Although Carnival is celebrated in towns and villages throughout Brazil and other Catholic countries, Rio de Janeiro has long been regarded as the Carnival capital of the world. The Vila Isabel opened the second day evening with a tribute to Miguel Arraes, former governor of Pernambuco. It is very old school with lots of history and tradition. It is currently ranked the third best among all Rio samba schools.

credit: Agencia Brasil

The Cathedral in Sao Paulo, Brazil, is commonly known as Catedral da Sé de Sao Paulo, that is, the cathedral of the seat of the Bishop of São Paulo. The current cathedral is the third to occupy the site, with each previous church being demolished to accommodate a new and bigger cathedral. Cathedral de Se looks like a typical gothic cathedral, however the inside is impressive. The decorations are beautiful. The city’s largest cathedral has a capacity for 8000 people. In front of the cathedral is the Marco Zero or Zero Milestone of Sao Paulo, which is referred to as the center of the city. Most locals will warn you to be careful when you are at the square in front of the cathedral.

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credit: Deni Williams

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The world’s biggest sporting event is around the corner. The action starts in Brazil in June 2014. The official international commemorative coin programme for the 2014 FIFA World Cup is aimed at globally promoting the tournament and spreading awareness of its official marks. The Banco Central do Brazil issued commemorative coins ahead of the World Cup which the country will be hosting.

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The Brazil Balloon Festival is the most important international hot-air balloon festival in country and one of the best in South America. Torres is a city on the coast of south Brazil in the state of Rio Grande do Sul. In fact, the balloon does not fly. It floats on the wind. This is made possible by the fact that the hot air inside the balloon weighs less than the cooler air outside, making it rise.

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It is a piece of land that has been occupied and not properly regularized with the government. Rocinha is located in the South Zone of Rio de Janeiro, between the neighborhoods of Gávea and São Conrado. The houses are all built on the side of a mountain, with these ones being more secure than the other side because they are built on top of stone instead of dirt, so they are less likely to suffer from mudslides It is estimated that the current population of Rocinha is around 150 thousand, maybe 300 thousand. There are internet cafes, hair salons where you could get manicures and pedicures, movie and dvd rental places and at one point they even had a McDonalds.

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credit: Alicia Nijdam

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credit: Carlos Varela

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Christ Redeemer, statue of Jesus stands 39,5 meters (130 ft) tall, including its 9.5 metres (31 ft) pedestal atop the Corcovado mountain overlooking Rio de Janeiro. it located in the Tijuca Forest National Park. It weighs 635 tonnes. It was designed by Brazilian Heitor da Silva Costa and created by French sculptor Paul Landowski in 1931. Construction took nine years and cost the equivalent of US$250,000 ($3,068,097 in 2011). Statue belongs to a modern list of New Seven Wonders of the World.

The Brazilian Rio Carnival is celebrated in south american city Rio de Janeiro. It is the biggest and most interesting Carnival. It has long been regarded as the Carnival Capital of the World. Every other carnivals are compared to Rio Carnival. Probably, everyone has heard about the Rio Carnaval. It officially starts on Saturday, 40 days before Easter and finishes on Tuesday.

Rio Carnival 2011 Events

photos by Felipe Quintanilha