rkearns' VirtualTourist Home Page

Welcome to my travel pages! You have clicked on a Brazilian-born, California-raised artist who loves to travel and write about it. My specialty (out of necessity) is budget travel, and my challenge is having patience and understanding the differences between my American upbringing, and other cultures. As I grow to understand the way things work all over the world, I am grateful for my own fortune, and strive toward unabashed assimilation into the countries I visit. I hope that you will find these pages funny, useful, and most importantly, inspiring.

Look out for the "GONZO" tip. It is something I'm working on... it either lets you in on a local gem, or goes far beyond TMI.


Here are some of California's treasures:

Wine tasting on the Central Coast of California
Santa Barbara-- Henry's beach
King's Canyon National Park
Hwy 1, California
L.A.'s Griffith Observatory
1000 steps beach, Shell Beach
the Monarch Butterfly Grove at Pismo Beach
Guadalupe dunes
Los Alamos antiques
kayaking the caves at Shell Beach
Sycamore Mineral Springs, San Luis Obispo
Cayucos on 4th of July
Hearst Castle, San Simeon

favorite Central Coast restaurants:

Firestone Grill, San Luis Obispo: the best avacado, bacon cheese burgers and tri tip sandwiches
Splash Cafe, Pismo Beach: Great sourdough clam chowder bowls
Santa Maria style BBQ, Santa Maria
Big Sky Cafe, San Luis Obispo

GONZO TIP:
Red Rock (off Paradise road between Santa Ynez and Santa Barbara)
http://santabarbarahikes.com/hikes/backcountry/redrock.shtml

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Rio de Janeiro--The city with the bleeding heart

Hostels

With the USD tanking, those travelers who are used to the more plush accommodations have to rethink their priorities. What is most important? A private hotel room with a jet bathtub and a view, or a room that is equipped with it's own shower, WIFI, and no view in exchange for a longer vacation? Consider this: a hostel doesn't have to be shared with other travelers. You can still reserve a private room, for a few dollars over the price of a shared suite, and have all the privacy and comfort of your own room and at the same time, having money left over for beer, transportation and other excursions.

Considering this option (and many hostel goers are over 30 these days) will give you more money, a longer vacation, and a true appreciation for life outside the hotel room.