Rio Round-up for Carnaval's Final Hours

Revelers packed Rio de Janeiro's beaches and danced in streets littered with pieces of glittery costumes Tuesday, soaking up the final hours of merriment after the climax of the city's world-famous carnaval.

Earlier, as the sun came up, the samba group Beija Flor -- ''hummingbird'' in English -- wowed a capacity crowd of 60,000 in Rio's Sambadromo stadium with a celebration of Brazil's African roots. Opening with an enormous float featuring a gilded hummingbird and leaping impalas, Beija Flor followed with an army of dancers in various states of plumage and undress.

''It was so elegant and exquisitely put together, and the crowd had so much energy,'' said Andre Deckrow, a 22-year-old student from Seattle. ``I've never seen a parade on that scale.''

Thousands have taken to the streets to demand tougher action against crime after the horrific death Feb. 7 of a 6-year-old boy who was caught in his seat belt and dragged beside his mother’s car for 4 miles through Rio de Janeiro in a botched carjacking.

By the time the car stopped, Joao Helio Fernandes Vieites’ head, knees and fingers had been torn from his body. His death has become a symbol for Brazil’s out-of-control crime problem in a city in which bloodshed is a daily occurrence.

Earlier, as the sun came up, the samba group Beija Flor — "hummingbird" in English — wowed a capacity crowd of 60,000 in Rio's Sambadromo stadium with a celebration of Brazil's African roots. Opening with an enormous float featuring a gilded hummingbird and leaping impalas, Beija Flor followed with an army of dancers in various states of plumage and undress.

I was fortunate enough that my friends got me credentials to one of the VIP areas for the parade at the Sambódromo last night in Rio. Believe it or not, I had never been there in person, and it was simply amazing. The energy is undescribable, so I did my best to capture some of it in pictures.