A Return

It has been an excessively long time since my last post. Work and travel, as usual, have a way of intervening. But the shocking images outside the Kiss nightclub in Santa Maria in southern Brazil today provided superior motivation. The scenes of bodies being carried through the streets and bystanders trying to hack down the walls of the building convey a tragedy made all the more devastating by its inevitability. An appaling toll of 232, mostly university students, is the latest fatality figure--and certain to rise in the coming days. The club's fire prevention certificate had apparently been expired; too few exits made the club a deathtrap; and a band's pyrotechnic show went awry--perfect tinder for a disaster, and one that we have seen before many times.

The Charlie Waterfall scandal and Brazil's entrenched bribery state

Brazil finds itself in yet another political bribery scandal, this time one that could have grave consequences for projects ranging from 2016 Summer Olympics and World Cup 2014 development to the massive public infrastructure elements of the government's Growth Acceleration Program (PAC).

In February, Carlinhos Cachoeira (translated as Charlie Waterfall) was arrested on charges of illegal gambling, money laundering, smuggling and corruption. In Brazil, such charges are not uncommon among white collar criminals, but Charlie Waterfall has unusually high-placed friends, including politicians within President Dilma Rouseff's ruling political party PT (Workers Party) and its main partner, the PMDB (Democratic Movement Party). Cachoeira is allegedly a kingpin behind under-the-table slot machine and bingo racketeering and "jogo do bichos," a longstanding Brazilian betting game that is illegal, but so widely-played that its existence precipitates a "look the other way" attitude from officials and public alike. Since the beginning of the year, an investigative sting called Operation Monte Carlo routed Cachoeira's activities and plunged its trail of paid-off senators, ministers and other political flunkies into a widening morass. A parliamentary investigation (CPMI) looking into the relationships between Cachoeira and government figures has begun to sniff out connections that lead directly to the highest office.

Yesterday, Fernando Cavendish and Carlos Pacheco, the owner and director respectively of Delta Construcoes, one of Brazil's largest construction companies with an estimated 195 public works contracts in 23 states, resigned their duties as federal police jailed a former company director, Claudio Abreu, and detained a rash of other company executives (as well as politicians and civil servants in Goias, Anapolis and the capital, Brasilia). Delta, whose known links include members of PT and the PMDB governor of Rio de Janeiro, Sergio Cabral, is suspected of being deeply enmeshed in Cachoeira's graft schemes. According to Brazilian newsweekly Veja, Delta's federal government business rose by an extraordinary 1635% in the last three years as it was handed such prized contracts as the refurbishment of Rio's Maracana Stadium, the TransCarioca rapid transit bus line and Petrobras' Comperj refinery complex. While officials have assured the smooth transition of Delta's responsibilities as doubters worry about on-time completion of World Cup and Olympic infrastructure, the reality is that the work, already far behind, won't be helped by having such massive swaths of public and private sector individuals embroiled in the scandal.

While Lula and President Rousseff met yesterday to formulate the official PT stance on the shenanigans, they must surely be formulating a response to the lurking problem of the former national director of infrastructure and transport, Luiz Antonio Pagot, who was forced out last year under suspicion of bribery. In an interview last week, Pagot insisted that he was made a fall guy to protect Charlie Waterfall and Delta's owner Cavendish. Surely more muck will rise to the surface in the next few weeks. Stay tuned...

US-Brazil Relations post-BRICS

I find it still puzzling that Brazil-US relations are as complicated as ever. The fact is, there are problems on both sides, and the avenues for understanding are not always smooth. I have just published a new think piece for Reuters, linking future energy concerns with President Dilma Rousseff's upcoming visit to the US (which is--embarrassingly--not being treated as a state visit by the White House. I marvel at how the US can possibly rationalize this rather shabby treatment of the first female president of the world's sixth largest economy.).

Above, if you have the time, check out this video of a speech made last month by His Excellency Mauro Vieira, the Ambassador of Brazil to the US. It highlights some important aspects of Brazil-US relations. But what is equally interesting is what is left unsaid about the relations between the two countries. The residual left-wing tendencies espoused by the Worker's Party brightest lights, former president Lula da Silva and current president Dilma Rousseff, are not necessarily in the best interests of the country with respect to its relations with the US and others; and the US' tendency to treat Brazil like its personal backyard and patronize it as if it were the 1950's and Brazil still needed lessons in developmental economics, can be spectacularly short-sighted.

