February 24 2011, Lynn Gilmartin

I knew I was in for a good time at the first stop of the PokerStars.net Latin American Poker Tour’s fourth season when I found out it was in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Many of my friends are from that city and they have raved on for as long as I’ve known them about how amazing it is. Now I know why!

We’ve all heard the reputation Brazil has for its gorgeous women, and to prove this theory correct, upon first arrival you’re greeted with some of the most stunning female immigration officers. There was one in particular who was so gorgeous that when I brought her up that night to other friends who traveled separately they knew exactly who I was talking about. On our first night a local friend took the PokerNews video team out to my now-favorite area in Sao Paulo, Vila Madelena, for our first round of Caipirinhas. We had the traditional kind with Cachaça, a Brazilian liquor, and boy-oh-boy were they strong. I could only handle one and it took us about an hour to finish!

That night was Team PokerStars Pro Jose Ignacio Barbero’s birthday, so we all ended up at a samba club nearby. It was only a Wednesday night, but the club was still full with the most amazing dancers decked out in the most extravagant costumes shaking their hips all over the stage. Full Tilt Poker Red Pro, and local resident, Felipe “Mojave” Ramos organized a VIP table for Nacho’s birthday with fellow Team PokerStars Pro’s Angel Guillen, Christian De Leon and the latest addition to Team PokerStars Online Jorge ‘Baalim’ Limon. It was here that the stunning women continued to appear, which you can see a sample of thanks to Felipe’s tweet.

The next day was our first day of shooting around the city. It got off to a very hot and sweaty start at our first few sights until the biggest, most unexpected storm came bucketing down around us. This was when we learned all about Sao Paulo’s unreliable and extreme weather trend during the summer. After braving the rain for half, and realizing it just wasn’t going anywhere, we prematurely wrapped up our video and jumped in the first cab we could find for what was supposed to be a 15-minute ride home. Three-hours later we pulled into our hotel. Three of the longest and possibly most frustrating hours of my life! Sao Paulo traffic is like no other, and then add flooded roads on top of the already stand-still rush hour, and you have yourself a three-hour journey. Once we got back to the hotel it was straight into the party dress for the Welcome Party and round two of the Caipirinhas, but this time just with vodka!

The next day was a historic one for the PokerStars.net LAPT with the Main Event attracting 536 players — the most we’ve ever seen in a live poker tournament south of the border — setting the fourth season off to a brilliant start. Despite having a field (and final table) of mostly Brazilians, the locals still couldn’t keep the title on their home turf and it was Chilean Alex Manzano who pocketed the R$615,000 and prestigious trophy.

One of the most celebrated events in all of Latin America is football (or soccer). Our very own Kristy Arnett also shares this passion, so I took her, Felipe Ramos and Team PokerStars Pro Andre Akkari to a local park for a “soccer-off.” Kristy absolutely blew us away with this little maneuver she pulled, rightfully winning the competition.

The next most-celebrated event in Brazil is the world-famous Carnaval, and again Akkari and Ramos took the PokerNews video team (pictured above) to samba school, Império de Casa Verde, to watch (and take part in) a practice session for one of the participating schools in the upcoming competition. This was definitely one of the most incredible experiences of my life. I can’t even begin to imagine what the “Main Event” is like, and all I know is that this addition has been made to my bucket list. That night was topped off with an early-morning visit to Joakins, where I can promise, you will find the best burgers in all of Sao Paulo.

I’m sure most of you will enjoy this edition of Calling the Clock. You really can’t get much hotter than ESPN Argentina’s LAPT Hostess Luli Fernandez. If you’ve never heard of her, then do yourself a favor and type her name into Google Images. You’re welcome.

Lastly, if all of that is not enough of a nutshell of our fabulous week in Sao Paulo, Brazil, then here’s even more of our highlights wrapped into less than 5 minutes.

