Blogs from Minas Gerais, Brazil, South America - page 3

North of Rio, the name of the state Minas Gerais means "General Mines" on account of all the gold and gem mining in the area. The colonial Portuguese didn't discover the area's potential there until the 1690s , they exploited the area and those African slaves knowledgeable in mining from the 1700s. By 1822 they had exhausted the gold reserves. It's a beautiful region, green and lush but less 'tropical'. We stayed in Ouro Preto which means black gold, which is equally lovely. Like many of the region's old colonial towns, it has cobbledy streets, main squares with town halls (former justice and prison buildings), pretty churches and jewellery shops. We stayed in the Hotel Grande, designed by Oscar Niemeyer in the 50s, and quite ahead of its time we say, though the locals hate it ... read more

The intrepid adventurers turn their backs on civilisation and head to the hills in search of the rumoured "black gold" before returning to the shore to discover what exactly island life is all about. (And did LOST really make any sense whatsoever?) After spending near enough a week in Rio we decided to head north to Ouro Preto (Portuguese for Black Gold, so named after the rock that the gold was encased in). I will admit that I´d never heard of it until reading the guidebook. The overnight bus journey was slightly grim, although Ellie didn´t seem that bothered, and I was pretty sleep deprived on arrival. It was cold too, apparently winter does that here in Brazil too, that was a surprise. So we wandered about the deserted town at 6am, which was creepy as ... read more

Projektet jag for till Brasilien for att delta i ar helt plotsligt fardigt och det har ar (ungefar) inlagget jag tankt skicka till CISV Umeas blogg for att beratta om vad jag haft for mig i tre veckor: Oi tía! Ett trettiotal barn som skriker efter uppmarksamhet, ris och bonor ris och bonor ris och bonor, utmattande lekar i utmattande tropisk sol samt sprak och kulturbarriarer av ett slag jag aldrig tidigare upplevt; de senaste veckorna har pa manga satt varit tuffa men det har trots detta varit helt fantastiskt att ha borjat 2011 med att vara "tía" at ett gang elvaaringar fran en sk favela i Vitória, Espirito Santo, Brasilien och jag ska har gora ett forsok till att beratta varfor. Jag har deltagit i ett International People's Project, som ar CISVs program for dig ... read more

Nestled in a valley and surrounded by forested mountains, picturesque Ouro Preto, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, has a gorgeous setting for its perfectly-restored, 18c colonial center. Its narrow, uneven, cobblestone streets wind up and down the steeply-pitched hills and ravines on which the town is built--totally charming, but hard on the hips and knees. The steeples of 23 Baroque churches can always be seen over the white-washed colonial buildings with their bright, colorful doors and window frames and red-tiled roofs. And, like the rest of Minas Gerais state, it had some of the best food in Brazil. Originally named Vila Rica de Ouro Preto (Rich City of Black Gold), its mines produced more gold than any other city in the new world and was thought by some to be the long-sought El Dorado. It was ... read more

So ihr lieben oder Oi! wie der Brasilianer kurz sagt, gut 1 Monat bin ich jetzt schon hier und hab aus reiner Faulheit noch nichts von mir hören lassen. Schande über mein Haupt! Und auch jetzt schreib ich ehrlich gesagt nur mal wieder auf den letzten Drücker, aus Angst gar nicht mehr mit dem Erzählen hinterher zu kommen. Denn in gut 2,5h fährt schon unser Bus ab. Ziel: RIO DE JANEIRO!!! :) Ich weiß gar nicht wo ich anfangen soll und werde auf keinen Fall noch alles zuammen kriegen, was passiert ist, aber ich geb mein Bestes: Also, los ging das ganze Abenteuer natürlich am Flughafen in Belo Horizonte. Völlig planlos wie ich nunmal angereist bin hab ich mich mit nichts weiter als einer Adresse von meinem Hostel mit den örtlichen öffentlichen Bussen auf die Suche ... read more