TRAVEL STORY: THE LAST THING I EXPECTED
April 2018
Winding cautiously up the cobbled road, our Uber driver Rodrigo glanced at me in the review mirror. “You go to party?”, he recited slowly from a translation on his phone. We were venturing at nightfall deep into the heart of Rio’s mountains, an unchartered territory that even some Cariocas (Brazilian residents) were not familiar with.
“First time in favela?” enquired Rodrigo. My clueless travel companion, Alice, instantly glared in my direction and emphatically mouthed ‘FAVELA?’. She looked like she wanted to strangle me. The word 'favela' is Brazilian Portuguese for a slum; an area of lower socio-economic status. Favelas have gained a bad reputation as being incredibly dangerous places; hubs for drug cartels and criminal activity. Not a place to wander alone at night.
We reached a dead end flanked with shacks and one tiny market. Was this the right address? Barely any signs of life were visible, let alone a party. Edging out of the car cautiously, we were approached by a stocky man dressed in black. He surprised us with a welcoming gaze, as he uttered “Maze”, and indicated to an alleyway. The laneway appeared squashed between two over towering adjacent structures, twisting haphazardly. On the verge of claustrophobia, the name ‘Maze’ could not have been more accurate. We had entered a chaotic urban jungle. Power lines hung from unknown crevasses above, interweaving like mating vipers. Bright eyes glared out at us from the depth of the shadows, guiding us to our destination…
THE MAZE. Two words marked the entrance to the guesthouse. Climbing up the stairs through an arched doorway, a familiar, hypnotic melody drew me in. Resembling a sculptural cave more so than a hotel, curved walls and rounded ceilings guided us into the main room where a dapper, upbeat Jazz band played to a crowd of Brazil’s finest socialites. I was in awe. Here, time had frozen. We had discovered a haven in the midst of the surrounding chaos, transporting us into a parallel universe from a past time. Stepping out onto the patio I felt a strange sense of déjà vu. From this height the city of Rio seemed incredibly calm, a magnificent panorama of an intoxicating place that had long been calling my name. Maze.