What makes Santa Catarina a unique state is the cultural diversity you can find within close range. Brazil in general received a great deal of immigrants from different parts of the world who settled in different parts of Brazil. Mostly Europeans found their new land in the south region of the country with similar conditions from home but without the many promisses made for them before departure. But despite the adversities they faced in the beginning, the great working capacity of the European people helped the region to become one of the wealthiest and modern of the country. To Santa Catarina state imigrated mostly Germans, Italians and Portuguese. What brought them to Santa Catarina state is a long history and it can be learned at Santa Catarina information.
I had been thinking of visiting the European valley for a change. Ocean spots are my favorite but the interior can also reveal interesting things.

I had an oportunity to organise a trip for a group of students of Felix Eboué school from French Guiana, territory of France, bordering Brazil at the extreme north in the Amapa state. The trip was educational in essence with the objective of studying the European influences in the locations of Florianópolis, Nova Trento, Blumenau, Pomerode and Itajaí and also having interaction with local students. I am happy have accompained a group with this kind of iniciative. Showing cultural interest in those places can help to motivate local communities to create a unique character therefore preserving their costumes for the future.

On the 22nd June we headed for Nova Trento, where Madre Paulina became a Saint(2002), the first in Brazil. Italians colonized the area and kept its tradition on parts of their daily life. The first contact was at lunch in a Cantina, popular Italian restaurant where mainly pasta is served. After eating and learning about the historical facts of the city, we saw a display of talented children from a local school performing a traditional dance.

On the way to Blumenau we stoped in Brusque, famous textile manufactoring centre, where you can buy good and unexpensive clothing. Arriving at the hotel in Blumenau early evening, we checked in and right after the group had an appointment with a local university for lectures and presentations. Luckly I had a chance to see some of the performances but it was late when we returned for dinner and after eating I went straight to bed.

Morning city tour, some people like it, some people think is boring. The matter is if you have a good guide or not. We did, and not only a guide but a good driver too.

This good people were able to perform a incredible job on making sure everything would work correct. The driver, Dutra (left), has a particular interesting history. He once was the driver for Gisele Bundchen, the top model, and Leonardo di Caprio, the movie star, in a trip that they did in 2003 from Brazil to Pucón, Chile, by bus. Asking to Dutra what are they like, he told me that they look like normal people, even silly sometimes. He thought the media creates a different person from your real self. I have in the presence of some famous people in Brazil cuz my father used to work for the cinema industry in São Paulo, but being face to face to a world wide known person is something I haven´t experienced before.
Capistrano (right) was the experienced guide who handled most of the difficult situations. Smart man who knows about dealing with people in stressfull situations and having control of the group during the whole trip programme. In fact we worked as a good team to provide the group with the best work we could give.

Our Blumenau city tour intended to show us the German traditions visiting sites like the City Hall, with its nice building; the residence of Hermann Blumenau (1819-1899), the founder of the city, and the recent Beer Museum. In fact beer is part of the city’s character for its local production and and hosting the famous Oktoberfest beer festival, just like in Germany. Of course the party here has a touch of Brazilian ingredients making it a great and warm celebration.

The German influences can be better represented in Pomerode, a small town 31 km north of Blumenau and our next stop. It has several constructions with Enxaimel style giving it an European countryside feeling. With a brief stop for tourist information we went straight to a traditional culinary restaurant. I can tell you I haven’t eaten like that for ages. I had Einsben (pork knees), mit rotkohl (stuffed drake), Kassler (smoked pork chop) just to name a few accompained with dosages of beer and good accordion music.

Lunch finished about 15:00 and it was already time to be back to Blumenau.
The night was promissing some good nightlife so me, Capistrano and a friend went out to have some drinks at a local club close to the univesity. There was a reggae music band playing, called Iriê, cold beer and many beautiful girls.

Next morning was the return day for the group and our last stop was the Portuguese town of Itajai, where the biggest fishing port in Brazil is located.
The town of the famous Marejada party, happening in October, has also attractions like the Matriz church with nice vitrals and the Casa da Cultura, containing some of the history of Itajai. The fligh was due to 15:00 so we planned our luch for 12:00 at the local old market, a charming and cozy place, great to taste the local culinary.
The airport of Navegantes, close to Itajaí, seemed to be far miles away for the fact that we were behind our schedule. Airlines warn to be at least 1,5 hour at the airport to have a tranquil check in but driving on the highway on the way to the airport we were 1 hour before departure. A problem with the eletronic tickets proved that unexpected problems occur and you have to count on this.
After goodbyes the group sucessfully departured for their flight back home, leaving Brazil and hopefully with good memories of the trip.

French Guiana seemed like a distant place but ironically it is a neighbor of Brazil and despite the fact of having little presence in the global context I could meet educated and modern people.

And the European influences I could verify are not like feeling like you are in Europe or going back on time. It´s surely Brazil and part of what makes it a cultural diverse country. A great region to visit if you want to see something different.

There are many hills in the island where you have splendid views from the top. Morro do Lampião, translating lantern hill, is one of those places.

It was as warm sunny day, perfect for an outdoor activity, so me and Phil, a friend of mine and like me a big fan of the nature in Floripa, decided to go cycling to the base of the hill and hike up to the top.
I discovered that it is called lantern hill because in the past the locals used to put lanterns at night, to guide the pilots to land their airplanes in Campeche. Saint Exupéry , the author of Little Prince, was among them, when he used to work for the postal flight and the island was on his route.
The trail isn´t hard and isn´t too long either. In good shape you climb it in 40 minutes.
It is quite clear but you need to watch out where you put your hands because of thorns on the vegetation.

At the top what you have is a 360 degrees view of the island. You see the north, the continent, the southern bay and magrove, the eastern and southern beaches and Campeche island.

The down is side is you also see clearly how fast human accupation is taking place on Campeche flatlands. Lagoinha-little lagoon-, surrounded by houses, still remains as a preservation area for the well-being of the local comunity.The question is for how long it will resist polution.

For my surprise, a group of primary school students came out, as part of an school activity, securely guided of course, learning about the area and also realizing how beautiful is the world from another perspective. It is great to teach children this way.

Of course we need to consider the risk factor. Children behave differently from adults in situations that exists a risk involved, like falls. But I like to think that is good to encourage them to face those situations and avoid being too much protective.

I thank my mother for giving me liberty when I was a kid. She would let me go camping on the forest with my friends and despite the risks like getting lost, being bitten by snakes, among others I really look back with joy for having a such healthy childhood. I now understand that on that age we develop our values. Today preserving nature is a great value for me.

When the sun was setting down we decide to leave home. We came down quick but we also had a surprise: A flat tyre in one of the bikes. You always have one. The matter is if you are prepared to fix and in this case we were not. A lesson learned to bring a fixing kit and pump next time.

For the rescue operation I cycled back and it was already dark, not a good time to go cylicling on the roads for the poor vision drivers might have. In the end I could return home safe but tired. I picked up the car and rescued my friend.

I could barely rest and I had a party to go at Café do Sol, a quite popular nightlife venue in Lagoa and one of my favorites. I couldn´t miss the party for it was the college party so I took some encouraging drinks and went to the party to have a great time with friends.

Needless to say how I was feeling next morning…

“You don’t make a living by what you get, you make a living by what you give.” - Winston Churchill