skip to main |
skip to sidebar
Car
Photography by Chris Osburn © 2007
Interested in contributing travel photography to this blog? Click here for details.
Welcome to the latest instalment of Expat Perspective, a new series of posts by guest writers who come from X but are living long term in Y. Here's the latest post from Chris Mavergames, an American librarian who's recently settled into family life in Southern Germany.
I just spent 9 days in the monstrosity that is Sao Paulo, Brazil. Witha metropolitan population of over 20 million inhabitants, Sao Paulo is currently the 4th largest city in the world, 3rd if you count the vast expanses of the metropolitan area. The taxi ride from the airport to the city centre gives one the sense of this expanse and the poverty that leads you to the towering skyscrapers at the heart of this very modern, very wealthy metropolis.
I was there attending a work conference, so I honestly did not have much time for leisure. Having said that, there were the evenings, and I spent them having some of the best meals of my life. The food in Sao Paulo, and I suspect in many places in Brazil/South America generally,is excellent. The tastiest meats, salad bars with plentiful vegetables from both the Brazilian influence as well as the rich Italian immigrant history of the city (think yucca next to buffalo mozzarella next to marinaded shitake mushrooms!) and incredible red wines fromneighboring Chile and Argentina make it a foodies' dream. I can highly recommend the restaurant Rodeio. Also, the churrascaria restaurant (the Portuguese name for a special kind of Brazilian steakhouse), Fogo da Chao, which is actually a chain with locations in the USA, was also a fantastic experience. See www.fogodachao.com for more information.
Ultimately, I needed much more time than I had available to navigate the smog-filled mayhem that is Sao Paulo. The city can be dangerous and intimidating, but even if you go there only to eat and drink caipirinhas, you won't be disappointed!
Milan: Coconut Fountain
Photography by Chris Osburn © 2007
Interested in contributing travel photography to this blog? Click here for details.
Milan: Clowns
Photography by Chris Osburn © 2007
Interested in contributing travel photography to this blog? Click here for details.
Milan: Ciao Bella
Photography by Chris Osburn © 2007
Interested in contributing travel photography to this blog? Click here for details.
Milan: Via Montenapoleone
Photography by Chris Osburn © 2007
Interested in contributing travel photography to this blog? Click here for details.
Milan: Milano/Oxford
Photography by Chris Osburn © 2007
Interested in contributing travel photography to this blog? Click here for details.
Milan: Hotel Verona
Photography by Chris Osburn © 2007
Interested in contributing travel photography to this blog? Click here for details.
Milan: Hotel City
Photography by Chris Osburn © 2007
Interested in contributing travel photography to this blog? Click here for details.
Pannocchie
Photography by Chris Osburn © 2007
Interested in contributing travel photography to this blog? Click here for details.
Milan: $!
Photography by Chris Osburn © 2007
Interested in contributing travel photography to this blog? Click here for details.
Via Ragazzi del '99
Photography by Chris Osburn © 2007
Interested in contributing travel photography to this blog? Click here for details.
Monkeys kill Delhi deputy mayor
Delhi's deputy mayor dies after falling from a terrace while trying to fight off a horde of wild monkeys.
BBC News
Last Updated: Sunday, 21 October 2007, 21:33 GMT 22:33 UK
SS Bajwa suffered serious head injuries when he fell from the first-floor terrace of his home on Saturday morning trying to fight off the monkeys.
Click here for complete article.
BRITISH AIRWAYS BAGGAGE POLICY
British Airways’ revised hold baggage policy will come into full effect from November 6.
The new policy was partially introduced in February to give staff and customers sufficient time to familiarise themselves with the changes. Since then, the airline has conducted extensive research involving its customers and its staff.
As a result, it will make a number of changes, designed to address the key concerns highlighted.
The changes will mean:
Excess baggage charges will be significantly reduced.
Customers will benefit from a 20 per cent discount if they pay excess baggage charges online at ba.com.
Revised online excess baggage rates will be:
UK domestic flights - £14 one-way (previously £24)
All other short haul - £24 one-way (previously £48)
Long haul - £60 one-way (previously £96)
Customers paying excess baggage charges at the airport will pay:
UK domestic - £20 one-way (previously £30)
All other shorthaul - £30 one-way (previously £60)
Long haul - £75 one-way (previously £120)
Continued flexibility for customers who are unable to carry one bag, provided they remain within the 23kgs weight limit.
Customers who check in bags within their piece allowance but that exceed 23kgs will pay a flat-rate of £25, with effect from November 4, 2008, once the airline’s transition into London Heathrow’s Terminal 5 is complete.
Customers will continue to be able to take their sporting equipment such as golf bags and skis for free in addition to their normal personal baggage allowance.
The airline has redefined the list of sporting equipment to make it easier for customers to understand what they can and cannot check in. It also takes into account limitations of airport baggage systems and size and weight restrictions in the aircraft hold.
All other aspects of the policy will remain the same.
Since introducing its new baggage policy in February 2007, the airline has conducted research with its staff and customers. The revisions to the policy reflect the outcome of this research.
With effect from November 6, passengers’ personal baggage allowance will be:
One bag weighing no more than 23kgs for Euro/World Traveller economy passengers with the exception of some longhaul routes including, the USA and Canada, Argentina, Brazil, the Caribbean, Mexico, Bermuda, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria. Customers travelling in World Traveller (economy) to and from the above destinations will be able to take two bags, each weighing no more than 23kgs.
Two bags, each weighing no more than 23kgs for Club Europe and World Traveller Plus passengers.
Three bags, each weighing no more than 23kgs for Club World and First passengers. Sporting equipment such as golf bags and skis can be taken free of charge in addition to a passenger’s personal baggage allowance.
Where it is clear that a passenger cannot manage one bag of 23kgs, they will be able to check in an additional bag free of charge, as long as both bags are within 23kgs. Infants’ personal allowance is one bag, weighing no more than 23kgs. Pushchairs, car seats and wheelchairs can be taken in addition to the baggage allowance.
Hand baggage allowance remains:
Passengers departing from or transferring through a UK airport can take one standard-sized bag no bigger than 56 cm x 45 cm x 25 cm (22 inches x 17.5 inches x 9.85 inches).
Passengers departing airports outside the UK, and whose journey ends in the UK can take:
One standard sized bag no bigger than 56 cm x 45 cm x 25 cm (22 inches x 17.5 inches x 9.85 inches) and a laptop sized bag or briefcase.
There is no weight limit for cabin bags, provided customers can lift the bags, unaided, into the overhead lockers in the aircraft cabin.
Restrictions remain in place for the carriage of liquids, gels and creams in hand baggage for all passengers departing from and transferring through all EU airports, the USA and Canada. Some other airports around the world operate their own restrictions. Customers are advised to check before they travel.
Please visit www.ba.com for full details of the revised baggage policy.
Bentley
Photography by Chris Osburn © 2007
Interested in contributing travel photography to this blog? Click here for details.
Ferrari/Via Montenapoleone
Photography by Chris Osburn © 2007
Interested in contributing travel photography to this blog? Click here for details.
Taxi Stand
Photography by Chris Osburn © 2007
Interested in contributing travel photography to this blog? Click here for details.
Ai Treni
Photography by Chris Osburn © 2007
Interested in contributing travel photography to this blog? Click here for details.
Too Much Milano
Photography by Chris Osburn © 2007
Interested in contributing travel photography to this blog? Click here for details.
Shock Economy Milano
Photography by Chris Osburn © 2007
Interested in contributing travel photography to this blog? Click here for details.
