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Brazil sits in South America, swallowing up a great deal more of the continent than any other country in the region. The country comprises mostly of lowlands, with the highest peaks of the country not reaching above 3,000m – covered in part by lush rainforests, stony deserts and fantastic beach areas, the huge country sees the majority of its population residing on coastal regions. Brazil shares many borders with Argentina, Bolivia, Colombia, French Guiana, Guyana, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, Uruguay and Venezuela, and the East of the country extends out to the Atlantic Ocean. Visitors to Brazil are confronted with something of an oddity – a great deal of people in the country are downtrodden and poor for a number of reasons (economic mismanagement and corruption high up being the two main reasons), yet visitors to the country always leave with memories of sun, samba and soc... Football. Brazil is a country that offers a huge amount to do, see and experience over a huge amount of land, and is sure to bring a smile to anyone’s face. The history of Brazil stretches back to around 5,000BC, or so experts estimate, but much of the ancient history of the country has been lost with the ages – it is known that the Native Indians never set up a centralised society akin to the Inca or Maya, rather that they were spread, in their millions, between many tribes and regions. It is also known that the arrival of Westerners and with them (eventually) African slaves decimated the indigenous population, leaving an estimated 200,000 people still living in the forests of Brazil, following ancient lifestyles. Recorded history of Brazil kicks in around 1500, when the country was discovered “by accident” by Pedro Alvares Cabral and the Portuguese moved into town, establishing a number of hereditary captaincies. The Portuguese saw the country as incredibly valuable – with sugar cane fields and gold deposits discovered – and Brazil was well defended from French and Dutch interests. By 1807 though, it was problems at home that put the wheels into full motion – Napoleon’s invasion of Portugal saw the king and his government flee to what is now Rio De Janeiro, where they set up the headquarters for the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarve. By 1821, the king left Brazil to head back to Portugal, leaving behind his son, Dom Pedro, whom he placed in charge – by 1822 Pedro had spearheaded the push for independence and a weakened Portugal, under British pressure, gave in, allowing Brazil to attain bloodless independence. The abolition of slavery in 1888 saw Europeans flood to the country to tend to the now predominant coffee plantations, and these coffee barons supported military action against the Brazilian Empire in 1889, which saw the country under military and civilian control for the next 40 years. By the late 1920s the coffee planters’ strength was dwindling, thanks to economic crises and Getulio Vargas, leader of the newly formed Liberal Party, was eventually placed in charge – again thanks to military action. 1954 saw Vargas replaced by Juscelino Kubitschek, who set about building the new capital Brasilia – this unfortunately contributed to economic decline in the nation and 1964 saw yet another military coup, this time with the military themselves taking control – two decades of projects benefiting the wealthy at the expense of the poor set an unfortunate precedent that the country is still yet to recover fully from. By the mid-80s, the military powers that be agreed to hand power back to a civilian government and a peaceful transition occurred, leaving Brazilians free to vote for their own government for the first time in decades. Recent history has seen a number of people in charge, all trying – with varying levels of success – to stabilise Brazil, eliminate corruption and bring about a fairer distribution of wealth. The economy saw growth in the 90s, near collapse at the turn of the century and has been put back on track again in recent years. All in all, the country is getting there – levels of foreign investment are up, Brazil is a popular tourist region and the people are slowly, slowly getting what they deserve in life. Brazil is an incredibly interesting country and is worth at least a visit by anyone. The people are wonderful and their samba attitude is hard to ignore, especially around carnival time. The country itself is a blend of many things, but the beauty it contains is a definite constant. Brazil has seen corruption and inequality for a long time, but recent years have seen this turn around, and the country looks forward to a brighter future with an impetus on tourism and foreign investment – it’s a tropical wonderland and is sure to entice many off plan investors. The standards of healthcare in Brazil are of a good standard in major towns and cities, though the quality of care in smaller towns cannot be guaranteed to be high. Private health insurance is highly recommended. Mobile phone coverage stretches across most of the country, though quality of connection cannot be guaranteed in rural/rainforest areas. Landlines are widely available in towns and cities and lines are of a decent standard. Internet cafes are available the majority of towns and cities.
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