PlanetEye

Saturday, May 10th, 2008

Iguassu - the video

Brendan

The Global Nomad

check it out.

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Friday, May 9th, 2008

Iguassu Falls!

Brendan

The Global Nomad

Not much to say about Iguassu (or Iguaçu) other than go if you can.

There isn’t much to recommend the cities on any side of the triple border between Brazil, Arentina and Paraguay, except that they are close to one of the greatest falls in the world.

My only advice is to make sure you have at least 2 full days so as to have time to spend a day on each side of the falls–the Brazilian side offers the best overalll panoramic view, while the Argentinian side is much more intimate, with lots of little smaller falls, coves, etc, and more jungle to walk through.

• Posted in  Adventure, City Review, Nature
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Sunday, April 27th, 2008

Hang gliding Rio - the video

Brendan

The Global Nomad

Had some issues uploading video earlier but they seem to be solved now. Check it out!

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Thursday, April 24th, 2008

Fly like a bird – Hang Gliding Rio

Brendan

The Global Nomad

There are some crazy pursuits that, more than others, cry out for the right venue. Bog diving, for example, just wouldn’t be the same outside Connemara Loughs. For me it’s always been bungee jumping in New Zealand. It’s not that I haven’t had chances other places, but somehow it just doesn’t seem the same jumping off a crane parked in an amusement park, with nary a bridge in sight.

And so it again seemed one of those times when I returned to Rio hell-bent on jumping off a cliff.

I had tried skydiving—that’s just insane—and bungee jumping was still waiting for my first trip to New Zealand. But hang gliding always struck me as the closest thing to actually flying: no engine. No plane. Hell, you even have wings. And what could be a more poetic, scenic and undeniably cool places to do it than from the dramatic cliffs above Rio de Janeiro, landing among the bikini-clad flesh sea…

Rio’s hang gliding central is São Conrado (aka “pepino”) beach, where a stretch of sand is reserved for the frequent landings. Gliders take off from Pedra Bonita, high above, and on a god day the queue to take off can be 5 or 6 gliders deep.

Costs vary from about 100 US and up, and finding a nut case willing to take you tandem is often as easy as walking Copacabana beach looking slightly unstable. Although it is possible to get cheaper rides this way, it has always seemed prudent to me to pay a little extra for quality when dealing with situations involving potential death. (This is the same logic I applied when renting automatic weapons in Cambodia. So far so good.)

For my first-ever hang gliding experience I chose Just Fly. They were professional and fun, and they even managed to get my acrophobic girlfriend to run off a cliff. Kudos to them.

For an incredible experience you will never forget (especially if you choose the optional CD with photos of your flight from a wing-mounted camera), take the plunge. If her grin afterwards is any indication, it’s even fun for the more sane among us.

Bonus: the typical flight path takes you close to Rocinha, the largest favela (see next post) in Latin America—a bird’s eye view of how millions of poorer Brazilians live. Oh, and you fly over the beach and beautiful mansions as well, but hey, that’s Rio for you.

Just Fly
$144 USD at time of writing for a 10-minute flight

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Wednesday, April 2nd, 2008

Cave Dwelling: Spelunking, Rappelling and Tubing, oh my!

Brendan

The Global Nomad

Belize has the largest underground cave system in the world, some sections of which have collapsed, creating massive sinkholes. Rivers run through many of them, so the list of cool things you can do in them is pretty long—from simply exploring to jumping off underground waterfalls.

In the name of journalistic curiosity I went to rappel down one of these sinkholes, the 300 foot so-called Black Hole, with Cave’s Branch Jungle Lodge. Started and run by Canadian Ian Anderson, Cave’s Branch has everything from rooms in the jungle to suit various budgets, an orchid garden, and any adrenalin sport you can think of doing in and around a cave.
Ian Anderson’s Cave’s Branch Jungle Lodge

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Sunday, February 17th, 2008

Surf’s Up, Hombre

Brendan

The Global Nomad

Let me be clear about one thing: I am not a surfer. Surfers are a special breed—impossibly tanned, blessed with an uncanny ability to function with their shorts pulled half down, and sporting physiques that are proof that spending time in a gym isn’t always the best way to get six pack abs and killer shoulders.

