Why do people travel? Personally, I travel to see different landscapes, absorb local culture, photograph natural phenomena, hike beautiful mountains, and eat exotic foreign food. I think many people are in the same boat. Recently, both here in Brazil, and on vacation in Bolivia, I was introduced to [...]
Author Archive
World Urban Forum: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Between March 22 and 26, the city of Rio de Janeiro will host the 5th edition of the World Urban Forum (WUF), sponsored by the United Nations agency for human settlements, UN-Habitat. It is the first time this event will be held in Latin America. A record number of people from over 170 countries hav[...]
Vacation, All I Ever Wanted
In the last few weeks or so, I’ve gotten a lot of inquiries from people traveling to Brazil. I love giving travel advice! Once I’ve traveled to a city, I’ve been there, done that, and eaten everything. So I’m happy to answer pertinent questions. However, I recently received an e-mail saying,[...]
My City of Ruins
Sometimes in Rio, I feel like I’m on the cusp of something great. The city is making a huge effort to improve in the face of its current limelight. Consultants are being brought in to aid security. Unidade de Polícia Pacificadoras (UPPs) are being established to reduce the number of violent death[...]
Community Theater: Nós do Morro
Last night I went to the opening night of a play called “The Inspector General” at Nós do Morro, a community theater company located in Favela Vidigal overlooking Ipanema beach. Nós do Morro was conceptualized in 1986 as a cultural movement which strove to harvest the artistic talent o[...]
You Down with UPP (Yeah you know me)
According to a new statistic revealed last Tuesday by the New York-based Human Rights Watch, more than 11,000 people have died at the hands of authorities in Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo since 2003. A substantial portion of this number is derived from the off-duty or “extrajudicial” kil[...]
Rio Secures Giuliani for Security
Brazilian officials have recently announced that former Mayor of New York City, Rudy Giuliani, has accepted a long-term position as a security consultant leading up to the World Cup in 2012 and the Olympics Games in 2016. Rio’s current plans to fight crime, including the new initiative Choque [...]
