Na Praia! Posted by polyana on Jan 10, 2011
Many times when we think of Brazil, we think beaches! Granted, that’s not ALL there is to see in Brazil, but some of the prettiest beaches I have been to have been… in Brazil. So why not take advantage of the fact that it’s summer in Brazil to get ready for the beach soon, to…
BBB 11 Posted by Rachel on Jan 6, 2011
Big Brother is by far the most popular reality show in Brazil, when millions of viewers tune in to watch seventeen contestants live together in a house in Barra da Tijuca in Rio de Janeiro, and get voted off one by one until there’s one person remaining, who wins R$1.5 million. Cameras watch the contestants’…
President Dilma Takes Office Posted by Rachel on Jan 4, 2011
On January 1st, Dilma Rousseff took office as Brazil’s first female president. In Brasília, she gave an inspiring speech and outlined her plans for her new administration. Watch her speech below: Here are some excerpts: “Continuaremos fortalecendo nossas reservas externas para garantir o equilíbrio das contas externas e bloquear, e impedir a vulnerabilidade externa. Atuaremos…
Samba de Gafieira Posted by polyana on Jan 3, 2011
Ahhh Janeiro! Time for resolutions, losing weight, quitting smoking and eating well! Well, since I don’t smoke and I’m quite thin and tend to keep healthy, I like to give myself fun resolutions. This year, I want to learn to dance samba de gafieira, also called simply gafieira or gafiera. A lot of people, when they…
Email in Brazil Posted by Rachel on Dec 30, 2010
Though we don’t stop to think about it much, the pace of technology has moved incredibly quickly in the last decade, and it’s funny to think that in our lifetimes, the Internet was a new phenomenon. I recently came across a very funny video, a news report about electronic mail on a Brazilian news channel…
Brazilian Reveillon Traditions, Part II Posted by polyana on Dec 30, 2010
Yesterday I wrote a post on Brazilian traditions on what to wear for the New Year. I also mentioned how we have all sorts of superstitions and that I would share that with you all today! For many Brazilians, what you wear, eat, drink and do at midnight or around that time, determine how your…
Brazilian Reveillon Traditions, Part I Posted by polyana on Dec 29, 2010
Reveillon? Oi? Yup, reveillon, or “new year,” is right around the corner already!! And like with many other holidays, but especially for reveillon, Brazilians have all sorts of simpatias, or superstitions. Since there are so many, I’m going to make this a 2 part post!! First, we’re going to talk about colors and their meanings…