What complicates this is the relative level of foreign policy ignorance among members of Congress, who often operate at cross-purposes to the American national interest. Now that the BRICS have held their annual get-together, and Brazil has announced its contentious South-South policy of taking the US dollar and European Euro economies to task, I suspect we will see a more fretful dialogue between the giants of the Americas.

The BRICS 2012 Summit

Brazil's Trade and Industry Minister Fernando Pimentel set the stage for a new global confrontation at the BRICS summit today. Gathering in India, along with the heads of state of India China,Russia and South Africa, President Dilma Rousseff and her government's delegation have offered sharp words about the dollar and euro liquidity glut that has driven hot money into Brazil's economy. A communique will be issued jointly by the BRICS stating the concern that American and EU economic policies are forcing rising powers to consider protective tariffs and action at the World Trade Organization.

The language has been direct. Said Pimentel: "Today's (problem) doesn't have to do with China," he said in a 30-minute interview on the eve of the summit in New Delhi. "It has to do with the dollar and the euro."

While such collective brokering seems to look askance at the years of Chinese currency manipulation, the implication of joint action would put pressure on US and EU trade. Watch this space as Brazil and China seek to shore up their current trade relations and amp up their protectionist policies...

Chevron and the Frade Oil Leak

Although minute in comparison to the Deepwater Horizon leak in the Gulf of Mexico last year, the leak in the Frade oil field 370km off the coast of Rio de Janeiro has turned that oil field's US drilling operator Chevron into Brazil's version of BP. Though the leak occurred last November, releasing approximately 2500 barrels of oil from 500m under the ocean floor and 1130m under the surface of the Atlantic ocean, Chevron has now been charged by the Brazilian government--forcing the US oil giant to close off its Frade field well, deactivate its oil rig, and face criminal indictments against George Buck (Chevron's head of Brazilian operations) and 16 other Chevron executives. Their passports have been surrendered and they are being forced to stay in Brazil, with the full indictments expected to be announced tomorrow. Couple this with the record $11billion environmental lawsuit being levied against Chevron for the leak and you have a fiasco that must have the oil company's directors regretting their $3billion investment into Brazil.

But Chevron's woes yield a worrying glimpse into the future: if leaks like these are possible at only 1200m below the sea, what happens if and when Brazil taps into the pre-salt oil reserves located at levels twice as deep? Worse still, what does this say about Brazil's oil policy when Chevron gets thumped for spills, but Brazilian national oil company Petrobras--responsible for several deep water leaks--gets away scott-free? As the potential for monumental environmental damage escalates with greater deep-water extraction ventures, Brazil's ability to manage not only the technical aspects of extraction but also the international partnerships required to execute the retrieval of oil must be judiciously aligned.

Pollution and environmental damage have a long and sad history in Brazil. But one of the country's saving graces is the innovative spirit of its people in spite of harsh conditions and blight. New York-based Brazilian artist Vik Muniz captured the essence of this in his 3-year quest to document the conditions in the world's largest landfill (in Rio) and turn it into something beautiful. His resulting film, Waste Land, is a must-see. I had the pleasure of working with Vik many years ago and was reminded of his spirit as I contemplated the current offshore environmental troubles Brazil now faces. Check out the trailer for his film below:

The British Have Landed in Brazil: Tourism and Sport

Britain's Prince Harry has been traveling through the Caribbean and Latin America on an all-out charm offensive--and what good timing too, as the Argentines have had about enough of British imperialism's last vestiges in the Falkland Islands.

As part of a GBP 25 million UK-Brazil tourism campaign (the largest ever), the young ginger prince landed in Rio as part of the initial proceedings of the London 2012-Rio 2016 Summer Olympic hand-off. As one would imagine, the usual colorful hijinks ensue--including the stiff jigging around samba dancers, the sporty dab of beach volleyball here, perhaps a bit of jogging around Copacabana there, all of which recall Harry's father's own less-adroit attempts in the past to meld with exotic locals in the name of trade and diplomacy.

