Brasil / United Arab Emirates
24 December 2011 - 15 January 2012
43: The Tour of Awesome - WRAP
As has become standard for me when I've ended a trip I've taken to doing a last summary or a 'greatest hits' review whenever I managed to complete the final entry on the 'how, why, when and whatever else may have been alcohol related' blog series of my most recent escapades. Sticking with tradition and therefore adopting the same template that I've used in the past, see also;
I therefore bring you the close out of the Brasil/UAE experience which now continues within the new life of my blog, known by the name, Life in a Year Full of Saturdays. So without further ado, lets check the high, lows, hits and misses of 43: The Tour of Awesome!
Brasil-UAE - 'The Final'
Favourite places:
Usually my favourite places is a city based list but as we didn't hop around from city to city this list is going to be a little bit of a mix.
1. Copacabana - Rio de Janeiro - (Brasil) - What can you say about Copacabana that isn't going to sound amazingly clichéd? Whilst it was rarity for us to have encountered a beautiful bluebird day on Copa, when the sun did hit those golden sands, well, you knew that there wasn't another place quite like it anywhere in the world. A glorious vista, ridiculously good looking people, fantastic vibes, great times. I loved my runs on the beach each day, raining or not. My only issue with Copa is the theme song that accompanies it in my mind! Damn, I can't get rid of that freakin' Barry Manilow song!!!
Copacabana on a sunny day - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil
2. Paraty - (Brasil) - This old colonial town was so very laid back, your only way of surving was to bring your own pace WAY back down and take everything as slow as the town allowed for you to move. A beautiful place situated on Ilha Grande Bay, it serves as the launching point for many daily services out into the vast expanse of emerald green waters and lush rainforests. Truly spectacular!
The emerald green waters of Ilha Grande Bay - Paraty - Brasil
3. Pão de Açúcar - Sugarloaf Mountain - Rio de Janeiro - (Brasil) - Rising some 396 mtrs, and quite audaciously at that from the Atlantic Ocean, this peak at the mouth of Guanabara Bay is iconic. Its posturing and cries for attention to the 'casual' passer by is more than earnt by the magnificent views of Rio that it offers the traveller on any given day. Of course if you come to Rio you just have to make it to the top of Sugarloaf, the view just speaks for itself!
The view out over Guanabara Bay from Sugarloaf - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil
Pão de Açúcar - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil
4. Cristo Redentor - Corovado - Rio de Janeiro - (Brasil) - So yes, it's full of tourists (me being one of them), and of course it's crowded, but it's tough to go past one of the newly named 7 wonders! No matter what your take on religion I think you need to appreciate that this fella certainly has a mighty view over the joint and does his best to keep things under control!
Cristo Redentor - Corovado - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil
5. Lapa - Rio de Janeiro - (Brasil) - We only spent part of an evening here but the bars and the potential for good times was obvious. It kind of reminded me a little of San Sebastian or Barcelona, and you know that you can't ever go wrong in those places either.
Most Surprising
Prainha and Praia Grande - Paraty - (Brasil) - This little fishing village and it's covert, secluded beach associate were about a 500mtr abseil from the front door of the Resort Croce del Sud. Alright, slight exaggeration on the abseiling distance but the concept of 'vertical' is just a state of mind isn't it? I still kick myself for not having found more time in my stay to have parked my rear end on the deck of the bar in Prainha (or whatever the beach is called). It's the type of beach where I'm sure someone sat back on a lazy December afternoon and just thought to themselves, 'Man, a bar at that end of the beach would make this place perfect' - and hey presto, sometimes when you ask the universe it delivers in spades. God knows we had enough time in Paraty to have done absolutely anything we had wanted, but again, I think the pace of life just got the better of us!
Epic beach, epic bar!
Coolest place for a night out
Copacabana - Rio de Janeiro - (Brasil) - I can only go with what we know, and we got to know Copacabana quite well. I'm sure Leblon, Ipanema and Lapa would have battled hard to be taken the top rated position here but it was just one of those things that we somehow didn't make it past first base, primarily due to the fact that the weather didn't really spark the sense of adventure or revelry in us. Still, if you want to drink on Copacabana or get your party on then I can guarantee that you'll be scoring party points as soon as the 'on' switch for that inner party animal is triggered.
