The coconut is to a Carioca* what the baguette is to a Parisian. Okay, well, not quite. Rio de Janeiro’s locals don’t cycle along Ipanema beach with a coconut under their arm, nor will you see them munching into one (ouch!) as they walk home from work. But like the baguette in Paris the coconut … Read more
One of the first things we do when we arrive at a new destination is explore our neighbourhood. Despite having done the long haul down to Rio de Janeiro from Costa Rica via Miami, it didn’t take us long to get out the door and down to the famous Ipanema beach. Our Ipanema apartment is … Read more
The band had mercifully stopped massacring a 1970s Steely Dan number and were taking a break. This wasn’t technically the ‘jazz’ that was advertised at this San Miguel de Allende bar, but then not much in San Miguel met expectations, apart from the prettiness of San Miguel. Fortunately, as we’d soon discover, there is more … Read more
We’ve seen many a corrida de toros or bullfight since our first trip to Mexico more than 15 years ago. We’ve always been conflicted about it. We love animals but we can also appreciate the cultural significance of the corrida. But the bullfighting in San Miguel de Allende was something different… What we dislike immensely about bullfights … Read more
Drinking in Mexico City… Most of us think cerveza and tequila, maybe margaritas and micheladas. Mexican wine probably isn’t the first thing that comes to mind, few foreigners know about pulque, and many people think mezcal is the same as tequila. We were eager to learn more about all three, so when Lesley Tellez of … Read more