World Cup Archives - Page 3 of 3

Jun 19 2014

(Fut)ballin’ in Brazil – Traveling Alone (Day -1)

Unbelievably, this was a year ago - they grow up so fast and I hate to miss any of it — Unbelievably, this was in Italy a year ago – they grow up so fast and I hate to miss any of it

Update: instead of waking up at 5 am like she has the past month, baby M slept in today and I didn’t get to bye. WHY

I put Baby M down to sleep tonight and let out a brief sigh. The only thing tempering my otherwise unbridled excitement for this trip is leaving Jess and the baby at home. It is the special lot of parents of toddlers to feel like any day missed is a milestone missed. This parent, at least. Anyway, it’s always tough to leave, but I’m sure they will be fine – I’ll be the one missing out!

The other issue with traveling alone is the little things – nobody to watch your luggage when you go to the bathroom, nobody to help hold your stuff when you take your sweatshirt off, etc. Luckily, I’m meeting up with a friend in Charlotte for a fairly significant layover that will be chock full of Charlotte-y things. I’m looking forward to that – and in 36 hours I’ll hopefully be in Brazil! If you’re a new reader, welcome! Note I don’t normally blog daily like this, but I’ll try to share a little something every day of my trip if I can.

Two outstanding issues before I leave:

1) The World Cup looks like it’s been going smoothly thus far which is great to see.

2) U-S-A!

johnbrooks — Image courtesy of USA Today

Other Posts in this Series

Getting Pumped, Getting Prepared

What’s in my wallet?

Travel Practicalities

Traveling Alone

Charlotte Chowdown

Finally Here! First Impressions

Match Day Impressions

Rest and Recovery

Waiting for the Big Guy

Random Musings

Fears Finally Realized on the Long Way Back

Post Trip Thoughts

Jun 18 2014

(Fut)ballin’ in Brazil: Travel Practicalities (Day -2)

I’m at the point in my trip where I’m taking care of the practical things that I feel need to be done before I leave. I more or less go through the same process for every trip, though this is my first long trip without Jess in awhile. When we travel together, we generally split up the roles, but since I’m traveling solo it’s all on me. Here’s what’s on my list of things to do:

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Jun 17 2014

(Fut)ballin’ in Brazil: What’s in my wallet? (Day -3)

Disclosure: I may receive a commission for some of the credit card links in this post.

One thing that is always worth doing some pre-planning (in my opinion) is figuring out what credit cards to put in my wallet on an international trip. I generally go with one ATM card, one Visa, one AMEX, one MC, and one wildcard, usually a second Visa. When going international, I don’t want to take too many cards (actually five sounds like a lot now), but I also don’t want to be screwed if a certain card type isn’t accepted or if one of my cards runs into issues.

I’ve been stressed about my decisions a little more because Brazil’s advice to tourists is to just let yourself get robbed if it’s happening. Don’t scream, don’t fight back, etc. With that in mind, I’ve come up with this brilliant plan: I’m bringing two wallets. My first wallet, my real wallet, I’ll only really carry to and from Brazil. In there, I’ll have my ATM card (Fidelity cash card), my Chase Ink Plus, AMEX Platinum, and Barclaycard Arrival Plus World MasterCard®.

My second wallet will be my “throwaway” wallet, aka, the I might be getting mugged here have my wallet wallet. In there I’ll have one real card (Chase Sapphire Preferred), a couple of expired cards, and some cash. That’s the wallet I’ll probably carry around with me the majority of the time in Brazil. If I’m carrying a fake wallet, where will my real money go? In a handy dandy money belt of course. I feel like they are essential to have – not only in Brazil, but we use them in Europe, Asia, Newark – everywhere! (Just kidding, Newark. New Jersey 4 Lyfe.) So I’ll have some money, another card, and the copy of my passport (and game tickets) in there. Anyway, that’s my thinking right now – I still have a few days so I might change my mind – but that’s how I’m leaning for now! Three days to go. WOO! P.S. – USA!!!

Other Posts in this Series

Getting Pumped, Getting Prepared

What’s in my wallet?

Travel Practicalities

Traveling Alone

Charlotte Chowdown

Finally Here! First Impressions

Match Day Impressions

Rest and Recovery

Waiting for the Big Guy

Random Musings

Fears Finally Realized on the Long Way Back

Post Trip Thoughts

Jun 16 2014

(Fut)ballin’ in Brazil: Getting Pumped, Getting Prepared (Day -4)

It's real - and it's spectacular — It’s real – and it’s spectacular

I’ve decided to blog semi-regularly in the run-up to and during my trip to the World Cup. My free time has mostly been consumed by either watching games or getting ready for the trip, so I might as well write about it. I’ll try to get a few regular posts up as well. Why start days before I leave? Because I fear that if or when the USA loses to Ghana today I am going to be depressed so I might as well write while I’m still optimistic!

My friends and I will be watching two games at the famed Estadio de Maracana in Rio de Janeiro. It is a stadium that was built in 1950 – the last time Brazil hosted the World Cup (and lost it to Uruguay). It is a beautiful stadium and watching Argentina play there today got me really excited for the games we will be going to.

A sight for sore eyes... (Wikipedia) — A sight for sore eyes… (Wikipedia)

One thing I’ve been stressing about a little is getting to the stadium. Public transportation is what’s recommended, but how early should we leave? Rio has updated their Metro system, including new stations, just for this World Cup (and the Olympics). We’re staying in Ipanema so we technically should be able to get on at General Osorio and get to Maracana station with just one change. I’m leaning towards leaving about three hours before the game – hopefully that gives us enough time. I’d rather wait two hours at the stadium than miss part of the game. Plus, who doesn’t love the anthems?

Over the next few days I’ll talk about how I’m treating my preparations for this trip a little differently than my normal prep – unless the US wins tomorrow of course. Then I’ll just be like “WOOO USA USA!!!!!!!!!!!!” So yeah, I’ll probably be back tomorrow talking about my preparations for the trip…..sigh.

Other Posts in this Series

Getting Pumped, Getting Prepared

What’s in my wallet?

Travel Practicalities

Traveling Alone

Charlotte Chowdown

Finally Here! First Impressions

Match Day Impressions

Rest and Recovery

Waiting for the Big Guy

Random Musings

Fears Finally Realized on the Long Way Back

Post Trip Thoughts

Jun 10 2014

Getting to Brazil for the World Cup – Lessons in Award Booking

The last week I’ve had only one thing on my mind: The World Cup. A few friends and I will be leaving for Rio next week and are planning to catch a couple of games. Although you might not be interested in going to the World Cup, I think this is a great illustration of the benefits and limitations of using miles for trips – and how they can save you a lot of money if you use them correctly.

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