OK... its been a long time since my last post, to be exact, it's been two years. Here is the explanation in a nutshell: MBA, bought a house, changed job titles a few times, and had a baby... those events have been my main focus during the past two years, besides a busy work schedule. Now that I'm done with my MBA (Go Waves! Pepperdine!) and my daughter who is now 7 months old, sleeps through the night, I can start blogging again. Since I am at the Domodedovo Moscow airport waiting for my flight, I was going to write a post about Moscow but I realized I already have one written (scroll down and you will find it). So today I will just say hello to you and promise you that the two year hiatus will not happen again, and God willing I will be able to write about new destinations at least a few times during 2013. Meanwhile, sit back, relax and check out some of my older posts below. They are pretty good. Cheers to all of you! Gui

Discovery Coast, Bahia, Brazil

Beach in Trancoso

I have traveled the entire world, seen most of the major sights out there to be seen, but there is one place I knew very little. That place is the country I was born and lived most of my life in, Brazil. I always felt ashamed of not knowing more about my country, so last time my wife and I went to Brazil, I decided to explore a bit.

We took a flight from São Paulo to Porto Seguro. We flew with TAM airlines, which offered drinks, food, headphones and in-flight entertainment in coach on an hour long flight. This would be unheard of in any US airline. We arrived at the Porto Seguro pocket sized airport.

Porto Seguro was the first city to be established in Brazil in the year 1500. That was the year when the Portuguese discovered Brazil and arrived to this gorgeous coast to find a rich and beautiful land.


Happy sloth hanging out in Bahia

Porto Seguro is a located in Bahia, which is a very unique state, known for its culture, food and laid back attitude of its people. Bahia is one of those places that if you order a fish, there is a chance your waiter will jump on a canoe to go catch it for you. No rush here. Porto Seguro makes part of the Discovery coast, which is absolutely gorgeous. The beaches have golden sand, the ocean is turquoise green, and the sky is as blue as it gets.




Our bungalow at the "pousada" in Trancoso


We stayed in a bed and breakfast, know in Portuguese as “pousada”. It was located in Trancoso which is about an hour south of Porto Seguro. Trancoso is where Gisele Bundchen and other famous Brazilians vacation, not because of 5 star hotels, but because of its natural beauty and uniqueness. Trancoso is a little piece of paradise. The central square is covered in grass where one can sit under majestic trees and drink coconut water out of the actual coconut. From afar you see a 500 Year old church that tells you that little has changed in this town in the past 5 centuries. You can almost see the Portuguese sailors arriving in their wooden vessels.


"downtown" Trancoso



Church



Path that leads to the Rio Verde beach


Rio Verde river where you can wash from the salt water

Trancoso has great beaches that can be easily accessed on foot. On the beach you will find “barracas” which are foot-on-the-sand restaurants that offer the local fare. The “carne de sol” is a must try. It is a Brazilian salty beef jerky that is cooked with onions and is a perfect appetizer with beer. The “bobó de camarão” a kind of shrimp stew, is also very delicious and local.


Garbage collector in Trancoso


Forty minutes south of Trancoso is one of Brazil’s most beautiful beaches, Praia do Espelho. It is absolutely breathtaking and worth visiting.


Praia do Espelho beach

Another forty minutes south (on dirt roads) is an unbelievable place called Caraivas. There are no cars, no cell phone reception and only recently has electricity arrived to this utopia. The streets are made of fluffy sand, and the locals seem to just see life go by while they chat and enjoy the sea breeze. You will have to park your car on one side of the river bank and take a canoe to Caraivas.


Canoe that takes you to Caraivas


Caraivas River


It’s hard to believe there are places like that still around. Where life is so simple.


Caraivas central sqaure


No cars here!


Streets of Caraivas

On out last day we drove back to Porto Seguro to visit the first city of Brazil, which is now an area inside Porto Seguro. It is surreal to see the original houses and buildings from 500 years ago still standing. People actually live in them today, but these houses are protected by the federal government and cannot be changed.