Best Accommodation
1. Resort Croce del Sud - (Paraty) - Brasil - The glorious view, the fantastic atmosphere, the amazing surrounds, it just made it a relaxed, chilled and absolute treat of an experience. I know it wasn't the fancy Kempinski in the Mall of the Emirates in Dubai which Frichot nominated as his number one but I have the feeling that sleep deprivation got the better of him and his memory of the Croce del Sud is blighted by the incessant buzzing of errant Brasilian mosquitoes.
Best place to get lost
View from the Resort Croce del Sud - Paraty - Brasil
2. The Kempinski - Mall of the Emirates - Dubai - United Arab Emirates - Without question this is a great place to stay. Great facilities, fantastic rooms, Ski Dubai virtually next door, the largest mall in the Emirates two steps from the front door. I know Frichot had this first on his list, and as you can see below, he's either telling me that it's number one, or, he's telling me that I can't believe I had this ranked at #2...My blog, my rules BIATCH!! ;)
'The Kempinski is #1 fool!' - Jet letting me know his rankings - Kempinski Hotel - Mall of the Emirates - Dubai - U.A.E
Best place to get lost
Ilha Grande Bay - Paraty - (Brasil) - Without question, you could spend weeks or even months exploring the wonders of Ilha Grande Bay - if only you knew how to sail! ...or could find someone that could sail on your behalf. It's a place of rare beauty and if you wanted to lose yourself to the world without truly caring, then you couldn't do much better than dropping out for a while here.
Ilha Grande Bay - Costa Verde - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil
Best drink
1. Caiparinha - Copacabana - Rio de Janeiro - (Brasil) - The national drink of Brasil, made with sugar cane rum (cachaça), sugar and lime, it's THE drink of the beaches when in Rio. The devil inside this drink is not so much the cachaça itself but the amount utilised by bartenders up and down the coastline. This 'devils blood' will having you begging for sweet mercy the next day and will also have you asking yourself, 'where the hell is it that I left my pants!' - Oh yeah, caiparinha's equal good times!
2. Coconut water - Copacabana/Ipanema - Rio de Janeiro - (Brasil) - ubiquitous with the healthier clan of Rio, it's as freely available as a good 'ole fashioned caiparinha, a lot less damaging and does the job when quenching your thirst. Also, how cool is it to be drinking out of a coconut huh!?
3. Red wine - Alla Zingara Restaurante - Copacabana - Rio de Janeiro - (Brasil) - Our evening at Alla Zingara was a welcome respite from the caiparinha infused masses on the beaches and our own cocktail infused evenings at Porto Bay. I'm sure the red wine was Chilean but it was just the tonic we needed to rid ourselves of the evil, evil cachaça for a night
Best meals
1. Seafood Bonanza - Resort Croce del Sud - Paraty - (Brasil) - There's nothing quite like getting some fresh local seafood, having a few glasses of white wine and cooking up your own feast. The prawns and fish that we obtained from the local fishing village in Prainha was fresh and had a sweetness to it that I'd never experienced anywhere else. It was an absolute treat to cook up a dynamite meal and then afterwards just stroll out onto the balcony, wine in hand and gaze over the amazing view of Ilha Grande Bay from the Croce del Sude
2. Cervantes Bar/restaurante - Copacabana - Rio de Janeiro - (Brasil) - An unpretentious bar and sandwich shop, serving wholesome and basic Brasilian fare between two slices of bread. These guys are the specialists in all things sandwich related, and the construction isn't complicated at all. They'll pile your reward high with tender and ridiculously delicious pork, beef, or chicken, perhaps throw on a slice of cheese and the omnipresent slice of abacaxi! Standing at the bar with a glass of the local brew and a Cervantes product in hand was basic but legendary all at once!