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2010 December 23, Lynn Gilmartin

The PokerStars.net Latin American Poker Tour season four schedule has been released so, naturally, I’m excited. I’m about to show you why it’s almost impossible to not have fun at LAPT events with some highlights from 2010. Unless of course some Argentine slaps his slow roll on the felt in front of you as he runs circles around the table screaming with joy over hitting his one outer on the river to end your Main Event early. That would suck a little.

The bright side? Not only do you get to stare at stunning girls all day like LAPT Hostess Luli Fernandez (in the photo with me above, just chilling on a beach in Brazil, as you do on the LAPT) linger around the poker room all day, but there are so many amazing places to explore, just waiting for you outside the poker room.

Sao Paulo, Brazil – February 16-20, 2011

Season three took us to the Brazilian island of Florianopolis. It was a slight tease being on the beach in the middle of winter, but we still had such a fantastic experience. This year, the LAPT is returning to one of Brazil’s most proud cities, Sao Paulo; and best of all, not only is it going to be in the peak of their summer, but you know what they (Kristy Arnett) say about Brazilian women – they simply win at life. Feast your eyes on the below video from this year’s LAPT Welcome Party in Brazil, and you’ll see why.

Viña del Mar, Chile – March 17-20, 2011

Chile was a new addition to the LAPT season three schedule, however, after the devastating 8.8 magnitude earthquake that hit Viña del Mar in late February, just a couple of weeks prior to the March event, the LAPT stop was cancelled. Twelve-months later, the still-new LAPT stop returns to the schedule and we will head to Chile’s beach-resort town to pump our well needed tourism dollars into the bounced-back, stunner of a city.

Lima, Perú – April 12-17, 2011

I was lucky enough to escape the WSOP madness for one week this year, and head south to cover the LAPT in Lima, Peru, and this year we will return in April. It was here that headlines were created when Jose “Nacho” Barbero won his second LAPT title in back-to-back events. The event was held in the quaint town of Miraflores, offering us some brilliant nights out at the clubs in Larco Mar, and gorgeous surrounds which you can see in the following video courtesy of PokerStars.tv.

Rosario, Argentina – June 1-5, 2011

Not many tour operators bother competing with the World Series of Poker. I like to think of those six weeks as the Bermuda Triangle of major poker event scheduling; but PokerStars did it with success this year, and they’re certainly not stopping. Season four will take us to South America’s largest casino in Rosario, Argentina, the Grand Final destination of season three. Being the first week of June means the beginning of winter in South America – the perfect time to start hitting up the popular cities rather than the beach towns. I’ll let this video paint the picture of the fantastic week we had this year in Rosario.

Bogotá, Colombia – August 3-7, 2011

Returning to loved cities is one thing, but breaking new ground is what really gets me excited, and Columbia, the home of the most amazing coffee in the world, is just that. Bogotá is Columbia’s largest city, labeled the “Athens of South America.” If my crazy trip to Greece with five girlfriends a few years back is anything to go by, then I’m bursting at the seams with excitement to get there! It’s said to be a roller-coaster of a city, high in the Andes at an elevation of 8,646 feet. All cities have contrasts, but few have them like Bogotá, as described in this interesting passage by goway.com.

“Nestled high in the Andes at 8,646 ft, Santafé de Bogotá is a city of contrasts. It’s a city of high-rise buildings standing next to colonial churches; a city of universities, theaters and shantytowns. It is a mixture of influences, Spanish and English and Indian; a city of great wealth and material well being and abject poverty. It is a city of wild traffic and calm oases reflecting a bygone day. It is a modern city with futuristic architecture, graffiti and congestion; restaurants, bookstores and street vendors peddling emeralds, thieves, beggars, street people and drug dealers wrapped around the inner core of the old city.”

The LAPT Grand Final destination is still to be confirmed, so in lieu of this unknown city, I’ll leave you with a perfect taste of Latin America: with a friendly game of football.

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There is still time to play in our final $15,000 Sunday Million Freeroll on PokerStars in the current series, but hurry as you have to qualify this month.