More details...

At this point, you should have your visa, your passport, your plane tickets, and your hotel reservations in Sao Paulo. If you don't have all of these please call one of us as soon as possible!

We are currently projecting 22 gringos, including 4 kids, to attend. Should be a lot of fun!

A few things, though, to think about that might mike life easier...

1. Sleeping on the plane

It's a long way down to Brazil. If you are not a seasoned international traveler, the prospect of a 10-hour flight is probably pretty intimidating. From experience, there is no substitute for simply sleeping away most of the flight. Your physician can give you something to help you sleep and is your best bet. If you don't want to go that route, some of the over the counter sleep aids like Tylenol PM can help, as can melatonin (doesn't work for me but does for some) and valerian. You can bring valerian tea with you and ask for hot water in the airport transfer as well as on the plane; the Sleepytime Extra is my brand of choice. Drinking booze is probably the worst thing you can do, because the odds are the hangover will catch you before the flight ends. I rarely have more than one or at most two drinks on such a flight. Definitely bring the pain reliever you like along - tylenol, advil etc. - as well as something for your stomach - tagamet, rolaids, etc.

I would also strongly counsel you to invest in a decent set of eyemask and earplugs. People are going to be getting up and down and talking through much of your overnight flight. Shutting it out with a comfortable eyeshade and earplugs really, really helps. You might also want to bring your own light blanket and pillow - the stuff they give you on the plane is crap.

2. Eating and entertainment on the plane
Bring your own food on board. Most of the airport restaurants will sell you meals to go, and it's so much better for you. Bring along an apple or banana as well, make sure you have a bottle of water, and treat yourself to some kind of candy bar. Ladies tend to like to read celebrity magazines on long flights. Guys tend to disappear into their ipods and computers. Parents, this is where you might want to rent a DVD player from the inmotion kiosks you'll see in the airports...it's a pretty good service. There will be at least four movies on the main screens, or if you're on a more modern plane you'll have a seatback screen and lots of choices. Bring your own headphones if you can.

3. Get a good seat.
You can pick your seat via most airlines' websites. Go and check out your flight there, note the kind of airplane you are flying, and head over to http://seatguru.com to check whether you're in a good seat or not. You can find where the power outlets are, if you're close to the toilets (never a good thing) and if you're in one of the dreaded seats where the inflight entertainment box eats up all your legroom.

4. Wear something light.
It's going to be hot and humid when you get to Sao Paulo, and you're going to be tired and probably a little disoriented. If you're wearing clothes for eastern winters, suffice to say this will exacerbate your condition. Contemplate leaving the coat at home, or simply packing the warm stuff as soon as you get to the airport.

You'll get in around 9 or 10 in the morning Sao Paulo time, which is currently 2 hours ahead of US Eastern time. If you like to drink liquor, you should hit duty free at this point (best prices, especially with a strong dollar).

After that, everything's easy. We'll all be on the beach by Sunday evening, caipirinha in hand, with our choice of music at the beach bar.

As I think about logistics posts, I'll roll them out.

It is carnival!

I am sitting here listening to a fellow at the Berkman’s fellow hour talking about how much people knows and understand on politics and how the Internet and “new media” can contribute to that and I could not stop thinking of the Brazilian most popular party – the Carnival!

Yes, it is carnival week and I miss my country! I am very happy that some of you will be there with us, but probably just for the “hang over” period after Carnival. I promises you will have some Carnival music at our barbecue and wedding party!

In any case, the point here is the Brazilian Carnival is all about politics and it demonstrates how the population see and digest information on politics.

As always, the Brazilian Carnival is covered with national and international political discussion. This year was the time for Obama! Thousands of masks were made and bought.

But the most fun of all was the picture of the Carnival queen. Scroll a little down and you will see it. In a very small and well shaped space, she could express imperialism, environmental problems and hope! And here I end this post, with hope! Enjoy and see you soon.

Getting down to the details...

We are leaving for the beach on Sunday, March 8th. The van will come to Carol's parents' house in the afternoon and take us all there. For those of you who are there early in the day, you can shower at the house and we will all go to the Mercado Municipal in Sao Paulo's downtown to eat lunch and buy some supplies. I would strongly recommend a mortadella sandwich and a pastel (fried pastry stuffed with tasty things - I'm a carne seca / dried beef guy, but the salt cod one is legendary for good reason as well). See the place where I am going to consume at least 1000 calories.

We will stay at the Pousada Tabatinga in Caraguatatuba. It is a relatively private place - the beach is shared by the hotel and some condo complexes, and isn't surrounded by lots of stores and bars. Your breakfast and dinner will be included, and there is a bar there. But with the privacy comes some remoteness.

So, when you are at the Mercado I would suggest picking up some fruit, cheese, sausages, wine, liquor, and other stuff. You'll be able to get to these things in Caraguatatuba but it will mean a taxi, and the supply quality at the Mercado is fantastic. See the fruit stands and the sausage stands for the deliciousness.

