Museu da República - Palácio do Catete

Hi!

First of all, I would like to apologize the long delay between posts here. It happened because of all those little things that keep messing with my plans... So let’s get things done! This visit was made in two parts. Firstly, I only went around the Palácio do Catete, by the gardens, lake, cave and cafes. This was so delicious that I was crazy to go back and finish the visit, and I did that the following week.

The garden of the Palácio do Catete is well maintained and a great place to spend some time, wind down and relax. There you can find old people reading their newspapers, parents enjoying a relaxing time outdoors with their children and others just taking a break at lunchtime. The funny thing is that I loved that space as soon as I got there, and later I found out that my mother and I used to go there a lot together, when I was much younger – so young that I didn’t even remember that! I immediately decided that when I have children of my own, I will take them to do the same, give that continuity to it, walk, play and run around there with them.

There is a movie theater with the capacity for 75 people. Unfortunately I didn’t go to the movie there, but one day I will! In the garden I also found a space with a free exhibition, which I found interesting - its theme was "The Faith that moves" and showed the pilgrimage of devotees in thanksgiving for a granted request. Still, at the entrance, there was a phrase that touched me deeply: "I leave the house alone, but I never walk alone". I thought a lot about it these days in my journey alone to the museums and other unknown places.

Near this exhibition, there is female and male bathrooms and water drink fountain, very close to the garden. After doing the visit to this exhibition, which is located in the garden, I went to the café where I didn’t see any sandwich or brownie or pie, just a cake that looked pretty tasty. The Café is behind the cave which, by the way, is pretty cute. I decided to take some pictures from above the cave and, while I was there, I saw some tamarins appearing and I could keep watching them jump from tree twig to tree twig. It was a quite delicious and relaxing experience!

Focusing now inside the Palácio do Catete, there you find the Museu da República, my main target. At the entrance, I realized, by watching some foreigners ahead of me, that the attendants only speak Portuguese. I don’t know if that’s true for all of them, because I saw different attendants in the two times I visited. Anyway, they tried really hard and in the end it all worked out - thankfully there are displays showing the ticket price, opening hours and more informations at the entrance door, in Portuguese and English, and also in the counter above the audio guide.

Since I wanted to enjoy the museum the best possible way, I rented the audio guide for R$ 5,00 - it was definitely worth it because it has information that is not written anywhere, not even in the items displayed by the museum, being a supplement to what is shown. The only problem is that many numbers are out of order and some are not shown in the visitation rooms. But if you are careful enough you can find the numbers: for instance, on the third floor, that shows the phases of the Republic, only the first room shows the number for the guide - in the following rooms, I just followed the next number and it worked.

The museum is very beautiful and well maintained, with original material yet. It is quite interesting to imagine yourself going back in time, imagining the president at the ministerial lounge on the first floor, with the government folders on the table or large parties given in the great halls of the Palace on the second floor, and even get a little bit inside the world of Getúlio Vargas and the history of the Republic on the third floor.

At the end of the tour, I went to a store that is on the side gate of the museum, in the passage which gives entrance to the garden. There, I found an interesting book about the museum for R$ 15,00. I suggest you to buy it before entering in the museum and take it on your visit. There is also a drink coaster with an old photo of the museum, but I thought it was a bit expensive for such a simple drink coaster: each for R$ 9,00, so I just bought one as a souvenir. Moreover, there are books about Getúlio Vargas. If you want to, it is also possible to buy museum postcards for R$ 0,50, in the cafe near the cinema ticket office.

So I think the museum is a very nice ride, but I think some things could be improved: at least some fans in some rooms should have fans, because the first and the third floor have some rooms with windows closed and no ventilation, then I felt a strong heat and saw that others visitors were also suffering like me.

Another point that should be improved is about informations: even though I do not think it is bad, it definitely could be placed in better locations. Instead of the entrance door, the information should be on the counter where you will buy the tickets – this would make life easier for the employees who do not speak English. Also, a rope for the security guy to open when the visitor showed the ticket would be a nice addition, because I saw three foreigners entering directly and the desk girl trying to call them back, to pay the entrance ticket. But I am not sure if they were trying to be smart or just distracted, since one of them, who spoke a little of Portuguese, said that they were students and asked for a discount. After that, they asked if they could pay in another currency – at this time, I thought to myself I should ask them where they come from so that I went there to visit and pay in reais.

Another point that could be improved is related to the book: I think it could be sold in the store as well as at the museum entrance. Or at least they should put some pictures of the book at the entrance of the museum to let people know that it exists and go to the store to take a look – in my case, I only discovered its existence because I was looking for a souvenir, so I asked for it in the shop. Just like the postcards, they should be closer to both the entrance and the exit of the museum.

And finally, the museum should have a cool website also displaying information such as the time, what 's going on in the museum theater and other things, such as guided tours and information about the camp.

But I can say that I was positively surprised by this museum, it offers ample green space and at the same time a lot of history. And I could still carry home some souvenirs of my visit...great!

kiss kiss,

Tati.

REGISTRATION FORM:

Site: Museu da República

Visit’s Date: 22/01/2014

Adress: Rua do Catete, 153 - Catete.

Telephone: (21)2558-6350

Directions: Using the subway, just get off at Catete station, or any bus that passes by Rua do Catete – there are many options, click here to find out more: english or spanish.

Working Hours: from Tuesday to Friday from 10am to 4:30pm and on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays from 2pm to 5:30pm, closed on monday.

Guided Tour: none.

Entry Price: R$ 6,00. Free admission to the general public on Wednesdays and Sundays and Free admission for children under 10, seniors over 65 and groups of public schools, and discount ticket for students.

Toilets/drink water fountains: toilets and drink water fountains outside the museum, only near the movie theather and in the garden.

Cafe/Restaurant/Convenience Store: café behind the grotto and near the movie.

Accessibility: not very accessible, it is possible to visit the first floor of the museum with help to get there, but there is no elevator nor accessibility for the others floors and is possible to go around in the garden.

Audio guide: yes! In Portuguese, Spanish and English, the cost is R$5,00 (five reais).

Lockers and space for stroller: there are lockers in the museum

Recommended duration of stay: hum…I believe 2 hours for the museum in a calm visit and 1 hour at least for the garden, the café and the shop.

Parking: there isn’t one, but there are vacancies on the street behind the building and private parking nearby: gEpark in Largo do Machado 54, and Praia do Flamengo, 200; and Estapar in Largo do Machado 19/21, 23, and Praia do Flamengo 154.

Camera: I could use without flash in the museum.

Air Conditioning: none, in some rooms there are fans, but at least the second floor, with opened windows, is more fresh.