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This blog has been around for nearly a decade.

More than 2,500 stories have been posted.

Nearly 2,000 original color images – taken on a series of Nikon Digital cameras by yours truly – have been posted.

The advocacy for people with disabilities has been ramped up.

The vivid color photography has portrayed street life in Rome, Paris, Barcelona, Istanbul, Marrakech, Rio de Janeiro, Buenos Aires, Madrid, Mexico City and dozens of urban locations in the USA.

The text would fill nearly four books.

The topics are relevant to urban designers, town planners, mobility engineers, landscape architects, architects, sustainability experts and others who impact our built environment.

VINICIUS SHOW BAR, IPANEMA, RIO DE JANEIRO

THE TEMPLE OF BOSSA NOVA

About the only drawback to Bar Vinicius is that it is upstairs, so wheelchair users cannot enjoy its intimate confines, fine acoustics and outstanding shows.

The best place to hear bossa nova in Rio, this place has been an icon in the neighborhood since 1989.

It is named for Vinicius de Moraes, the Brazilian poet, lyricist, essayist and playwright who wrote the lyrics for many now-classic Brazilian songs and became a seminal figure in modern  Música Brasileira.

The cover charge is a modest 38 BRL (less than $10 USD).

If you are lucky, the show will start at 9:30 p.m. on a weeknight -- rather early by Rio standards.

The singer and combo will perform for at least an hour and you will sip caipirinhas.

Skip the food, it is mediocre at best.

Despite a full menu, the downstairs restaurant is best only for its rustic feel and huge windows for people watching in fashionable Ipanema.

It is across the street from the bigger, more outlandish, tourist-filled Garota de Ipanema, the original Bar Veloso where Moraes and Antonio Carlos Jobim held court.

http://viniciusbar.com.br/index_en.htm

STREET ART, SANTA TERESA, RIO DE JANERIO

BRAZIL ICON PELE GETTING A HUG FROM THE MONA LISA

Santa Teresa is the name of a neighborhood in the city of Rio de Janeiro.

It is located on top of the Santa Teresa hill, by the centre of Rio, and is famous for its winding, narrow streets which are a favourite spot for artists and tourists.

The neighborhood originated around the Santa Teresa Convent, built in the 1750s on the Desterro hill.

At the end of the 19th and early 20th century it was an upper class borough, as testified by its magnificent mansions, many of which are still standing.

Santa Teresa ceased being an upper-class neighbourhood long ago, but it has been revived as an artistic hotspot.

It is home to several artists and art studios and galleries.

The offer of restaurants and bars is also varied.

--Courtesy (UK spelling version) Wikipedia 

CRISTO REDENTOR PROTEGE RIO

DURANTE O CARNAVAL

CIDADE MARAVILHOSA FOTOS POR STEVE WRIGHT