Recently in places Category

On this day 50 years ago I entered this world on a night that was so stormy in Vancouver that electricity was knocked out through much of the city and phone lines were down in North Vancouver. It was in the very early hours at Lions Gate Hospital, so I'm told, that my mother delivered me. Truthfully, she's the person who deserves the congrats not me, and her and my Dad deserve a great many thanks for encouraging me to participate in sports. As a child I was taught to ski by my second birthday and since my parents were ski instructors at Mt. Baker in Washington State, I grew up "ski racing crazy", so it was especially enjoyable for me to watch the various skiing events taking place on the slopes where I used to race.

To say that I'm thankful for the 50 years of life (btw: I'm 49 years old today) is grossly understated. I've enjoyed the most marvelous lifestyle so far and it's about to get even better. What a blessing to have spent so many days every winter, for the first half of my life, up in the mountain pursuing my own gold medals. Sure I've had my fair share of bad days too, everyone has got to, or we'd never recognize the good one's but all things considered I'm content with my lot in life, I like who I've become and don't regret the decisions I've made, although on blazing hot days in Brazil (like today) I sometimes miss the snow-covered mountains of British Columbia.

Love is the key to a good life. Luck and love may have something to do with my own level of happiness but just like the famous quote: "The harder I work, the luckier I get" (either Gary Player or Samuel Goldwyn said that) when applied to my life, relates to the understanding that the more I learn to love life and the people in it, I luckier I get with love in return. In case you're wondering; I think I've been very, very lucky in love and life and consider myself very fortunate just to have been born and raised in Canada.

Vancouver Winter Olympics, from my perspective, as seen from the comfort of my home in Brazil, exemplifies everything that is wonderful and decent about Western Canada for the manifestation of the Olympic spirit. Peace on earth and goodwill towards mankind and may the best competitor win! Let the world bear witness that there is only one love, no-matter how many interpretations and expressions of beauty there may be for athletic perfection, in the end it's all about harmony and forgetting our differences to work together for the common good of sport, to make something bigger and better than the sum total of all our parts and purposes. The people of British Columbia and the City of Vancouver have done an excellent job hosting the Winter Olympics and made us proud to be Canadian, even if we don't win enough Gold medals.

The Redneck Riviera earns it's nick name honestly and in my opinion it's the Carolina Redneck's that make this fabulous beach town so great. Having lived in South Florida for 12 years and only visited Myrtle Beach a couple of times, mostly just a drive-by kind of thing, I was under the impression that the people and the place would be more like Ft. Lauderdale, which can be described as a sunny place filled with shady people, but alas I was pleasantly surprised to learn that the two beach towns have very few similarities.

Click on the photo for a larger picture.

CAP Euro: Barcelona is an exciting, interactive 4 day event taking place on the 4th, 5th, 6th & 7th October immediately following EIG the leading European iGaming trade event. CAP Euro is specifically designed to bring together the top affiliate minds in the internet gaming industry through intense networking and education, and best of all it is completely free of charge for all affiliates.

We watch the Carnival on TV and follow the scoring and commentary like it were big league sports, the entire country talks about the competition and each day there are highlights on TV. The dancing keeps on going each night until Fat Tuesday (today). Then tomorrow the judges scores will be revealed to the huge and very anxious crowds, as they wait with their 4,000+ team members to know if they won. The winning team dances once more, down the 1 hour long Sambadrome to the roaring crowds in Rio de Janeiro.

Clube Paineiras do Morumby

In June of 2006, almost the middle of winter here in Brazil, I brought a digital camera to my health club and captured some images of the facility and surrounding vistas. At least 3 days per week I drive for 15 minutes (each way) to visit this awesome recreational resource. On the weekends and holidays during the summer the pool areas are busy with people but there's so much space that you can always find a lounge chair, tennis court, or enjoy the other great amenities.

I tend to get so caught-up in my day to day life that I often forget that I'm living in Brazil. This didn't happen in the beginning, I remember waking up during the first few weeks here and thinking; wow! I'm in Brazil. Now after four years in this wonderful place I have to remind myself not to become complacent, or let my guard down.

In the city of Sao Paulo there are purported to be over 3,000 restaurants and featuring foods of every ethnicity you'd find in any world-class city. Certainly the beef is famous and many people have heard of churrasco (a Brazilian counterpart of the barbecue), especially since Brazilian restaurants are now popular throughout the world. What you may not have heard about is the cuisine of Minas Gerais, this Southeastern region is the industrial heart of Brazil, and is home to several distinctive cooking styles.

The more that you read the more things you will know, the more that you learn the more places you'll go.
~ Dr. Seuss

The world's record for most surfers riding the same wave simultaneously is 42 and was set at Rico's Point, Macumba Beach, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on the 18th of November 2005.

Back in my office, sitting at my desk but my mind and spirit are still on the Costa da Sul (South Coast) of Rio de Janeiro and the coolest beach, Macumba Beach (future articles).

Meanwhile, back in Sao Paulo the weather is overcast and still wet outside from the rain last night, all night, so this morning I've got my big double-wide windows open wide to let in the fresh air and the sounds of the giant city as it prepares for the big party tonight.