Cervantes bar/restaurant - Copacabana - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil
Here's the clip that Jetson took from Cervantes of him 'smashing' one
[The Adventures of Jet Frichot - Cervantes]
3. Bar Urca - Urca - Rio de Janeiro - (Brasil) - This small bar and restaurant situated directly on Guanabara Bay in the shadows of Sugarloaf is a fantastic place to grab some seafood, a few Brahma's and take in the breezes of the water whilst you soak up the view and the atmosphere. We spent a few hours here after our first failed attempt to make it up Sugarloaf and it was more than a credible alternative.
Bar Urca - Urca - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil
Our guilty pleasure
Random cafe on Avenida Prado Junior - Copacabana - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil - On most days JJ would head just downstairs to the local cafe and acquire three coffees and rolls filled with cheesy, eggy, meaty goodness. Not the healthiest way to start any day but damn those rolls were tasty and I tend to think that the owner had a little bit of a 'thing' for JJ even though her Portuguese was non-existant and his English skills were non-existant. Still, the 'language of love' is spoken everywhere and I'm sure the two had a 'mutual understanding!'.
Best Bars
1. Rooftop Bar -Porto Bay - Copacabana - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil - By far the best bar of our trip, providing great views of Copacabana from its Level 23 locale, decent bar service, good drinks and laid back vibe. We spent a few nights sinking the sun with our cocktails and had one night in particular where we all drowned our sorrows regarding the weather by somehow inhabiting the rooftop pool, whilst fully clothed. Sometimes it just has to be done!
Rooftop bar - Porto Bay - Copacabana - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil
2. Mosaic Chill bar - Kempinski Hotel - Mall of the Emirates - Dubai - (UAE) - Dubai is just full of disturbingly amazing bars, full of swank, swagger and outlandish drinks. We discovered none of them other than the one in our hotel, which happily had just the sense of comfort and vibe that we needed for a couple of nights.
Mosaic chill bar - Kempinski Hotel - Dubai - UAE
3. Random wine bar - Paraty - (Brasil) - One late afternoon as Frichot was cooling his feet back at the Croce del Sud, JJ and I were working our way through the streets of Paraty when we stumbled on a cool wine bar where somehow a 5 min stayed turned into three hours. With the afternoon sun well out of sight and a couple of bottles to the good we wondered how exactly we had been transported into the future in that 5 min spell - red wine - it'll do it to you every time!
Best Video
Without question, the video that Jetson put together of our helicopter ride over Rio wins hands down. If you haven't seen it then take 7 mins and 9 seconds out of your day to check it out. Music provided by his band SPEEDBALL.
[The Adventures of Jet Frichot - Helicopter ride to Cristo Redentor]
Best photos - position 2 to 5
Best Photo taken by someone that's not me & Best Photo
Usually these two categories are split but on this occasion JJ takes out honours for best photo with a snap that she took of me whilst we were out dune bashing on our Desert Safari in Dubai. I absolutely love the silhouette and the vibrant colours of the sky in this shot. Nice work on this one JJ!
1. On the dunes - Dubai - UAE (photo by Janelle Jordan)
Best photos - position 2 to 5
2. Copacabana from Porto Bay - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil
Great views, great sunset, love the colours in this one
3. Jardin Botanico - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil
I'm a total sucker for B&W shots and I think this is pretty close to the best one I took on our little excursion
4.View over Botofogo, Sugarloaf and out to the Atlantic - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil
You can't beat the natural beauty of Rio and I think this does it justice even though the weather really wasn't assisting in anyway
5. Pão de Açúcar - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil
There's something kind of mystical and magical about this shot. Sometimes the weather doesn't work for you in a photo and occasionally, as per the clouds in this photo, it can add to the weight of atmosphere that conjures up something intriguing.
Coolest moments
1. Flight around Rio to Cristo Retendor - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil - It's almost like we had collectively earnt this moment. Rio had us pinned in by rain for days and it was starting to break us. We were all hoping for just the one 'perfect' day which would allow us to get airborne and experience this glorious city from the sky, and then 03 JAN 2012 rolled around, it actually happened! It was an unforgettable experience, and if you happen to check Frichot's video above under the Best Video category it won't take long to figure out why.