500 year old village of Porto Seguro

This trip taught me a little more about my country. I was able to see that there is so much more than what I thought to be in Brazil. It made me want to visit more places around this gigantic country, which of course I will write about on my blog when I do.


Souvenirs

Budapest jóreggélt!

The Parliament seen from the hills of Budapest


My family migrated from Hungary to Brazil in the early 1900’s. I grew up with my parents speaking Hungarian when they wanted to communicate secretively, and most of my meals as a child included some sort of Hungarian treat. However, since I never had a chance to visit Hungary, I was always intrigued about what it might be like in that distant land where my family came from. Well, this year I had the joy of visiting Budapest with my wife, and it was a pleasure.



Chain Bridge connects Buda and Pest. Yes, they are two cities in one!




the Danube river that runs through Budapest


We had the luck of arriving in Budapest during St. Stephen day, which is their equivalent to a 4th of July. During St. Stephen’s Day, the Hills of Buda (the hilly side of Budapest) hosts the St. Stephen festival, which is probably one of the largest street festivals in existence. My wife and I started walking the festival at noon, and finished with dinner! Handcrafts, food, beer, pastries and music, and it’s all authentic, no made in China crap.






St. Stephen's Festival


Budapest is gorgeous, some areas feel like Paris, but most feel like Budapest! It is unique. People are helpful, and the food is very good. It is also the cleanest city I can think of. Maybe the cities in Australia and New Zealand are as clean as Budapest, but I was impressed with how clean that city is, even during a street festival. Paris and Rome can learn from their Hungarian counterpart. I love Paris, but last time I went the streets were filthy. It’s sad but true. Budapest on the other hand is very clean and all seems to be recently restored.



Shot taken from the Chain Bridge, looking towards the Buda Castle


Hungary is a foodie paradise, and it is cheap. A good 4 star meal, with wine and desert will run around 45 dollars a person. For a very nice dinner, go to the Museum Café which has great fois gras and goose confit. For great desert, go to Café Gerbaud and have one of their delicious cakes. Make sure you also try Tokaji desert wine, goluska (Hungarian dumpling) and any pastry filled with poppy seeds, they are divine.



Poppy seed pastry. Poppy seed overdose, delicious.


I highly recommend taking a city tour by bike. It is fun and you will cover much more ground than if you go on foot. It’s also healthier and more fun than staying stuck in a bus. On www.viator.com they sell the bike tours which are cheap.



Bike tour stop at Heroe's Square


If you like history, stop by the Terror museum and the Holocaust museum. If you have to pick one of the two, go to the Terror museum. This is a place to learn about the Nazi and Soviet occupation of Hungary. It is extremely interesting, very well organized, and includes Hollywood like productions.



Terror Museum




Communist/Soviet era occupation monument. The only one left standing in Budapest.

Whenever you travel somewhere and you want to know if the trip was worth it, ask yourself if you would come back one day. Would I go back to Budapest? Definitely yes.

OSAKA!!!

Irasshai masen! You’ll hear all over town, from the cheap ramen shop to a five star restaurant, the Japanese greeting welcomes you to this fun and exciting city, Osaka!




Osaka City View

Osaka is a vibrant city, known for its cuisine. There is a Japanese saying that says: In Tokyo you shop, in Osaka you eat. In every corner there is an eatery, with the freshest fish you have ever eaten. From sushi to tongue twisting okonomiyake, the food is amazing in Osaka.

I have three favorite meals when I go to Osaka. The first one is gyudon, which is a Japanese poor man’s meal. Gyudon restaurants are all over the place, and the two most common chains are Yoshinoya and Matsuya. You can have a meal composed of rice, beef, soup, salad and green tea for around 5 bucks. It’s an unbeatable deal.




