It was getaway day so I said my final goodbyes to Ipanema and made the relatively short trip back to the airport to my final destination of this whirlwind of a trip. I posted up at these cool chaise lounge type chairs by my gate and waited for my plane to arrive.

Looking around, I noticed a lot of passengers in either Eagles or Packers gear, which made sense given the football game happening in São Paulo on Friday. This even extended to when I was getting ready to board when someone started an Eagles chant saying more to come especially if they served booze on the flight (spoiler alert: they did not)

When I was checking my bag earlier the attendant noted that the exit row I was in didn’t recline so he moved me a row back although in a middle seat. However, when I got the exit row section, my previous seat had way more legroom despite the lack of a recline. Fortunately, the very nice (and very short) man next to me in the window seat, which had no seat in front of it, offered to switch with me. Crisis averted.

It was blessedly short and smooth flight. I made my way over to the Uber section, got in what wasn’t the snazzier of vehicles and made what tuned out to be 90 minute journey into the massive concrete jungle that is the largest city in South America.

I had been told by numerous people to be very careful in SP and this was echoed by my driver when got on what appeared to be the main road into the city “Now we roll our windows up” The now qualifier was a bit unnerving.

Still, as we made our way through the city, I was struck by the very impressive street art on the buildings, which seemed to be some sort of combo of official and very much not murals and drawings. We finally got off this seemingly endless, jam packed street and turned into the much more tranquil Itaim Bibi neighborhood, where my hotel was.

After a much needed siesta, I took an Uber to my main destination of this leg of my trip – the highly acclaimed restaurant Mani. Known for mixing ancestral ingredients with modern cooking techniques, the restaurant was visually quite stunning. I was given a great table in one of the main rooms and presented with the option of doing the tasting menu, ala carte or the hybrid option of a 3 course meal with a “surprise” amuse bouche.

That last option seemed to be the best fit for my current state both gut and wallet. I was told to select the first and second course now and dessert to be determined later. Soon some bread and a huge puffy entity was placed in front of me. My server explained that second item was a Brazilian street market staple – chips made with fermented cassava root. Normally fried, Mani’s version was baked. These were highly addictive, crunch and delicious.

A few minutes later my amuse arrived – chilled oyster with a marigold and clover leaf mignonette. I’m definitely not a fan of oysters but I was intrigued by that very unusual combo. I was very glad I did because it was fantastic – a mix of acidic and slightly sweet.

Next up was my first course – arrachaca and arrowroot gnocchi with a maicapu broth. This again was a very interesting mix of flavors and the gnocchis melted in my mouth. Really excellent.

Soon after was the main event – chargrilled octopus with chorizo rice and chickpeas. We were now squarely in Iberian territory, especially with the use of bomba rice, which impressed my server when I asked about it “Are you a chef??” The octopus had a nice smoky char on it, tender and delicious. The side hot plate of chorizo rice aka paella was equally as good. Mixing them together though was were the real magic was. A great main dish.

The dessert that immediately caught my attention was called The Egg. My server smiled and informed me that was one of their signature dishes. When it arrived, it did indeed look like an egg but it was actually egg nog ice cream surrounded by coconut foam and underneath were mini pieces of crunch coconuts. This was a home run – a fascinating mix of flavors and textures. A perfect way to conclude a very good dinner.

The night was still relatively young so I made the quick Uber (no walking at night in SP) to a hip wine bar called Bardega. The bar boasted a very large and diverse collection of wines by the glass, which are ordered via a card with 3 different pour options.

I selected a few of the smaller tasting sized pours – from a really not good rose from Alicante to a very good bonarda from Mendoza. I sipped my various wines and watched as the young and I assume wealthy bantered to and fro while the really terrible poppy EDM played in the background.

While I was enjoying the revelry, I had a long day ahead of me tomorrow so I headed back to the hotel, just in time to see the exciting end of the Ravens Chiefs game with a very enthusiastic Brazilian announcing duo.

The weather was considerably nicer so I started work a bit earlier to be able to take advantage of it later in the day. But first, I made the quick walk over to an Ipanema seafood institution – Satyricon – for a late lunch.

Nestled in the middle of a nice residential street, the restaurant had all of the trapping of an old school high-end seafood spot in the best possible sense.

The servers were dressed in suits, and the elegant main dining room was lined with classic touches, including the buffet of raw seafood representing their offerings of the day. There was even the standard grand dame who had probably been going there for decades being catered to by the maitre d.

While several things on the (decidedly not cheap) menu that interested me, the skewered of grilled fresh seafood seemed to be the best way to get a variety of things on a single plate. Served with the standard broccoli rice, it was a bountiful catch of shrimp, squid and snapper that was absolutely delicious.

