The Brazilianist Online Magazine - ABC of Brazil, by Norman Morrisonl

Photos by Embratur, Brazilian Tourism Agency
(From left to right) Amazon Forest, Pantanal, Rio de Janeiro, Iguaçu falls.

You should consider visiting Brazil even if you have to save a portion of your butter and egg money for a couple of years. Especially, if you haven’t traveled much, it can become your vacation of a lifetime. More planning is needed for a trip to another continent than your typical beach vacation. Luckily, some folks have been there ahead of you, so you don’t have to re-invent the wheel. Read along and I’ll share some good information to help you get started.

First, we must agree that the Andes mountains are not located in Brazil. They are in some other country down there. The problem for some 'would be' travelers is that South America is so far away that no matter where news occurs, it must be in Brazil. Actually, from certain perspective, Brazil is pretty dull.

Brazil is a dull place if you are looking for geological, or climatological events. It is a natural fact that Brazilians like Americans, or anyone who has been there will attest. Brazil has no earthquakes, tornadoes, or hurricanes. They don’t seem to have any enemies, foreign or domestic, and they behave like they can’t fight in a war because it would interfere with beer call on the weekends.

There are a lot of poor Brazilians to be sure, but they truly believe that what God hasn’t given them in money, He has more than made up for in the land of Brazil.

Brazil is as large as the continental United States with an extra Texas thrown in for good measure. It’s also a very diverse country. This means that your choices are many and varied and you’ll have to do your homework to narrow them down some. Think of it as if you were a Brazilian coming to the United States. Where do you want to go? Los Angeles or New York? In your case it might be Rio or Manaus?

The problem that you face is that in the U.S. in particular, relatively little is known about Brazil. The main reason for this is that even though Brazil has a rich tourist industry, for some reason they don’t do much advertising out of country. When was the last time you saw a commercial for Brazil? Travel agencies cater mostly to hot destinations, and Brazil just isn’t on their map so in your own interests, it pays to do some digging for the real Brazil.

There are good sources of information, though, this being one of them. The Internet will be your primary source to learn all you can about Brazil, but even there, many travel sellers presume you know a lot more about travel than you really do. Let’s set about to fill you in.

First, you’ll need a passport. In the U.S. you can now download the passport form directly from the government website. http://travel.state.gov/download_applications.html . It’s fairly painless if you dot all the I’s and cross all your T’s. There is no reason not to go ahead and get the paperwork started today.

When you visit Brazil you’ll also need an entry visa. Why? It’s simple. You need an entry visa into Brazil because the U.S. requires Brazilians to get an entry visa into the United States.

In short, you mail or deliver your passport to your regional Brazilian Consulate and they stamp your entry visa into it. Please, make sure that you have contacted the Brazilian Consulate directly, or through their website < http://www.brascon.com , to get all necessary information you need to apply for your Visa. A simpler, but more costly way, is to let a professional visa service handle it for you. All the details are located on the “Visa Page” of the website listed at the bottom of this article. You should obtain your visa about a month or so before you are scheduled to travel because there is a time limit on it. The good news is that it’s good for 5 years.

The most costly aspect of Brazil travel is just getting there. I always suggest that folks search the Internet first, and then visit their local travel agent to get their best price. Especially, if this is your first time out of country, a good travel agent, whether online or off, can help you out a lot. On the other hand, if you say, “Brazil”, and they say, “Huh?” then move on down the line to the next one.

No one can say with surety what travel will be like 6 months in advance, but if history is a guide, you will most likely enter Brazil in either São Paulo or Rio de Janeiro. Most flights to Brazil are scheduled at night. So, for example, you might depart from Miami at 10 or 11 in the evening and arrive in São Paulo around 6 or 7 in the morning. All times are local, by the way, and destinations in Brazil are only one or two hours ahead of U.S. time, so jet lag really isn’t a factor in your plans.

