Day 32 - Welcome To Brazil



Monday, August 27, 2012 - 06:30

My flight today was at a slightly awkward 9pm, which meant I couldn’t really do much during the day because a) I woke up quite late, and b) I had been told the airport is quite a long way and there can regularly be bad traffic. As a result, I spent the late morning and early afternoon relaxing and packing up, before getting a taxi to the airport with more than enough time to spare (I didn’t fancy missing the flight!).

It turned out that I had nothing to worry about, and I ended up arriving at the airport almost four hours before departure. On the drive there I got my first glimpses of the world outside of Buenos Aires in over a week, and the sprawling city soon makes way for rolling fields. It was interesting to observe the taxi driver on the motorway – he was not allowing any vehicle to slow him down, and cut precariously in and out of all three lanes as he attempted to maintain a constant speed.

Given the amount of time I had alone at the airport, I decided to make use of one of my two free airport lounge entries this year (courtesy of American Express). It felt strange going into a VIP lounge, though I’m happy to say I made good use of it by enjoying the free wifi and snacks. Due to being very comfortable, the time soon passed and I got ready to board the flight. Since it had been the cheapest on offer, I was about to have my first experience on Emirates.

The flight itself was the Buenos Aires to Rio de Janeiro leg of an onward flight to Dubai. The plane was therefore a large long-haul Boeing 777, which was kitted out more impressively than any plane I’ve seen before. Every economy seat had a large touchscreen which was usable throughout take-off and landing, its own plug socket, and most had USB charge points. The flight was also only around a third full, since most passengers were boarding at Rio. As a result I had a rather comfortable three seats to myself by the window. Sadly, my most luxurious flying experience to date only lasted three hours, though I will definitely be strongly considering Emirates in the future!

On arrival in Rio I immediately appreciated the tropical climate; shirt and hoody came straight off despite it being past midnight by the time I landed. Negotiating a taxi was interesting since it consisted of the easiest bartering I’ve ever encountered. The conversation went something like: ‘How much to Copacabana’, ‘80’, ‘the hostel told me it costs 60’, ‘ok 60’. Maybe I should have pressed for cheaper!

So I’ve finally made it to Brazil – tomorrow there is only one thing I want to do and that is go to the beach!

Photo of the day: the most comfortable flight I've ever been on.

Comments

Emirates are definitely rhe best airline!
Only 1437 days to go until the 2016 Olympics!
Enjoy Brazil. Xxx

Amazing how you always fall on your feet James. EasyJet was never like this.
Wish I could be on the beach with you.

The problem with flying Emirates is that it spoils you for any other flight in the future. Also those VIP lounges can be quite addictive - Amex give you 2 a year free for a reason.
Enjoy Rio

Add new comment

Plain text

  • No HTML tags allowed.
  • Web page addresses and e-mail addresses turn into links automatically.
  • Lines and paragraphs break automatically.
CAPTCHA

This question is for testing whether or not you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions.