It’s been about a month since I returned home from my vacation to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, which was wonderful for many reasons. I learned my way around a new city, Rio, which I fell in love with instantly. I spent my 12-hour layover in Panama exploring another new country, where I had the opportunity to visit the Panama Canal and walk around the Casco Viejo (Old City). And I spent lots of time with my wonderful friends Lisa and John as they travel the world to find out Why Sport Matters and my friend Jeff, who took a few days off from work to join us in Brazil.

THE MIRAFLORES LOCKS OF THE PANAMA CANAL, IN ACTION …

Oh, and most importantly, I broke the curse! Not a single mishap. The final three days of the trip, we did experience the worst rainstorm Rio’s seen in 40 years, which put a damper on many of my planned excursions and kept us off the beaches. But there were no injuries, no hospitals, no stolen purses and no misplaced personal items. All in all, it was a lovely, work-free, relaxing week. A vacation, if you will. We shopped at the Impanema market, took a bus ride to Baja, spent Easter Sunday at Copacabana beach and attended a soccer game. We at a ton of Acai, drank too much South American beer and had a few wonderful sushi dinners. And, of course, there was the Power Balance Handstand Challenge.

EASTER MORNING AT THE IMPANEMA MARKET …

I wish I could have stayed longer and traveled on to Sao Paulo with the Siners … and then to Samoa and New Zealand and Australia, where they are today. But these basketball stories don’t write themselves. So I returned home to the beaches of Storybookland, where I spent a couple of weeks dreaming about Acai-and-banana breakfasts, white, sandy beaches and Sugarloaf mountain, or Pão de Açúcar, in Portuguese. (Thank goodness for Jeff, the only one of us who spoke a lick of Portuguese. And for Lisa and John’s friend Pedro, who housed me for the week.)

A week after I returned home from Brazil, Lisa and John flew through LA on their way to Samoa and had a long layover, so I was able to see them one more time, for a few hours of shopping, a walk on the beach and dinner. Then they were off again. They are now more than halfway through their yearlong journey, and hopefully I will have another opportunity to meet up with them. Until then, I’ll keep you all updated on their travels. And, of course, there is always next year!

AT THE FUTBOL MATCH (WITH LISA, JOHN AND JEFF) …

To read about Lisa and John’s experiences in Brazil, where they spent more than two months, check out their Brazilian blog here.

And to follow them around the world, click here.