Vai-Vai was my first. In January of 2006, during my first trip to São Paulo, I became washed in the downpour of sound and energy that is the open-air rehearsal of the Vai-Vai Samba School. I fell in love with Brazil that night. With the cadences that were only two or three beats away from […]
Feliz Na Vida: Sou Vai-Vai Read More
“Gringo.” I can’t stand that damn word. And it’s all over Latin America, from restaurants with names like Gringo’s Pizza to movies with titles like “Gringo Wedding.” The meaning of the word varies from country to country, but I’ve not found one place yet where it’s actually a positive moniker, despite many travelers who
Three years ago, shortly after dusk on a crisp July evening, I left the gym and walked with a friend down a cavernous back-street in Copacabana, the gritty, dense, intense, world-famous beachfront neighborhood in Rio de Janeiro. At that time, my Portuguese skills were nonexistent, and I conversed with my friend in an uneasy Portuñol
Reconciling with Rio Read More
In São Paulo’s boho-chic neighborhood of Vila Madalena, graffiti artists have claimed a couple of streets as an impactful open-air gallery of revolving exhibitions. Depicting city life, Brazilian slang, “Blackee Power” (the Brazilian term for a stay-sof-Fro!), and national pride, these murals stand testament to the city’s resurgence, unlike their unfortunate counterparts in New York.
Photo Essay: Madalena Murals Read More
Currently, I’m running around São Paulo collecting data and testing out adjectives for use in the reviews I’m writing for the Total São Paulo guide. Meanwhile, I’ll leave you armchair travelers with a little retro footage from SP’s nemesis, Rio de Janeiro, to spark the wanderlust and maybe incite a couple of ticket purchases to Brazil.
From the AV Room: Brazilian Air Read More
A Brazilian airline’s image of Brazilians: A Korean airline’s image of Brazilians: Just sayin’. Please don’t forget to follow me on Twitter @FlyBrother, and “like” me on Facebook! You can subscribe, too!
From the AV Room: Brazil in Black and White Read More
This is the first of a new monthly series of eye candy at Fly Brother, imaginatively named VTP (short for Vintage Travel Posters). We’ll see how travel companies and bureaus have been enticing people off the couch since international leisure travel first became a bourgeois conceit. Our first destination: the marvelous city of Rio de
Vintage Travel Posters (VTP): Rio Read More
With fighter jets, inflatable pools, Nigerian-Brazilian hip-hop artists, beach volleyball, politicized circus clowns, Daniela Mercury, and a Disney parade, the Brazilian capital celebrated its fiftieth birthday with a barrage of parades and concerts rivaling Carnival. Candangos (immigrants from the four corners of Brazil who came to build Brasília) and Brasilienses (successive generations born in the
Brasília’s Birthday Bash Read More
Inaugurated in 1960 as Brazil’s brand-spanking-new capital, Brasília was built on a high, semi-arid plateau in the mid-western region of the country to bring money and people into the vast and empty interior. The city has certainly filled-out since these images were filmed, but it’s interesting to see life in my retro-futuristic home base during
From the AV Room: Baby Brasília Read More
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