American Beauty

Not only does AdverBarbie have the brains to pull of a World Tour, multiple advertising awards, and get published, she is now known for beauty. Introducing, Miss Florida International 2010: Alicia Benz. Many didn’t know this, but Alicia was crowned Miss Florida 2 months ago. She beat out steep competition, and absolutely aced a tough interview, to win the title. 

What’s Miss International?
Its one of the top 4 pageants in the world, (just like Miss USA and Miss America) and has been around for over 50 years. Its main goal is to promote young women, and help them get word out about their causes. Miss International is known as the “smart girls” pageant!

Whats next?
She will now go on to compete in the national pageant, which is taking place in Chicago July 24th, for the title of Miss International 2010. She will be up against the brightest, most beautiful and most talented young ladies from across the globe. This is no ordinary beauty pageant, contestants represent all 50 States as well as different countries. These ladies are primarily judged on their spokes woman creds during an extensive interview round (counting for 40%) as well as fitness level. Not to mention over all confidence and poise while struting their stuff on stage in an evening gown and stiletto heals.

What’s the prize? She could win $10,000, access to a PR firm for a year to promote her platform, her picture up on the Times Square Jumbo-tron for a day, as well as free airfare to anywhere she wants. And of course lots and lots beauty loot.

Whats her platform? Living a green and eco-conscious life, of course!

Check her online profile for the competition under the "contestants" section of the national website:
http://www.miss-international.us/

Get ready for alot more exciting news, as we travel to Chicago in one month, to win that national title!

Loco for Coco: Our Rio De Janiero Trip

On our final excursion, we headed to Rio De Janiero, the old capital of Brazil. It is the future host of the 2016 Olympics as well as the 2014 World Cup, so we wanted to see what all the fuss was about. Rio did not let us down! First of all, its like being in a 360 degrees panoramic postcard. Copacabana and Ipanema are the two most famous beaches, and they are astonishingly gorgeous! Raw coconut water, a Brazilian flag sarong, and you've got yourself the most refreshing and relaxing atomospheres in existence. In Rio, its really lame/gringo to bring a towel to the beach, so everyone sits on gigantic sarongs instead, just like the locals do.

Also, we had a big Brazilian dessert indulgence while we were there. The Acai sorbet and coconut cake are to die for! They seem to sell it on every street corner. Make sure to order it with granola, and don't forget the extra whipped cream. Mmmm. In addition, they have the wildest tropical fruit mousses. Light, fluffy, and beyond sweet: it was so sugary it felt like we had taken drugs due to the sugar rush we experienced after a sampler plate of these whipped delicacies.

The Pao de Azucar (Sugar Loaf) Mountain is one of the wonders of the world, and we took a cable car to the summit for some breathtaking views of then entire city. Its name is said to refer to its resemblance to the traditional shape of concentrated refined loaf of sugar. The Pao is the most recognizable landmark in Brazil, and they even have an entire chain of grocery stores named after it. You may recognize it from the 1979 James Bond movie, Moonraker!

Rio also has one of the largest "Urban Rain forests" known as Tijuca Forest, and it was teeming with Brazilian flora and fauna. The hotel we stayed at backed right up to it, and our favorite part was encountering the most adorable monkeys, the Saguis! You know the movie, The Gremlins? Well Saguis look just like Gizmo! However, the cuteness was short lived after we had a crazy Sagui ambushing during breakfast. I guess it wasn't smart having a bunch of bananas and jam next door to a rainforest. Those little gremlins were so sneaky and persistent and they would just not leave us alone. Luckily, I've watched plenty of episodes from the Dog Whisperer, and went all Ceasar Milan on them. That sure got their attention haha. The little guys knew who was boss by the time it was all said and done!

We can't wait to come back to Rio De Janiero! Its a definite must for everyone who comes to Brazil.

Brazilian Natural Sampler Platter, Anyone?

As we explore this amazing country on foot, we always are running into the most intriguing and beautiful things. Good thing one of us is always carrying a camera to capture these moments. Here is an ensemble of moving images that show what we love about Brazil, au natural.

Brazilian Natural Sampler from Michelle Pokorny on Vimeo.

Soccer stars & Samba steps

Its been 10 weeks and we have come to a cultural conclusion that there are 3 things that Brazilians love more than anything else

Food: In a land-locked city, you better believe they have some great restaurants. Check out some of the amazing treats we’ve been enjoying.

Party: Dancing + music + caprihinas = one wild time. Still trying to get the hang of Samba.

Soccer: To put it into American perspective; imagine if we had no baseball, basketball, or hockey, and we put all of our eggs into the “Football basket.” How

much would we be obsessed with it? Well Brazil only loves/has soccer, so you can imagine the fervor around here. We were even able to meet the soccer legend, Ronaldo, the other night! Most Brazilians would sell an organ to have that opportunity.

Next up? Rio De Janiero…stay tuned.