To walk off my meal, I turned back to towards the promenade and strolled alongside the beach. While not as crowded due it being a Wednesday, it was still pretty lively. Plus the weather was now pretty much perfect so after checking back on a couple of items at work, I grabbed one of beach chairs in my apartment and soon my feet were on the cool sand.

This also seemed like a good time to actually get in the water for at least a bit. It was indeed as cold as locals had warned me so my time in it was brief but relaxing as there were some nice sized waves crashing around me.

It was probably a good thing this perfect day was on my last full day in Rio because had it been this way my entire away, it would be much tougher to leave. I sat in my beach chair watching the sun quickly sink behind Sugar Loaf Mountain and let it all just sink in, pure bliss.

Because of my heavy lunch, I opted for something both hyper local and simple. I had passed by multiple time this bakery/sandwich shop a couple of blocks from me that also had pizzas at night. A simple margherita sounded perfect to me so I grabbed one of the small outside tables.

Unfortunately, it turned out that pizza was only at their other location in Copacabana – d’oh. Still, I took that as a sign it was supposed to eat healthier so instead I selected the panzanela salad with smoked salmon.

This turned out to be a great alternative as it was a very good salad. The salmon was buttery smooth and the fresh lettuce and cherry tomatoes were covered in a bright honey sesame sauce.

I had also picked this place because I could order a sandwich for my trip to São Paulo the next day but as I went inside to do that I was stopped in my tracks by a truly scrumptious looking giant brownie. I was even more pleased when they asked if I wanted heated and then put a caramel sauce on top. So much for eating healthier but oh so worth it.

Next door was the microbrewery I had visited previously so I opted for one final Rio nightcap of their new strong ale I had sampled last time.

I chatted a bit with the same server from the other day and the manager who was from Buenos Aires. She was pleased I spoke her native tongue, and I shared some of my experiences from my temporary stay, agreeing January is the worst there.

I said my goodbyes and walked back to my place. It had been a very fun, eventful stay in Ipanema but I was glad to end it on a more relaxing note. I’d be off to the final mini leg of my trip tomorrow so it was time for a last night’s sleep in this tropical urban paradise.

It was back to digital salt mines to help pay for my travels. Fortunately, the Weather Godz gave me a break with definitely not beach weather on a cool dark cloudy day. As I had meetings during my lunch hour, it was the perfect chance to have my leftovers from Pura Brasa which held up well in the microwave I had no idea how to use. Pro tip – try the fish setting and pause it after 5 mins.

Having worked straight through lunch into the mid afternoon, I closed my laptop and relaxed for a bit before heading out to a local spot that had come highly recommended. The fog had lifted and now the weather was pretty much perfect so instead of an Uber, I opted to walk. Plus, I wanted to check out this nicer end of Ipanema that borders Leblon.

After a couple of blocks, things definitely started to trend in a tonier vibe, including a very snazzy looking McDonalds. There was also a park where people were walking their dogs and a nice flower market.

As I turned up the street of the restaurant, I was clearly now in a higher end of the barrio with trendy shops and restaurants dotted along the tree lined blocks. Soon I arrived at Alessandro & Frederico – an Italian restaurant known for its seafood pasta dishes.

I had requested outside but there almost every table was either outside or at least semi exposed. I asked my server which he preferred between a couple of the dishes and he recommended the torteloni di zucca- which was good as that was my top choice too.

The dish consisted of tortleoni stuffed with pumpkin and sage with a shrimp bisque sauce. I was pleasantly surprised to find a couple of whole shrimp amongst the rich bisque – a nice touch. The pasta was perfectly cooked and the pumpkin and sage made a nice contrast to the briny bisque. The best bite though was a piece of the shrimp with one of the tortelonis swirled in the bisque. Delicious.

My dessert choice unfortunately wasn’t available so I paid my check and walked back towards a gelato spot I had clocked earlier. I was instructed I could only have 2 tastes (fair enough) so I decided to go with the South American staple Doce de Leite and this intriguing other one based on an Italian wedding cake that was the special of the day.

Not certain which to choose I opted for a mix of both. The wedding cake was on top, which was a wise choice as it was the lighter of the two with chunks of cake throughout. The doce de leite brought me back to when I’d have it all the time during the hotter parts of my stay in Buenos Aires but also had pieces of a very rich dark chocolate in it. A much better dessert as it turned out.

Since I was working tomorrow as well, there would be no night cap this time. I strolled back on the opposite side of the street for variety’s sake and a short time later was back at my casa. Tomorrow was also my last full day in Rio so it was time to get some sleep for the last hurrah.

Since it was Labor Day back home, I took advantage of the holiday by sleeping in for a change. The cloudy, cooler weather helped out too. Soon, it was time for lunch so I headed down the street to a place I had noted previously.

Pura Brasa specialized, as the name implies, various grilled meats over an open flame. The restaurant was bustling with lunch goers, and I snagged one of the last small tables.