For Brazil it's all part of the business of projecting its soft power to the rest of the world. And good PR couldn't come at a better time, what with Brazilian football federation head Ricardo Teixeira resigning for health reasons 2 years before the historic 2014 World Cup. Still, another Brit couldn't help alerting Brazilians to the perceived agenda behind Harry's goodwill jaunt: Morrissey, the former lead singer of the Smiths, taunted the British royal family while giving a concert in Rio during Harry's Brazilian travels. One would have to expect as much from the man famous for titling an album "The Queen is Dead," but really, with his backing band wearing t-shirts that read "We hate William & Kate" it all seems a bit misguided and a bit too much.

Brazilian Food for Germans

A few nights ago, Embratur, the Brazilian tourist organization, set up a cultural event in Berlin, Germany dedicated to a "A Night in Fortaleza" (the largest city in the Northeast of Brazil). Though it may seem a bit random, Brazil has begun a cultural reaching-out campaign to Germany in an effort to encourage more diversified tourism to Brazil beyond the main cities of Rio and Sao Paulo. Germans represent the largest European group of foreign tourists to Brazil; moreover, direct flights from Europe go to Fortaleza, often at a cheaper rate into Brazil compared to Rio and SP. As a result, Embratur has pressed into service Brazilian chefs, farmers and others as part of a cultural exchange to spread the word about Brazil's unique gastronomy and food history--all of which are considered part of the larger cultural legacy of the country. And boy, the Brazilians are not kidding when it comes to spending on this endeavour: for a series of these one night events of Brazilian food (which have taken place in Madrid, Milan, New York, Berlin, and to be followed soon in Amsterdam), the Brazilian tourism ministry is spending BR$330 million!

Os Gemeos in LA

Gustavo and Otavio Pandolfo, the twin brothers known as the art duo Os Gemeos (which means "the twins" in Portuguese) bring their exuberant, life-affirming vision to the Prism LA center for a new show that remains open until March 24th.

Called Miss You, the show follows and expands upon Os Gemeos' aesthetic of fully inhabiting whatever space in which they create. Their brilliantly colorful street art aesthetic, paired with engaging multimedia flourishes, elevates this new installation to kaleidoscopic heights. If you happen to be in Los Angeles, you should take some time to catch this playful show. As does all of Os Gemeos' work, it immerses the visitor into a dream-like arena where visuals appear like unconscious reveries, and recalls the fantastic worlds of the early Surrealists.

Hailing from Sao Paulo, the Pandolfo brothers got their start on that mega-city's myriad walls. I still remember some of their eye-popping murals that stood out graphically against the wide variety of graffiti and runic tags that characterize the unique street art of that city.

In the rarefied context of a gallery setting however, their work never loses its power; rather it seems to gain by way of allowing their imaginations to gain greater heights through the use of interesting materials, unusual juxtapositions, and the insertion of the atomized gallery-goers. The gallery setting could not be further away from the gritty temporality of the street, but in this case, it provides an exciting new environment for the brothers to develop their memorable vision.

Senna, Formula One and on going faster

For those of you who have not seen last year's documentary film Senna, I highly recommend it. Even if you are not a racing fan, you'll sit glued to your seat, fascinated.

Ayrton Senna, three time Formula One champion, personified individualism and the pursuit of excellence in his field. With a competitor's will to win so strong that it ultimately brought him to his own end at the notorious 1994 San Marino Grand Prix (a race that served as a major turning point in the development of Formula One safety rules and regulations after also causing the death of Austrian driver Roland Ratzenberger, and the injury of fellow Brazilian driver Rubens Barrichello as well as several pit crew mechanics and spectators), Senna serves as not only a testament to ambition and perseverance, but also an interesting metaphor for Brazil as a whole at this time.

This weekend, as Senna's nephew, Bruno Senna (pictured, driving for Williams-Renault for Brazil) locked in third place (ahead of such Formula One champions as Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton) in the final Barcelona test runs prior to the 2012 Australian Grand Prix in an attempt to capture his first racing championship and continue his family's dynasty of speed, I was thinking about the will to win and the discipline it requires. As an athlete myself, I know full well the psychology of winning, and how even the slightest setback can destroy you if you are not prepared to maintain focus.

