Made in Brazil

Speedo Sundays From Jose Ignacio

With Carnival going on in Brazil, I did not end up doing much of a report on my vacation in Punta del Este. I did, however, shoot a video of the boys playing at the beach in Jose Ignacio for your viewing pleasure.

And no, I didn't forget that singer John Mayer had a Borat speedo moment this week. Click here in case you have not seen the pictures yet.

From La Barra

I got back from Punta del Este last night, but wanted to share a few pictures which I took at La Barra during the past week.

If you are staying at the peninsula, La Barra is the place to stop on your way to Bikini beach or Jose Ignacio. It is also a cool place to rent a house for the summer as there are great little restaurants and shops popping up on every corner.

More pictures and some shopping tips after the jump.

Speedo Sundays From Punta del Este

To prove that there are speedos in Jose Ignacio, I took a paparazzi approach to this Sunday's post.

Nothing like 12x zoom. More after the jump.

Shopping For A Home?

I am absolutely crazy about the homes which are being built in Punta del Este on the way to La Barra and Jose Ignacio. Because I wanted to share some of them with you guys, I forced my friend Paulinha to stop the car every five minutes on our way to the beach on Tuesday to take a few pictures.

I also highly recommend you take a look at the new Acqua apartments which are being built on Playa Brava. I have seen the plans and they look amazing.

More pictures of houses after the jump.

Speedo Break From Jose Ignacio

For those of you complaining that there are no speedos at the beach in Punta del Este.

More speedos directly from Uruguay coming on Sunday.

To Convince You To Visit Jose Ignacio

The first day of sun I had in the past week in Punta del Este was this past Sunday. I chose to spend it in Jose Ignacio, my favorite beach and definitely a place worth visiting during the summer. I took several pictures, and edited them to share with you guys.

More pictures of the beach, houses, and a lifeguard after the jump.

Guardavidas

Even though there are no waves in Chihuahua, the gay beach in Punta del Este where I spent the day on Monday, am happy that there is a lifeguard on duty.

Feliz Ano Novo

This is the very first sunrise of 2008. Wish you all peace and joy in the new year.

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Goodbye 2007

The sunset on the pictures above are not actually the last ones of the year since I took them yesterday in Punta del Este. Still I thought it was a nice way to end the year here on the blog.

I thank you for reading Made In Brazil for another year, and for making it something I truly enjoy doing.

Waiting

I took the picture above of two boys waiting by the road on my way to Jose Ignacio yesterday. I love how they look.

Hace Calor

After an entire week of rain in Punta del Este, the sun finally came out today. There is only one person missing to make this a perfect day here.

I hope that those of you who are in Rio and Floripa are having fun. Please send pictures.

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... And I Can Even Get Married Here

For the next ten days I will be blogging from Punta del Este. Now that Uruguay has approved gay civil unions I like this place even more. Expect pictures from here, as well as the usual coverage of news in Brazil.

If you are spending NYE in Floripa or Rio, send pictures of the parties, and I will make sure to post them. For a list of events, check out:
Rio de Janeiro Party Guide To NYE
Floripa Party Guide To NYE

Things To Do In Punta del Este

After two weeks in Punta del Este, I was bombarded with emails asking me for suggestions on things to do while vacationing there. Here is what you should not miss:

1. A day in the beach in José Ignacio. If you want to spend the weekend there, La Posada Del Faro is the place to stay.
   
2. A trip to Bikini Beach. On your way back at La Barra, stop by Baby Gouda for a quick salad and chipirones, or by Flo for sandwiches. Check out some of the local designer boutiques at La Barra as well.
   
3. For a gay beach experience, spend a day in Chihuahua, which is also part nudist beach. The boys tend to stick to the far right of the sand, and it can get crowded on weekends during January.
   
4. A 30-minute jog around the peninsula before sunset.
   
5. Afternoon tea at Las Cumbres in Punta Ballena for the amazing views of the sunset. If you are in the area, pay a visit to Casapueblo as well.
   
6. Crema Tramontana or Dulce de Leche Tentacion icecream at Freddo, or the fruit helados at Arlecchino. Have them everyday after the beach as the lines are huge at night.
   
7. The parillada at El Palenque in front of Punta Shopping, which is by far the best red meat extravaganza in the city.
   
8. Dinner at Marismo in José Ignacio, where wooden tables are set in the sand, and light is provided solely by candles, lamps, and a bondfire. Order the cordero with sweet potatoes.
   
9. If you are craving sushi, I recommend Sensei at La Barra for dinner.
   
10. Drinks at night on the port by Moby Dick or Soho, where many local gay boys mix in with the straight crowd. Hop!, another bar by the port, is also a good spot for dinner accompanied by a jar of clericot.
    
