Saturday, July 07, 2007

Finally, some new stuff for everyone

So it's been a little over two weeks since I last posted. I must admit, it was nice not using the internet for an extended period of time. It's liberating to not have to think "I really need to check my email" or whatever.
Anyway, the last two weeks in Brazil were a blast. We had a great time. I took a whole bunch of pictures, 274 to be exact, between São Paulo, Salvador, and Rio. Since I have so many and I don't want to spoil everything by posting them all at once, I decided on a course of action.
I will post 10 pictures at a time, updating it as often as I feel like doing so. So one day you might get 30 pictures, one day you might get 10, another day you might not get any. Basically, I want to draw out the process so everyone can enjoy coming back and seeing more pictures. Each picture will probably have a caption and in some cases I will include stories and things of that nature.
For now, since it's 3:33AM on 7/7/07 on the seventh day of the week, I will post 11 pictures, in order to keep up with the numbers thing that seems to be going on.
Be sure to check back often, because you never know when I will have more pictures up. Thanks for dropping by, as always.
I plan to travel to Brazil many more times in my life, perhaps even as soon as December, and definitely as soon as next May as a graduation gift to myself using the free miles I've earned through American Airlines.
After all of these pictures are posted, I will keep the address the same and the title the same, but the focus of the blog may take a more international scope. I plan to travel to other places, even if they're just other parts of the U.S. We'll have to see what happens though.
Thanks for everyone supports, visits, and comments over the past 18 months. I hope you all enjoyed the many pictures, stories, and other things I've posted. Keep in touch!

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The trip started out kinda weird. We decided to stay up all night and just sleep on the early bus to São Paulo. We ended up waking up on the living room floor about 13 minutes before I bus was due to leave. We hurried, but got to the bus station, we were told, two minutes after our bus left. No big deal, they let us change our tickets for the next bus, which was nice of them. I used this time to go back to the apartment and grab some water and sandwiches I had made for the trip. The bus ride there was pretty uneventful. There was actually no one at all on the bus except for a few other people, so we moved to better seats.


Empty bus.

Nice view out the window on our way to São Paulo.

Caroline PTFOd on the bus.

Two more quick views out the window.



I assume that the things in the following two pictures are floats from 2007's Carnaval parades. Those things wear our pretty quickly it looks like.



This is the hotel we stayed in each time. It is called the Hotel Real Paulista. The accommodations are modest but are great for people traveling on a budget. It definitely helps that there are two metro lines within quick walking distance, and it is also on Avenida Paulista, probably São Paulo's busiest street. This street has tons of restaurants and shops to visit.

Another shot. For anyone who would be interested in staying at this hotel, just get on the metro at Tietê station on the purple line going towards Tucuruvi. You'll need to get off at the Paraíso station. From there, walking out of the metro and turn to your right. You'll walk about 10 minutes. When you get to a Texaco, cross the street and keep going. You'll pass a little pharmacy and a newsstand. From there, turn left and it is right there. It's pretty hard to miss actually. The other metro station near there is the Brigadeiro station.

Here is Caroline enjoying some nice Japanese food at a por quilo place in Liberdade.

Anyone who visits São Paulo must absolutely visit Liberdade. It is a part of the city where a huge amount of Japanese immigrants and descendants live. I believe that São Paulo has the largest number of Japanese descended people outside of Tokyo. This place is just outside of the LIberdade metro station. Unfortunately, I can't remember the name of it. It is pretty good, though. I've eaten here quite a few times.
If you keep walking down the street that this restaurant is on, on the left side of the street, you will come across an all-you-can-eat Asian restaurant. They have Chinese, Japanese, and Korean food. The concept is pretty awesome. You go up to the bar and get all the sushi, raw fish, soup, fruits, etc., that you could ever want. On a different place, you get a big selection of raw meats - beef, pork, chicken, seafoods - all seasoned differently. On your table is your own personal grill that you cook all of your raw meats on. For only the equivalent of around $11 U.S., it is a great deal.
Liberdade really is a great place, probably my favorite neighborhood in São Paulo, if only for the food.

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Well folks, that's it for this time. Stay tuned and I'll have more for you soon!

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