2. New Year's Eve - Copacabana - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil - The damn rain had such an impact on NYE and our expectations that what should have been THE best evening of our ttrip turned into something that was relatively mediocre. Sitting under beach umbrellas on Copa, getting soaked, not being in the best of spirits was not the way to finish a year, but then the New Year erupted in a fierce explosion of colour and splendour. If you ever get the chance to experience an NYE in Rio then do it, and make sure you also do it from a cool rooftop bar somewhere (just a heads up).
Check out Jet's video of NYE fireworks here
[The Adventures of Jet Frichot - NYE Fireworks Rio]
Welcome to 2012 - Copacabana - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil
3. Cruising Ilha Grande Bay - Paraty - Brasil - This was one 'chilled' afternoon, easy drinks, easy day, easy lifestyle...and easy way. The colours of the Costa Verde are unique and spectacular. The emerald greens of the water and the surrounding forests are a treasure and not something that will be quickly forgotten.
Cruising Ilha Grande Bay - Paraty - Brasil
4. The view from Pão de Açúcar - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil - We had one failed attempt to make the summit, driven away by enormous crowds that had taken advantage of the complete randomness of the emergence of the sun. Our second attempt was early the following day and our gamble to beat the crowd and weather paid off.
Cristo Redentor - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil
Uncoolest Moment
Best Comeback
The view to the small Red Beach and Copacabana beyond over Mt.Leme - from Sugaloaf -Rio de Janeiro - Brasil
5. Catching up with one of the New World 7 - Cristo Redentor - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil - What more can you say about a 33mtr statue of Christ overlooking your hometown other than, 'that's pretty damn cool'
Uncoolest Moment
Getting beaten down by the rain, Lapa - Rio de Janeiro. We had something like a week of rain, it had mortally attacked all of our plans and along with our frayed nerves we collectively encounter moments of depression whilst lunching at some random cafe in Lapa. It only last a few minutes before we snapped out of it but still it was 'uncool'.
Losing our patience and losing our cool - Lapa - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil
Best Comeback
1. H.Elisher - morning 1 - Copacabana - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil - Our first night in Rio involved copious amounts of the national beverage. I mean so much so that our number 1 'most random but still cool event' comes as a result of caiparinha carnage, but I have to say that the best comeback of the tour comes my way the next morning. Somehow escaping what should have been the monster of al hangovers, which JJ and Jetson were experiencing on my behalf, I decided to jump out of bed and get some exercise by running the length of Cobacabana beach, 2.5kms up, and 2.5kms back on soft sand and veins full of alcohol.
2. The appearance of the Golden Orb - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil - After being beaten from pillar to post with the weather, the appearance of the sun was one of the greatest comebacks of all time. Obviously I'm a bit biased with naming myself at number one but as I said earlier, my blog, my rules!!
Most random but still cool event
1. J.Jordan - night 1 - Copacabana - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil - We had literally been drinking for hours, having commenced somewhere close to 7pm the day before. Nearing 3am and discussing the benefits of locating our abode on Avenida Prado Junior, one J.Jordan offers up this is an option to myself and Jet, 'Hey, why don't we go to the strip joint near our place, you two boys should just get it out of your system now!' - WTF? lol...I'm not sure what JJ was driving at, it was obviously a completely random option for her to go with but hey, sometimes its the left of field calls that come home with the goods.
Travel breakdown
Total number of flights - 4
Total flying hours - 58hrs
Total time spent in airports - 17hrs
Total number of bus rides - 3
Total number of helicopter flights - 1
Total helicopter flying time - 12 mins - helicopter wait time (3.5hrs)
Distance travelled in kms - 50,240kms
The number of times Cristo Retendor hid behind clouds - 372
There we have it, that's a wrap of '43: The Tour of Awesome'. It was a lot of fun, good times were had and I'm glad that I was able to do some of what I missed on doing in 2010.
Now it's back to the drawing board for me, the initiation of plans, destinations and collaborations. So watch this space, I could be taking off whilst you least expect it!
