The dark circles under my eyes tell the story of Rio.
As do the blood-shot beauties themselves.
My sunburned chees and bug-bitten legs, both tell the story of Rio.
That pain in my stomach that’s equal parts hunger and hangover,
The combined smells of cheap liquor, sunscreen, and DEET,
The film in my camera, and the samba in my head, all tell the story of Rio.
Rio is trying new things, meeting new people,
Losing them to the city, and then losing yourself.
The ******* cab drivers and broken-English streetwalkers all are parts of Rio.
Rio is sleeping pills, energy drinks, and getting home at sunrise.
Rio is the place that the big man Himself watches over.
Someone needs to, because Rio is a game,
And Rio always wins.

When designer and model Mari Giudicelli stepped foot inside the Rio Market in Astoria, Queens, she was like a kid in a candy store. “I looove it!” she exclaimed at the sight of a jar of goiabada—a guava paste you can eat with cheese. Her eye catches something else on the shelf: “These are delicious! Everybody had these bite-size cake desserts made with condensed milk and chocolate powder (called brigadeiros) at their birthday parties when we were little. They’re a staple, like hot dogs are here in the U.S.”

With the Olympic Games in their second week, the Rio-born beauty was on a quest to find little pieces of home in sprawling New York. Guidicelli has lived here for six years, leaving her hometown in Brazil to attend Parsons School of Design and later FIT in hopes of becoming a fashion designer. Now she has her own shoe label that is on the up-and-up, comprised of incredibly chic, Brazilian-made loafers, slides, and mules in leather and exotic skins. And while her business and modeling gigs presently have her travel schedule at an all-time high, she relishes the moments she can go home to the Botanical Gardens neighborhood where she grew up to see family and friends about once a year.

Currently, Giudicelli is living and working in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, and missing that trip back to her grandmother’s house for moqueca (fish stew) and beach visits highlighted by acai bowls and sugarcane juice drinks. “When I was in Rio, I used to go to the beach on my lunch break,” she explains. “It’s much chiller there; I had time to really hang out during the day, but when I moved to New York, I quickly realized that I needed to get moving or I’d get left behind.” One day recently, though, Giudicelli did slow down to enjoy a day in New York inspired by Rio. She visited the market in Astoria, and said hello to a good friend, also Brazilian, who started a sweet shop on Porter Avenue in Brooklyn called My Sweet Brigadeiro. Guidicelli hung out at Beco restaurant, dining on traditional post-beach snacks like chicken croquettes and grilled sausage with onions, and had a beer. To end her Rio tour of NYC, she stopped by Miss Favela in Williamsburg to have feijoada, of which she says, “Whenever I crave it, I go to Miss Favela to get it.”

While sipping a caipirinha at the bar at Miss Favela she noticed the Olympics on the TV. She’s proud of her country for hosting the games this year. “I have some friends back home who are stubborn about Rio hosting and they think it’s bad for the country, but overall, a lot of the locals are enjoying it and partying in celebration,” she explains. “It’s not putting Rio on the map, because Rio already was on the map, but overall, I think it’s a positive thing. I think it’s really awesome.” For Giudicelli, home is where the heart—and really great food—is.

Above, Giudicelli finds a taste of Rio in the streets of New York.Read more at:http://www.marieaustralia.com/formal-dresses-brisbane | www.marieaustralia.com/****-formal-dresses

Rio Tua


Olho o rio que corre suavemente,
Nobre povo, paisagem estonteante,
Castanheiro terra singular,
Janela aberta para te comtemplar.

As montanhas descem para ti rio tua,
Imagem linda sem igual,
Pareces não ser rio, ser o mais lindo postal,
Rio maltratado pelas gentes de Portugal.

Quando me levanto te olho com amor,
Encontro Deus nosso Senhor.
Os melros e pintassilgos entoam afinadas melodias,
E tu rio Tua te abandonas junto às penedias.

Grande Abraço.
Victor Marques