I had been wanting to try pollo ala brasa so this seemed like a good spot for that. Indeed they had a few different options but I was intrigued by the boneless one with a couple of sides called “brasa style.” The catch was that one was for two people. Still, the price wasn’t too bad and assumed I’d be able to eat most of it anyway.

Yeeeahh, about that… clicking on the picture and zooming in shows just how much food this turned out to be. The chicken appeared to be an entire one deboned. The broccoli rice was in a huge bowl and the chips were plentiful too (and delicious.)

The bowl in the back right is what made this brasa style – pieces of fried egg mixed with toasted breadcrumbs. I was told to put this on top of the chicken and man was it good that way. Mixing it with the broccoli rice was a nice combo too.

There was definitely enough leftovers for lunch tomorrow, as evidenced by the massive to go bag I was handed. Since it was still my day off, I wanted to check out this brewhouse across the street called The Mad Brew. I was hoping to try a few of their various brews and was pleased to see they had a 6 tasting option – for a whopping $4. Sold.

I selected 3 and told the server to pick 3 he liked to finish them off. It was a nice range of styles/tastes from light Pilsner to dark stout. I liked pretty much all of them but the two standouts were the Strong Ale, which they just started brewing last week and their Wittbier, which had orange and yuzu in it – very tasty.

I made the quick trip back to my place, once again opening my windows to hear the bossa nova music and take a siesta. After my siesta and catching up with the blog, I hopped in an Uber to head to the neighboring barrio of Leblon aka the wealthy one.

My destination though was a causal spot by a famous chef called Boteco Rainha. Basically the Brazilian equivalent of a tapas bar, it was nestled in a small quiet corner spot surrounded by the trappings of a rich neighborhood, including a Louis Vuitton store a block away.

The focus was on seafood small bites and there were several that intrigued me. After chatting with the server about how large the items were, I decided to start out 3 of them.

From left to right was a classic bacalao fritter, a lobster croqueta and finally a shrimp pastel. While all 3 were delicious, the real star was the pastel, which was basically like a square empanada – filled chunks of shrimp in a slightly spicy broth.

My server suggested as a final one their pie of the day, which was a mix of heart of palm and a local cheese. This was another winner with the crumbly pie crust giving way to the roasted veggies and melted cheese. I realized after the fact I forgot to take a pic of the inside. Oh well.

I took an Uber back to my area and had my driver stop at a small restaurant I had passed a few times, which had a nice wine list. It was very nice out so I sat in the small outdoor section overlooking the street enjoying a nice glass of Malbec.

I noticed the couple next to me was speaking Spanish so I asked where they were from- Venezuela as it turned out. I chatted with them for a bit in Spanish telling them how I was relieved to be speaking in a language I understood a lot better than Portuguese.

The female of the couple spoke some Portuguese and both of them spoke fairly decent English too. I actually ended up translating for them as they wanted to know if the 10% added gratuity was common. I told them I had heard that was indeed the case. I wished them a great trip and make the quick jaunt back to my place.

Tomorrow it was back to the digital salt mines for me along with another local restaurant that came highly recommended.

After a pretty late night, I was surprised that I was ready to get out and about relatively early. Having been in Ipanema, it was time to check out the other fabled beach of Rio, Copacabana. While I could have walked there in about 20 mins or so, I decided to Uber there to save some energy plus it was noticeably hotter out.

There was definitely a different vibe than Ipanema, and I soon got why the locals I’ve chatted with prefer that to here. Granted, it was a sunny Sunday so that would naturally bring out more people but the word I’d use to describe it is almost oppressive, especially amongst the quiosquis which were crammed with beach revelers.

There was a nice steady breeze which definitely helped but after wandering around for awhile, I had had my fill of the madness. It was now lunch time and knowing the various spots right on the beach are almost never good and/or overpriced, I walked away from the area and found a couple of blocks down the road back towards Ipanema a brew pub that looked decent.

The breeze was still present which was much needed as was a cold beer. They had several beers on tap, including an intriguing German marzen. Ahh that hit the spot – a surprisingly good version of that style with nice notes of caramel and a depth of flavor that belies its relatively mild ABV.

It was a good thing the beer was so good because the chicken sandwich I ordered… was not. It’s not even worthy of a photo but at least the beer helped wash it down pretty quickly.

I walked back to my neighborhood, taking streets away from the beach for variety’s sake (and forgot to take pics along the way so mea culpa) The tree-lined streets are no doubt crucial to keeping things at least a bit cooler the much hotter months.

I got home to the now familiar sounds of bossa nova echoing down the street from Bar Vinicius. I opened the windows for some nice cross breezes and took a siesta… which turned into a couple of hours of deep sleep. By the time I woke up, my body was basically telling me it would be an early evening.