Brazil, like the younger Senna, is in pursuit of a very difficult and potentially dangerous goal: in projecting its formidable soft power and leveraging its ample resources to become a player on the world stage, it risks its own sustainability. To paraphrase the elder Senna, who talks about risks in the film, Brazil--like champion drivers--has no other option but to go forward. But as the exigencies of a changing world collide with Brazil's own internal changing circumstances at both the socio-economic and political levels, it must show a resolve as steely as a race car driver's to avoid crashing into a guard-rail and blowing itself up. Moves towards greater nationalization of state resources and pledges of reform--in sectors where corruption is so deeply entrenched that the slightest change may cause an unraveling that can unleash far more pernicious forces--have Brazil on a razor's edge. As Bruno Senna pushes onward while trying to avoid his uncle's fate, one hopes that Brazil's political class may yet collectively establish fiscal, legislative and structural discipline that will help the country capture its longed-for top spot in global dominance, and elude the gravitational forces the threaten to prevent it from reaching its full potential.
CHECK OUT THE SENNA TRAILER HERE

Carnaval begins!

On the beginning of the weekend madness and fun that is Carnaval, I thought it would be great to put up a link to the trailer for a film that debuted last year called O Samba Que Mora Em Mim (The Samba That Lives Within Me). It's a lovely film about Mangueira, the neighborhood that lends its name to one of Rio's oldest, biggest and most popular samba schools. My family are members of the school, meaning that they dress up, rehearse and perform as members of this school in the annual Carnaval parade/competition. You don't have to live in Mangueira to be a member of the Mangueira school; indeed, many famous celebrities are Mangueira members. But all samba school members respect the heritage of the traditions, people, music and year-long effort to make that one weekend during Carnaval the happiest, the shiniest, the best of the year. This film is the testament to that spirit, regardless of your circumstances. Check it out.

Fashion Week and old friends

With Fashion Week in full swing this week, it's hard to avoid the street style papparazzi and bloggers obsessively snapping the most sartorially correct boulevardiers. My fave shot of the day, though, was a photo of the always fashionable, fearless and wonderful Tim Gunn.

I met Tim when he was my New York neighbor and together we judged a neighbourhood dog fashion show I organized for our annual local block party. As ever, his presence was a hit with the crowds: witty, generous and devastatingly funny.

When my book first came out, I ran into him at a party and he was kind enough to do an impromptu endorsement on my behalf. I haven't looked at the video in a while, but when I saw the photo of him this morning looking dapper and fresh, I thought it would be a great time to dig this out and put it up for fun.

The sound quality, given the party atmosphere is not the greatest, but he is talking about his then move to Liz Claiborne as a creative director, to which he had transferred while Project Runway was in full swing.

Here's to you Tim!

China and Brazil: Neo-Colonialism on Display?

Yesterday at Cosban, the Sino-Brazilian Commission summit in the capitol of Brasilia, China's vice premier Wang Qishan expressed himself with interesting bluntness not usually heard in such diplomatic circumstances. He commented on his dissatisfaction with not having met business leaders during his stint at the Itamaraty capitol headquarters. To the ears of the politicians and diplomats arrayed around him, Vice Premier Wang's claims that business people carried "more weight" than government officers must have rankled more than a little. But can it truly be any surprise to Brazilians at this point that China's rapacious need for Brazilian resources is the primary concern for the Asian colossus? China's typical foreign policy strategy is minimal political or social intervention abroad, unless it directly aids China's receipt of the raw materials it needs to maintain its billion-plus population and the growth of its economy. Already, Brazilian firms like Petrobras and countless agricultural organizations have unlocked sweetheart deals for commodities with China in exchange for the capital needed to build-out precious infrastructure to...provide yet more commodities for China at sweetheart prices! Is it any wonder Vice Premier Wang couldn't be bothered with the diplomatic platitudes? As is China's wont, Wang just wanted to cut to the chase. Brazil needs to figure out how to present a more focused and strategic platform for its relations with China, so that both countries can arrive at equitable accommodation without the imbalance of neo-colonialism. Otherwise, the long-term picture for both countries will contain poor relations and possibly civil unrest--two factors both countries are desperate to avoid. 