Matsuya Gyudon Restaurant

Another favorite are the kaiten sushi restaurants, which is the conveyor belt of happiness that brings you different kinds of sushi and sashimi constantly. All made fresh. These types of restaurants are becoming popular in the US, but going to one in Japan is a great experience.




Kaiten Sushi

When going to Osaka, make sure you visit the pocket restaurants and bars. They are tiny places that usually specialize in one kind of food: sushi, yakitori, okonomiyake, etc. The one in the picture below prepared an Osaka style tempura that was perfect beer food. The cool thing about these places is that you can go hopping from one to another trying different foods.




Pocket Restaurant

If you are on the run in Osaka, make sure you try two great snacks that are very Japanese. Stop by a local convenience store, called konbini in Japanese. There is literally on in every corner. Konbinis sell one of my favorite Japanese foods, omusubis. An omusubi is a triangular rice cake with some sort of filling. I like to get the chicken with mayo and the salmon omusubi. They cost about one dollar and two will fill you up. Cheap, authentic and healthy. Stop by a vending machine on your way out of the konbini and buy some Calpis water, in my opinion the most Japanese of the thousands of soft drinks sold in Japan.





Omusubis inside a Konbini




Vending machines found everywhere in Osaka.

Osaka is filled with great spots to check out. Make sure you go to Shinsaibashi which is their equivalent to New York’s Times square.




Shinsaibashi, Osaka’s Times Square

Shinsaibashi is also a shopping district, with thousands of stores. The streets are covered so you can shop even while it rains. Stop by a Lotteria Burger and have a Japanese version of the Big Mac.




Shinsaibashi shopping district




Lotteria Burger

Another cool thing to do in Osaka is get a hair cut. At The Cut, you can get a cut for 1000 yen, about 10 bucks. The cool thing is that you will have your head vacuumed once the hair dresser is done. Japanese hair dressers are very good and creative, after all, most Japanese have basically the same hair, they need to be creative!




The Cut

If you have time, make sure you stop by Kobe which is a 30 minutes train ride away. Kobe is a gorgeous city, locked between the mountains and the ocean. It reminds me of Santa Barbara, CA. There is a great outlet mall if you want to go shopping, and the best part is the view you will have a view of the Kobe version of the Golden Gate bridge, the Akashi Kaikyo bridge, which is actually longer than it’s San Francisco counterpart.




Kobe




Akashi Kaikyo Bridge

Osaka is one of my favorite cities. It is a great place to do whatever, shop, eat, sightsee, or just walk around the streets and be entertained with the very unique Japanese way of living. Check it out for yourself, you’ll love it.

My second Tango in Buenos Aires

Buenos Aires is the Paris of South America. When it was built, during the heyday of the Argentine republic, the streets were made to mirror Paris. Today, although a little run down due to the current political and economic policies of Mr. and Mrs. Kirschner, Buenos Aires is still a pleasure to visit. From the Airport you can catch a “remis” which is a private taxi, and 30 minutes later you will be dropped off downtown. What a wonderful city, and one of the best parts is that it is cheap! At four pesos to the dolar, you will have a blast!



Paris-like street in Buenos Aires

There are two gorgeous neighborhoods I love to visit, Palermo and Recoleta. If you find a hotel in this area, you will love it. I stayed smack in front of the obelisk in Nueve de Julio Avenue, but I do not recommend this area. It is too hectic. During this last trip i took I had lunch at the Hyatt hotel. Let me tell you, if you have a few extra bucks to spare, eat there. I had one of the best meals of my life, in the gorgeous patio of the palace that is now the Hyatt. What a meal, what a place! I obviously had Argentinean staples: bife de chorizo steak, sweet breads and French fries. The sweet breads were hands down the most delicious dish I had in Buenos Aires. For those who do not know what sweet breads are, it is not bread, it is the thyroid gland of the calf, and if done properly it is unbelievable. In argentine Spanish they are called mollejas. I wish I had a picture of it, but since my Hyatt meal was a business lunch I was trying to be professional. The steak as expected was amazing. Argentine beef is the best there is, no question. Paired with the local variety of wine, Malbec, makes it a heavenly combination.



