Altino Arantes Observatory, View of São Paulo, Brazil

No matter how often you visit a destination or your favorite vacation spot, it seems there is always something new and exciting to see or experience. This is was happened the other day in São Paulo, Brazil.

Even though I have been to São Paulo and Brazil at least 100 times in the last 20 years, a friend at breakfast had asked if I wanted to do his walking tour of São Paulo. I was about ready to back out and spend the day doing computer work. What peaked my interest was the mention of going to the top of one of São Paulo's highest buildings and viewing the city from the observation deck. I had never done that, or for that matter never knew you could.

Altino Arantes Observatory, Sao Paulo, BrazilThe Observatory was located at the top of the Altino Arantes building also known as the Banespa Building. Not realizing this attraction was available and having passed by this building so many times at the corner of João Bricola and Antonio Prado streets right in the heart of the old financial district of São Paulo, it was time to see.

Taking the subway down to the Sé Station located at the Cathedral de Sé, it was a short 5 minute walk to the Altino Arantes building.

Standing at 529 feet (161,22 meters) 34 floors, Altino Arantes building is one of the tallest buildings in São Paulo and Latin America.

Visiting Altino Arantes is free to the public. The only requirement was showing your driver's license or passport so security could make a photo copy as well as take your picture.

Only 5 people are allowed at a time at the top of the observatory with a viewing time limited to 5 minutes .

Two elevator rides , one to the 26th floor with 10 people then the second elevator to the 32 floor with a capacity of 5 people. From the 32 to 34th floor was done by climbing 5 flights of stairs.

View from Altino Arantes Observatory São Paulo, BrazilArriving at the top we were greeted to a spectacular view of São Paulo, even though there was a bit of haze in the air and unable to see the surrounding mountains you were still given a sense on how big São Paulo really is.Cathedral de Sé from Altino Arantes Observatory, View of São Paulo, Brazil

Average time for visiting the observatory atop the Altino Arantes building is 35 minutes with 5 minutes at the top. This day it took us about 1 hour but well worth the wait for the view of the city.

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Travel Photo Of The Day- Perito Moreno Glaciar Argentina

Perito Moreno Glaciar Argentina

Photo By Alexandre Fagundes De Fagundes

The front of Perito Moreno glacier in Patagonia, the mass of blueish ice flowing into Argentina lake and the white snow peaks of the mountains.

Traveling to the worlds end in southern Argentina will take you to the region known as Patagonia, the southernmost point of South America is an area made up low plains and plateau that give way to the start of the mighty Andes as they rise upward and wind north forming the back bone of South America

For more information and destinations in South America check out Beachcomber Pete Travel Adventures South America

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Travel Photo Of The Day- Buzios Peninsula, Brazil

Beautiful Beach of Buzios Peninsula, Brazil

Photo By Nicoleta Raftu

Beautiful Beach of Buzios Peninsula, Brazil

Two Hours north of Rio de Janeiro you will find the Buzios Peninsula, with over 20 breathtaking tropical beachs just waiting to be explored. Looking for sun or water sports travelers will find what they are looking for. Brazils summer time from December through February and Carnival, travelers will find Buzios with a mixture of people from all over the world.

For more information and destinations in Brazil check out Beachcomber Pete Travel Adventures Brazil

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Travel Photo Of The Day-CityScape Of Buenos Aires Argentina

City Scape of Buenos Aires, Argentina

Photo By Stefan Gottschild

Cityscape of Buenos Aires from Puerto Madero district

Buenos Aires, meaning good air, is the largest city in Argentina and also serves as the capital of the country. Buenos Aires a high energy city with strong European ties is a port city located on the southern shore of the Rio de la Plata bordering Uruguay. Situated on the southeastern coast of South America, Buenos Aires is the continents third largest metropolitan area. Located in the Pampas Region of Argentina,

For more information and destinations in Argentina check out Beachcomber Pete Travel Adventures Argentina

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Cusco, Capital of the Inca Empire

Street in front of Hotel Los Andes de AmericaWe made it to Cusco Peru, the capital of the Inca empire. As our driver took us from the airport to the hotel he was explaining  to us several of the attractions that were not to be missed while visiting Cusco, a typical looking Spanish town, the difference I noticed was the city was cleaner looking than most I have been too.

As we made our way through narrow cobblestone streets I was admiring the architecture of the buildings, very Spanish Colonial, when the driver came to a stop on one of these narrow streets and announced that we were at our hotel, I looked around, and there almost hidden was the entrance to our hotel. Now I should mentioned that before we left Lima we had looked on the Internet for Hotels in Cusco, my wife and son had picked one out, actually a Best Western, my first thought was I did not want to stay at an American Hotel chain, yet with our mishap in Lima and my wife ready to head back to the States, I figured I could suck it up and go with the flow to keep the trip going.