My Op-Ed in Reuters and Thoughts on Brazil's Police State/State of the Police

Employment sits heavily on my mind as I ponder the current state of what has been happening in Bahia. In the past week, police have gone on strike in the Northeast, leading to murders and chaos. Now police and firefighters in Rio threaten similar action, with only days left to go before Carnaval begins. Should the action go forward, you can expect bloodshed. Street cops in Brazil, along with teachers, are among the lowest paid civil servants--and yet, their influence and power are directly related to the levels of crime and chaos within Brazilian society. Is it any wonder that police in Rio now form the largest faction of the militias that took over from drug traffickers in the favelas? Officers seeking to garnish their state wages now oversee the rackets gangs and druglords once commanded, including the provision of cooking oil, electricity, sewage, cable TV and public transport--all at extortionate rates--to the poor and captive denizens of the slums. A vicious cycle ensues, with less respect accorded to police, which drives them further to victimize their targets.

The strike action was meant to force the government's hand to raise salaries; but of course, this is hardly the way to go about things. President Rousseff will have to take serious resolute action to deal with the wage inequality that maintains corruption, instability and violence as a part of daily Brazilian life. Should the situation in Rio break down in the coming week, Brazil's soft-power gloss will be greatly tarnished--a major setback. Check it out here.

Employment and its effect on civil society were the main issues covered in a new op-ed I published in Reuters today. The US and China are not so far apart in their corporate disregard for the rule of law in their own labor statutes, leading to a trend I call Foxconnification--the individual tendency towards self-enslavement in tough labor markets. I contrast the unpaid intern problem in the US with the blue collar manufacturing situation in China to come to the conclusion that the net effect of globalization drives us further away from respecting our laws that protect labor rights and more towards reluctantly subjecting ourselves to the whims of employers.

Stay tuned for the Monday relaunch of the Brazilian Bikini Body Program website! More on that then...

New Name, New Content

Well, it's happening again, a return to this blog after a long period of going dark (5 years if you note the last post--an epic fail on my part!). I went off the rails so that I could get my ticket punched by the higher education racket to score my Masters degree in International Relations. I'm almost done, but as I am preparing my thesis, I have relaunched my book's website: http://www.thebrazilianbikinibodyprogram.com. Where it once was a subscription-based site, all the content is now free. Not only will you find a complete 30-day nutritional and exercise plan, you'll also find recipes, videos, audio, and more. I've also got my Twitter feed of VidaBossa running now too: http://www.twitter.com/vidabossa.

So this blog will be oriented around geoculture and foreign policy as it pertains to Brazil, and perhaps a few other regions of interest. I'll be jumping from covering Rio music-makers, to green sustainability initiatives out of the Amazon, to Petrobras politics. In the meantime, feel free to follow VidaBossa on Twitter and let me know about stories that interest you. I am looking forward to expansion, especially as we got closer to the 2014 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. Oba!!!

More soon!

I'm Back and It All Starts Up Again

Yes, yes, I know...it has been a very long time since I last blogged. A lot has happened--family health issues, personal health issues, and a need to take a break from what was a very exhausting experience producing a book, website and business in a compressed time period.

But now it's September and I am starting afresh--AND on the occasion of the Brazil Festival 2007 in New York City. Every year this enormous street fair takes over 6th Avenue in Midtown and offers Brazilians and Brazilophiles alike the chance to eat churrasco (Brazilian barbecue) and salgadinhos (tapas-like snacks), check out Brazilian products, and listen to music and dance while Brazilian pop stars perform on a soundstage near 42nd St.

My role today is to jumpstart this new phase on the BBBP. My friends and I will be roaming the crowd handing out flyers, while checking out the vibe.

In the next few days, I'll post some videos and photos of some of the more interesting stuff that's happened during my blog-hiatus to keep all of you up-to-date. So stay tuned and please feel free to share your images and thoughts if you attended Brazilian Day 2007 in NYC.

More coming up soon...

Brazilian Barkini Fans

This is George, who was one of the many fans I seem to have won thanks to the hypoallergenic Brazilian Barkini Biscuits I made for my book signing this past Saturday. As you can see from the photograph, his mouth is crammed with a treat I had just flipped his way.

