It was 1984 and the southern city of Blumenau had recently been sunk in 50 feet of water by heavy flooding, a repeat of the events of the year before. The city and its residents were once more in shock and grief. Meanwhile, the mayor at the time, Dalto dos Reis, had been looking to put together a Brazilian version of Germany’s popular Oktoberfest for the last two years, but the floods washed away the initial hope that the event would take place that year. He looked at how the general sadness could be turned into a celebration of life. The following excerpt is from a 2006 interview with the ex-mayor:

— I spent many nights not being able to sleep, tormented by the dilemma of having the festival or not — he recalls.

Reflecting back, Dalto says he remembered something about the natural tragedies that happened in the Ukraine, causing many deaths.

— I remembered that the Ukranians, many times victims of natural disasters, would get together and drink for several days, as a way to reinvigorate themselves. I thought we should do the same, as it wouldn’t convey a lack of respect — he says.

Every year since then, for half of the month of October, the city of Blumenau has hosted the largest German party in Latin America. In international terms, it only loses out to the original Oktoberfest in Munich, Germany and the second biggest in Ontario, Canada.

In 2010, an estimated 600,000 people attended the Blumenau festival, and although 22% less people showed up than in 2009, they drank 25% more alcohol. According to last year’s numbers, each person drank around one liter of beer, an average that’s on par with the event’s bigger brother in Germany.

While the alcohol is the fuel that keeps the party going, “Oktober” (as it’s known in Blumenau) is also about wearing things like lederhosen*, the parading of clubs and custom-made vehicles, displays of marksmanship, traditional dances and tasting German food.

If you are interested in the 2011 celebration, it starts on October 6th and goes until the 23rd. Here’s the official site.

* – actually indicative of Bavarian clothing, not German, though it’s a popularly believed misconception throughout the world.

Too early for Carnival? Afraid so. Too early to dream (and possibly plan)? Of course not!

My last mention of the party of all parties revolved around the city of Recife but I´d bet that few have heard of the Italianesque Carnival of inland Pernambuco. A little more than 60 miles from Recife lies the city of Bezerros, often called the Land of Papangus. A Pap-what, you ask? A Papangu! Its a person that disguises themself with a Venetian-like mask and a long tunic, among other things, during Carnival-time across Pernambuco, especially in the city of Bezerros where such traditions are strongest.

The unique custom dates back to around 1880´s when the “papa-angu” was born from tomfoolery instigated by the relatives of sugar cane barons during Carnival celebrations. There, they would eat “angu”, (a coarse polenta) which is a typical food of the semi-arid regions of the Northeast. The verb papar, in kid-speak, means to eat, thus the name papa-angu. Tiny tikes, as it turns out, don´t always take a liking to the costumed crowd. Looking at the picture below, I can see why.

Generally, nothing can be discerned from seeing a papangu on the street, aside from their height and manner of movement. Who they are, whether they be male or female, old or young, is unknown. The revelers even go so far as to hide their costumes as they are being created in order to provide complete anonymity. One would think that such secrecy would presumably make it hard for groups to form, or in the very least, to know who is who, though hitting the streets with friends and family is quite popular..

If you´re interested in a visit next year, be mindful that the 2011 version attracted 200,000 people just on Carnival Sunday, the most popular day during the festivities and also when best costumes are chosen. Although it is likely you´d never be able to tell in the midst of all the costumed fun, residents of Recife are said to “religiously” attend during the weekend and it´s not even uncommon for some families to have a country house there as well.

Hopefully, Carnival revelry isn´t all you carve out for your trip inland. The beautiful vistas of the Serra Negra Ecological Park can be appreciated nearby, too.

Two months late, but thus is my publishing agreement.
(Guess which one is in Brazil?)

Prior to 1822, before Brazil was declared free from foreign rule, it was a Portuguese colony for 322 years. This September 7th, Brazilians will celebrate independence from Portugal with a national vacation…from work and school, that is. While independence is now shown by taking the day off to relax and perhaps by seeing a parade, it wasn’t always so.

