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What to See in Rio de Janeiro's Centro District
The elaborate interior of the Igreja Nossa Senhora de Carmo da Antiga Sé. Photo © Enrique López-Tamayo Biosca of Catedrales e Iglesias, licensed Creative Commons Attribution.
The Centro refers to Rio’s historic downtown commercial district. Narrow cobblestoned alleys, grand baroque churches, turn-
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Brazil Getaway Challenge: Taking the Paths Less Traveled
Photo © Michael Sommers.
Until fairly recently, deserted beaches, virgin forests, and undiscovered historical small towns used to be a dime a dozen in Brazil. However, last year foreign travel to Brazil hit a record high. Meanwhile Brazilians themselves (those able to resist overnight shopping spr
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Brazil Cultural Challenge: Feasting on Food, Festas, Music, and Art
Just as there are many more Brazils than Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo, there is much more to Brazilian culture(s) than samba and futebol, feijoada and Carnaval. Due to the fact that, amazingly, so little of Brazilian culture is known outside of Brazil, traveling around Brazil can constitute a true
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Around Santarém, Pará, Brazil: Alter do Chão, Monte Alegre and More
Alter do Chão at night. Photo © Lisa Cyr, licensed Creative Commons Attribution.
The most interesting region in Pará is the area surrounding the city of Santarém, a languorous port town along the Rio Tapajós, whose neighboring village of Alter do Chão boasts Caribbean-worthy beaches. Here you’ll f
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Summer of Scam: Beware of Card Cloning
One day in December, I logged on to my Citibank account and was shocked out of my mind to discover that I had $3 in my checking account and $9 in my savings account.
Only 5 days earlier I had gone to a local branch of HSBC in the upscale Salvador neighborhood of Graça and withdrawn money from my
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Exploring the Amazon: Around Belém
On Ilha de Algodoal a horse and cart waits on the beach for passengers. Photo © Papy Leite, licensed Creative Commons Attribution.
By bus or car and by boat, there are several interesting side trips you can make within the vicinity of Belém. The most popular destinations are the beaches along the
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What to See in Natal, Brazil
Inside the walls of Forte dos Reis Magos. Photo © Guilherme Morais, licensed Creative Commons Attribution.
What few historical sights Natal possesses are located in the bairros of Ribeira and Cidade Alta, which fan out from the Forte dos Reis Magos (Av. Presidente Café Filho, tel. 84/3202-900
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Bahia's Police Strike
I’ve never lived in a place in which the U.S. Embassy put out an Emergency Travel Alert to steer clear of it. However, last week my adopted hometown of Salvador became such a place.
As a result of a state-wide strike of Bahia’s military police that began on February 1, Salvador was prey to random
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Tom Jobim – According to his Music
Last week a friend of mine invited me to go to movie, A Música Segundo Tom Jobim (The Music According to Tom Jobim). I have to admit that as much I like Antônio Carlos (“Tom”) Jobim– whom in Brazil is pretty much universally revered as the country’s greatest composer of all time – I was in the moo
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Ilha de Marajó in Para, Brazil
Water buffalo are a common sight on Ilha de Marajó. Photo © Celso Abreu, licensed Creative Commons Attribution.
These days, there’s nowhere else on earth that the lyrics “Oh give me a home where the buffalo roam . . . ” apply to better than Ilha de Marajó. Bathed by waters of the Rio Amazonas, Rio
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Exploring Brazil's Cocoa Coast: Ilhéus
View along the Ilhéus beachfront. Photo © Denise Mayumi, licensed Creative Commons Attribution.
Ilhéus is the main city along what is known as Brazil’s “Cocoa Coast.” The town itself dates back to the early 1500s. During colonial times, it thrived due to the sugarcane trade. Its true boom came in
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Popcorn Experience
Photo © Michael Sommers.
I just returned from Escaping Carnaval in Salvador.
Together, with a group of friends – all of them Bahians; none of them up to dealing with 6 days and 7 nights of body-crushing, ear-blasting, eye-popping, sweat/urine/perfume/beer-scented hedonism that characterizes the lo
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What to See in São Paulo's Centro District
The Catedral da Sé is large enough to hold 8,000 people. Photo © Bruno Padilha, licensed Creative Commons Attribution.
São Paulo has undergone immense transformations since its foundation in 1554. However, hidden away in its original downtown core are a few interesting vestiges of the city’s
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The Reconcâvo: Santo Amaro and Cachoeira
From Cachoeira, you can cross the rickety British-built wooden bridge to the town of São Félix. Photo © Paulo Marcos, licensed Creative Commons Attribution.
Named after the concave-shaped Bay of All Saints, the Reconcâvo refers to the former sugarcane region surrounding Salvador. Once the maj
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Day Trip from Rio: Petrópolis
The Palacio Quitandinha was originally a hotel-casino. Photo © Rodrigo Soldon, licensed Creative Commons Attribution.
Only an hour’s drive north from Rio, the summer getaway of the Brazilian emperor and his family still provides a welcome refuge, offering—aside from imperial trappings—cool re
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What to See in Pelourinho, Salvador's Colonial Center
A Bahian joke states that taking a ride on their beloved elevator is the only way to ascend in life. Photo © Deo Araujo licensed Creative Commons Attribution.
Most of Salvador’s most interesting sights are conveniently located in the old colonial center of the Cidade Alta, known as the Pelourinho
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Rio's Carnaval Goes Full Tilt
For those who missed this year’s Carnaval in Rio or who just plain miss Rio, the 5-minute film, “The City of Samba,” will either matar as saudades (“kill your longings”) or inflame your Rio yearnings all the more.
The film is the brainchild of Jarbas Agnelli, a talented illustrator, art director
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Explore Lagoinha on Brazil's Sunset Coast
Once upon a time, Lagoinha was a pirate hideout. Photo © Otávio Nogueira, licensed Creative Commons Attribution.
Once one of the most idyllic beaches along the Sunset Coast, Lagoinha, located 100 kilometers (60 miles) west of Fortaleza, may have lost some of its unspoiled beauty to developmen
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Clearing the Runways
This past week a lot of ink was spilled about Brazil’s preparations (or lack thereof) to host the 2014 World Cup. The Secretary General of FIFA, Jérôme Valcke, sparked a national uproar when he put his cleats in his mouth by stating that Brazil needed “a kick in the ass” in order to meet its deadl
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Brazil's Remote Beaches at Flexeiras, Mundaú, and Guajiru
Beach at Flexeiras, a small fishing village. Photo © Otávio Nogueira, licensed Creative Commons Attribution.
If you’re longing for more remote beaches, your wish will be fulfilled by traveling to the tiny fishing villages of Guajiru, Flexeiras, and Mundaú, around 130 kilometers (80 miles) fro
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