General Info

[QUOTE=The Cane; 1361980]Just finished watching Bourdain in this episode of The Layover in Sao Paolo. Gives you a good feel for the city. Seems manageable if you know what part of the city holds what you want to get into:

[url]http://www.allshowsdaily.com/2012/12/the-layover-season-2-episode-4-sao-paulo.html[/url][/QUOTE]I actually saw this show on TV when it first aired, and I interesting to see that Love Story was briefly mentioned. I am curious as know know if this place is till going strong or if it has changed, how so? Can anyone give some sort of an update? Thanks

I am planning to take a small 4 seat plane from Florida with a buddy and island hop the Bahamas for 7 to 10 days.

ISG reports that P4P is virtually non-existent in the Bahamas so I got this idea.

Is it possible to set something up and have a Brazilian chica fly commercially to the Bahamas and spend a week in the Caribbean?

No VISA is necessary, only a passport.

Thanks for any info or help.

Bob

Thanks for the heads up Kid. I will keep an eye out for you. Can't be too many 6'5" guys who look like ex Navy Seals.

Be careful with any online credit orders, guys. I tried to order Sambodromo tickets from the website of Rio Carnival Services "recommended by Lonely Planet" and the following ensued:

First, they said the card was declined, or was a type of card not up to the latest security standards. Chase bank? I don't think so. So then they recommend filling out a form, mailing it in, with a xerox of the card and of my passport.

No sooner do I comply, than my card is being hit with a spate of large online charges, ranging from $600 to $900 a pop, to a Los Angeles company that sells engineering tools. I strayed across this activity while checking my transactions, called Chase, and they stopped the card. No cost to me but a pain in the ass. I then went to BookersInternational. Com, the tickets were costlier, but they accept paypal, and it's a done deal. I think?

An endorsement of a business by Lonely Planet doesn't seem to mean that much at this point.

[QUOTE=Vengo; 1369487]Be careful with any online credit orders, guys. I tried to order Sambodromo tickets from the website of Rio Carnival Services "recommended by Lonely Planet" and the following ensued:

First, they said the card was declined, or was a type of card not up to the latest security standards. Chase bank? I don't think so. So then they recommend filling out a form, mailing it in, with a xerox of the card and of my passport.

No sooner do I comply, than my card is being hit with a spate of large online charges, ranging from $600 to $900 a pop, to a Los Angeles company that sells engineering tools. I strayed across this activity while checking my transactions, called Chase, and they stopped the card. No cost to me but a pain in the ass. I then went to BookersInternational. Com, the tickets were costlier, but they accept paypal, and it's a done deal. I think?

An endorsement of a business by Lonely Planet doesn't seem to mean that much at this point.[/QUOTE]Be very wary when giving out your proof of I'd online / over post (such as your passport) , this might not be the end of it if your I'd has been stolen as well.

I feel for anyone trying to get carnaval tickets. Of course I'm sure there are reputable agencies selling them abroad (at a price!) but it's a hard road. And even then, I understand you only get a voucher, which you have to exchange when you get to Rio (this may also involve long queues). Since I have always bought in Rio I can't recommend agencies personally. I just recommend getting here early and trying to get the tickets you want. Cheaper, and you actually get the nice holographed, sealed, shiny tickets in your hand and you can go back to your hotel or apartment and relax. Getting carnaval tickets is not simple like buying tickets for a Madonna concert. It's a massive, very highly organised business (although it might not seem that way).

The rules do keep changing, but if you get to Rio and even if it seems that they have 'sold out' they probably have not. What happens, both fairer and to maximise profit, is that they keep so many back and then release them suddenly at maybe only a day or two days' notice. Any travel agent in Copa will promise you tickets when they have officially sold out, but all they are doing is keeping their ear to the ground and then sending a moto into town to pick them up the morning they are released. You can do exactly the same. Listening to media and contacts is one way but just being a bloodhound is sometimes quicker. The official LIESA offices are in Centro, between 4x4 an Vargas, and you go and hassle politely and they will either sell you tickets that are available or whisper when the next lot will be available and where, or tell you to come back. They could be sold at a bank on Rio Branco or at a temporary office outside the Sambodrome. So you get there nice and early and stand in line, maybe an hour before the doors are supposed to open. The great thing about this is that you will usually discover you are paying the rack rate. The higher prices quoted by agencies are to pay for the moto, the admin, for someone else to stand in line, and for their cheek. With tickets sold by agencies well in advance it's a slightly different system but you pay very heavily or the privilege.

Hope this helps.

P. S. The other way to do it is ask a friend already in Rio to get them for you (not me, I'm not going to Carnaval in Rio this year). But do realise it can be a big favour and quite a bit of hassle, so be duly appreciative!

I don't know if this is any help to anyone. I hope so. And working a bit to get the tickets can make you appreciate it even more! Good luck and enjoy carnaval. Or even join up with a school and dance. You won't get to 'see' it but it's a truly amazing experience).

[QUOTE=Sperto;1376887]The stunners in Fortaleza are very rare. The majority are the typical nordestinas, short, overweighted, big squared heads and without necks.[/QUOTE][QUOTE=Sperto;1376880]The bad news is that the average Manaus girl isn´t beautiful.[/QUOTE]For once, Sperto doesn't see Brasil through pink-teinted lens and makes objective statements. Get real guys. It's an enduring myth that in Brasil, the streets are paved with beauties, but the truth is that the ratio of truly good-looking girls is rather low, and actually straight out bad in Amazonas, in Para or in Nordeste.

