Richard AmmonSanta Teresa is the name of an uphill neighborhood above Rio Centro on Santa Teresa hill. It’s famous for its winding, narrow streets along which ‘upscale slums’ are mixed with middle-class houses and artist studios. Among the buildings are some elegant mansions left over from the more opulent 19th century. In 1896, the Carioca Aqueduct, a colonial structure that used to bring water to the center of Rio, was converted into a viaduct for the Santa Teresa Trolley (bondinho). The historic tram line is still in operation today carrying passengers–students