Bife de Chorizo steak with French fries




Hyatt Buenos Aires



Obelisco

Perfect day in Buenos Aires.

Start your day with a city tour, it is cheap and well worth it. You will visit La Boca, which is the oldest bohemian neighborhood in Buenos Aires. It is home to El Caminito (tourist trap that I like, worth a visit), and the Bombonera stadium home of the Boca Juniors, probably the most popular team in South America since Pelé left Santos. You will see the Casa Rosada (the pink Argentinean White house), the Congress, Obelisk, Puerto Madero, etc. and you will be dropped off for lunch.


Eat a cheap lunch at Palacio de las Papas Fritas for an authentic Argentine meal. They have dozens of them around town. Order the bife de chorizo with papas fritas. Skip the matambre. If you have the opportunity have lunch at the Hyatt. After lunch walk down Calle Florida, but don´t waste too much time there. Catch a cab and go to the Ateneo, which is a gorgeous book store inside what used to be a theater and brush up your Spanish with a book by Jorge Luiz Borges. Then walk down the Avenida Santa Fe for better buys than touristy calle Florida. While you are at it, have a cortadito (mini latte) and a chocolate alfajor with dulce de leche filling. Delish and authentic argentinean.



El Ateneo Bookstore

Go to the Recoleta cemetery for a quick peek at the Perón mausoleum, and eat an empanada at a quick-cab-ride-away restaurant called El Sanjuanino. Great little snack. Make sure you don’t eat too much, you will need room for dinner. Walk out Sanjuanino and find a supermarket to buy wine. Get the Malbec, you won't go wrong with it. Walk around the charming roads of the neighborhood.



Puerto Madero

At night you need to go to Puerto Madero. It’s a great experience. It is a remodeled port with many restaurants to choose from. I recommend inexpensive Estilo Campo, which specializes in parrilla, Argentinean grilled beef. Have the provoleta (photo is on food post below), it is decadent. Have the Bife de Chorizo again! And Mablec again! It’s too good to have it only once a day! A Quilmes beer works well too. You will spend 50 US dollars on a nice dinner for two with wine.

Buenos Aires is a walking city. Walk around and discover great eats. Try the little hole in the wall restaurants. They have very delicious and very inexpensive grilled meats. For breakfast, don't miss the delicious little croissants called medialunas which can be found in any local patisserie. Bring a jar of dulce de leche back home with you. Enjoy what Buenos Aires has to offer!



Hole in the wall restaurant in B.Aires

I have many other suggestions to give; authentic tango show at La Cumparcita, Italian eateries, and so on, but this article is getting too long. Just go to Buenos Aires, I guarantee you will love it.

(Português)


Eu sei que todo mundo já visitou Buenos Aires, mas me atrevo a escrever um pouco do que eu achei da cidade. Dizem que Buenos Aires é a Paris da América do Sul. Quando foi construída, numa época mais gloriosa da República Argentina, as ruas foram feitas pra imitar as de Paris. Hoje, um pouco menos gloriosas e um pouco mais sujas, acho que devido em parte a política do Sr. e Sra. Kirschner, Buenos Aires ainda continua um prazer de visitar. Quando chegar no aeroporto, pegue um “remis” que é um taxi particular, é uma corrida de 30 minutos que te leva ao centro. Que cidade maravilhosa e barata! Pelo menos mais barata que São Paulo.

