I had the pleasure of staying in Sonia’s apartment during carnival. The sounds of samba everyday from the balcony were amazing.
The apartment is very neat and tidy and a home! It felt very cosy and clean and is located in an exceptional local part of Rio.
Sonia was a wonderful and responsive host... I only spoke English, she Portuguese but we made it work with google translate and hey, I was in Brazil!
There were great shops close by to get food, water, pharmaceuticals...
This is not the tourist part of Rio, it is much more of a local feel, which I loved.