! ! !BRAZIL ! ! !

Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America.

Sao Paulo is Brazil’s biggest city. The name of the city honors Saint Paul.

Geography Brazil is the fifth largest country in the world

( 8,514,876 km2).

Third largest in the continent of America.

It shares borders with every country in South America except for Ecuador and Chile.

Home to theWorld’s largest river, the Amazon River(7,050,000 square km). The largest

tropical rainforest in the world, the Amazon Rainforest (1.4 billion acres).

Extreme biodiversity that is greatly threatened.

Demographics Population of 190 million (5th in the world)

Of which:

Largest Cities: Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Salvador, Brasilia.

White 48.43%Brown (Multiracial) 43.80%Black 6.84%Asian 0.58%Amerindian 0.28%

Politics The Brazilian Federation is the "indissoluble

union" of three distinct political entities: the States, the Municipalities and the Federal District.

Current President: Dilma Rousseff

Economy  The largest national economy in Latin

America.

The world's 8th largest economy.

GDP: $2.172 trillion (2010 estimate)

GDPP: $10,816

Brazil's economy is one of the fastest growing economies in the world.

Currency The real is

the currency of Brazil.

Its sign is R$ and its ISO code is BRL.

1 R$ = 100 centavos

1 R$ = 0.45 €

1 € = 2.20 R$

Coins: 1, 5, 10, 25 and 50 cents ,1 real

Banknotes: (1), 5, 10, 50 and 100 reais

Language The official language of Brazil is

Portuguese, which almost all of the population speaks.

Virtually the only language used in media and for business and administrative purposes.

Not so many people speak English, but sign language helps.

Religion Roman Catholicism is the country's

predominant faith.

• Roman Catholicism: 73.8%• Protestantism: 15.4%• No religion: 7.4%• Spiritism: 1.3%• Others: 2.1%

Culture The core culture of Brazil is derived

from Portuguese culture, because of its strong colonial ties with the Portuguese empire.

 Strongly influenced by African, indigenous cultures and traditions.

Aspects of Brazilian culture are contributions of Italian, German and other European immigrants.

Music Samba has become the best known form of

Brazilian music worldwide.

Choro is a Brazilian popular music instrumental style.

 Capoeira music sets the rhythm, the style of play, and the energy of a capoeira game.

Bossa nova (literally "New Trend") played with the nylon-string classical guitar.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bqao21cZ5nM

Carnival The Carnival of Brazil is an annual

festival held forty-six days before Easter.

Carnival celebrations are believed to have roots in the pagan festival of Saturnalia.

Carnival is the most famous holiday in Brazil and has become an event of huge proportions. The country stops completely for almost a week and festivities are intense, day and night.

Capoeira Capoeira is a Brazilian art

formthat combines elements of martial arts, sports, and music. Created mainly by

descendants of African slaves in order to survive against the colonists. Playing Capoeira is both a game and a way to protect yourself in dangerous situations.

Cuisine Brazilian cuisine varies greatly by region,

reflecting the country's mix of native and immigrant populations.

The everyday meal consist mostly of rice and beans with beef and salad.

Fried potatoes, fried cassava, fried banana, fried meat and fried cheese are very often eaten in lunch and served in most typical restaurants.

Brazil has a variety of candies.

Feijoada, considered the country's national dish. A stew of bean with beef and  pork.

Vatapá  made from bread, shrimp, coconut milk, peanuts and palm oil mashed into a creamy paste.

Moqueca consists of fish, onions, garlic, tomatoes, cilantro, and additional ingredients. It is cooked slowly, with no water added.

Polenta is a dish made from boiled cornmeal.

Acarajé made from peeled black-eyed peas formed into a ball and then deep-fried in palm oil.

Brigadeiro  is a simple Brazilian chocolate bonbon.

Cocada is a traditional Brazilian sweet made mainly from coconut.

Pão de queijo is a popular breakfast made of cassava starch.

The Coxinha is made from shredded chicken and spices enclosed in wheat flour batter, and deep fried.

The national beverage is coffee.

 Cachaça is Brazil's native liquor, made from fermented sugarcane. Main ingredient in the national cocktail, Caipirinha.

Mobile Services Four companies in Brazil’s mobile telecom

market:Vivo, 1st biggest, Claro 2nd,TIM 3rd,Oi fourth.

You can choose between pay as you go (pre-pago) or a monthly plan subscription (pos-pago).

In order to buy a prepaid card it is mandatory to provide your CPF number.

How to call to and from Brazil: http://www.howtocallabroad.com/brazil/

Emergency Numbers Medical Emergency: 192

Fire Service: 193

Military Police of São Paulo: 190

Federal Police: (11) 3616 5000

Health and Safety Although seen as being a poverty-stricken third

world country, Brazil boasts one of the best heath-care systems in the world.

