Brazilian singer and composer Adriana Calcanhotto.

Here, one of those employees, Rebecca Profit, a Brazil country specialist, describes the evening.

The concert was staged as part of a Brazil Week celebration in Oxford, a city which houses not 3,000, as I initially thought, but 4,000 Brazilians!

It was sponsored by TAM airlines, the Brazilian airline we use regularly for our clients visiting this incredible country.

Joining Adriana on stage was the unique combination of Moreno Veloso, son of Caetano Veloso (another Brazil great, a virtuoso songwriter now in his 60s and well known for his experimental style) and Domenico Lancelloti, an accomplished cellist and guitarist.

They were mostly playing MPB, “Musica Popular Brasileira”, a voice and guitar genre which arose in the late 1960s and involves mixing updated versions of traditional Brazilian urban music styles, like samba, with contemporary influences, from folk to rock and pop.

The songs were a unique blend of all their talents. Moreno Veloso used drum boards and added wacky sound effects to some songs, using all manner of different instruments. Adriana’s beautiful voice floated through each song, with its hints of melancholy and maybe distant roots in Portuguese fado. As a tribute to Jaqueline du Pre, the inspiration for the venue and for Domenico’s English cello teacher in Brazil who always raved about her, their final song was accompanied by all three of them on cello. Domenico and Adriana played them traditionally, while Moreno used his cello more like a guitar or drum. The effect was sensational, and resulted in a standing ovation from their adoring Brazilian fans.

Rebecca Profit

Brazil country specialist

Visit the Brazil section of our website.

'Last Chance to See' on BBC2

Have you been watching the BBC’s news series ‘Last Chance to See’ which began on 6th September? Presented by Stephen Fry, the programme is a remake of a radio series from 1985 and book of the same name, released in 1990 as a companion to the radio series.

The aim of this programme is for Stephen Fry and zoologist Mark Carwardine to re-investigate a number of the species that appeared in the original series to see what has happened to both the animal and conservation efforts. 

Always a fan of anything presented by Stephen Fry, I was keen to watch this week’s episode in which Stephen and Mark visited New Zealand in search of the kakapo, a fat, flightless parrot on the verge of extinction (although I have to say my favourite part was one very amusing scene where a kiwi ’played dead’ as part of its defence!).

As always with Stephen Fry, this programme is informative and entertaining, and certainly worth adding to your series link, especially if you are keen to travel to Brazil, Kenya, Madagascar, Indonesia, Malaysia and New Zealand in the future – all of these countries are covered in the series and are also destinations that we cover here at Audley.

Alternatively catch up on this series through the BBC iPlayer.

Lost Land of the Volcano on BBC1

Last night, many of us at Audley watched this new series on BBC 1. In Lost Land of the Volcano, an international team of scientists, cavers and wildlife filmmakers travel into the heart of Papua New Guinea to explore Mount Bosavi – a giant extinct volcano.

Some of the species they filmed include a giant rat the size of a cat and the world’s smallest parrot.

It was a great start to an interesting series with new species of wildlife being discovered literally at every turn. If you missed the first episode, it’s available on iPlayer (UK only). The rest of the series continues next week.

If this series has whetted your appetite for a (slightly less adventurous) trip to Papua New Guinea, then find out more on our tailor-made Papua New Guinea tours.

The remote Tristan da Cunha in the middle of the South Atlantic

Here at Audley we pride ourselves on having a far flung client base but even we were surprised to hear we have a client on an island a whopping 1,743 miles (2,805km) from the nearest mainland.

The place in question is the very remote Tristan da Cunha, and the client in question is the UK Government Administrator on the island.

Because Tristan da Cunha is so remote, and because there is no airstrip, it takes a boat journey of several days from Cape Town (the nearest land) to reach it. And should you miss your boat you’ll have another month to wait for the next one!

Tristan da Cunha has no landing strip and can only be reached by boat.

Irrespective of physical distances the ubiquitous Internet clearly enables at least one of our clients to book with Audley from one of the remotest settlements on Earth, although how many of the other 263 inhabitants are online is anyone’s guess?

Visit the Tristan da Cunha website.

