Friday, January 11, 2008

Sub-Equatorial Chop!

Hola El Mundo!

This Christmas, approximately 20% of The Chop flew south to escape the hurricane-like winter winds of San Francisco.

Yes it's true, I spent a full 15 days on that deviously hot continent that shares our namesake, South America.
Let me debrief you on my adventures:

I flew first to Rio de Janeiro, to spend New Year's Eve on the beach.
Despite the somewhat startling lack of English-speaking in Brazil, they retained a sharp handle on our style of Chop-related wordplay.

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Chopp is slang for beer in Brazil (eerie, no?), and establishments that serve beer (read: all establishments) are known as "Chopperias". This place was approximately 20 steps outside my door, and provided an encouraging start to the trip.

Rio de Janeiro is a hectic town where red lights and turn signals are invariably disregarded, street-meat is prevalent (beware, fellows, beware), and lime is added to everything (including aforementioned street-meat).
It's definitely a beach town, complete with the intense sunshine, wanton shirtlessness, and public consumption of alcohol one would expect. On the other hand, a standard police pat-down involves a drawn weapon pointed at your back at all times, and they sure as shit aren't afraid to shoot at Santa Claus (click the picture to read). Don't worry...the image is a little misleading...Santa pulled through.

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Also in Rio, and also Chop-related, stands Christ the Redeemer (Christo Redentor). Located high atop Corcovado, a huge mountain within the city, the soapstone for this thing was imported from Sweden and then hauled up this mountain piece by piece on a steep-ass railway built at the whim of some rich Carioca who wanted an easy picnic spot.

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Iconic image, yes?

But now let's look just a bit closer as this truly revolutionary Jesus:

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The Redeemer's Chop-hand is strong!
Catholicism has never seemed so appealing as when JC himself gives a shoutout to one's American ROCK and ROLL band.

Anyway, America, the rest of my time in Rio was spent watching fireworks go off for forty-five minutes while swimming in the ocean at midnight, panhandling with 'Janko' for a few Real, trying my damnedest to get a tan (no avail), and drinking from coconuts. It was truly an awesome time. Perhaps I will write and post more pictures in a couple of days detailing my subsequent adventures in Buenos Aires once I've compiled more stuff and gotten my head straight. In the meantime, Jennifer Sung (early Chop supporter/Yoshi/un-official band photographer) is still down there, and updating a blog regularly...so check that by clicking here:

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I can say I am glad to be back.

in a Jefferies Tube of love,
Roberto

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