Rio de Janeiro, Brazil's second largest city, is a place of contrasts, spectacular vistas, dazzling beaches, and the persistent beat of Samba drums. Florianopolis is a thriving Brazilian provincial capital, filled with vividly colored colonial buildings, among them one of the strangest palaces I've ever visited. Montevideo, the capital of Uruguay, has its own proud history and bittersweet memories, as well as what has to be one of the most energetic gathering places in Latin America. Just across the muddy Rio de la Plata from
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Golden landfall in South America As we drew near Rio de Janeiro harbor at dawn, we were greeted with as...
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Rio at dawn: Sugar Loaf to Corcovado A dawn arrival in Rio de Janeiro offers a panoramic view of one of the...
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Rio greets the sun A golden shoreline curves around an azure ocean as Corcovado, topped by a sun...
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Rio's Copacabana beach, from Sugar Loaf Rio de Janeiro, with nearly six million residents, is held at bay by famed...
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Beachbound Cariocas Three young Cariocas, as Rio's residents call themselves, head towards a...
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Sidewalk mosaic, Rio Rio's beachfront sidewalks are works of art in themselves. This...
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Public phones near Copacabana beach In Rio, phone booths become phone domes, making conversations easier to hear.
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Waiting for the sun Under a Brazilian flag, determined Cariocas try to catch some sun on...
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Christmas eve, Copacabana Beach Thousands crowd the sands of Rio's most famous beach on a warm but cloudy...
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Freighter off Copacabana Beach As swimmers enjoy Copacabana's surf, a huge freighter slips past the hill...
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Cable Car at Sugar Loaf Mountain A cable car offers a sweeping view of Rio, as it carries visitors to and from...
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Cable car machinery, Sugar Loaf The machinery that draws cable cars to and from Sugar Loaf. is painted in...
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Sugar Loaf looms large over Rio While only half as high as its rival, Corcovado, Sugar Loaf is one of...
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Corcovado Mountain, from Sugar Loaf Like a pair of giant book ends, Sugar Loaf and Corcovado dominate the...
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Waiting for the Corcovado tram Diverse visitors await the arrival of a tram at Corcovado Station on...
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Reaching for the clouds Corcovado, Rio's highest mountain at 2,330 feet, is topped by a statue of...
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Guard duty at Corcovado Young visitors, one of them wearing a University of Michigan T-Shirt,...
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Halo at Corcovado's summit I placed the sun behind the head of the massive statue on Corcovado to...
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Sugar Loaf, from Corcovado As I photographed this view of Rio from the summit of Corcovado, I...
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Municipal Theatre, Rio The magnificent Municipal Theatre, and an ornate lamp post, are remnants of...
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Snack time Cariocas enjoy a relaxed life style. Snack shops such as this one line...
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Soccer Champions of the World Perhaps the most unifying force in Brazil is its passion for soccer, and its...
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Brazil remembers its heroes Monuments dedicated to the memory of Brazilian soldiers and sailors...
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Holiday in Rio A pair of Cariocas celebrate Christmas Eve in Rio with a fast ride...
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The surf beckons Rio thrives on samba, soccer, and surfing. Here, a Carioca bearing a...
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Colonial buildings in Florianopolis Florianopolis, south of Rio along the coast, is the capital of Brazil's...
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Plenty of time for a chat in the square Time is not as important in Brazil as it is in some other places. Two...
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Colors of Florianopolis A brilliant sunny afternoon illuminates a colorful facade in old Florianopolis.
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Tropical creche We visited Florianopolis a few days after Christmas. In the park at...
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Heralding the season in Florianopolis Angels, made entirely of natural materials, sound wicker trumpets under a...
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As big as life Life sized biblical figures carved out of wood stand before sunstruck...
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Governor's Palace, Florianopolis Thoughout much of the 19th Century, the governors of Santa Catarina province...
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Sentry, Governor's Palace In the entrance hall of Santa Catarina's Governor's Palace in...
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Parquet pattern, Florianopolis The Governor's Palace in Florianopolis has many elegantly...
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Victorian dreams, Florianopolis Looking up the stairwell of the Governor's Palace in Florianopolis is a...
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Lady of the shadows, Florianopolis A marble bust of a woman lurks in the shadows at the base of the main...
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Knight in armor, Florianopolis Guarding the entrance to the second floor of the Governor's Palace in...
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Mercury triumphant, Florianopolis Perhaps the strangest sight in the Florianopolis Governor's Palace is the...
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Classical corner, Governor's Palace A final glimpse of the exterior of the Governor's Palace in Florianopolis...
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Weaver's workshop, Florianopolis Near the public marketplace in the center of Florianopolis is a large...
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Enthusiasm, Florianopolis One of the last photos I made in Brazil was another picture of the...
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Stormy dawn on the Rio de la Plata A rising sun proved no match for the layers of rainclouds that massed over...
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Montevideo harbor We move past the long breakwater guarding Montevideo's harbor. It leads...
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Artigas rides high in Montevideo A huge statue of General Jose Artigas, the national hero of Uruguay,...
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Montevideo, then and now The great equestrian statue of General Artigas rides before a massive...
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Inside Uruguay's Congress Building Uruguay is a tiny country squeezed between the two giants of South America,...