Dois bairros que eu gosto muito é Palermo e Recoleta. Se você conseguir ficar em algum hotel nesta área vale muito a pena. Eu fiquei no coração da cidade em frente ao obelisco na Avenida Nueve de Julio. O hotel era bom com um ótimo café da manhã, o Cesar’s Park, mas a região não é das melhores, é caótica. Durante a minha viagem eu almocei no Hyatt Buenos Aires que fica no Palácio Dahau. O almoço foi espetacular, uma das melhores refeicões da minha vida. Se você tiver uma graninha a mais sobrando vale a pena passar pelo Hyatt. O restaurante fica num pátio arborisado rodeado de prédios de alto padrão. Que comida e que lugar! Comi os clássicos da culinária portenha: bife de chorizo, mollejas e batata frita. As mollejas foram sem dúvida nenhuma o prato mais delicioso que comi en Buenos Aires, servido com um risotto al dente. Mollejas, para quem não conhece, é a glândula tireóide do boi, que se for bem preparado é muito gostoso. É uma pena que eu não tenha tirado uma foto do prato, estava em um almoço a trabalho e tentei não dar um fora. O Bife de Chorizo como sempre estava uma delícia. Pra mim a carne argentina é uma das melhores que há. Se consumida com um bom Malbec, torna-se uma combinação divina.

Um dia Perfeito em Buenos Aires

Eu sei que a metade da população brasileira já passou por Buenos Aires (valeu CVC!), mas vou dar umas recomendações baseado naquilo que eu gostei. Começe seu dia com um city tour, é barato e vale a pena. Você vai passar por La Boca que é um antigo bairro bohemio onde se encontra El Caminito (armadilha pra turista mas eu gosto desta), e a Bombonera do Boca Juniors. Você vai passar pela Casa Rosada (a versão rosa e argentina da casa branca), o Congresso, o Obelisco, Puerto Madero, etc. e vai acabar lá pela hora do almoço.


Almoço, vamos lá. Coma em um lugar barato, recomendo a rede de restaurantes Palácio de las Papas Fritas que serve os clássicos da culinária argentina. Peça o Bife de Chorizo com “papas infladas” que é uma batata frita diferente. Não peça o matambre. Se tiver a oportunidade almoce no Hyatt. Depois do almoço dê uma voltinha pela Calle Florida mas não perca muito tempo, é uma 25 de Março pra turistas. Pegue um táxi vá para El Ateneo, que é uma bela livraria dentro de um antigo teatro. Aproveite pra praticar seu portunhol com um dos livros de Jorge Luiz Borges. Saia da livraria e ande pela Avenida Santa Fé que na minha opinião é bem melhor que a Florida e tem melhores preços. Se estiver com vontade de dar uma sentada, tome um cortadito e coma um alfajor num dos cafés Havanna que se encontram em todas as esquinas. Eu sei que São Paulo também tem, mas ir pro Havanna em Buenos Aires e pagar a metade do preço que cobram no Havanna em São Paulo, é um prazer.

Depois do Havanna ande ou vá de táxi até o cemitério da Recoleta pra dar uma olhada no túmulo da Evita. Dê uma volta pelo bairro que é muito bonito. Pegue um táxi e coma uma empanada no El Sanjuanino, na minha opinião a melhor empanada que já comi. Não coma muito porque você vai jantar bem a noite. Quando sair do El Sanjuanino procure um supermercado pra comprar umas garrafas de Malbec pra levar devolta pra casa.

De noite vá pro Puerto Madero. É um dos meus lugares favoritos de Buenos Aires. O Puerto Madero é um porto desativado que foi reformado e está cheio de restaurantes pra escolher. Eu recomendo o Estilo Campo que tem bons preços e carnes muito boas. Peça a Provoleta de petisco (a foto está abaixo no meu post de comidas), é de dar água na boca. Coma o Bife de Chorizo de novo! E tome Malbec de novo! São bons demais pra serem consumidos somente uma vez por dia! Se preferir a Quilmes (da Brahma) desce redondo com a carne. Voce vai gastar uns 100 reais pelo jantar pra dois com vinho, e vai sair muito contente.

