In the throng at Christo Redentor and comtemplating on the other side of the continent

The statue of Christ on the Corcovado (Rio de Janeiro) is attracting masses. And nowadays everyone in this throng will try to make a picture or better, most people want to make a selfie (I din’t!). Corcovado means hunchback, which make recall “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” with Charles Laughton and Maureen O’Hara. The statue of Christ Redentor (Christ, the Redeemer) is 38 m high and visible from other points of Rio de Janeiro. The access is limited by the necessity to use the Corcovado Rack Railway, which has a passenger capacity of 540 passengers per hour. One might wait longer for the trip than the trip lasts.

On the other side of the continent there’s another statue: the Virgin Mary Statue on Cerro San Cristóbal, a summit within the city limits of Santiago de Chile. It’s also attracting tourists, but it is much less crowded than Christo Redentor. There are an amphitheatre, a small chapel at the base of the statue, and a church. The sanctuary on the summit is dedicated to the immaculate conception. BTW, the immaculate conception doesn’t concern Jesus Christ but Mary’s conception. Someone has been praying at the base of the statue via a microphone, which did a lot to make the atmosphere more contemplative.

Christ Redentor with his flock of tourists

A view from Corcovado to 

Sugarloaf Mountain (Pão de Açúcar)

Christ Redentor without tourists

From a distance - Christ Redentor 

from Sugar Loaf Mountain

Virgin Mary Statue on Cerro San Cristóbal

Church at the sanctuary of immaculate conception

A small statue of the late Pope John-Paul II, also in the sanctuary of immaculate conception