS?America.Along,thirteen-hour ight will get you to Rio, and its nearly seven millioninhabitantsensureampleres-taurants,shoppingandasensationalRedeem them locally with us.nightlife.The statue of Christ can be seen from JONATHAN VAN BILSEN anywhere in Rio, but a trip to the top of Corcovado (which means hunchbackTICO #4577532Intimeslikethese,whenwearein Portuguese) is a must for visitors. AMCunable to travel, it is nice to re ect ontrain,whichtakesabouttwentymin-previously visited locales. In my seriesutes, will take you part way up, but be ofNewWondersoftheWorld,Ire- prepared to wait as much as two hours, member climbing to the top of Mountas the capacity of the electric rail cars Corcovado, and feeling dwarfed by theis 350 people per hour. After you step158 Casimir St., Port Perrycolossal statue of Christ the Redeemer.from the train its only 222 steps, but It is amazing when you think this mas- not to worry, there are elevators and an terpiecewasconstructednearly100escalator for the less adventurous. ANY vouchers always belong to the traveller, years ago by the residents of the area,The site attracts 300,000 visitors a and hauled 710 metres to the top of theyear. Morning visits are recommended,you can redeem anywheremountain. but remember thetrain does notrst The statue, one of the newly cho- depart the station until 8:30 a.m. For senSevenWondersoftheWorld,the true thrill seekers, there are 52 rock-sits just outside Rio de Janeiro on theclimbing routes along the southern face. 905-985-2268virginia.frew@marlintravel.caAtlantic coast of Brazil. The city itself isHigh above the clouds, the famous worth the visit, but the statue makes itmonument entitled Christo Redentor or FOCUS - AUGUST 202047'