| Brazil
Travel News 5 - 2001
Coming
soon: GET UNITED MILES for your Brazil vacation, we'll
keep you posted!
Dear
Fellow Brazil Travelers!
Isn't spring wonderful, just imagine a country that's warm
all year round!
This
time we include the following topics:
1) The Washington Post on Brazil
2) Condoms and minimum wage, what's the connection?
3) Sustainable use of the rainforest, the Brazilian model.
4) Modern Archtecture at it's finest: Oscar Niemeyer
5) Our current specials!
1)
The Washington Post on Brazil
Over
the years, we have applied various labels to countries like
Brazil: Third World, developing, emerging, newly industrialized...
A brief visit to Brazil shows how our vocabulary has been
overtaken, writes Robert J. Samuelson, writer of the Washington
Post (IHT, 05/11/01).
In
Brazil you'll find both 1st and 3rd worlds - and much in between:
São Paulo, for example, though not handsome, the city
isn't sqalid, and outwardly much of the population is bustling
toward middle-class consumerism. The city center has the usual
office and apartment towers, luxury stores and restaurants.
Cell phones are widespread as are traffic jams during rush
hour. In 2000, Brazil's economy expanded at a rate of 4.2
percent.
While
shanty towns (favelas) and rural poverty still exist,
optimism and prosperity are growing.
What
is interesting is not the content of Mr. Samuelson's article
alone, but the fact that it has been prominently placed in
the Op-Ed section of a leading newspaper. That signals that
attention is slowly shifting away from the political tragedies
of the 80's that had tainted Brazil's image abroad toward
the positive and unique aspects of Brazil.
As
the world focuses anew on this huge country (Brazil is the
world's ninth largest economy, fifth in population with nearly
200,000,000 and larger in size than the US without Alaska),
one can now concentrate on Brazil's natural beauties and it's
rich historic heritage.
2)
Condoms and minimum wage, what's the connection?
In
our last newsletter, we were talking about the liberal and
effective approach of Brazil towards fighting AIDS. Here is
another example: The 7.5 millon poorest Brazilians are entitled
to a monthly cesta basica or basic food and produce
"basket". This will now include 10 condoms per month
as well...
3)
Sustainable use of the rainforest, the Brazilian model...
Have
we heard stories about deforestation in Brazil...
Now,
finally, years after military rule has ended, laws that endangered
the rainforest and supplemented the income of a few rich families
with mighty political ties are being rewritten.
One
result of recent legal changes: pristine forested land is
now worth as much as 40% more than cleared land. Previous
tax breaks had encouraged clearing, settlement and farming
of rainforest lands.
Additionally,
clear-cutting is found to be less profitable than methods
of selective tree-cutting. This allows the forest to completely
recover, much as the indigenous population has alway practiced.
To
enforce laws in the vast Amazon is another story that could
potentially fill several books. The best results are coming
from tackling Brazil's general problems: as a remedy, we have
long advocated the three E's: Education, Education and Education.
Awareness
among Brazilian consumers is growing. They are demanding produce
and timber that comes from sustainable sources. Whether it
is furniture, tropical fruit or Palm hearts (pickled, the
most delicious ingredient of any salad...)
Sticks
and carrots, too: Although the Brazilian environmental institute
IBAMA is only slowly becoming more efficient, something unheard
has happened: 50 landowners have been jailed, based on evidence
of illegal clear-cutting from a new satellite surveillence
system. Sinning does not go unnoticed anymore.
The
Economist magazine (05/12/01), out of which information for
this article was taken, concludes: "It is too early to
guarantee the survival of Amazônia. But it's chances
are improving, especially now that it is being seen as a valuable
economic asset, something that could produce returns forever."
4)
Modern Archtecture at it's finest: Oscar Niemeyer
Called
one of the Seven Wonders of the Modern
World by Condé
Nast Traveller magazine the Contemporary Art Museum
of Niteroi, across the bay of Guanabara from Rio. Declared
one of THE Five Buildings of the Ninties by World Architecure,
it's Architect Oscar Niemeyer, at the age of 93, insists that
his intuition is still intact. The designer of Brazil's capital
Brasilia is still a very sought after hero of humane creations.
Interest in life, liberty and equality were his themes that
forced him to flee the country during military rule.
(Though
we truly regret that Brasilia is not generating enough demand
for scheduled group tours, we can customize one day, two night
stopovers into the Brazilian
Exuberance tour http://www.SouthAmerica.travel/Brazil-Tours/tours/BRE.html
and into the Rio
and the Amazon tour http://www.SouthAmerica.travel/Brazil-Tours/tours/RAA.html
)
A
visit to Niemeyer's Niteroi Museum, perched atop a rock on
the bay and shaped like a flying saucer ready to take off
(or the villian's headquarters in a James Bond movie), can
easily be arranged for the interested during all our tours
that stop in Rio like Rio
Imperial http://www.SouthAmerica.travel/Brazil-Tours/tours/RIM.html and
our popular Gold
Route http://www.SouthAmerica.travel/Brazil-Tours/tours/RDO.html .
5)
Our current specials
And
of course never forget to check out our latest specials!
Or our new tours for Jungle lovers. The urban Jungle of Rio
and the Amazon. Using the only non-stop flight from
the US to the heart of the Amazon rainforest in Manaus. And
always in style, always our 4 star Quality.
There
must be something attractive about tropical heat...
--
Juergen Keller
jk@UniversalUnderstanding.com
http://www.SouthAmerica.travel/Brazil-Tours
http://UniversalUnderstanding.com
tel.
1 (800) 747-4540 (1 (800) 747-4540)
fax 1-425-977-7192
|
