Marcus is a very sweet and helpful guy. His place looks just like in the pictures and it is very clean. Although you can't see the sea you are only one minute walk away from the beautiful blue ocean and white sands. The unit is an appropriate size for a couple but you could squeeze in another two people if necessary. Apart from beachfront kiosks selling drinks and snacks and a couple of small shops about 200m away you have to walk at least one kilometre for shops and eating but it is very safe and there are also regular buses ploughing the ocean front. That road can be busy at time and you might have to wait a few minutes to cross over to the sea. As for Barra da Tijuca, it is an affluent resorty area, good for a beach break but perhaps unlikely to hold your attention for many days if you are looking for local culture or flavour. But a bus will take you to the metro in ten minutes and the metro takes you to Copacabana and Centro in around 40 minutes so you could make it your base for a Rio visit, and it is on the right side of the city for the international airport.