11. A trashy quick stop at Mercury, a hole in the wall turned into gay bar, conveniently located a block away from the bus terminal at Calle Gorlero.
    
12. A night out at Crobar, which has a franchise in Punta del Este this summer, and has already brought in such names as Danny Howells and Erick Morillo.
    
13. In case of rain (and in case you need to put on any weight), try the churros at Manolo or the waffles covered in dulce de leche at L'Auberge. There is also a movie complex at Punta Shopping.
    

Your biological clock will go into a frenzy in the first two days there because people tend to wake up late, head to the beach after 3pm, and make dinner reservations for 11pm and later. The clubs do not get busy until 2 to 3 in the morning.

One more thing to keep in mind: high season in Punta goes from January 1 to 15, but the entire month of January is a good time to go.

Leaving Punta del Este

After two weeks of vacation in Punta del Este (something which I had not done in ages), it is time to get back to work. My brother and I left early yesterday, and I shot the two videos below in the car as we left the peninsula and headed back to Brazil.

Pay attention to some of the houses in the second video, which are amazing. I already can't wait to be back next year.

Where The Boys At (In Punta del Este)

I had not been back to Chihuahua since last Friday, and I was surprised to see the beach packed today, and to also see some eye candy in the sand. The water was amazing, which is quite rare for Punta del Este (known for its ice cold water).

Fyi, Chihuahua is the main gay stretch of sand in Uruguay. It is also part nudist beach (which means no cameras allowed and explains the lack of pictures), but the boys tend to concentrate on areas to the right of the nudists, and to keep their board shorts or swimsuits on (and I hear Brazilian swimsuits are becoming popular in Argentina). I would not necessarily recommend staying there because it is far from all the restaurants, bars, and areas which I like such as La Barra, but it is a fun place to spend the day.

Heart Attack Waiting To Happen

Bad weather Punta del Este means only one thing: churros filled with cream, chocolate, or dulce de leche at Manolo.

José Ignacio

José Ignacio is one of my favorite places to spend the day in Punta del Este. It is about a 45 minute drive from the Peninsula, but certainly worth the trip. I have watched it develop over the past few years, and become an area full of amazing beach houses painted in the most dramatic colors. I took the pictures below at the beach on the last day of 2006 when several men were preparing a fireworks show in the sand.

According to January's Vogue, La Posada del Faro is the place to stay if you decide to spend a week there.

And according to me, Marismo is the place to have dinner. It is in the middle of nowhere, incredibly simple and yet very sophisticated. The tables are all on the sand, and lit by candlelight and a bonfire. Order the chipirones as an appetizer and the cordero as a main course.

Punta del Este Or Miami?

It looks like Miami, but it is actually the coastline of Punta del Este. I am not particularly found of the style of the buildings, but they are going up all over the beach here. I think it is time to start staying at La Barra.

Sunset In Punta del Este

The sun sets around 8:30 pm at this time of the year down here, and it is truly stunning. I took the pictures below this past Friday, and thought I would share them with you as the year comes to an end.

Casapueblo

I would have loved to post some pictures of the gay beach in Punta del Este today, but since Chihuahua (a somewhat appropriate name for a gay beach) is also a nudist retreat cameras are not allowed.

Due to the lack of pictures of the beach and the boys, here are some pictures I took late in the afternoon when I stopped at Casapueblo in Punta Ballena on my way back from the beach.

Casapueblo was conceived by Uruguayan artist Carlos Paez Vilaró, who created and modelled the Mediterranean style building with his own hands on the cliffs overlooking the sea. Located just 15 minutes from the downtown area of Punta del Este, it is a perfect spot to watch the sunset.

The jeep below was just so cool and perfect for here I had to take a picture.

I had dinner with friends at Baby Gouda in La Barra last night, which I highly recommend if you head south anytime soon. Crobar opened a franchise here last night, and I may check it out tonight.

Bikini Beach

Since the weather down south was amazing yesterday, I spent the day at Bikini Beach with my brother and friends. It is not my top choice in Punta del Este because it is definitely overcrowded, but I had not been there in a long time and wanted to check it out (and also watch the boys).

Fyi, Bikini is not a gay beach but there were quite a few of us representing.

Down In Punta Del Este

I have been in Punta del Este since Sunday, and I will be blogging from here for the next 10 days. The weather is amazing, and I just got back from a day at the beach catching up on my tan. I took the picture above from my terrace this morning.

I will do my best to update the blog on a daily basis, and post several pictures from here.