Chronicles of On The Road Travel

The Girl From Ipanema

In 1962 Heloisa Eneida Menezes Paes Pinto caused a stir in Brazil's famous cosmopolitan beach town,  leading to  Vinicious de Moraes'  heartfelt poem, which became known around the world as The Girl From Ipanema.

This recent article in the SF Chronicle describes the current-day Garota de Ipanema, who is still living up to her name at 63 years of age. If you visit Rio de Janeiro, you can stop by the bar where Vinicious de Moaraes first laid eyes on his inspiration. For generations, Garota de Ipanema has attracted hardcore Cariocas of all ages as well as enchanting tourists. People go there for their excellent draft beer, and somehow forget that its a restaurant. If you do go, try the “picanha na pedra” (literally, meat on the rock). Don’t be frightened when the waiter brings you the “plate”, a steaming hot rock with melted butter and bite-size pieces of raw picanha (meat) but don’t try going carpaccio on this dish or you’ll be asked to leave.

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Idol Brings A Ray of Hope for Guatemala

On September 9th there were few surprises in Guatemala. The two candidates that had been leading the polls since the beginning of the electoral campaigns, Alvaro Colom and Otto Perez Molina, didn’t get enough votes to declare victory and will go on to a second electoral round to be held on November 4th. Voters will now have to choose between, what the 3rd runner-up called two terminal diseases, referring to Alvaro Colom’s suspected links with the drug trade and Otto Perez Molina’s military status and involvement during Guatemala’s civil war. Although expectations for the next presidential term are low there is great hope that some of the problems plaguing the country like violence, poverty and lack of education will see an improvement in the future.

On the other hand, a seemingly trivial event like Latin American Idol has managed to bring more hope and pride to Guatemala than any political party: Guatemalan contestant Carlos Pena was declared winner in the Latin American version of Idol held in Argentina last Thursday. On Monday October 1st he was received by thousands of fans, as well as President Oscar Berger and Guatemala City’s mayor Alvaro Arzu. Carlos Pena has quickly become a symbol of hope and hard work and many consider him an inspiration.

This article was posted by Yvonne Faass, our editor in Guatemala.

Francis Ford Coppola's Buenos Aires Script Scooped!

We wrote earlier this year about Tetro, the Francis Ford Coppola production which has been taking Buenos Aires' Palermo neighborhood to a new height of stardom. It seems that the film has fallen victim to Buenos Aires' crime scene. The Hollywood Reporter tells of a recent break in at the offices of Coppola's production company, which is housed in a big old house in Palermo. Computers, cameras and Coppola's personal computer (containing screenplay drafts for Tetro) were taken by the armed intruders. Thankfully, a representative says that the script was saved in other places, so we won't have to wait too much longer to see Matt Dillon in action as an Argentine artist of Italian descent.

Local Highlights of Rio de Janeiro

Geobeats, one of our favorite travel video websites, recently featured the Parque da Catacumba in Rio de Janeiro, on its blog. This tropical park offers a fantastic view of the city as well as a lovely display of sculptures. As the author points out, it is known for having once been a favela,  but is also one of the city's best kept secrets.

A few other secrets that we've let out of the bag include Parrot's Beak, an urban hike, and Parque Lage, a breathtaking mansion and gardens in the shadow of Corcovado Mountain.

For those who are planning a truly special moment, you might want to check out a few of our suggestions for the best place in Rio to pop the big question.

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Shakira To The Rescue

Columbian pop singer Shakira has announced that she will contribute $40 million to help her native Latin America recover from recent natural disasters. Many of you have closely followed the aftermath of the recent earthquakes in Peru and the subsequent damage caused by Hurricane Felix in Nicaragua. The funds will come from the foundation she co-founded, the Latin America for Solidarity Foundation (ALAS), with fellow Columbian Gabriel Garcia Marquez, the nobel prize winning author.

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