Brasilia 2015--Finally!

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I have been wanting to see Brasilia for a very long time. You see, I love the modern architecture of this planned city that was only finished in 1960.

That Architect was Oscar Niemeyer. The entire city is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Our flights to Brasilia were always full, but then they upgraded the aircraft from a 757 to a 767. Yes!!! Now I would have a chance maybe? I had attempted to go on my own several times but it seemed to always be raining and the thought of walking around in the rain did not excite me.

My wife and I had planned a little getaway for this week. Our daughter did not go, as she is in Florida with some friends. Of the places we had looked at going, this seemed to be the best choice for good weather. We had also planned to stop in Atlanta and see a baseball game, but scratched that until another time.

On Thursday June 11, we took what should have been a 1 hour flight to Atlanta. However, due to weather in Atlanta, we diverted to Chattanooga, Tennessee. We sat on the ground there for 3 hours and so when we finally landed in Atlanta, it had been a 5 hour trip. That fun ordeal was on Delta 1127, an Airbus 320. We sat in row 10.

We now had about 4 hours in Atlanta, so we just went and grabbed a bite to eat.

At 9pm, we cleared for business class on Delta 221 to Brasilia. I was in seat 7C and my wife in seat 7B.

Then the bad news. The plane was broke and they attempted a fix. Later they decided to swap us to another aircraft. So, we went and waited. Then they said the original aircraft was now fixed and that we would go back to that one. By the time we departed Atlanta, we were 3 hours late.

Once on board, we had a quick meal service and I watched "The Big Lebowski".

The meal was short ribs with all the sides and was pretty good. I had several gin and tonics to drink. We then went to sleep for about 6 hours, while skipping the breakfast before arrival. We arrived into Brasilia at about 10am, which was 3 hours late. We quickly cleared customs and immigration and went out to meet our tour guide.

We had hired a guide who would drive us around for the day at a cost of $100. I normally like to do things on my own and walk or use public transport, but in the case of a short day, I felt that this was worth it.

Our driver was there as expected and we quickly hit the road. He was a great guide and pointed out lots of interesting things. The city was looking better than I imagined. There were lots of green spaces. The roads and intersections were well designed for a smooth flow of traffic, with little use of traffic signals.

This is the order of what we did:

1. South Wing Residential Blocks

2. Dom Bosco Church

3. Metropolitan Cathedral

4. National Congress

5. Itamaraty Palace

6. Palace of Justice

7. Supreme Tribunal Federal

8. Pantheon of Fatherland and Freedom, Tancredo Neves

9. Pira da Liberdade

10. Estatua Dois Candangos

11. Palacio do Planalto
(Workplace of the President)

12. National Theater

13. Television Tower

14. JK Memorial

15. National Museum--Very cool! Surprised how much art was inside!

16. Embassy District

17. Alvorada Palace
(Presidential Home)

18. JK Bridge

19. Pontão do Lago Sul (we had a nice dinner here)

Our driver gave us ample time at each stop to make sure we could see as much as we wanted and take photographs. His vehicle was a very plush Mercedes too!

Our last stop was about 7pm, where we ate dinner at the Pontão do Lago Sul.



The lake is man made, but very pretty and relaxing. We had a nice meal at sunset and did some people watching. This is the hip place to get photos taken, and we saw many doing this, including several families, Brides, and pregnant women.

We shared a huge meal of picanha steak with the sides. I had a guarana soda to drink.

When it got dark, we got a taxi back to the airport. Luckily we had a lot of time because it took over 30 minutes due to traffic. The driver said that the traffic gets bad to the residential suburbs on Friday night when all the government workers head home. The airport is also busy at night too.

We finally did arrive at BSB airport and checked in. We did clear for business class again and I was in seat 2C and my wife in 2B. It was the same crew that brought us over and they were surprised that we only did a day trip, but they do know that airline employees do crazy things like this all the time.



Because of mandatory crew rest, the crew arrived to the plane late, but we were still able to depart on time.

Our return flight was Delta 221, a 767-300 to Atlanta.

We settled in and I had a meal of chilled beef medallions with all the sides. I had a few gin and tonics to drink.

After dinner, I quickly went to sleep. About one hour before arrival, I awoke and had the swiss cheese omelet for breakfast with fresh fruit.

We arrived into Atlanta at 5:30am, which was a little early. We cleared customs and immigration within 30 minutes and then went to get our connection.

At 8:15am, we were on Delta 796, and MD-90 to Indianapolis. We were in 14D and 14E in Premium Economy. I was so tired that I slept the entire flight. We got back home at about 9:30am and quickly headed home for some much needed rest.

Brasilia was much better than I imagined it. Although I don't need to go back, I would go back if the opportunity came.

So glad my wife went with me too! I really do not like to travel without my family anymore.

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