Lobby Courtyard Los Andes de America, Cusco PeruBoy was I surprised, The hotel might have been part of the Best Western Chain, but the hotel did not look like any that I had seen before from the chain. As we entered the Los Andes de America Hotel I was shocked to find the kind of hotel I was wanting in this colonial town. We were greeted right away by the friendly staff and asked to take a seat in the courtyard/lobby, with a smile on my face as I took in the surroundings, we were next offered cups of coco tea.

Up till the moment that we were offered the coco tea, for the altitude, I had totally forgotten about the altitude of Cusco, some 10,800 feet, not that I was expecting it to be a problem with as many times that I had flown into La Paz, Bolivia, but I think my wife had not even thought about the altitude. I think she was still occupied by the incident in Lima that she totally forgot about everything she had read about problems with the altitude in Cusco. I believe if you think about the altitude you are going to have problem, where if you Coco Tea Cusco Perudon't you will be ok. Now I am not saying go all out and exert yourself because you can or will run into problems.

Checked into the hotel, and within 15 minutes we were out the door to explore Cusco. First stop a half block from the hotel we found a sidewalk cafe overlooking Plaza Regocijo. What to eat? Well when in Rome! Ok, we are in Cusco, start out with a Pisco Sour, the national drink of Peru, for eats, and being me, I chose the Alpaca with salad. My wife and son were not as adventures as me when it comes to local cuisine.

Plaza Regocijo (Happy Park) Cusco PeruI could have just sat there the rest of the day, watching the people, enjoying the park and drinking Pisco Sours, yet we had places to see and explore in Cusco.

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Lima to Cusco, In Search of Ancient Gods

If you are headed to Cusco, most likely you will be traveling from Lima, now there are other cities that travelers arrive to Cusco from, yet Lima is the major entry point into Peru. Unless you want to make the 22 hour trip from Lima to Cusco by bus or auto you will be traveling from Jorge Chavez International Airport.

Arriving at the airport at 10.00 am we proceeded to the LAN Peru ticket counter, LAN Peru is not the only airline flying to Cusco, yet they have the most frequency and this is the airline we had our standby ticket on.

Checking in we were told that our suitcases would have to be checked in, LAN Peru has a weight limit of 8 Kilos (17 pounds) that is allowed in the cabin, basically a purse or small backpack. As the agent was checking us in for the 10:30 am flight and talking to us, the flight closed for additional passengers, no problem she told us the next flight was at 10:50 am. LAN Peru operates flights to Cusco almost every 15 to 20 minutes during the morning hours and every hour in the afternoons.

Next, off to the gate, passing through the new food court, security and shops that Jorge Chavez International has to offer we made it to our flight. Door closed at exactly 10:50 am, only 50 minutes after we had arrived to the airport. It seems LAN Peru airlines has got this down to a science as they are moving a lot of people between Lima and Cusco, basically a air shuttle.

Rolling Hills Peruvin AndesTaking off to the south we were given small glimpses of the city of Lima and the coastline peaking through the early morning fog that Lima is known for. Next it was a turn inland as we started the climb to make the ascent into the Peruvian Andes and the city of Cusco at 10,860 feet . During the climb we only got an occasional view of snow covered mountain peaks through the clouds covering the mountains, The 45 minute flight from the Lima to Cusco went quick, yet the flight attendants still were able to do a beverage and snack service, you don’t see that in the States any more.

Popping out of the clouds we were greeted with the sight of fantastic mountain peaks and rolling hills of the Peruvian Andes. As the airplane made the descent into the valley that is home to Cusco and the Alejandro Velesco Aste International Airport, we had a excellent view of the city on the left side of the plane, to the right it seemed you could almost reach out and touch the mountains, a 180 degree turn at the one end of the valley lined us up with our landing at he airport.

Cusco Airport Peru Baggage Area Entering the luggage and arrival area of the airport, you will find numerous hotel desks as well as tour operators for those of you who have not made plans for you stay or adventure in the Cusco and Machu Picchu area.

Outside the terminal we found plenty of taxis on hand, we chose one, or maybe he chose us, told us the name of the hotel and off we went. Introduced ourselves and stuck up a good conversation with our driver Isaac. In the 15 minute drive through the city and to the hotel the driver was very friendly and informative. He was telling us about everything we wanted to see in Cusco, the all day tours to the Sacred Valley that were offered, we could go via a tour group, about 30 people and $90 for the 3 of us, or a private tour with him for $130 with him including lunch.

By the time we arrived at the hotel  I decided to take the driver up on his offer of an all day tour for the next day of the Sacred Valley. We made arrangements and said our good byes till tomorrow.

