After taking advantage of a $385 fare from Toronto to Rio de Janeiro, I had the opportunity to visit Brazil for an extended weekend. The challenge ended up being finding flights to get to Toronto but I was eventually successful in using 12,500 miles to get to Toronto. Because this was a full year ago, I will keep it short.
From Toronto, a quick regional jet hop to JFK was a breeze and a quick visit to JFK's Flagship First Class lounge was in order. The lounge turned out to be glorified Admiral's Club with an upgraded food spread and self-service bar. With a sub-par champagne offering, I went straight for the gin martini.
Let's face it, the around the world trip spoiled me. Now, faced with a 10 hour flight in economy with no TVs in the seat in front of me, I was terrified. This was going to be tough. I will share one picture to summarize the experience.
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| Seriously man? Also, notice the broken TV |
A Friday morning arrival into Rio de Janeiro allowed a full weekend of activities. We arranged transportation through our hotel, The JW Marriott Rio de Janeiro, on the famed Copacabana beach.
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| A quick view from the hotel |
A trip to Rio is not complete without three things: the Corcovado, Soccer game at the Maracana, and hang gliding
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| Christ the Redeamer |
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| Flamengo vs Fluminense at the Maracana. A local rivalry |
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| Uh... |
Three days later and it was time to return. There was no way I was going to fly economy home again, so I flexed some muscle at American Airlines (used miles to upgrade) and I was on my way home in seat 7K
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| This is more like it |
A great trip to Brazil for the weekend and an additional 10,000+ miles in the Bank.
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