What's the first thing that would come across to your mind whenever you hear about the city Rio de Janeiro in Brazil?

Would that be the scandal that came with Rio being the host of the Olympic Games in 2016? Or is it the infamous statue of Christ the Redeemer? Or, is it Rio the movie with the now-extinct Brazilian blue macaw? Or rather, you couldn't just get off of the city or the country Brazil in general without thinking about football? 😉

So, after we have covered Florianopolis last year, this week's $10 series will cover the capital city this time. Now, thanks to Renee the Wanderess who has written this piece to share with us how we could spend the money in Rio! 😀

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Various Ways to Spend Your $10 in Rio

Every Friday night in Rio de Janeiro, there is a party in the neighborhood of Lapa. If I had $10 (or about 40 Brazilian Reais BRL), that's where I would head!

There are a variety of ways you could spend that amount of money, but here are a few good options.

A Street Food Dinner

There are a variety of street vendors in Lapa, and you can take your pick of Brazilian foods for 40 BRL.

Try the queijo coalho, which is cheese grilled on a small handheld oven. You might also want to try a Brazilian hot dog, which has a lot of interesting toppings, including potato chips, corn, pickles, and carrots.

The coxinha is a traditional Brazilian snack made out of shredded chicken dipped in dough and fried. They go really well with molho rose, a sauce made of ketchup and mayonnaise.

Go add some brigadeiros for the dessert. They are a sort of chocolate ball made with chocolate and condensed milk.

A Couple of Caipirinhas

How about a few drinks?

For $10, you could have two or three caipirinhas, a Brazilian national cocktail made with cachaca, a type of sugar cane liquor. It is usually mixed with sugar, ice, lime, and sometimes fresh fashion fruit.

Be careful with how many glasses you could take, because they are made quite strong. One or two will often do the trick for those of you who want to drink responsibly.

Entrance to a Dance Club

40 BRL would also be about the price for an entrance into one of the clubs.

There is always music on the streets of Lapa, but if you want to have a more club-like atmosphere or see some of the better live music, you will have to pay to get into one of the clubs.

My favorite in Lapa is Sacrilegio, which has a variety of different music and the interior has church decor. Many of the most famous musicians of Brazil play at this club.