The west coast of Costa Rica has been surfing central since long before the resorts and canopy tours arrived, so what can be more Costa Rican than learning how to surf? Whether it’s because you want the chiselled abs or just because, well, that’s what you do here, there are a zillion dudes up and down the coast who are happy to help you get a jump on your first wave.

If you’ve never surfed before but think lessons are for wusses, a piece of advice: swallow the 35 bucks and get a lesson. You’ll still be in a world of pain, but with a little luck and coordination it will only last a week instead of a month.

Here are a few great places to learn to surf on the Pacific coast of Costa Rica.

Tamarindo, Guanacaste. With a busy nightlife and more tattoos per capita than anywhere outside a biker gang, Tamarindo isn’t a place to find your own beach (small boats can take you out to those once you’re ready). It gets less unspoiled by the year, but there are ATMs, lots of people to party with, great restaurants and a beautiful beach, even if you do have to share it. Plus, from Nov to Feb giant leatherback turtles nest on nearby Playa Grande.

Malpais/Santa Teresa, Nicoya Peninsula. Malpais is a hardcore surfer’s mecca, while the next beach up, Santa Teresa, has more chilled waves that are great for beginners. Just be ready to surf…and not much else. Nightlife is limited and the population is very spread out over the long beaches, so this one is best if you bring your own vehicle, preferably a 4X4. Farther south around the peninsula, Montezuma has even smaller waves where beginners will be even happier.

Jaco. Crass, rife with hookers, drugs, and college kids on break. If that’s your thing, hey, fill yer boots. (Oh, and it’s pronounced “ ha-KO.”) The next beach south, Playa Hermosa (“beautiful”), earned its name. Long, straight and beautiful, without most of the commercial development that keeps some people away from Jaco.

Dominical. My favourite. South of Manuel Antonio and before the Osa Peninsula, Dominical is just far enough out of the way that many stop before they get this far. A surprise to me, Dominical has a fun, laid-back community, great beaches, and it’s all walkable.

Lastly: remember, surfers never just shake hands. Remember: slide and punch. You’ll know what I mean….

Photo credit for surfer: Latitude 10

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Saturday, February 2nd, 2008

Manufacturing Adventure

Brendan

The Global Nomad

As Costa Rica slowly edges towards becoming a victim of its own popularity, and nature becomes gradually more and more packaged for tourist consumption (think Cancun’s Disney-esque shuttle buses to go visit Nature™!) it’s nice to know there’s still plenty of the real thing around. While the idea of a canopy tour (flying from tree to tree high in the forest canopy by means of a zip line and climbing harness) may have started out pretty hard core, today the country is flooded with them. Not that they aren’t tons of fun….

Two more of Costa Rica’s best, Disney-free ways to experience Mother Nature with a serious does of adrenalin are rafting and canyoneering.

With a relatively short trip to either coast from its volcanic spine, Costa Rica’s rivers can be steep and fast. The Pacuare, Reventazon and Sarapiqui rivers are legendary and feature tropical paradise on all sides. In the northwest, the Balsa and Toro rivers have solid class III and IV rapids respectively—enough to get you as wet as you like.

Canyoneering is a combination of scrambling or hiking down a rushing river canyon, and abseiling down the spots where the canyon turns into a waterfall. It’s beautiful, intense and certainly earns you bragging rights at the bar that night.

There are plenty of good rafting operators depending on where you are; For rivers in the east including the Pacuare, try Rios Tropicales. In the Arenal Volcano/La Fortuna area the Desafio Adventure Company were pioneers in the area, having been around for 15 years, running both canyoneering trips and rafting on the Balsa and Toro rivers. I’ve done both with them and both were awesome. Highly recommended.

Links:
www.riostropicales.com
www.desafiocostarica.com

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Tuesday, January 1st, 2008

Introducing the PlanetEye Global Nomad

Brendan

The Global Nomad

Welcome to the PlanetEye Global Nomad! Through this space I aim to enlighten, entertain and basically get your travel juices flowing. What I hope to pass on are insider tips, tricks and insights, some gleaned from years of travel and leading tours as a guide, others fresh discoveries, but always with the goal of helping the reader learn or experience a little more of a place than they might not otherwise.

Check in whenever you need a shot of life on the road, or follow along on my year-long, ’round the world journey. To learn a little more about who the heck I am, check out my profile. So without further ado…

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