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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.

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The Marvelous City, as they call it, was all of that and more. We stayed in a nice hotel on the end of Copacabana, every day we explored new beaches and every night we discovered new restaurants. This was my third trip to Rio so I'm starting to get to know the lay of the land now, which is very challenging because of the position of the mountains that rise directly out of the Atlantic like giant pointed knobs, often rock faced on the steep sides or otherwise covered in jungle-like vegetation. The beaches are broad and curved with a cool Atlantic swell pounding in to relieve the masses of sun worshipers who flock here to enjoy the summer heat from all parts of the globe.

To be continued...

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.

The past year has been one of the greatest of my life. The growth on personal, strategic and economic fronts has been exceptional. Maybe it was all the people and all the collective work from the past that has propelled Silicon Palms to where it is now, but I say that the past 12 months have been amongst the most significant in my career, it's been a breakthrough.

Please read my Season's Greetings

My family's home in Canada is some 200 miles east of Vancouver, about half-way between the Rocky Mountains and the Pacific Ocean, on the shore of a magnificent lake in a magical valley, both sharing the Native Indian name "Okanagan". Every summer I return to the place of my youth, both literally and figuratively, as I dedicate as much time as I'm able towards rest, relaxation, and recreation, prior to my annual pilgrimage to Las Vegas to attend the Casino Affiliate Conference.

SAO PAULO, Brazil - A grouping of granite blocks along a grassy Amazon hilltop may be the vestiges of a centuries-old astronomical observatory — a find archaeologists say indicates early rainforest inhabitants were more sophisticated than previously believed. On the shortest day of the year — Dec. 21 — the shadow of one of the blocks disappears when the sun is directly above it.

Continue reading Tropical Stonehenge

Living abroad for the better half of my life makes me a true Ex-patriot (or expat) but that doesn't mean I'm without a homeland. On the contrary, I love Canada to a degree that no-man should possibly feel towards a place, or area of land (dirt and trees). Most of my life away from Canada has been in seeking places with better characteristics, then learning what is it that makes a homeland special. Certainly Brasil has everything and more a person could ever dream of, and Miami's got the best weather with the most modern infrastructure in the world, but if you've ever known Vancouver, and lived in British Columbia, then you'll know why it's easy to be a Canuck.