[QUOTE=Prosal;1377156]For once, Sperto doesn't see Brasil through pink-teinted lens and makes objective statements. Get real guys. It's an enduring myth that in Brasil, the streets are paved with beauties, but the truth is that the ratio of truly good-looking girls is rather low, and actually straight out bad in Amazonas, in Para or in Nordeste.[/QUOTE]The difference as I see it is that Sperto makes posts based on recent or current experience. In Brasil generally, I have had many beautiful womenn in Para. I don't know Amazonas, but as an ethnically more isolated region than Para (which is actually quite diverse) , it would make sense and I am not keen on many girls I have met from there personally.

I have never found Sperto's reports rose-tinted. He has a realistic sense on Brasil, but as someone who loves the country, as I do myself.

[QUOTE=Prosal;1377156]For once, Sperto doesn't see Brasil through pink-teinted lens and makes objective statements. Get real guys. It's an enduring myth that in Brasil, the streets are paved with beauties, but the truth is that the ratio of truly good-looking girls is rather low, and actually straight out bad in Amazonas, in Para or in Nordeste.[/QUOTE]For once in my life I will have to agree with Prosal. In the cities of Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo the streets are paved with beauties. But once you get out of those areas you are setting yourself up for disappointment. I mean of course everyone in the other areas is not dog ugly, but most you would not give a second look to and you will be lucky to see maybe 2 beauties / day.

**Disclaimer: I have only been to Rio (various cities), Sao Paulo (various cities), Florianopolis, Salvador, Belo Horizonte, Brasilia, Goiania, Manaus, Recife, and Fortaleza. So my limited experience is from only those places.

[QUOTE=Christopherd;1377404]I don't know Amazonas, but as an ethnically more isolated region than Para .[/QUOTE]Hmm. You "love the country" but you lack of the basic knowledge about it obviously. Manaus is anything but "isolated". Because of its Free Trade Zone, it's the second city in Brasil, behind Sao Paulo, that attracts the more migrants. The reason why Manaus is so stretched is because the population, between the 70s and now, has increased from 300 000 to almost 2 millions, and is still increasing now.

[QUOTE=Mr Enternational;1377414]In the cities of Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo the streets are paved with beauties.[/QUOTE]Not so, if by "beauty" you mean "James Bond girl" level. On a Sunday afternoon on the beach in Copacabana, you see mostly obese or overweight girls. Female population is admittedly better-looking in Ipanema, but contrarily to the myth, there is nothing to rave about.

Maybe 'paved with beauties' is a bit extreme perhaps; but certainly there's no shortage of beauties in RJ or in SP. The harder part is finding them outside the non-pro scene, but not that hard, especially given the vast numbers of p4p available. In other cities it's harder work admittedly. I can't say I know many of the popular places; but I've had a reasonable share in Belo, a lot (pro and non-pro) in Belem, which seems to be a lucky place for me, and I've seen a reasonable number in Sao Luis though nearly all non-pros. Other people have different experiences. I don't know that the James Bond girls particlarly haunt beaches in Ipanema any more and certainly not in Copa agreed. I said already I think that I don't know Manaus and don't have any great wish to go there. It is not isolated commercially. But I really don't care to get into an argument with you Prosal - my fault for answering. You will probably get abusive any minute now so I'll leave you to yours and hope you enjoy yourself wherever you punt these days.

From CNN:

Sun, Jan 27, 2013 6:37 am.

A fire swept through a nightclub in southern Brazil, killing at least 90 people early Sunday, officials said.

The fire started around 2 a. M. At the Kiss nightclub in the city of Santa Maria. Firefighters were still pulling out bodies, and Col. Adilomar Silva, the regional coordinator of civil defense, expected the death toll to climb.

Officials could not immediately say what caused the fire.

A Brazilian nightclub where hundreds died in a fire Sunday was about 1, 000 people over capacity at the time of the blaze, a fire official said.

"When I arrived, we analyzed the preliminary scene and saw that there was a 1, 000 maximum capacity but we understood there were about 2, 000 there," said Guido de Melo, a fire official.

The fire killed at least 245 people, many of whom apparently died from smoke inhalation, police said.

[QUOTE=Mr Enternational; 1378914]From CNN:

Sun, Jan 27, 2013 6:37 am.

A fire swept through a nightclub in southern Brazil, killing at least 90 people early Sunday, officials said.

The fire started around 2 am At the Kiss nightclub in the city of Santa Maria. Firefighters were still pulling out bodies, and Col. Adilomar Silva, the regional coordinator of civil defense, expected the death toll to climb.

Officials could not immediately say what caused the fire.

A Brazilian nightclub where hundreds died in a fire Sunday was about 1, 000 people over capacity at the time of the blaze, a fire official said.

"When I arrived, we analyzed the preliminary scene and saw that there was a 1, 000 maximum capacity but we understood there were about 2, 000 there," said Guido de Melo, a fire official.

The fire killed at least 245 people, many of whom apparently died from smoke inhalation, police said.[/QUOTE]I have sometimes thought that a fire in one of our favorite Rio termas would be similarly tragic. Best not to think about it I suppose.

[QUOTE=RexG;1378935]I have sometimes thought that a fire in one of our favorite Rio termas would be similarly tragic. Best not to think about it I suppose.[/QUOTE]I've pondered the very same thing. Like, how fast could I get out of Termas 65 or something if there was a fire? And what if you have to get out with just your robe on? Well, better ashamed outside on the street but alive than unashamed inside the terma but dead. And what if they try to prevent you from leaving until you've payed, like Sperto's post alleges to have happened here?