Sao Paulo´s public transit system

As I mentioned before, when in Sao paulo y stay in the Serra da Cantareira area to avoid the asphyxiating mega city of Sao Paulo, nevertheless I always have to go there at least once. This time I tried the public transport, using the subway and bus system.

I have to say that I´m a big fan of the subway when in a big city, unless you are in the historical part of Rome or Paris, in which case I rather walk. But in any other huge city, the best way to avoid endless traffic jams is to move by subway.

To make it to the subway I had to take these huge accordion buses, that they now use in Sao Paulo. First surprise was the cost. Being used to very cheap bus fares in South America, the bus fare was R3.50, that is 1.20 US which is´nt outrageous, but then there is no transfer, so when I got to the subway I had to pay again, so in the end it cost me the same as in Toronto or New York, the quality of the buses and subway being more or less the same.
Then the bus part was fast when it moved on the exclusive bus lane, but afterwards it got into some endless windy roads that made a 10 click ride into more than an hour long.
People in Brazil are very friendly too and are very helpful when you loose your bearings.

From Montevideo to sao Paulo ... - Rafting at Brotas Sao Paulo state

"50 clicks  N.E from the mega city of Sao Paulo, Brazil is a small colonial town called Brotas, where people normally go to visit its beautiful colonial palaces, remnant of a by gone era of a coffee plantation elite, but also to do water sports at the Jacaré Pepirá River, that runs very close to the town,



One of the fun things to do is "Water rafting" , provided you gather a large enough group to fill a raft. I went with the "Vaca Nautica° operators, right in downtown Brotas. We did 15km stretch an hour and a half. i was very satisfied with the cost benefit, being about 30 bucks a person all inclusive, that is gear ,transportation and even a post trip snack.

From Montevideo to Sao Paulo by land again - Segredos do Mar

I had the chance to drive through the southern part of Brazil by land again and this time I´ve accidentally bumped into this lovely seaside restaurant in Camboriu, called segredos do mar,or secrets of the sea.

Located at Rua 1102, 77, Ilhota, Itapema - Balneário Camboriú, you probably will not find it unless you ask. I was going on the highway whe n we decided to find some quick dinner, and we turned into s side road that lead straight to the ocean, and there it was, very well located with a deck facing the ocean. I owe you the photos of the ocean since it was nighttime and I was kinda tired, so I used the i-pad instead.

Anyway the food was great, we ordered a selection of breaded seafood that was delicious, and the Price was reasonable for its very fancy location.

Sea Food paradise

One of my strict travel rules is not to eat fish or seafood unless its really fresh, and also to eat seafood and fish when at seaside cities, specially in the southern Atlantic or Pacific where the sea food tends to be bigger and tastier.






















It came to my knowledge that José Ignacio has one of the 10 best restaurants to eat seafood worldwide, according to T& L magazine. Ofcourse that comes with a price tag attached that exceeds my modest travel budget, and also my aversion to expensive restaurants.
So come lunch time I asked around and was referred to a discreet restaurant called "La Farola", in Jose Ignacio, BTW, the town is 10 by ten blocks , so you´ll find it.
















The place is owned and run by people born and raised "in Town", it began as a grocery store, with a cafe attached and became a full fledged restaurant.
I ordered the "Tallarines con mariscos" which is spaghetti with seafood, that is best had with white wine, but I had to condescend to my company and share a beer.

The Lighthouse at Jose Ignacio

José ignacio is a very exclusive resort town located 20 minutes away from Punta del Este. If you are able to stay here it means you are pretty wealthy, or maybe you will just visit like myself.
Its lighthouse is more interesting than the one in Punta, cuz its located right smack on the beach, and besides that and the beach itself, there isn´t much else to see.
















nevertheless it has some very nice panoramas and a picturesque fishermen's cove. An ideal place to meditate and relax

From the past - lima´s doors and windows

Today I give you a selection of Doors and windows found in the very colonial city of Lima, Peru.
See the Pdf here

In Passing snapshot - Sunset at the Port

Photographers are atracted to sunsets like mice to peanut butter, yeah maybe in france they like cheese...Anyway I would like to share a pic thet I took close to the montevideo port, with the help of "the photographers ephemeris" an app that helps you pinpoint the sunrises and sunsets exact vantage point. which comes very handy when you are around bays and peninsulas.