Wanderboomer

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C is for Catching Carnival Fever in Rio

RioCarnival

Souvenir Postcard

Simply put, there’s no adequate way to prepare for the over-the-top spectacle of Rio’s famous 5-day bacchanal celebration.

Leading up to the beginning of Lent on Ash Wednesday, Brazil’s most famous festival celebrates life on a grand scale, compensating for the Christian faithful’s fasting in the days ahead.

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WanderBoomer, before Carnival

I had arrived in Rio de Janeiro a few days before the start of Carnival, eager to meet up with Brazilian friends I had met on their visit to the States. Everywhere I turned in the city, newspaper headlines, billboards and TV announcers screamed in Portuguese, “Carnaval! Carnaval!” accompanied by photos of smiling dancers in elaborate costumes partying on top of lavishly decorated parade floats. Samba music filled the airwaves. And all that happened before the festival started.

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Once Carnival began, all-night neighborhood street parties sprang out throughout Ipanema and Copacabana. Many Cariocas (locals) had already fled the city, businesses shut down and traffic came to a halt.

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Cross-dressers took to the streets, teasing passerby’s with their come-hither looks and invitations to embrace the spirit and mischief of Carnival. The fun spilled over into the nightclub scene where the music never stopped, allowing individual musicians to slip off stage for only a short break while the rest of us danced on and on.

So, go ahead, add Rio’s Carnival to your travel bucket list, but only if you’re ready to accept that life as you know it today will never – ever – be the same again.

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WanderBoomer, after Carnival

What about you, wanderboomers? Ready to blame your new persona on Rio?

 

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Shot on Location: 7 Movie Destinations for Valentine’s Day

Romantic Movies on Location

Travelers at heart can visit any one of several romantic destinations on Valentine’s Day in the click of an eye through the magic of movies. Cuddle up with or without your sweetie and pass the popcorn and kleenex . . .

An Affair to Remember

An Affair to Remember

An ocean liner headed for New York City sets the stage for this Hollywood classic starring Deborah Kerr (Terry McKay) and Cary Grant (Nicky Ferrante), with Fate and Destiny in key supporting roles. As an added bonus, you can enjoy gorgeous views from the villa on the French Riviera where Nicky’s wise and loving grandmother resides. Most famous line: “If you can paint, I can walk!”

Casablanca

Casablanca

Former lovers meet unexpectedly in French Morocco during World War II when “of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world,” Ilsa (Ingrid Bergman) has to walk into his, Rick’s (Humphrey Bogart). The drama includes flashback scenes to happier times when they fell in love in Paris, together with a rousing rendition of the national anthem of France, “La Marseillaise.”

Dr. Zhivago

Omar Sharif (Yuri) and Julie Christie (Lara) are star-crossed lovers in this film set in Russia (though filmed in Canada, Finland and Spain) during the Bolshevik Revolution. Any movie that can romanticize an Ice Palace in the Russian countryside in the middle of winter is worth a viewing.

Lady and the Tramp

In case you think that only we humans hold the monopoly on romance, our canine counterparts will convince you otherwise in this Disney classic. Has there ever been a more heartwarming animated scene than when our main characters discover love at the end of a shared strand of spaghetti at Tony’s (Italian) Restaurant?

Roman Holiday

Audrey Hepburn won an oscar for her performance as Princess Anne who rebels against her royal duties by going undercover as a commoner in Rome for a day. After a memorable chance encounter, reporter Joe Bradley (Gregory Peck) soon realizes he has the scoop of the decade – and the love of a lifetime. Location shots include the Spanish Steps, Palazza Colonna, and Bocca della Verita (Mouth of Truth).

Notorious

Notorious

Rio de Janeiro takes center stage in Hitchcock’s brilliant tale of espionage, romance and betrayal. Cary Grant stars as Devlin, an American agent, who enlists the aid of Alicia (Ingrid Bergman) to track the Nazi ring operating in Rio after her father is convicted of treason. Love intervenes only to be pushed aside by the dutiful Devlin who throws her into marriage with Alex (Claude Rains), leader of the local Nazis group. Will Devlin find a way to save Alicia and himself by movie’s end? You’ll just have to watch the film to find out.

Sound of Music

“The hills are alive with the sound of music” while romance blooms between Maria, a young postulant at Austria’s Nonnberg Abbey, and Baron von Trapp, a widower engaged to be married. Cupid strikes when their eyes meet as the Baron leads Maria in a dance. Be still my heart . . .

Added Bonus!

I can’t help myself. I have to include one more travel film here:

The English Patient

The English Patient

Though this World War II drama is set in Tuscany and Egypt, several scenes were shot on location in Tunisia for a more realistic portrait of 1940’s Cairo. Viewing Ralph Fiennes in his role as Count Laszlo de Almasy carrying his beloved, white shrouded Katherine (Kristin Scott Thomas) across the windswept desert landscape leaves me mesmerized every time. When he recognizes that she’s wearing the thimble (You have to see the movie), her reply, “Of course, you idiot. I always wear it. I’ve always worn it. I’ve always loved you,” says it all. Sigh . . .

What about you, Wanderboomers? What travel movies would you add to my list for Valentine’s Day?

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3 Easy Ways to Keep Wanderlust Alive

How do restless wanderers fuel their travel lust when not in motion? While between trips recently, here’s where you might have spotted me at home away from home:

At the Opera

Where better than the opera to get your cultural, artistic and aesthetic fix all in one place?

Just give me a passionate, happy-ever-after or heart-wrenching story of love and loss, set to sublime music sung in a foreign language.  Include an exotic location to immediately transport me from the ordinary to the extraordinary – all in one evening. For an opera like Bizet’s Carmen, there’s the double bonus of hearing the music sung in French while enjoying the ambiance of Seville.

Eating at an Ethnic Restaurant

Let’s hear it for one of the great bonuses of global diversity: the chance to savor scrumptious foods at the many available ethnic restaurants in our own backyards. Even in smaller towns across the country, there’s a good chance of finding food fare from Mexico, India or Thailand.

Noodle Delight at Thai Siam in Seattle

Much like my affinity for foreign languages, I have rarely found a foreign food that I wouldn’t give a try at least once. If I want to revisit a country like Brazil in my mind, for example, I have only to enjoy a Brazilian meal of feijoada, topped off with a caipirinha, to evoke my memories of Rio de Janeiro.

Watching a Foreign Film

It’s so easy to travel to a distant land from the comfort of our own homes, not that I recommend it as a long-term travel substitute, of course. In one weekend, I traveled Around the World in 80 Days, then off to Shanghai in the 30’s with The White Countess, and finally the desert with Lawrence of Arabia.

What about you Wanderboomers? How do you fuel your travel lust between trips? Share your stories here.

Hello fellow wanderboomers! I’m a Seattle-based travel journalist, specializing in fun travel adventures for the young at heart. My articles have been featured in Hemispheres, AAA Highroads Magazine and Northwest Travel & Life Magazine where I'm a frequent contributor. When this Wanderboomer isn’t traveling, I help global executives polish their personal and professional brand for long-term results.
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