Jon and Phil, two of our Polar Specialists, with the National Geographic Explorer

Over the last few weeks some of our Polar specialists have been travelling around the UK to inspect the boats that we use on Antarctic and Arctic cruises. As Carolyn, our Latin America Programme Manager, reports …

Jon, Phil and I have spent the last 4 weeks travelling the length and breadth of Great Britain, from Aberdeen to Falmouth, in order to inspect some boats for Audley.

At this time of year the expedition vessels that ply Antarctic waters in our winter relocate themselves to begin their Arctic cruises, and this means they come past these shores. We decided to take advantage of their proximity (sadly I cannot get away with 5 separate journeys to Antarctica to get first hand knowledge of each boat, as much as I would like to!) to conduct some inspections on behalf of Audley. 

Things we discovered en route are that boat schedules are somewhat flexible so always leave a 24 hour window of time and Aberdeen is warmer than Witney.

Akademik Ioffe cruising the icy waters of the Antarctic

Ultimately our time and investment over the last few weeks now means that our Polar specialists here have seen every single expedition vessel that cruises the icy waters. We know which boats have the best deck space, which have the biggest bathrooms, which cabins have the best views and which dining areas will allow you to see wildlife while you eat.

We are quite proud of ourselves for knowing all this (and we also got to see a lot more of our own country which otherwise we may never have got to – Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Ipswich, Portsmouth and Falmouth!).

Call one of our Polar specialists on 01993 838 950 to find out more about an Antarctic or Arctic cruise or send an enquiry online.

Machu Picchu

I and my fellow Web Content Editors, Shaun and Katy, attended one of the Audley seminars today, ‘Peru: More than Machu Picchu’ run by some of the Peru Specialists at Audley. We are hoping to put the seminars on the Audley website in some form and went along to see what the seminars are all about. I also cover South America on the website so was very interested to learn more about one of the countries I cover!

If you haven’t attended one of our seminars they are weekly events held in our beautiful offices, a C17th converted woollen mill just outside Witney in Oxfordshire, and are themed talks covering travel to different regions and countries around the world. They are informal and informative and are the perfect opportunity to discover more about destinations you are interested in. There is also plenty of time to discuss any questions with our dedicated country specialists.

Visit our Audley Seminar Programme for more information on seminars coming up or call us on 01993 838 000 to find out more.

In this morning’s talk we discovered that there really is more to Peru than just Machu Picchu, in fact a lot more! Although of course Machu Picchu is a definite highlight of any trip to Peru and never disappoints. Sarah, one of our Peru specialists talked about the other highlights of Peru with a route in Southern Peru from the capital Lima with its wonderful museums, to the magnificent yet mysterious Nazca Lines, to Arequipa with its wonderful cuisine (apparently the best place to sample guinea pig!), to the Colca Canyon (which is the second deepest canyon in the world and home to the impressive Andean condor) and Lake Titicaca with its legends, ancient customs and colourful dress. We then travelled across the altiplano to Cuzco, which was at the heart of the Inca empire and is a beautiful and vibrant city, followed by the Sacred Valley where you can enjoy walking and visiting the local colourful markets, before either taking the train or walking the Inca trail to the spectacular site of Machu Picchu.

Jo, another of our Peru specialists, then proceeded to tell us about the other possibilities of travelling in Peru, in particular to see the superb wildlife in the Amazon, either from a lodge in the Southern Peruvian Amazon or on a luxurious (or more simple) Amazon cruise in the north of Peru. We also heard about the more off the beaten track areas in northern Peru, with remote traditional villages, abundant history and archaeology.

All in all it was a really fascinating talk and made all of us want to travel to Peru to see it all for ourselves! I can’t wait for the next seminar!

Visit our website to find out more about a tailor-made trip to Peru with Audley, including an Amazon cruise, contact one of our dedicated Peru specialists on 01993 838 600 or contact us online.

Sea lion in the Galapagos Islands

Discover the richness of underwater life in the Galapagos Islands with the new film, ‘Galapagos’ by the Smithsonian Institute and Imax Ltd., which uses Imax 3D technology to produce an amazing cinematic experience which captures Galapagos marine life in all its glory.

The film documents an eight week expedition to the islands with marine biologist Dr. Carole Baldwin, from the Smithsonian Institution’s Museum of Natural History who visits the iconic islands for the first time.

Visit their website for more details on Galapagos at the Imax.

To find out more about seeing the incredible wildlife of the Galapagos for yourself please visit our dedicated Galapagos Islands cruising section on our website.