George's family, the Laphams, were one of the many neighbors and out-of-towners who stopped by Zoomies to check out my book. I had a great time talking to everyone and meeting them and their pets. The best part was winning over the skeptics--not so much for the book, but for the Brazilian Barkini dog cookies. There were more than a few Zoomies customers whom, upon being asked if their dogs would like a free hypoallergenic treat, insisted that their dogs were so finicky that no biscuit would entice their pet's fickle palate, but that I was free to go ahead and try. It was unanimous: Every dog that clamped their choppers on the BBBiscuits greedily snuffled them down and came back for more. I was mightily surprised to have had an unexpected hit on my hands. By the end of the afternoon, I had a few books left over, but absolutely no biscuits at all!

That said, I did manage to sell books, meet lots of great people in the neighborhood and see some dear friends who came to support and buy the book. I was very pleased to see one of the fencers I work out with, Jeremy, who came by with his lovely wife and their adorable black Lab Lada (named after the Eastern European car, and who consumed BBBiscuits like those cars did untreated diesel fuel!); as well as one of my fabulous Pilates clients Jim, who came sans pooch.

In all, I had a great time and I owe it all to Susan and Angelique, the owners of Zoomies, who really pulled out the stops to plug the book and support me. Check out the street-display they set up on the day of the signing:

I am just in the middle of trying to set up the next event for the BBBP--a "workout and cookout" in East Hampton at the home of my friend Cindy Glanzrock--an amazing woman and incomparable networker. The party is set for the end of the month, so more details are set to follow in the next few days.

And for those of you who enjoyed the Tube Dinner escapades, my friends set me to a new task which was accepted and thoroughly enjoyed--a multi-course meal in which everything was smoked. The dinner was this past Friday and I am very happy to say that it was another great night. I am just now readying the photos and should be posting the results up soon.

Dog Treats and Book Signings

My dog Yoshi has been drooling all day, thanks to the hypoallergenic treats I've baked in preparation for my book signing at Zoomies tomorrow. Zoomies, a gorgeous little pet boutique in my West Village neighborhood, has kindly been talking up me and my book to our fellow West Village residents and apparently we'll have a good crowd for the signing and treat give-away, which will be from 1pm-3pm Saturday afternoon.

Here's what Zoomies looks like:

And here's Zoomies' resident hound, Chou-Chou:

The signing isn't until tomorrow and Susan and Angelique, the fabulously fierce owners of Zoomies, have already sold a book! They are working it hard on my behalf. Love them! They have set up some nice displays:

Yoshi was inspecting the display earlier this afternoon:

The treats are composed of the core ingredients of the Brazilian-style nutrition program I've put together in my book. I'll be posting the recipe for the treats on the blog tomorrow and, if the local dog population unanimously approves of them, they'll be sold at Zoomies as Brazilian Barkini Body Dog Biscuits. No guarantees that the treats will improve canine figures for display in Rio-style "fio dental" ("dental floss") thong bikinis, but then again, while there may be some crazy dog owners, I don't know anyone that insane. Yet. Perhaps tomorrow...

Tonight, I am hosting yet another challenge dinner party. The theme: All courses featuring smoked foods. I smell like a hickory pit at the moment, but the courses are turning out well so far. More on that, and pix, through the next few days...

See you at Zoomies!

Another Event Tonight and a Tubular Dinner Party

Tonight will be the second launch party for my book and website, The Brazilian Bikini Body Program. It's being held beside the lovely indoor pool at the Hotel QT in Times Square, and my co-hosts are Anderson Trindade and Miller Cruz, the DJs and main organizers. The party got a mention in the New York Daily news today, so it's entirely possible that the place will be inundated! Which is no bad thing, as long as I can push the more obnoxious ones into the pool for a laugh. I'll be signing books there, so if you're in the New York area and planning to come, stop by the table and I'll autograph your copy. Mention this blog and I'll personalize your copy with some outlandish doodle!

So, very busy puttering around today while getting things ready for the 'do tonight, but I was reminded of my promise to blog about a rather hilarious meal I prepared with my good friends Gabe and Jason a few weeks back.