The gringo bus will come back to pick you up on Wednesday. I am going to have to leave on Tuesday to fly back to the States to deliver a speech and make a major announcement at eTech, and Carol will go with me back to Sao Paulo to attend to some wedding details. Yes, I owe Carolina a HUGE present for this.

The hotel in Sao Paulo is the Bourbon Ibirapuera - you need to book your rooms *NOW* for this hotel. Make sure to mention our name and get the special rate. Email them at grupos.conv@bourbon.com.br and get yourself hooked up!

I get back Thursday morning. Thursday evening, we have a churrasco at Carol's parents house - this is a kind of Brazilian BBQ. It's not a southern BBQ - don't expect slow-cooked meats - but it is a damn wonderful and tasty thing. You should plan to experience a meat coma and you might want to wear loose, flowing clothing to accommodate your belly. If this is your first picanha experience, get ready - it's a cut of beef we don't get up in the Norte, and it's awesome.

There is also going to be a caipirinha open bar. Caipirinha is the national cocktail of Brazil, and it is going to kick your ass, so you probably should leave your cell phones at home unless you want to wind up drunk dialing someone, for better or worse, to tell them what you think of them for reals. Here's the simple part: it's booze, crushed fruit, sugar and ice, and it tastes like fruit juice. After four of them, you might even ask a Brazilian to dance. I did, and look where this all wound up. We'll arrange some group transit to and from the hotel.

Friday is going to be a relaxed day for the non-family folks. My family and Carol's family will eat dinner together to get to know each other better, and you'll all be sent out on the town with choices on where to eat. I would strongly recommend Rei Do Filet downtown for steak with fried garlic - oh god, it's good - but Carol will take care of getting you a list. We'll meet you out later that night for a fancy cocktail in one of Sao Paulo's many stylish, chic bars - there's some amazing ones.

Saturday is the wedding. We'll be kind of occupied during the day, obviously. The wedding will run from 8PM to 3AM. This is a short wedding for Brazil. There will be shuttle service to and from the hotel - it's a LONG WAY AWAY, 45 minutes or so. Dress up. Think cocktail party, not church. This ain't New England. Be ready to dance. Lots. Be ready to eat. Lots. And be ready to have some fun. The buses will go back every hour or so, so if you get tired and you need to go home, it'll be easy.

More to come. We are so excited you're joining us for the festivities, and we're doing everything we can to make sure you have a great time!

Babysitters

For those of you gringos and gringas bringing kids along, here's the straight poop:

http://www.babysittercenter.com.br/

They have babysitters who are bilingual.

If you go in "ENTRAR" and then in "TABELA DE PRECOS", you will find the

price. For example, from 3 to 6 hours it is 132 reais total, something like

60 dollars. For a period of 7-12 hours it is 172 reais = 83 dollars

approximately.

Their phone is + 55 11 30346467 and they probably have someone that can talk

in English with you.

David Byrne on Brazil

We're preparing a pretty comprehensive set of posts here as we approach the wedding - Carol has to finish going to Istanbul this week, and I have to finish a short but painful run of travel around the US (DC, Portland OR, Ann Arbor MI, NYC, Chapel Hill NC all in about 10 days) first. We'll be posting information on the beach trip, the hotel in Sao Paulo, the visa requirements, wedding registry, and all that good stuff. You should also be receiving written invites in January. And here's hoping you already have your passports in place...

In the meantime, David Byrne (of the Talking Heads) has just posted a lovely set of journal entries from his recent new year's trip to Brazil.  He writes about the difference between North and South, a bike ride in the forest and a sought-after session guitarist who doesn't accept those offers because he doesn't want to wear shoes, new year's eve in salvador, and much more. Byrne is a very thoughtful guy who's spent a lot of time in Brazil, and his writing is a good entryway for those of you contemplating the experience of the global South for the first time.

I was lucky enough that my first official work event for Creative Commons was a concert with David Byrne and Gilberto Gil at Town Hall in New York. That's when I knew I'd found the right group to work with...although meeting Byrne at a WIRED mag party filled with a mix of authentic geeks and out-of-place supermodels was surreal.

Getting started with serious planning

Hi everyone, apologies for the long delay between posts! 

All goes well with planning. You'll receive email soon from our wedding account - casamentogringo (at) gmail (dot) com - asking you to provide some information. Please respond as soon as you can and watch your regular mailbox for invitations.

Tourism Suggestions in addition to John's

I do not hate Rio!!!!!...hahaha!!!!

Also, I would suggest some other places, too, for you to enjoy after the wedding:

- Fernando de Noronha: the Brazilian Carib - dolphins, beach and nature
- Looking for some wine tour? Go to Serras Gauchas - good food, wine and where you can visit the Brazilian "Grand canyon"
- Want to fish, caving and to dive in blue lakes? Go to Bonito, in Pantanal!!! It is amazing there!
- Looking for tracking? Take a flight to Brasilia and a bus to Chapada Diamantina!
- Florianopolis: beautiful island city in the south


It is difficult to decide, isn't it??!!!

You will need to get flights for all this options.

For all of them I reaffirm what John said: update your vaccines (including Yellow fever)!!!! Them you will be guaranteed to have just good interactions with nature!