Buenos Aires é uma cidade para ser caminhada. Ande pela cidade e descubra bons restaurantes. Entre nos que normalmente não entraria, nos moquifos! Eu e a minha esposa encontramos um muito bom que o garçom, sem dentes, escolheu o nosso prato antes que terminássemos de ver o cardápio. Pelo menos a carne que nos trouxe estava saborosa. Estes tipos de restaurante são baratos e servem carne muito boa. No café da manhã coma os croissants argentinos chamados de medialunas que podem ser encontrados no café da manhã de seu hotel ou em qualquer padaria. As padarias argentinas são muito boas. Explore a cidade, tem muito a ser descoberto!


Tenho mais um monte de recomendações pra dar, como ver um show de tango no La Cumparcita, restaurantes italianos, etc. mas este artigo está ficando muito longo. Vá a Buenos Aires que você vai gostar, eu garanto.

Photos

I've been getting a lot of comments about the photos in my articles so I wanted to thank you for the kind words. All photos were taken by me! Actually, most of them with my iPhone. I'm glad you like them.

Gostaria de agradecer os elogios sobre as fotos nos meus artigos. Sou eu quem tiro todas as fotos, a maioria com meu iPhone. Que bom que vocês gostam!

Santiago

Santiago and Buenos Aires, what a wonderful match. Buenos Aires is the Paris of South America, and Santiago in my opinion is the San Francisco. They are my favorite cities of the Southern Cone, I just can't decide which one I like the best. Let's start with the city that lays on the foot of the Mighty Andes, Santiago.



Downtown Santiago


This is my third time to Santiago, and every time I visit I look forward to my next stay. What a gorgeous, organized, modern and cosmopolitan place. Great wine, amazing food, and a certain American-European-Latin mix that is a pleasure to experience. Be ware: it is expensive! Nonetheless, it's worth every cent.


Every time I go I stay at the Vitacura area, which the locals call "Sanhattan", although I think Vitacura looks more like a Dowtown Denver or Charlotte than the Big Apple. In any case, it is a gorgeous area, very safe to walk, amazing restaurants, hotels and you will ask yourself many times "am I in Latin America?" Think again, you're in the Southern Cone, not in Tijuana! It's a world of difference.



Sanhattan





Chileans in Santiago know how to make great South American staples, and they are hard to beat. The best Pisco Sour, Ceviche and (OK, here it comes) one of the best, if not the best Argentinian grilled steaks I have ever had was in Santiago. The wines are delicious, especially the Carmenere variety, found almost exclusively in Chile.

One of my favorites treats in Santiago, besides the exotic and sometimes scary looking underwater creatures, is the Dominó hot dog. It is a Santiago must try on-the-go grub. Dominó is a local chain of inexpensive fast-food restaurant found in many places, including Vitacura. I'll admit it, I'm a fan of mayonnaise and avocado ("palta" in local lingo), so when you put them on tube-shaped pork meat, together with a little hot sauce, it's irresistible. Yum! That's a Dominó hotdog. I think they cost two bucks. Cheap, delicious and local.



Riding the lift on Cerro San Cristobal, view of Sanhattan and the snow capped Andes


If you go to Santiago, it is OK to do the touristy things, they are fun; central market, Concha y Toro vineyards, take the funicular up the Cerro San Cristobal and then the chair lift, walk around Vitacura, go up the other cerro that I forgot the name, and eat seafood in overpriced restaurants (order pico-roco and be spooked by ugly yet tasty critter). Wanna find a good restaurant? Here is the internationally tested rule I use all the time: Is the restaurant full? There is a reason, get inside and eat! Is the Restaurant empty and there is a cheesy waiter trying to lure you in? Be ware, tourist trap and two-week-old shrimp awaits you inside.

Chile is a pleasure yet to be discovered by North Americans. Check it out for yourself. Just make sure you drink a lot of red wine along the way and tell your friends back home that Chilean wine is as good as any Aussie, Napa or even euro-wine.

(Português)


Santiago e Buenos Aires, que combinação perfeita. Buenos Aires é conhecida como a Paris da América do Sul, e Santiago na minha opinião é a São Francisco. Elas são minhas cidades favoritas do Cone-Sul, eu só não consigo decidir qual que eu gosto mais. Vou começar pela cidade que fica aos pés dos majestosos Andes, Santiago do Chile.