São Paulo, the New York of Brazil, and Rio are the air hubs for the rest of the country. From these airports, you’ll fan out to your other destinations, if you have them. To date, there is a really super and cheaper way to see Brazil. Available only to foreigners. Yes, to Brazilians you are a foreigner...Is the “Brazil Air Pass.” For under $600 you can make up to 5 hops inside Brazil...once you get there. It’s much cheaper to do multi-destination trips inside Brazil this way. Also more chic and exciting!

Unless you are some kind of real special huckleberry, I don’t advise anyone to fly down to Brazil and “wing it.” Why? Because even veteran travelers stand to have a better time and learn more about the country with a structured travel package. Again, especially if you are a first time traveler, you will simply be thrilled as you are chauffeured around in your air-conditioned van from one place to the other with your English speaking guide pointing out all the neat sights.

Brazilians speak Portuguese...not Spanish. If you speak Spanish, you’ll probably be able to decipher the lingo, and they’ll understand you too. Otherwise, you’ll need a translator handy, and one always is, when you choose the right travel package. Even when you’re on your own, you’ll be amazed and delighted at how far these two little words go to helping you make new friends: Por favor and obrigado. (Please and thank you.)

Unlike the U.S., in Brazil, hotels don’t run shuttles. Everything is done through the local “receptive” services. Thus, when you enter the airport, you’ll be greeted by someone holding a sign with your name on it. The driver with the sign will take you to your hotel. This is called the airport transfer. For the balance of your stay, you’ll be doing daily tours, most likely conducted by a driver and tour guide. Again, this is the duty of the receptive agency that is working your package. You’ll quickly become very spoiled. Your tour will most likely be with a group of other folks, mostly Brazilians out to see the town just like you. If you’re a high roller you can schedule private tours, but the public ones are really more fun.

Now we come to my favorite part, the destinations! There are, in my personal opinion, four major destinations you should consider: The Amazon, Pantanal, Rio de Janeiro, and Iguaçú Falls. There is copious information on each of these destinations on the website link at the end of this article, but we’ll get you started...

The Amazon of Brazil is both forest and a river. If you look down, while you are flying over it, all you’ll see is a sea of green (dotted by small ugly brown patches here and there) all the way to the horizon. You will fly into the river port town of Manaus in northern Brazil and then take out to your destination up or down river.

The Pantanal in the southwest of Brazil has been described as “A swamp as large as Colorado.” It’s the best place to see animals in Brazil. While the Amazon folks are definitely protective of their patch of woods, the Pantanal people win, hands down. Be prepared to be lectured and educated to the max. If you like learning, you’re in for a treat beyond compare. Iguaçú Falls is a monstrous set of water falls and a huge hydro-electric generator that makes Niagra Falls look like a drip. It’s one of the wonders of the world and a sight to behold.

Rio de Janeiro, of course, is the best known and best beloved port of call in Brazil by Brazilians and non Brazilians alike. It is the fabled land of the sun, beaches, night life, and if it’s your calling in life, Carnaval, each year in late February or early March.

There are other places you might wish to investigate also, but these are the top beginner locations. Each place has a tremendous amount of tourist infrastructure, and experience with the foreign tourist.

Don’t be afraid to fly Brazilian airlines. They have a super track record, and you’ll quickly see that their service is superb.

A rule of thumb when scheduling your flights is to always make sure you have three hours between flights. Insist on this with your ticket agent. But, even if you miss a flight, what’s the worst thing that can happen? Is it a disaster? No. Why, you just catch the next one. Still, it’s more fun to not have to run in the airport.

The top reasons for visiting Brazil is to see the sights, eat the food, and hear the music, soak up the atmosphere, not necessarily in that order. Many people who visit have a hard time coming back home, and all who visit feel very special indeed while they are down. A visit to Brazil opens a life time love affair, and you can be safe in the knowledge that one visit is never enough. You can visit any place in Brasil in a week, but why not bank two so you have plenty of time?

So, the word to the wise is to do your Brazil homework first, and then start making plans or your vacation of a lifetime in sunny and friendly Brazil!

Norman Morrison is the owner of the U.S. office of OceanView Tours and Travel, with headquarter in Fortaleza, Brazil. Copious Brazil travel information can be found on his website: http://www.BrazilAmerica.com