Next exploring Cusco

 

 

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Lima Peru, Next Stop on the way to Ancient Gods

 

Jorge Chavez International Airport Lima PeruAn uneventful 5 ½ hour flight from Miami to Lima saw us arriving at Jorge Chavez International Airport.
A big change since my last time into Lima, about 8 years ago, today the airport has numerous jet bridges, many food courts , restaurants, bars and café’s, just about what you would expect to see back in the States.

Cleared customs in record time, and upon exciting the immigration area we found our taxi driver that the Hotel had sent for us. Off we went for a short night in Lima before we headed to Cusco the next morning.
The taxi was a little small and would only hold 2 suitcases in the trunk and the 3rd went between my wife and son in the rear, myself up front.

I had a lively conversation with the driver as I caught up with all the changes in Peru over the last 8 years, I had flown well over 50 flights over the years to Lima and have spent sometime getting to know the city. Friday night in Lima saw quite a bit of traffic on the road, as we neared the area of the hotel the driver took some smaller roads to avoid the traffic.

Bam, sound of breaking glass, screaming from the back seat, commotion, as I turned I saw that someone had broken the car window on my wife side of the car, a man was reaching in trying to grab a carryall bag my wife had on her lap. I call it her grandma bag, nothing really of value, except cosmetics, a IPOD and contact lens stuff. My wife now shaken had had her arms woven through the straps, my son reached over and grab the bag with one hand and was punching the thief, I from the front seat had gotten a hold of the bag. The thief ended up giving up, an ran off empty handed.

Arriving at the hotel 5 minutes later , shaken and scared we found that all three of us had been cut from the glass of the window, nothing serious, but enough to add to the tension and fright.

The hotel was nice, just one block from the main square, the rooms were very nice, clean and comfortable, not bad for $64.00 a night. A little noisy from street traffic and being a Friday night, an our encounter with the street thief we saw very little sleep that night.

Talking it over in the morning at breakfast, we realized we had let our guard down, Lima was a major Latin America city, as with any major city there is going to be crime, I think our first mistake was getting into such a small car where we were restricted in movement, second I was talking with the driver , not paying attention to the surrounding area I had let him go down a smaller side street, third, my wife should not have had the bag sitting on her lap, even though there was nothing of value, it should not have been in plain sight from the street. I had thought maybe her passport was in that bag, now knowing there really was nothing of value, we should not have fought off the intruder, we should have let him taken the bag since the possibility of him having a gun and us fighting him off could have ended the situation differently.

Myself being robed over the last 20 some years in place like Sao Paulo, Buenos Aires and New York, I should have not let my guard down, I should have been a little more aware of our environment and the surrounding area as we were traveling out of our comfort zone.

On the ride back to the airport, we arranged for a van taxi which only added $10.00 dollars to the fare, yet gave us a much more comfortable ride, we were not restricted in our movement and sitting higher, it was not possible for people to look right in and see what we had. The ride back to the airport went uneventful.

Next , Lima to Cusco.

 

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In Search of Ancient Gods

Eleven days off, the questions start, where should we go?, what should our next adventure be? My last foray to Stonehenge getting me excited about ancient and mystical ruins, a trip to Costa Rica last month getting my fill of warm weather and beaches, I thought about a trip down south, way down south. A great little adventure that I have thought about for years and was just sitting in the back of my mind was a trip to Machu Picchu, Peru.

So , with the stars starting to align, my 1 week vacation at the end of March, with 4 days off at the beginning of April gave me 11 days to make this trip. My wife and son having spring break at the same time this year as my days off gave them the opportunity to make this trip with me, I guess you could call it a family trip, yet we had to sacrifice our daughter. Yeah sacrifice, that’s a good word that  goes  with searching for ancient Gods, a 21 year old, a junior at Florida State University in Tallahassee and only 2 weeks left before final exams, it was not possible for her to join us. You know, responsibilities, sacrafices.

As with most of my trips or adventures, I really did not start looking at heading to Machu Picchu until 1 week ago, I mean if I only needed a week and a half to plan my bike trip across America, why would we need more time to plan a trip to Machu Picchu, Peru.

Watching the loads out of Miami to Lima I knew it was going to be tight going standby, Peru seems to be a very popular destination for travelers and tourist alike.

Well when I mention that the stars started to align, I was not thinking that there was going to be a major fire at the Miami Airport fuel farm. Luckily nobody was hurt, yet the fire totally threw American Airlines Miami flight operations into a tailspin. Losing the capability of pumping fuel from the ground, American had to resort to fueling planes from trucks, this in turn cut American flight schedule by 60% do to the length of time it would require to fuel the planes.

Many flights canceled, meant many passengers did not make it into Miami, a bum rap for passengers, a bonanza for flying standby, all of a sudden our trip that was going to be full now had almost 60 empty seats. Having to drive from Orlando to Miami was the only draw back, since the days flights had been canceled.