Gabe and Jason, like the majority of my friends, are tireless world-travelers who live for experiencing new cultures, foods and ideas. One night, while at their gorgeous apartment on the Upper West Side, I spied in their kitchen a little box piled high with foods-in-a-tube: mayonnaises, mustards, purees of tomato, ginger, horseradish and hungarian smoked peppers. I clapped my hands and called out to Gabe, enquiring about his collection, since I myself am a fanatic about foods-in-a-tube. In general, Americans don't get their condiments in this form, but in Europe, it is very common. And since I've lived half my life (and still live half of every year) in Europe, I swear by these handy and economical little containers for measuring out just the right amount of what you need for a sandwich, salad or recipe. They're neater and less fussy to use than plastic or glass jars. And the tubes are almost always recyclable. Best of all, they are usually designed well, with eye-catching typography and imagery so that the casual shopper will easily recognize what's inside. They are most prevalent in the countries of Northern and Central Europe, but just about every country has some claim on food-in-a-tube. I get very homesick for my house in Amsterdam when I see them.

So as I began squealing about the condiments, Gabe launched into his fervent acclaim for food-in-a-tube too. We agreed that not only do these tubes often feature hard-to-find pastes and sauces (Hungary, where Gabe's family comes from, seems to have the most interesting combinations like horseradish mustard, garlic mayonnaise with horseradish, sweet smoked pepper paste and spicy smoked peppers pastes, etc.), they serve as great souvenirs and gifts. Gabe was hoarding his collection of these little babies partly out of sentiment for the travel memories and partly for aesthetic/design reasons; they DO look fabulous. But they looked surprisingly pristine, and I asked if he actually cooked with them. When he mentioned that he always kept one tube for use, and one for decor, I laughed and off-handedly suggested constructing a dinner party that consisted of dishes prepared with every single tube in his collection.

He roared his approval. Within a few minutes, I had the basic menu. We planned the party for a few weeks after its conception, and here's what we ate:

Starters: Deviled Quail Eggs (Tubes featured: Half made with Kalles Cod Roe Caviar Paste; the other half made with Hungarian horseradish mustard)

First Course: Chourico and Pepper Stew with Asiago Cheese Toast Points (Tubes featured: The sausage and pepper stew was prepared with Hungarian sweet smoked pepper paste and Hungarian garlic paste; the Asiago cheese toasts were prepared with a tube of garlic aioli.

Second Course: Spinach and Feta Torta (Tubes featured: Garlic paste and mustard)

Third Course: Roast Chicken with Roquefort Mashed Potatoes (Tubes featured: The chicken was marinaded and coated in spicy smoked pepper paste; the Roquefort mashed potatoes featured the garlic paste)

Fourth Course: Brussels Sprout Etoufee (Tubes featured: The stew featured garlic and horseradish pastes. This course was kindly prepared by our friend Chris, a vegetarian among us omnivores)

Dessert: Ginger Cake (Tubes featured: This unbelievably moist, rich cake was prepared by Gabe's friend Schelley who used ginger puree in a tube).

The dinner was excellent fun. Check out the photos:













We've only just started to consider our next dinner party concept. If you've got ideas, send them in!

Tomorrow (if I'm still conscious), party pix...

Finally, I'm Back and Going To The Dogs

Yes, it's been a while. Lots of things have cropped up, including some serious family health crises. So, I've not been dutifully blogging. But now that I'm coming up for a bit of air, it's time to finally post some photos. The photos are from the first of the launch parties for my book, which was held two weeks ago.

Later this week, on Thursday, I'm holding another party/book signing. This time, it's going to be held at the Hotel QT, and Andre Balazs "hipster" hotel in Times Square. The draw? The hotel has an indoor pool with a swim-up bar. So the party will be a proper Brazilian bikini party! The party masterminds are Anderson Trindade and Miller Cruz (who DJ'ed at the first party and who stars in the photo above), who host a regular monthly Brazilian music night at the Hotel QT. So the next batch of photos should yield a few slightly racier images...