Esta é a minha terceira vez em Santiago, e toda vez que venho fico esperando minha próxima visita. Que cidade bonita, organizada, moderna e cosmopolita! O vinho é excelente, a comida é fantástica, e há no ar um certo mix cultural de Estados Unidos-Europa-América Latina que é um prazer de ver. Mas tome cuidado, Santiago é cara (tão quanto São Paulo), no entanto vale cada centavo.

Toda Vez que vou fico hospedado no bairro de Vitacura, lugar que os locais chamam de "Sanhattan" pela suposta semelhança com Manhattan. Na minha opinião Vitacura parece mais com uma das cidades de médio porte dos EUA como uma Denver ou Charlotte do que com a Big Apple. De qualquer forma é uma área muito bonita, segura (sempre ando a pé de noite sem problemas) ótimos restaurantes, e hotéis.

Os chilenos de Santiago preparam as comidas clássicas do Cone-Sul muito bem. O melhor Pisco Sour, Ceviche, e - os argentinos que me desculpem - um dos melhores bife de chorizo que comi foi em Santiago. Os vinhos são excelentes. Um dos meus favoritos é o Carmenère, que se encontra quase que exclusivamente no Chile. O Cabernet e o Merlot são muito bons também. Só por favor, se for pro Chile não beba Casillero del Diablo, lá eles usam este vinho pra tirar tinta da parede ou tingir camisetas tie-dye.

Um dos meus prazeres favoritos do Chile, além de comer as criaturinhas assustadoras subaquáticas, é comer o cachorro quente do Dominó. Parada obrigatória em Santiago, o Dominó é uma rede chilena de fast food, tipo um Bob’s, que se pode encontrar em muitos lugares, inclusive em Vitacura, onde engravatados almoçam em pé tentando não deixar cair o ketchup na camisa ou no sapato. Tenho que adimitir, é uma delícia. Sou fã de maionese, e de avocado, que é um prazer ainda não explorado no Brasil. Pra mim o avocado, chamado de palta pelos chilenos, é um primo do abacate que a natureza nos dá como substituto da maionese. A junção de bisnaga, avocado, maionese, molho de pimenta, vinagrete, e carne de porco é irresistivel. Que delícia! Custa algo em torno de 4 reais e é uma refeição. Barato, delicioso e autêntico.

Se você for pra Santiago é legal fazer as coisas turísticas; Mercado Central, vinícula Concha y Toro, andar no funicular pra subir o Cerro San Cristobal e depois pegar o bondinho, andar por Vitacura, subir o outro cerro que esqueci o nome, comer frutos do mar em restaurantes que enfiam a faca (peça o pico-roco e se assute com o bichinho delicioso), e pros Paulistanos que gostam de shopping, o Parque Arauco é uma boa opção. Quer encontrar um bom restaurante, utilize o meu método testado em 4 continentes que nunca falha: o restaurante está cheio? É geralmente por um bom motivo, entre e coma (essa regra não se aplica a McDonald’s e Hard Rock Cafés...) O restaurante está vazio e tem um garçom na porta empurrando você pra dentro? Tenha cuidado, armadilha para turista e camarão com salmonela te aguardam adentro.

O Chile é um prazer esperando ser explorado por mais brasileiros. Visite que você vai gostar. Quando você voltar pra casa traga umas garrafas de vinho tinto e surpreenda seus amigos com a qualidade do vinho Chileno que voce encontrou, muito melhor que vários vinhos europeus do mesmo preço. Só lembre-se de em vez de coprar um Casillero Del Diablo (um vinho do inferno mesmo!), gaste 5 dólares a mais na garrafa e leve algo que será muito melhor, pergunte pro vendedor que vinho ele toma em casa no fim de semana. Esse vai ser bom.