On the road again… Three months traveling all over Brazil

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It definitely felt like years since I had been on the road, traveling around the world and more recently around Latin America before covid-19 struck. Since then, I had chosen Brazil to spend time while the world crumbled in unreal lockdowns, first in Rio de Janeiro for 3 months, then surfing the Pandemic in Paradise in North-eastern Brazil. That had been a blessing for me and the best choice I could have though of while spending time in quarantine, first on my beach in Cumbuco in the state of Ceará, kitesurfing daily. and then 4 months later, when Brazil started to come back to normal around September, kitesurfing the whole coast of 3 Brazilian states in the Iron Macho Challenge – The “Iron Man of the Seas” – 400 km KiteSurfing Expedition across 3 Brazilian States. That was all so amazing and beautiful. But as […]

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The Absolute KiteSurfing Paradise in the Lencois Maranhenses in Brazil

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A desert of sand, flooded by fresh water and brushed with constant trade winds; the Lencois Maranhenses have long been my dream to KiteSurf. This was the perfect time to experience it, and after landing in Atins after my 400km Kitesurfering Iron Macho expedition, I had 2 weeks to go all-in on KiteSurfing this paradise on earth located at the edge of the world! Paradise on Earth for Kitesurfers I had the chance to visit the Lençóis Maranhenses back in 2011, and have ever since referred to it as one of the most beautiful natural marvels in the world. Saying that even after having been to 99% of the countries of the world is definitely a great title to receive. The weird thing is that so few people have heard about it. It’s definitely undervalued and once it picks up into the tourism radar, it […]

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Iron Macho Challenge – The “Iron Man of the Seas” – 400 km KiteSurfing Expedition across 3 Brazilian States

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After a nice warm–up a month prior, KiteSurfing 350 km from Fortaleza to Camocim with the Lagartixa expedition, this was the ultimate challenge: KiteSurfing more than 400km from Jericoacoara (known as one of the most beautiful beaches in the world) to Atins in the desert of the Lençóis Maranhenses; an intense 5 day challenge in a true paradise on earth. A once in a lifetime journey which I will never forget… The Iron Macho kitesurfing trip As described in my previous post The “Marathon of the Seas” Expedition: KiteSurfing 350 km of Ocean Stretch Off the Brazilian Coast, I had previously taken part in an amazing KiteSurf expedition from Fortaleza to Camocim, surfing a total of 350km back in August 2020. The amount of hours spent on the oceans had been an incredibly good training for the ultimate adventure I had signed up for with […]

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The “Marathon of the Seas” Expedition: KiteSurfing 350 km of Ocean Stretch Off the Brazilian Coast

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Just imagine for a second undertaking the challenge of traveling on the ocean on a surfboard for an average of 90 km per day for 4 days in a row, reaching some of the most beautiful scenery available in Brazil, sleeping in small fishing village to recharge your batteries before hitting the waves again and again for over 6 hours daily. This is what I’ve been signing in for on this incredible journey of downwinder KiteSurf trip that took me on an adventure of more than 350 km of surfing in August 2020. The prospect of such a challenge seemed overwhelming at first when a friend invited me to take part in Lagartixa kite trip, but it undoubtedly turned out one of the most amazing experience I have done in the past years! KiteSurf Downwinders The beauty of KiteSurfing lies in it’s astonishing freedom and […]

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Surfing the Pandemic in Paradise… Life in a North-Eastern Brazilian town during Covid-19 times

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The pandemic has had a devastating effect on the tourism industry around the world and digital nomads have been particularly affected by the events. In an instant, people living on the road had to find shelter and morph into a sedentary lifestyle. In my case, I chose to spend these hard times in my favorite country, even though it was one of the hardest hit by the virus. To keep my moral high, I needed to be near the ocean, connect with nature and surf my days away while waiting for the world to fix itself. What else could I do? I was asked to stay home… Might as well isolate in the ocean on a surfboard riding the waves! Stuck in South America with borders closed Living on the road during Covid was definitely challenging. Many digital nomads chose to go back home. Others […]

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196 or 195 Countries in the world? Why I readjusted my count

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For as long as I could remember, I had been counting the world as 196 countries. This number is usually considered one of the most popular counts by the travel community as a means of measurements. It amounts to the 193 countries recognized by the United Nations, plus 2 observer countries (Vatican and Palestine) and Kosovo which s part of the IMF and World Bank. Some even include Taiwan as a 197th. But once I got closer to finishing the world, I decided to backtrack and use another popular count: 195. This comprises the 193 and the two observers, but not Kosovo. It is not recognized as an observer and thus, not really qualifies as a full country. This seems to be the most accepted convention as of 2021. I have been twice to Kosovo and really enjoyed my time there. But I have decided […]

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One Day in Rio de Janeiro

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Here’s a little snapshot I wanted to share where I am at the moment. Spending time home in quarantine isn’t easy. At least I have the beauty of the marvelous city of Rio de Janeiro to keep my morale up while I can’t continue traveling around the world. I decided to have a little fun today. I took pictures of the view from my window at different times to compare them together, to show how the beauty of this city changes through time. I am constantly blown away by Rio which never ceases to impress me year after year, every single day, every single hour. The pictures are taken from my Lagoa apartment rental I found to spend the quarantine, overlooking the Rodrigo de Freitas Lagoon. I took the first picture early in the morning at 7:00, where the sun wakes up from behind, lighting […]

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My Favorite Town in Cuba is… Trinidad!

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Even better than Havana in my opinion, it is a perfect little picturesque and authentic village to spend two to three days while in Cuba. I felt transported back in the 19th century walking around its cobblestone streets and its colorful houses. The setup is just magical and nature as well. But be quick to come because I predict that its authenticity will disappear very soon as it is booming with construction at the moment. Hotels are popping everywhere and tourist traps will arrive soon after. If they say Cuba must be visited before it becomes developed, then Trinidad is to be number one on your bucket list. What should you do there? I enjoyed just walking around the old town. It’s so nice and feels so good to just observe how people are living. It just feels so colonial at the same time so […]

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Overnight in Varadero from Havana

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Most people who go to Varadero will be in an all-inclusive hotel and arrive straight at Varadero airport. I wasn’t in Cuba to be in this sort of hotel so Varadero was not my first choice of place to be as a base, I had chosen Havana for that. But I still wanted to see it so a 2 day visit was enough. Now that I’ve been, I can honestly say that even if it’s a tourist behemoth, it is a very beautiful beach. Even though it’s super touristy, it was really built on an amazing piece of Beach and the water is one of the clearest and bluest I have ever seen around the world rivaling with the Pacific ocean and even the Red Sea. A two-day trip to Varadero. This time around I wasn’t really into just hanging around all day at a […]

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Viñales – Best Day Trip from Havana

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If you happen to make Havana your base for your next trip to Cuba, don’t forget to do a day trip to Viñales, which is such an easy trip to do as a day tour from Havana. You can do it yourself or do it with an organized tour and it will not cost you more than $60. Highlights are coffee plantations and most especially that tobacco plantations which you can easily visit and test by yourself by smoking a big cigar made in front of you. [TOC] How to get to Viñales from Havana? Some people prefer to stay overnight or to stay two days because of the nice little village that they can just stay and relax. But most people do it as a day tour as there’s not much more to do than what you can do in one day. That’s what […]

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