I walked a couple of blocks up the street to a gastropub and noticed they had a Brahma (Brazil’s main beer) on nitro for their black beer version. I was surprised to be served it in a style I had in Prague called “the sweet” – where as shown in the picture above it’s mostly head that eventually settles. Not exactly what I was expecting but pretty tasty.

Unfortunately, I can’t say the same for the just OK cheese empanadas I had with the beer. Again, not picture worthy either. So it was pretty much a bust of a day food-wise (apologies to my food porn fans out there) but I took it as a signal to get some rest. Tomorrow was supposed to be not great weather-wise so perhaps the rest would continue. By this point in my travels, my body definitely wouldn’t object.

My late arrival plus it being 2 hours earlier on my body clock meant my start for the day began a bit later than anticipated. It was for my first lunch in Rio which of course meant it was picanha time. Fortunately, there was a highly regarded churrasqueira a mere two blocks from my place.

I entered into Churrasqueira RJ and was immediately hit with the intoxicating aromas of grilled meat. Honey I’m home. There was a handy diagram of the various cuts of meat and a video explaining the same. Suffice it to say, vegetarians ciudades!

I was here though for just one cut – the picanha, which is a Brazilian staple. It arrived on a sizzling hot plate with some fries that had onion and paprika seasoning. The picanha, on the other hand, just had salt and that’s all that was needed. Perfectly cooked, it was tender, juicy and very, very tasty. The fries were almost as good with that very interesting blend of spices. A great first meal in Rio for sure.

As I walked back to my place, I heard the familiar sounds of bossa nova in the background. It turned out to be coming from a bar/restaurant across the street. In fact, even as I returned home, it was close enough to still be able to hear after opening the window in my living room, which also exposed the view above – not too shabby.

After a quick recharge of my iPhone, I venture out into the beach promenade of Ipanema to walk off the picanha. The beach was full of activity despite the cooler than normal temperature. I didn’t mind that though as it made for a very pleasant walk.

Since it’s winter here, the sunset was very early so I walked back towards my place to get a nice view of Sugar Loaf Mountain looming the background.

I decided for dinner to check out Vinicius Bar and Restaurant where I had heard the music earlier. It was now a different singer and the vibe had change as well. This was as old school as it gets including dressed up waiters and flambés table side.

This old school approach also included my dinner selection – trout meunière with broccoli rice and potatoes in a brandy shrimp sauce. The last item was prepared table side, lighting the brandy on fire and then pouring it over the fish for a classic touch

I was so charmed by the atmosphere I would have been perfectly happy if the dish was just OK. Instead, it was the best thing I had so far in Rio. The fish was perfectly cooked and very fresh with the sauce pairing beautifully with it. The potatoes were light and fluffy, and I became an instant fan of the Brazilian staple broccoli rice. Delicious.

I was having such a good time I decided to try another Brazilian classic – pudim de leche which is their version of flan. My server seemed disappointed he didn’t get to do his flambé trick but that’s never been my jam. The flan was slightly more bitter than the Spanish variety but very tasty. A nice capper to a lovely dinner and a show.

I had passed by a lively spot in my walk earlier so I headed down a couple of blocks for a night cap. In keeping with what had become a theme of the day of Brazilian classics, that meant I had to try a caipirinha.

This version was a bit more tart than I’m used to getting stateside but was still very refreshing with a pretty generous pour of cachaza. I enjoyed the people watching as I sipped my drink and took in the overall festive mood of Ipanema on a Saturday night. Tudo bem.

My quick trip to Bogota was drawing to a close but first lunch.

Mini-mal was a highly regarded spot focused on ancient Colombian dishes. Located on a quiet street by a park, it was packed when I got there so the only option was to sit on the terrace. Fortunately, it was nicely shaded from the much hotter day than my previous ones here.

Doing my now de rigueur three appetizers as my meal, first up is were the seafood empanadas. While fairly small, they packed a large flavor punch with nice chunks of seafood nestled between the creamy potatoes.

Next up is was something wholly new to me – a flexible arepa nicknamed “the dog’s ears” topped with stewed rabbit and spices. This was delicious, with a nice balance between the spices and the chunks of rabbit.

Last but certainly not least were the arrullos – basically an Amazon version of a tostada with squid, octopus and shrill in coconut milk, green curry and a sour sweet sauce. This was another interesting contrast of tastes, sweet, sour, spicy. It was a nice way to finish things off.

I headed back to the hotel to grab my luggage and dash to the airport. As noted above, this was way too short of a visit to such a fascinating city. I will be back for a longer stay soon.

I had yet another long-ish flight, thankfully I had a bulkhead seat, to get to Rio, which after delays made it just past 1am when I arrived. I had arranged with the very friendly husband of the owners of the AirBnB to met me at the gate, making the premium I paid for the ride well worth it to avoid all of the hassle.