<\/p>\n

Brazil was really just resting up for the bash it was putting on later in the day. Brazilians are also just cool enough where they can decide to read the paper and let you figure out for yourself why you should visit their amazing country.<\/p>\n

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<\/p>\n

Peru’s smart enough to know that they just need to keep the ceviche coming and the visitors will follow naturally.<\/p>\n

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You know, because travel agents have it so hard that they really, really need back massages to help them unwind.<\/p>\n

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<\/p>\n

The day was capped off with a final cocktail meet-and-greet where the tropical caipirinhas being served were an all-too-welcome reminder of why Brazil is probably a way better place to be in early February than most of the rest of the world.<\/p>\n

I also ran into the fine folks over at TripFilms.com (and by “run into” I mean texted them and asked them to come find me while I waited patiently near the Mexico booth so that I could badger them in person as to why they haven’t picked my recent Cartagena video<\/a> as a “Featured Video” yet on their site.)<\/p>\n

I’m not sure if I was very convincing, but halfway through my rant they quickly changed the subject and told me about the first annual Trippy Awards<\/a> — an award going to the best travel video host of the year whom they will be rewarding with a Yangtze River cruise (stay tuned later in the week for some shameful self-promotion to get myself in the front-running).<\/p>\n

Tomorrow’s speaker schedule is set, kicking off with my nemesis Rick Steves at 10:30, followed by the Frommers and then Samantha Brown of the Travel Channel. Check back tomorrow for more updates and further travel celebrity sightings. (I’m really pulling for Anthony Bourdain to make a surprise appearance, brandish a cooking knife and go to town cooking up some lunch over at the France booth. Doubtful, but a man can have dreams.)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Brazil was really just resting up for the bash it was putting on later in the day. Brazilians are also just cool enough where they can decide to read the paper and let you figure out for yourself why you should visit their amazing country. Peru’s smart enough to know that they just need to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1186,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1,2561],"tags":[183],"yoast_head":"\n