A few months ago, when the bitter winter had already fallen in Connecticut and the temperatures were dropping beyond bearable, I received a call from Holland America asking if I’d be interested in being part of their culinary program at sea.
Picture me, looking around and seeing crystalline white snow in every direction, with the possibility to embark on a voyage to South America, including Argentina, Uruguay and Brazil! A chance to go home. To see my family in Bahia! To meet my new cousin Dante. It didn’t take me long to start planning the trip.
My journey started in Buenos Aires;
Super foods are all around Buenos Aires and I didn’t miss the chance to try a Maracuya (Passion Fruit) smoothie and buy homemade dulce de leche.
The impulse to capture every moment and share the joys of this voyage on social media, is a far cry from the commitment I have to the process of building a culinary program on the ship. This included entertaining, educating and engaging passengers in unique cooking events, demonstrations, lectures and activities, all inspired by Brazilian and Latin cuisine.
Watching this sunset, I found myself moved in ways I have seldom felt before, simply in awe in the presence of the sun’s indomitable wonders.
It is not by accident that the profession I chose has given me opportunities to satisfy my insatiable desire to open my senses, exercise my love for languages, and explore the world.
More important than anything else, as a chef on board, my mission was to carve some Brazilian respectability at Prinsendam’s Holland America. To do that, I prepared a variety of events and used as many ingredients as I could. The rest was simple: sharing the best of Brazilian cooking, my way.
A stop in Rio gave me the chance to see my family, and source some local ingredients that I bought especially to create amazing meals on the boat.
On the program I designed, every meal was a destination on it’s own.
Brazil Nut Soup—a trip to the Amazon;
Fish with Bananas and Cashews—a tribute to Rio de Janeiro;
and Molten Dulce de Leche Cake—all about the glory of dairy in Minas Gerais,
I disembarked in Salvador, met my family, and we did some fantastic tourism in Pelourinho.
It went fast! A new experience that was worth every minute!