We currently have a number of excellent Special Offers on Galapagos Islands cruises.

To discuss your plans please call one of our dedicated Galapagos specialists on 01993 838 635 or contact us online.

The Big Picture - Carnival time

As always, the The Big Picture blog lives up to its excellent reputation with a new set of amazing photos.

It’s Carnival Season in many countries across the world; from the Mardi Gras in New Orleans to the Carnival in Brazil. View the Carnival photo set here.

If this gets you in the mood for visiting the Brazil Carnival yourself, avoid the crowds (and higher prices) by visiting during Rio’s Winners’ Parade (a week after the main Carnival). Better value and equally extravagant! Speak to the Brazil specialists

Manaus Opera House, Manaus

From April 23rd to May 31st, the steamy port city of Manaus will host the 13th famous ‘Festival Amazonas de Ópera’, this year paying homage to France’s contributions to the world of opera and featuring only works by French composers and artists.

The setting for the festival is unique and exciting. Manaus is a hot and bustling city in the heart of the tropical Amazon rainforest and yet the opera house itself would not be out of place in Paris or Rome. A jewel of the Amazon, it was built during the ‘Belle Époque’, in a Renaissance style and financed by the rubber boom. Its architecture is beautiful and delicate, a fine mix of marble, wood and gold ornamentation.

This year’s festival will feature performances of the great works of Debussy, Chabrier, Poulenc and Berlioz as well as well as recitals and special concerts of Brazilian composers and artists influenced by French music of the 20th and 21st centuries.

In the build up to the festival, numerous free events and outdoor concerts take place across Manaus giving everyone in the city and all its visitors access to this wonderful musical extravaganza.

For more details about travelling to Brazil to see the festival please call one of our dedicated Brazil specialists on 01993 838 610 or contact us online.

Perito Moreno glacier, Argentina

Don’t miss the BBC’s new programme, ‘Explore’ on Sundays at 9pm. Last night was the first programme in an exciting and enlightening new four part series. It is led by Simon Reeve, author and presenter (Tropic of Capricorn and Equator) and a team of reporters, who travel on spectacular journeys of discovery to diverse parts of the world.

Last night’s programme was set in Argentina and explored a variety of landscapes and issues from land disputes in the stunning wilderness of Patagonia to conflicting evidence for global warming in the awe-inspiring ice fields at the Perito Moreno glacier in the Andes, the proposed beatification of Eva Peron and an intense football match in Buenos Aires, in addition to the effect of soy production on the traditional gaucho in the Pampas.

Future programmes explore Africa’s beautiful Rift Valley with its extraordinary wildlife, the rich culture and contradictions of Turkey and finally the vast and vibrant islands of the Philippines.

They truly get under the skin of the places they go to and present much more than your usual travel programme, with social and political issues documented as well as often breathtaking landscapes and fascinating people.

If you would like to explore these places for yourself please contact one of our dedicated country specialists on 01993 838 000 or contact us by email.

If you missed last night’s programme you can watch it again on BBC iPlayer.

Presented by Alan Yentob the programme, entitled “Imagine”, profiles the incredible youth orchestras of Venezuela and the way they provide hope to hundreds of thousands of children stuck in poverty with no future. Described as unashamed social engineering, the result is outstanding, with the main Simon Bolivar Youth Orchestra performing worldwide to rapturous audiences.
 
They have one performance date at the South Bank in London on 18 April 2009 but this has already sold out. A DVD is available to buy entitled “Dudamel – the promise of music” (2008).
 
Please contact Rebecca Profit, Venezuela specialist, on 01993 838 614 if you wish to visit the country and arrange to hear one of the orchestras in action.

Pinnacle rock, Galapagos Islands

2009 marks the 200th birthday of Charles Darwin as well as the 150th anniversary of his “Origin of the Species”; his revolutionary theories that changed our understanding of the world as we see it today.

Many Galapagos boat operators are marking this special occasion with special lectures and more in depth conversation of his work in the Galapagos.

To learn more about the great man, the Natural History Museum is running a Darwin Exhibition between 14th November 2008 and 19th April 2009 displaying incredible, revealing and rare exhibits, some on display for the first time.

More information can be found at www.nhm.ac.uk/visit-us/whats-on/darwin/index.html.

Read more about the film