This is: South America 2009
It was another nice, sunny morning, the view from the hotel helped by the absence of the worst of the weekday smog that normally hangs over this vast conurbation. After another Starbucks breakfast, we decided to visit the Modern Art Museum in Ibirapuera Park and had no trouble picking up a taxi at the hotel door. As we drove through the manicured streets of the Jardins district, I was reminded of the time we spent visiting Recoleta and Palermo in Buenos Aires. In this extensive neighbourhood of Sao Paulo, there were few signs of the more challenging aspects of life in the megalopolis. We did, nevertheless, note the extensive use of barbed wire and window grilles.
When we arrived at the huge park, site of a number of museums and at least one auditorium, crowds were already beginning to gather, looking to enjoy some weekend leisure time in the sun. We spent most of our time looking around the Modern Art Museum, which consisted of an interesting section on design and an extensive temporary exhibition of photographs. Both proved to be popular, probably helped by the free admission on Sundays. Sadly, I don't have any photos of the park. (Having survived the city centre the previous day, I decided to play it safe and leave my camera in the hotel room safe. The irony was, of course, that I'd already done the dodgy bit; by comparison this was, quite literally, a walk in the park!)
Back at the InterContinental for the last time, we ordered a Room Service light lunch and attended to the packing. To save any hassle with local taxis, we asked the hotel to arrange a car for us. The drive to the airport seemed to pass remarkably quickly, no doubt helped by Sunday traffic conditions. With Bruce flying LAN and me flying Lufty, it was remarkable that not only were we leaving from the same part of the terminal, but we had both been assigned to the same lounge, run by American Airlines. This was indeed a stroke of luck, although the satisfaction faded rapidly when we saw the basic nature of the facilities, the food and drink offerings and the appalling lack of fresh air.
Bruce had by far the shorter stay, and all too soon it was time to say our goodbyes until our next, and somewhat shorter, scheduled meet-up in October 2009, on the other side of the world. I passed the remaining time at one of the computers, which had the additional benefit of getting me away from the windows and the heat of the sun streaming through them. Eventually, I made my way towards the gate on the level below.
(Link to flight log in side panel)