It would be quite safe to say that the Carnival in Brazil is probably the most famous carnival anywhere in the world. It is a big event, a huge party that is so festive, which is why it is so popular. The Carnival in Brazil itself is just as important as any other holiday, including Christmas, New Year, and Easter. There is only one festivity that can get really close to the Carnival in Brazil when it comes to pomp and excitement. This is Rio de Janeiro’s New Year’s Eve. You definitely would not want to miss out on the best carnival you could ever experience in your life.

The Carnival culture of Brazil has surpassed all of its limits, its contagion reaching out to people everywhere in the world. People spend a lot of precious time and great effort to prepare for this festival. Every place has a display of a unique style. One of the many facets that the Carnival offers, and one that deserves credit is King Momos, who is believed to be King of the Carnivals, and is the signal that the festivity is about to commence. In Rio, Brazil’s cultural capital, the parades have been around ever since the 30s. Today, the parade is held in a huge structure known as the Sambadrome. Participants coming from different schools for Samba join the parade in a friendly competition that offers spectators a thrilling visual display. These groups (blocos) go on parade around the city and relate tales though music, graceful dances, and fantastic costumes. Costumes and masks hold a very important role during the parade because they are able to tell their own tales. The creation of these costumes are detailed and based upon the particular role they are supposed to portray. Just like the carnival music, the costumes worn during the parade are greatly influenced by African culture. The designs of these flamboyant costumes also allow for the freedom of dancers to express themselves through their movements. At the Carnival’s closing, the winners of the competition are then announced.

The Carnival is more than entertainment and merry-making. It is a reflection of Brazilian culture for people of all races to see and truly appreciate. It is a celebration of life that is best depicted in music, dance and the vibrant people who celebrate it.

When you think of Brazil, you think of the Samba. Samba is indeed unique to Brazil – a musical expression that is extremely melodious, rhythmic, and definitely dynamic. It can be difficult to control your body from swaying and moving to the sexy groove of this type of music. The Samba is a Brazilian dance as well, and is frequently performed in the Brazilian Carnival. The Samba finds its roots in the African tradition in the country. Slaves had provided musical instruments such as the cu?ica and agogo^, and started the fashion of the gyrating dance movements and syncopated beats that the Samba is best known for. What makes Samba music very different is the unique instruments that produce that particular Samba sound. There are quite a good number of them, each one contributing a distinct flavor that makes Samba what it is. The more popular ones include the cu?ica, an instrument similar to a drum, with a high-pitched sound, and the pandeiro, which is similar to a tambourine but a bit larger.

Just like any other type of musical genre, Samba comes in many types. There is the very rhythmic type that is usually included in the Carnival, and there are also the more mellow versions. One such song is called the Samba Song, or the Brazilian Samba Cancão. And there are those very romantic and passionate types of Samba, where lyrics of love are transformed to musical pieces that are sung by Brazilian crooners. The pagode originated in Rio before it started getting reproduced in (the) other parts of Brazil. Originally, this Samba sound started when people would get together in someone’s backyard, partying with various instruments for Samba being played on for hours and hours. The backyard festivity would not be complete without the traditional beer or cerveja, or the sugarcane rum, cachacha. Keeping with the spirit of the party, humorous lyrics are abundant on the pagode, making this type of Samba very popular.

Brazil is composed of diverse ethnicities but it appears that its culture has been influenced in a big way by the Africans. Capoeira is a form of martial arts originally created some 400 years back by African slaves in Brazil. Unlike the other types of martial art forms however, Capoeira is a combination of music and dance, acrobatics and playfulness, all blended together to form an art of beauty. Upon recognition, Capoeira has been able to show the whole world that as a fighting form, it is quite effective. It is not just a kind of martial art. It is a social affair as well, abundant in tradition and rich in history. The Capoeira incorporates unique instruments such as the beribau, an instrument very similar to a bow, a drum that resembles a conga, and a tambourine to complete the ensemble of its rhythm section.

Brazil is home to around 60% of the Amazon, which means that it also has the world’s largest river. The Amazon is the world’s largest rainforest, representing 35% of the forests in the world. Here, the most diverse flora and fauna can be found, with roughly 30 million plant species that have already been identified. When visiting the Amazon, one is transported to a completely different world. The immense amount of greenery and the amount of water and life is an experience to remember. Manaus is a city at the center of the Amazon River. It is the most ideal place to go to while visiting this magnificent rainforest in Brazil. Tourists may do their exploring by joining tours or by taking a cruise of the Amazon. The rainy season starts in the middle of October in the Brazilian Amazon’s southern region and December in Manaus. High periods where tourists find it the best time to visit Manaus are from July to September and from December to January. During this time, there is less rain and there are less mosquitoes. It becomes much easier to observe marine life in its lakes, or to go swimming and fishing.

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