Knowing that we were getting on the flight, next up was a quick check on the internet for a hotel room in Lima, plan was one night in Lima and then onward to Cuzco. Finding a couple of hotels on the internet, out with the computer, start up Skype and 5 minutes later had a room waiting for us in Lima. Told it was a mid range hotel, $54.00 we will have to see, hey it’s an adventure.

So with the stars falling farther in line, we head south to South America and Peru. Miami to Lima , 5 ½ hour flight gave us time to think about the next day, the next part of the adventure of searching for ancient gods.

Related Articles

In Search of Ancient Gods

Lima Peru, Next Stop on way to Ancient Gods

Lima to Cusco, In Search of Ancient Gods

Peru, Travel Guide

Cusco Travel Guide

Aquas Calientes Travel Guide

Machu Picchu Travel Guide

 

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Hang Gliding Rio de Janeiro

You ever wake up in the morning thinking about jumping off a cliff? No I am not talking about doing something stupid, nor should I say taking one’s life. I mean don’t you have some days that you wake up, still lying there in bed, thinking, today I want to do something different, something most people would not dream about doing. Whether they just don’t think about it, or maybe they do think about it and it does not appeal to them. Fear, could be the main reason. Fear of the unknown.

So on this one day a while back, I was  awaken with the sun streaming thru the window, full force, since many times I don’t bother closing the curtains, my thinking is I will miss out on the day if I have the room dark and sleep late, one of the reasons I am an early riser.

Pete getting ready to go Hang Gliding Rio de JaneiroEarly morning sunshine filling the room, laying there in bed trying to get my bearings, what day is it, where am I at. OK, I remember I am not at home, it’s coming back to me, just flew the all-nighter from Miami to Rio de Janeiro the day before, hung out most of the day yesterday by the pool sleeping and getting some rays. In between waking up, enjoying the view of the Atlantic Ocean crashing below the cliffs of the hotel, I had noticed the hang gliders coming off the mountain behind the hotels lining the beach.

I think to myself, one day I would like to do that. Well, today is that day, as I lay in bed, I say to myself, what a perfect day to jump of a cliff. I need an adrenalin rush today.

Head downstairs, talk to the concierge and within 10 minutes I have talked to Paulo Celani with “Just Fly” and setup a hang glider flight for later that afternoon. With an on time pickup at the hotel we made our way into and then up the mountain of Tijuca Forest National Park, largest urban rainforest located right in Rio de Janeiro.
Reaching the takeoff spot, called Pedra Bonita Ramp, we were introduced to our 2 glider pilots, one for me and one for Mike my copilot, copilot being my real copilot from our flight from Miami to Rio. We were placed in our harness and given instructions on how we would be making the tandem flight. A couple of practice runs were done to make sure we understood. The plan was for my hang glider pilot and me would go first with Mike and his pilot to follow afterward us.

A magnificent view from the ramp at 1700 feet up the mountain in Tijuca National Park, gave us a spectacular view of Sao Conrado Beach, or as the locals calls it “Pepino Beach”.
About a 15 minute wait was given for the wind to pick up, enough time to get a little antsy, or really just enough time to have second thoughts about what we were ready to do.
All of a sudden the Glider pilots start talking in rapid Portuguese, next thing Mike and his pilot were up and running down the ramp, so much for me going first. Next, almost as fast, we were off and running and next thing I knew we were airborne. It’s that first minute that really get the heart pumping, the adrenalin rush and then it settles in that all is fine.

Gliding over the forest and then making the flight above the beach gave us some unbelievable views of Rio de Janeiro, the coast line and that of Tijuca National Park. After almost a 30 minute flight, which seemed shorter since I was enjoying it so much, we made our way to a perfect landing on Pepino Beach.
From pickup at the hotel, the instruction, the flight and then the ride back to the hotel which was all included in the $160 price we spent about 3 hours doing this adventure. Well worth jumping off a cliff for. Hey, just being able to say I went Hang Gliding in Rio de Janeiro was worth it.

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Puerto Madera Buenos Aires Argentina

Puenta de la Mujer, Puerto Madera, Buenos Aires Argentina

Puenta de la Mujer, Puerto Madera, Buenos Aires Argentina

Buenos Aires, meaning good air, is the largest city in Argentina and also serves as the capital of the country. Buenos Aires a high energy city with strong European ties is a port city located on the southern shore of the Rio de la Plata bordering Uruguay. Situated on the southeastern coast of South America, Buenos Aires is the continents third largest metropolitan area. Located in the Pampas Region of Argentina, Buenos Aires is geographically bordered by the Rio de la Plata to the east northeast, by the river Riachuelo to the southeast and Avenida General Paz separating the city from the Province of Buenos Aires to the west.
Explore more of Buenos Aires Argentina

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