For many people, when they turn 70, they retire, or they are already retired, and spend their days playing golf or poker, but for one man, it means riding his bike from San Francisco to Brazil, according to the Huffington Post.
Capoeira teacher Mestre Acordeon plans to celebrate his 70th birthday by embarking on a 14,000-mile cycling trip from San Francisco, where he lives, to Bahia, Brazil.
"It should be a journey of great introspection," Acordeon told the Huffington Post. "I hope to emerge a better person and a better teacher."
He plans to film the trip for a documentary about capoeira, a Brazilian martial art, and its influence around the world. The trip will start on September 1, two days after his birthday. On his actual birthday, he plans to participate in a five-day Brazilian festival.
Acordeon hopes to complete the trip in 400 days.
"I needed to be responsible and not take any unnecessary risks," he said. "I'm hoping to ride for 300 days and spend 100 days resting, practicing capoeira and immersing myself in the culture of the countries I visit."
Acordeon hopes to raise funds and awareness for his philanthropic project, Projecto Kirimure, a program that works with at-risk children in Brazil, providing a space for them to practice capoeira, study reading and writing and receive academic assistance with homework.
Born Bira Almeida, Acordeon has taught capoeira for 50 years and traveled to the U.S. from Brazil, where he was born, in 1978. He won three national championships and founded the Capoeira Arts Foundation in Berkeley.
He currently has no plans to retire.
"I should have already," he said. "But I do what I do and am still sitting strong because of my students.
"They are a young audience so full of life, so I feel that way too," he added. "I look at myself in the mirror and think, 'who is this old guy?'"
Acordeon feels his work helps his students lead a better life.
"All of my projects before this have been informational," he said. "This journey is about living an introspective life.
"I think that's one of the most important things I can leave for my students," he continued.
Acordeom plans to ride his bike from San Francisco to Brazil.
This article is copyrighted by Travelers Today, the travel news leader
