Most Rio visitors at least hear about Barbarella's, Frank's, Duma, and the rest of the "nightclubs" (in Portuguese "boites", but pronounced and often spelled as in French "boate"--in either spelling always pronounced bow-AWE-chee). These are the rip-off joints--I mean "higher-class" establishments--of the Lido area of Copacabana (find the street Prado Junior and you will find all of these and much more).
What is not commonly known is that there are a host of similar, but much cheaper (as they really serve the local population) establishments in Centro. At 6 pm Centro basically shuts down—except for the Termas and Boates.
One more prelim type note: Many of the Boates call themselves Termas. The line is flexible. For our purposes, a Terma is someplace where you go in and get out of your clothes and don the white robe. If you have yet to don the white robe, you have yet to live.... In a Boate you keep your clothes on, at least to start with ;)
A group of 4 adventurous spirits wanted to explore the scene a bit. Two short-timers, one other ex-pat and a Carioca (native of Rio). Normally I take the bus, but these guys aren't quite THAT adventurous. Oh well. I have to give taxi driver total directions as he hasn't clue one. So I guide him to Termas (read Boate) 75 on Visconde do Rio Branco (not Rio Branco the main drag--consult your maps or email me). Up a long flight of stairs you sign in. The cover is R10 (U$3) and includes three beers or four sodas. The sign says a half-hour with a girl will run you R50—the same as the admission price to Barbarella’s! Just the bar fine at Barbarella’s is another R50….told you this was the bargain side of town.
My instructions to the group were to regard this as a sightseeing tour. Maybe something would happen, maybe not. Often with more than two or three guys it gets problematic. These places tend to have but a few gems and a lot mud (my image is always slopping through mud like a miner to find a few gems….) With too many guys the quality scale or ratio or something tips and people start getting unhappy unless they are really relaxed and not pushing. You just never know what you will find in these places.
My first visit here sometime back was interesting in that as soon as the girls saw I spoke English they shuffled Kelly to the front of the pack. This cute little 18 yo had just returned to Rio after having been raised in Boston since age 11. She graduated from HS in the US and found herself here a few months later. Imagine the culture shock.
A more recent visit had turned up two absolute stunners for me and my companion. Tonight this was not to be. The bar area was loud as always, but there were maybe only 10 girls where there are usually 20. And of the 10 there is but one that we all agree is the best--a tall, lithe mulatah. We observe for 10 minutes and split.
I started with 75 with the hope that there would be enough volume to give us some acceptable variety. Not to be. The guys are up for a walk so I guide them on a 4 or 5 block jaunt to Rua Sete de Setembro, 205. Can you guess the name of the club? If you guessed 205, jump to the front. This is a great little club. Have been there several times. It is small, but one of the livelier spots in Rio. I've always lamented the lack of a real good strip club in Rio. But I remember the night we discovered this place (no one we knew had ever heard of it, we were literally walking by one night and said, "Damn, here's another one!"). They had a gal who was dancing and wouldn't stop. She got totally naked, jumped up on the bar and stuck it in everybody’s face for 20-25 minutes. And each time back has been a good (if not to THAT degree) experience.
But tonight it is not to be. We arrive at the front door at 10 pm and they are closing. Last I knew they closed at midnight. Damn, this tour is beginning to loose steam. But the guys have taken my advice and are hanging loose. No problema! So on we march.
Now you may wonder about tripping around Centro late at night. What I told the guys, since the topic did come up, is that A) the bad guys hang out in Copa looking for stupid tourists and would be stunned to learn we are hanging in Centro, B) if they were there and saw us barging down the street they would run and hide as they want a single drunk idiot to roll, not a crowd and C) I have never ever been hassled downtown at anytime of the day or night, alone or with others...and I have wandered those streets at some ungodly hours all by myself. Yeah, Rio is a dangerous place...please stay home...;-)
Onward to Termas 502 on Rua da Alfandaga (can you guess the address???) Just like 75, it's R10 in and R50 for a 30 minute tumble. There are about 15 girls and in about 5 minutes 3 of us are hooked up. Not bad for a cheap joint. Mine is a tall blonde with a B cup ass, perfect handful. Great smile and attitude. Can't remember the name. We play around for a while and make the decision to carry on with the tour rather than play here...everyone is getting into the exploring spirit. We promise to come back. Mine agrees to go home with me later even though it is against the rules....yadayadayada.
So we pay out R10 toll (none of us are getting our moneys worth in the beverage department except the Carioca in the crowd--he is taking the Vodka ice drink that is so popular now which they sell for R10--the rest of us are paying R10 for a soda or beer or water...so now you know) and hit the road. This time the road is Rio Branco (the main drag). We walk to the end, to Praca Maua. Here there are two Boates (Franks—same name, but different place than the Franks mentioned above for Copa—and Scandia) that are straight up clip joints. Watch out, they'll get you if they can.
But we hang out in front to begin with. This is a lively night area. This is actually the seaport area and some have claimed it is more dangerous and also a place where the risk of getting some exotic disease that the sailors carry in is high. Give me a fuckin’ break…in this day and age we are all sailing on the same boat guys…it’s a way too small world out there some days…. But I digress.
Whereas the previous clubs have girls who work just in those clubs, this area has a lot of foot traffic. A lot of girls who float in and out of the clubs and on the street and in the cafe across the street. And right outside of Franks is a barzinho that serves food and whatever. Some of the crew had worked up an appetite. So sandwiches and drinks are ordered. While waiting I take a couple of the guys up to Franks. I get the OK for a quick, no cover, look see. We look, but see nada. So back down to the street. There are probably 15 girls in the area, a couple of which are interesting and so the flirting commences.
Soon an absolute Goddess walks by. She is un-fucking-believable and we are all surprised. Tall, thin, model type features and an angelic face. A morena of stunning quality. What the hell is she doing here!?! Being the old hand of the group I know exactly what to do in this situation--I grab her. Period, end of story. No question about priority or sharing. This one is mine. So much for mister nice guy......
The big question though is age. She could be too young. So much of the initial get to know you stuff is actually getting to see her documentation. Eventually that all works out and she passes the test. One of the other guys is now hooking up with another gal and my girl wants to hook her friend up with my friend...all the normal stuff. Soon we all move into the other club, Scandia. They have three dancers strutting, a mildly active dance floor (several of us wind up there) and it is all in all a decent experience. (The last time I was there I left in a hurry, the ugly factor was so overwhelming.)
At the end of the night I am the only one taking someone home, but everyone seems very happy. A couple of the guys—including me actually—liked sitting at the outside cafe the best because it was the only place that wasn't blaring music constantly....I guess we do go through some changes with age
Final note. This absolute angel, this young looking, innocent looking goddess turned out to be one of the nastiest fucks I've had in my life. I tend to like the new, inexperienced types. I thought I might show her a thing or two. Instead she taught me a truckload. Wow. And when I asked her if she liked going with other women she said she "couldn't". When I pressed about "couldn't" she said, "My wife won't let me...we go with men but never with other women." Turns out the girl she was trying to hook up with my friend is her "wife" of 3 years.
You just never know.
Oh, before you ask…no, she doesn’t have a phone number………………………….