Before leaving Rio I strongly considered going to Florianópolis but unfortunately the weather there now is too cold to be pleasant.  Right now it’s the winter in Brazil so I decided instead to head North East towards the equator for warmer climates. 
My top three choices (Salvador, Recife or Natal) ended with me flying to Recife [...]

Ok, first off let me say, this place is a straight up tourist trap.  I knew that going in – but I didn’t care.  Everything I heard about the actual performance was highly positive.  When I say it’s a tourist trap, I mean the drinks, the souvenirs, the offered pre-show dinner buffet, etc. are all [...]

Sugarloaf Mountain is the #2 tourist attraction in Brazil so naturally I had to go and see it for myself.  The cost was about R$40 ($20 USD).  It started out with a tram ride to the intermidiate point, Urca mountain and then a second cable-car tram ride to the top of Sugarloaf.
When I stepped onboard the tram [...]

Brazil is known for soccer so my buddy Steve and I decided to make it a point to go to the Flamengo vs. Crucero game.  Both teams are local city teams but Flamengo has won the national championship many times so we figured it would be a great match.
We left Copacabana in a tour bus filled [...]

Say what?  Attempted hang gliding?
Yup, I spent 4 hours on top of a high peak in Rio de Janeiro waiting to go hang gliding. Due to the thick fog rolling up the mountainside we were never able to take off.
The two guys in white shirts were my guides.  The younger kid on the left was [...]

After a month of being in Rio de Janeiro, I figured it was time to visit their largest tourist attraction, Christ the Redeemer monument. It’s become a very famous statue worldwide and is now considered one of the 7 wonders of the new world!
The trip to get up to the statue was a big part [...]

I made it back to Rio safe and sound. I’m blogging today from the Ipanema beach in Rio. It’s a beautiful sunny day at 80 degrees. I just took a swim in the ocean and now I’m lounging, watching the people tanning and getting one of my own.
Life in Brazil is very relaxing. Due to [...]