Rob Cheng’s Blog

We traveled back to Myrtle Beach, SC in December 2010 for the Christmas holidays. Little did we know, but it would be coldest winter on record. It actually snowed in Myrtle Beach, although it was just a light frosting, it was the first time my wife and the kids had seen snow.

Solange took the kids out in the cold and they had their first ever winter photo shoot. I think the photos turned out great and Solange just used her point and click camera. The technology sure has come a long way!

We bought Teddy gloves for the cold, but for some reason, Teddy preferred to put socks over his hands. Jesse didn’t seem to care either way. More »

April 20th, 2011 | Category: Jesse, Photos, Slide Show, Teddy | Leave a comment

Rio de Janeiro during Carnaval is chaotic to say the least. Millions of tourists from all over Brazil and all over the world converge to see the biggest and most elaborate Carnaval in the world. On top of that, it is the largest party that I have ever seen. The downside is that the entire city shuts down. Traffic which is already bad goes to a whole new level of bad. Plus all the stores and groceries close for four solid days, and many businesses are closed the entire week.

So the Carnaval 2011, we like many other residence of Rio escaped the chaos and decided to vacation in Frade near Angras dos Reis. We also invited my mother in law, Maria Gonçalves, and her boyfriend, Euripedes Cruz with us. We had a great time and it was fantastic to avoid the chaos. More »

April 19th, 2011 | Category: Brazil, Photos, Slide Show, Travel | Leave a comment

It was Sunday December 5th. The prior Thursday, I had tried to purchase tickets for the final Brazilian championship game but to no avail. There was a line a mile long and many people had camped out with tents, barbecues, chairs and umbrellas. I knew that I didn’t stand a chance so I gave up. The day of the game, my buddy John who was visiting from London rang about 9 am. He was very excited and explained to me that he could get scalped tickets for the game. Each ticket would cost about R$400. I did some quick calculations, and we had a group of 7 people (me, my wife Solange, my two kids Teddy and Jesse, our nanny Sida, and my two friends John and Mark). That means I needed to come up with a little less than R$3000, and I had a little less than an hour to come up with the cash. The scalpers were skeptical that a gringo could come up with that kind of cash on a Sunday morning. They had another thing coming. More »

December 30th, 2010 | Category: Brazil, Rio de Janeiro, Slide Show | Leave a comment

We just got back from one of the most awesome vacations ever. Angra dos Reis is the most beautiful place that I have ever been. I don’t say that lightly. I have traveled throughout the entire world, and up to now, I thought that Yosemite National Park was the most beautiful. I visited there in 1983.

Angra has everything. There are many mountains and water falls very near the beach. But perhaps most beautiful, are all the islands off the coast. They say that there are over 300 islands of all different sizes. Because of all the islands, there are very few waves and boating is very peaceful. Three times, we rented a boat and tried to explore new places. There are many private beaches and restaurants that are only amenable by boat. Many of the islands do not have electricity, only by generator. I really love to swim and I could spend hours just swimming in the clear waters with the fish. While swimming I saw many many fish of all colors and sizes, star fish, and a big tortoise. It was so much fun. The water is so clear that you can see everything in the water while swimming which probably has the best snorkeling in the world.

Here are our pictures of this marvelous place although pictures do not do it justice.

More »

April 26th, 2010 | Category: Brazil, Jesse, Slide Show, Travel | Comments (5)

We are on our first day of a much needed vacation. We are staying at a place called Hotel do Frade which sits on the beach but also has a golf course which nestles against the mountains. I woke up early and decided to run the golf course TWICE. I am not sure how far I ran but I am estimating between 10-11 miles. Then we went swimming in the hotel pool. Later, we went bike riding on the golf course for about an hour. It was a good full day and a great start to the vacation. More »

April 19th, 2010 | Category: Brazil, Jesse, Photos, Slide Show, Teddy, Travel | Comments (1)

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to everyone! No matter how I look at 2009, it was a tough, tough year, but that said, there is still so much to be thankful for. We made it back to Myrtle Beach in mid December, and it was very hectic. On top of that, December 29th, is also Jesse’s birthday. So to commemorate all the the things to be thankful for, I decided to have a nice photo shoot of me and my wonderful family. The pictures turned out great. More »

January 4th, 2010 | Category: Jesse, Photos, Slide Show, Teddy | Comments (1)

I received this amazing set of photos via email last week. When I get these “chain” mails, I try to put them on my web site for the really good ones. The photography is just simply amazing. I imagine a photographer that hasn’t eaten for days just waiting in the wild to take the perfect photo. Enjoy. There are thirty different photos but it goes so fast because the photography is so well done. More »

November 12th, 2009 | Category: Photos, Slide Show | Leave a comment

Solange’s mother came to visit us and we decided to take a quick weekend vacation. Solange searched the map and found Mangaratiba. It is about 70 miles from Rio de Janeiro, but given the condition of the roads and the traffic, it takes between 2-3 hours to drive there. All that said, it was worth it. I have been all over the world, and I would put Mangaratiba up there with Yosemite National Park as one of the most beautiful places I have ever visited in my life. More »

November 9th, 2009 | Category: Brazil, Photos, Slide Show, Travel | Comments (2)

Man Oh Man. I have been working harder than I can ever remember. I am a man on a mission to finish a huge project sprinting to the finish line. When I want to, my focus can be amazing and singular. I really hope that I can look back at this period, and be amazed at how much work I got done.

Despite all of that, I decided to take a lightening vacation to NY with my family. We arrived on a Friday and went to the Statue of Liberty. We woke up the next day, and grabbed a train from Grand Central to Pleasantville NY to visit my cousin, Nancy and her family. My other cousin, Larry, was also kind enough to join us for the train ride from NY to Pleansantville. More »

June 4th, 2009 | Category: Jesse, Slide Show, Teddy, Travel | Comments (1)