And the book tour? Well, "tour" is probably not the right word for my travels. I went to four cities to do TV press to support the book: Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas and Houston. If you'd like to see the fruits of those labors, some of the videos are available for viewing. Here are the links (with instructions on finding the videos):

http://wgntv.trb.com/news/local/lunchbreak/ (Under the video panel, there is a scroll bar. Scroll down until you see the listing The Brazilian Body Diet)

http://www.greatdayhouston.com/ (go to the video panel in the middle of the page and click on the video of Brazilian Beach Body--next to a videocamera icon)

http://www.myfoxdfw.com/myfox/pages/InsideFox/Detail?contentId=3222009&version=1&locale=EN-US&layoutCode=VSTY&pageId=5.1.1

And for you dog-lovers out there in New York City, Susan and Angelique, the kind and glamorous owners of super-chic West Village dog boutique Zoomies (http://www.zoomiesnyc.com), will also host a book signing for me on Saturday, 9th of June, 2007. Now I know some may scoff and say, "But your book has nothing to do with dogs!" True. But I'm taking this opportunity to develop some dog-friendly healthy nutrition solutions, following the guidelines I've set forth in The Brazilian Bikini Body Program (http://www.thebrazilianbikinibodyprogram.com).

In fact, I'm in the middle of cooking up hypo-allergenic, low-fat dog treats that will be billed as "Brazilian Barkini Body" treats! I'll be serving them at the signing to all pooches in attendance, and they'll be stocked at Zoomies! Currently I'm kitchen-testing those treats while blogging, and Yoshi, my canine companion whose regal mug graced an earlier post, is gobbling down the test samples. The first batches were thoroughly rejected (too much oat flour, not enough chicken), but I think I'm close now. The last two biscuit pieces were greedily accepted and noisily savored.

As we get closer to the date, I'll post the treat recipe and more info on dogs and food. Now more than ever, thanks to the recent toxicity scares over human AND animal food, I think we're finally paying attention to that with which we're stuffing ourselves and our pets. Yoshi's had serious allergies and infections in the past, which has necessitated a complete turnaround in what I can feed him. I had to educate myself very quickly on dog nutrition in order to turn his condition around (and find a good vet, which I did. In fact, if it weren't for Dr. Heather Peikes, a sensational vet dermatologist in Manhattan, Yoshi's complications could have deteriorated to a point I don't even want to consider). So I hope to offer some what I've learned in the form of tasty, healthy dog biscuits.

The kitchen timer has gone off, so I must go and offer the next batch samples to the beast for his delectation.

More soon...

On The Road

So here I am, in Dallas, Texas, on the third day of my mini-book tour. So far, the reception to the book has been very good--well, at least from the news presenters and producers who I've worked with--and I've had some nice feedback. I'm off later this afternoon to Houston, Texas and then back to NYC.

I'm compiling a small video of the book tour experience to share with readers of my website and blog. I started off in Atlanta, then went to Chicago before going to Texas. Chicago was a real treat for me, not least because I love that city, but mostly because some of my dearest and oldest friends live there. In fact, my lovely pal Liz helped to set up a surprise on my old college roommate Kate by telling her that she was bringing a special guest to their weekly book club night, being careful not to mention that the guest was me. All the other book club members were in on the surprise. As we walked up the street to the house of the book club's host, Kate stood in the doorway and, after a moment's befuddled scrutiny of my face (it's been a LONG time since we last saw each other and my hair was MUCH shorter), she practically fell down on the floor from the shock! It was brilliant and hilarious. And captured on digital video!

I did the Your Health noon segment at WGN-TV in Chicago the next day, and then jetted off to Texas. On Monday in Atlanta, I had a great chat with Suchita Vadlamani at Good Day Atlanta on WAGA-TV, a Fox affiliate; she really seemed to like the food and we bonded over global cuisine concepts--that was fun. That segment will be aired on May 21st, so if you live in the Georgia area, be on the lookout for it! This morning I mixed it up with hosts of Good Day Dallas, Tim and Megan, and was delighted by the kind reception I got there from all the people at the station.

Tomorrow I'll be appearing on Great Day Houston, doing both a cooking AND exercise segment. I just hope that my clothing choices will be appropriate for both--you can never tell what will happen with live TV segments!

Once I'm back in NYC, I'll finally get to post to this blog some party pictures I've been promising for too long now, and I'll find a way to post some of the video stills of my book tour on the blog. I'll probably be putting up the whole video on my website, so if you still haven't subscribed to the www.brazilianbikinibodyprogram.com and have always wondered what the life of a published author looks and feels like, you can check it out there!

Gotta go...plane to catch. More on Friday...