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Security conference Under a colorful mural depicting the country's struggle for independence,...
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Ornate ceilings for Uruguay's Congress A small portion of the spectacular ceilings that soar over the halls of...
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Marble, marble everywhere Fifty different types of beautiful Uruguayan marble can be found on...
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Beef aplenty in Uruguay Livestock bring up the rear of the larger than life sculpture "La...
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Windows of Old Montevideo A window-watcher scans the holiday crowds moving through the narrow...
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The People Speak Graffiti is not erased from the monuments in Montevideo. It is apparently...
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At Montevideo's Old Port Market The impressive mid-19th Century wrought iron Old Port Market houses a...
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Diners, Old Port Market Every seat in every restaurant in the Old Port Market is taken. It's the...
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Montevideo Barbeque Parrilladas (Barbeque) restaurants line the halls of Montevideo's...
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Uruguayans at lunch Good food, good wine, good company. A long barbeque lunch in Montevideo's...
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Invitation to the Samba, Montevideo I was just about to leave Montevideo's Old Port Market when a Samba band...
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Get in to it! Samba at Old Port Market The national dance of Brazil, the Samba beat runs deeply in Uruguayans...
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Raising the roof at the Old Port Market As the Samba band wound its thunderous way through many of the restaurants in...
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The Entertainer Entertainers of all kinds make their way to Montevideo's Old Port...
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Rain of birds, Montevideo As the sun struggles to break through Montevideo's leaden skies, a...
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Argentina's Government Palace On the opposite bank of the Rio de la Plata from Montevideo stands...
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Plaza de Mayo: haunted ground The Plaza de Mayo, at the heart of Buenos Aires, is haunted by...
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The Liberator Buenos Aires is a city of monuments. One of the most impressive stands in the...
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Europe in Latin America The massive bronze doors of Argentina's Naval Center bring to mind...
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City of the dead: a photo-essay Buenos Aires' vast Cementerio de La Recoleta is South America's most...
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Wounded Angel, Recoleta Cemetery Poised between tombs, this shattered 19th Century angel seems ready to strike.
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Evita's Door, Recoleta Cemetary Argentina's rich and famous gather for eternity at Recoleta. By...
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Homage to Evita A close-up of a floral offering left on a plaque at the tomb of Eva Peron in...
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Wild Bull of the Pampas The body of Argentina's most famous boxer, Luis Angel Firpo, also...
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Going to a better place? Memorial creativity has full reign at Recoleta Cemetary. In this monument, a...
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Tomb of a young woman An elegant life sized statue of a young woman and dog rises from a bed of...
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Grief Many of Recoleta's monuments depict the sadness and grief of those...
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Tomb? Supply Closet? Or both? It was shocking to discover this Recoleta mausoleum now being used as a...
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Remembering Elena Tucked away in the furthest corner of Recoleta Cemetary is the...
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Bereft A life size marble figure scatters flower petals on the tomb of a...
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Door to Eternity This elegant bronze doorway set within a simple polished granite facade is an...
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Spiders in the tomb Many of Recoleta's tombs are regularly cleaned and maintained. Others are...
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Alive and well at Recoleta Just beyond the gates of Recoleta Cemetary stands a spectacularly...
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La Boca: Buenos Aires' artists at work When Italian immigrants, particularly sailors from Genoa, settled in...
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Cat of La Boca Good luck comes to those who work at it. After shooting several...
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Framed by La Boca's colors Even the industrial buildings are painted in vivid colors in Buenos...
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Tango Souvenirs, La Boca The La Boca district of Buenos Aires has its share of tacky souvenir...
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At play in La Boca La Boca has artists and tourists, but it also has children and families, much...
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Gaucho Country Just outside of Buenos Aires is gaucho country. With his signature...
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Argentine Barbeque Argentina is famous for it's beef. Millions of Angus and Hereford cattle...
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Tango, Estancia Santa Susana Argentine dancers demonstrate the Tango to visitors at Estancia Santa Susana.
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Gaucho dance, Estancia Santa Susana An Argentine gaucho and his partner perform a vigorous folk dance at the...
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Gauchos, Estancia Santa Susana This pair of gauchos patiently posed for a portrait at the bar of the...
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Dinner time, Estancia Santa Susana Two of the many horses raised and trained at Estancia Santa Susana share some...
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Roundup, Estancia Santa Susana A gaucho rounds up a group of the horses and lead them to pasture.
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Retiro Train Station, Buenos Aires Buenos Aires depends on it's public transportation system to move...
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Calle Florida's pedestrian mall Calle Florida has been rebuilt as pedestrian shopping street. Its hundreds of...
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Argentine leatherwear Buenos Aires may have more leather shops than any other city. They are...
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Detail, from Naval Center's bronze doors Portenos are passionate about art, ranging from the great bronze doors of the...
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Detail, San Martin monument Jose San Martin, known as El Liberatador, reappears on a statue or...
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A broken sword: metaphor for Argentina? The broken sword on this statue of a revolutionary war soldier on San Martin...
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Buenos Aires: Life in the parks The country's deepening financial crisis has made it more...
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Argentina, 2003 The base of the monument to Argentina's independence in the Plaza...
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A closing shot, New Years Day, 2003 As our trip drew to a close in Buenos Aires, the rain clouds lifted...
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