Road to Indepedence

After the majority of the royal family returned to Lisbon in 1821, the Portuguese elite showed concern with Brazil’s status as a kingdom, bestowed upon it by Dom João VI several years prior. The result was that his son, the Regent Prince Pedro, was ordered to return to Portugal, too. At the time, Brazil was composed of two ruling, yet opposing parties, the Brazilian Party and the Portuguese Party. The former drew up a petition for Prince Pedro to remain in Brazil and create a sovereign kingdom. Eight-thousand signatures later, the prince was presented with the document and decided on the 9th of January, 1822 that he would not return to Portugal.

On September 7th, an official letter from the Portuguese court reached the prince with the message that he was, in fact, no longer a Brazilian prince since by law Brazil was no longer a kingdom. In the middle of a trip through São Paulo, along the Ipiranga river, Prince Pedro proclaimed independence with the famous cry of “Independence or death!” The next few years of the Brazilian War of Independence did bring about death for thousands of troops but by 1825, Portugal had officially recognized Brazil as autonomous. The interesting side note is that recognition was achieved by indebting Brazil to both Portugal and England.

Present Day

After all that had to happen to bring Brazil to where it is, how do Brazilians celebrate today? Unlike the 4th of July in the US, where the order of the day (err, night) is fireworks, family, BBQ and beer, Brazilians back home are surprisingly of a less celebratory nature. With so many holidays in Brazil throughout the year, the 7th of September is just one in the crowd. At best, what you’ll likely see in the big cities are military parades, the largest of which occurs in Brasília. If you fancy having a better time, heading for the US is your best bet, especially if you consider the large crowds that amass in New York City for the holiday.

Started in 1986 in an area of the city known as Little Brazil, a Brazilian businessman with a little booth and a lot of affection for his culture kicked off the first Brazilian Day in NYC. Since then, it has grown exponentially. The NYPD estimated crowds of more than one million for the 2010 event and saw similar numbers this year. The mainstay of the special day has always been the concert, which has showcased some of Brazil’s most popular musicians such as Ivete Sangalo, Daniela Mercury, Skank and Claudia Leite. As you can see in the video below, there’s nothing “little” about Little Brazil. It makes one wonder why Brazil doesn’t try to organically create what it already exports.

Forget ‘Hooked on Phonics’. Either I never really knew it before or I had just forgot, but Brazil is hooked on hygiene (hey, it works for me!). Yes, that´s right. I know that to some, the word Brazil conjures up images of favelas and possible backdrops for children´s foundation infomercials (that open with “for less than a penny a day…”), but the reality is not so. Brazilians are super-clean people, especially when it comes to their food.

Just this year, the Global Hygiene Council ranked Brazil as the country whose population washes their hands the most. It´s true…just walk into any restaurant and you´ll likely see a sink, mirror and soap dispenser near the entry. Don´t even think about touching your food with your “street hands” (hands you haven´t washed after being out in public) because any Brazilian worth their salt will be sure to remind you of your offense.

If you eat anything that can be consumed with the hands, in the least you should make use of a napkin to separate your fingers from the food. Your other option for finger foods (think pizza, french fries, etc) is to use a fork and knife, though it looks oddly snooty to me still. In the case of  drinks, wipe the opening down before you take a sip and if the drink comes with a peel-off top, peel it back so as to use the inside of the top as the contact point to drink it (make sense?).

Fancy buying veggies at the market for a home-made salad? Go right ahead, but remember to scrub them down with soap and water before giving them a final water-only rinse. Seeing the soap foam is a general indicator of a job well done (that goes for doing the dishes, too).

Yep, you got it, living in Brazil means paying attention to just about everything. Be weary of your food, of strangers, and of political promises as they are all likely to be harmful in the absence of due diligence. It´s said that Brazilians are capable of successfully living anywhere in the world due to a combination of their innate social skills, a keen eye and practical nature. In fact, I´m beginning to think the B in Brazil stands for boot-camp because I haven´t stopped learning life´s little, yet important lessons since I got here.