Try as best you can to avoid mosquitoes. Among the major illnesses you may contract,

are:• Malaria, dengue fever, yellow fever : contracted

via mosquito bites.•  rabies: via infected animals Pickpocketing is common. So, don't travel

outside areas where you are conspicuous. Always have a friend or someone else for

company when hanging out.

Customs, Etiquette and Things to Know

Light touching and close proximity are construed as signs of general friendship (as opposed to romantic intimacy).

 Showing up late to a party or social function is quite common. Not so acceptable in work. 

Women are still expected to do most if not all of the cooking and cleaning.

Going to local bars and clubs as an unaccompanied woman is not advised.

The inverted American “OK” sign is an offensive gesture.

It's good to wait to bring up the topics related  to politics, poverty, religion, or the Rain Forest until trust has been established.

If you are caught trying to take drugs in or out of the country, it is an automatic jail sentence.  Do not give anything that is very expensive.

Your generosity will only cause embarrassment or be misinterpreted as a bribe.

! Sao Paulo !  The largest city

in Brazil.

The largest city in the western and southern hemisphere.

The world's seventh largest city by population.

City Map

Climate In summer, temperatures are between 17

°C  and 28 °C and 32 °C  on the hottest days.

In winter, are between 11 °C  and 23 °C (73 °F), and 6 °C on the coldest days.

Rainfall is abundant.

During late winter, especially August, the city experiences the phenomenon known as "veranico" (Little summer), which consists of a bout of unusually hot and dry weather, sometimes reaching temperatures well above 24 °C.

Time Standard time zone: GMT -3 hours

That means 5 hours behind Greece.

Living Cost Though prices greatly vary, those are the median

ones.

• Meal, Inexpensive Restaurant = 8.17 €• Water (0.33 liter bottle) = 0.75 €• Milk 1 liter = 0.97 €• Loaf of Fresh White Bread (500g) = 1.17 €• One-way Ticket (local transport) = 1.23 €• Cinema, International Release, 1 Seat = 8.58 €

More info:http://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/city_result.jsp?country=Brazil&city=Sao+Paolo&displayCurrency=EUR

Public Transportation Urban transportation in São Paulo consists of a

complex system with many subsystems. Sao Paulo suffers from chronic congestion on

its main routes. São Paulo has an immense bus system, with a

fleet of over 16,000 units. There are also several train systems: CPTM,

the São Paulo Metro, and the EMTU-SP, plus various connecting lines.

A contactless smartcard solution Bilhete Único (Unified ticket) is used for fare collection and control for buses, subway and train.  

Taxi:  three kinds of taxis: street cabs, radio cabs, and deluxe cabs. Radio cabs charge extra for the radio service.

Great subway system. three lines. The two cardinal lines run from 5 am until midnight daily, while the Avenue Paulista line(underground) runs from 6 am to 10 pm. The metro is the quickest mode of transport, though it should be avoided at night. 

Useful Sites: http://www.sptrans.com.br/bilhete_unico/

http://www.urbanrail.net/am/spau/sao-paulo.htm

Sightseeing The Altino Arantes

Building is an important skyscraper.

São Paulo Cathedral, in Neo-Gothic style.

Ibirapuera Park is a major urban park, it has a large area for leisure, jogging

and walking, as well as a convention center. 

Liberdade the largest Japanese community outside of Japan in the world.

Municipal Theatre of São Paulo significant both for its architectural value as well as for its historical importance.

The Pinacoteca do Estado de São Paulo, one of the largest in the country

Sao Paulo Zoo

Instituto Cultural Tomie Ohtake

Museu de Arte de Sao Paulo

Museum AfroBrasil

Events and Festivals Fashion Week, the largest and most important

fashion event in Latin America. March for Jesus is an Evangelical Parade. International Film Festival, one of the most important Brazilian film festivals. Gay Pride Parade, attracting about 1.5 million people. Festival of Electronic Art brings works by

artists from all over the world to São Paulo.

Nightlife ! ! ! Unlimited choices … but unlimited ! ! !

Salsa bars, rock bars, night clubs, performing arts and many others

Here’s some sites: http://www.virtualtourist.com/travel/South_America/Brazil/Estado_de_Sao_Paulo/Sao_Paulo-1500790/Nightlife-Sao_Paulo-TG-C-1.html http://www.tripadvisor.com/Travel-g303631-s402/Sao-Paulo:Brazil:Nightlife.html

! Foond ! Again, vast amount of choices to choose from.

Cuisines from all around the world.

Some popular foods in the city:• Tutu a Mineira: Mashed beans served with

roasted pork loin, cabbage, and rice.

• Virada Paulista: Rice, beans and banana served with meat.

• Churrasco: Excellent quality barbecued meat.

Sao Paulo Video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0JYlobm1USE

!!! Thank You !!!