Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
9
The South
Southern Brazil - the states of Paraná, Santa Catarina and Rio Grande
do Sul - is a land of
gaúchos
, sumptuous barbecues and long, sandy
beaches. It's also generally considered to be the most developed region
in the country, more in common culturally with Europe or Argentina than
with the rest of Brazil, and shows little of the obvious poverty found
elsewhere in the country. The South also boasts some spectacular natural
features, the best known being the mesmerizing Iguaçu Falls on the
Brazilian-Argentine frontier and the mind-bending canyons of the
Aparados da Serra.
he southern
coast
has a subtropical climate that in the summer months (Nov to
March) draws people who want to avoid the oppressive heat of the northern resorts,
and an atmosphere and flora that feel more Mediterranean than Brazilian. Much
of Paraná's shore is still unspoilt by the ravages of mass tourism, and building
development is essentially forbidden on the beautiful islands of
Paranaguá Bay
.
By way of contrast, tourism has encroached along Santa Catarina's coast, but only
a few places, such as
Balneário Camburiú
, have been allowed to develop into a
concrete jungle. Otherwise, resorts such as most of those on the
Ilha de Santa
Catarina
around
Florianópolis
remain fairly small and do not seriously detract from
the region's natural beauty.
he
interior
is less frequently visited. Much of it is surprisingly - and spectacularly -
mountainous, the home of people whose way of life seems to have altered little since
the arrival of the European pioneers in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
Cities in the interior that were founded by Germans (such as
Blumenau
in Santa
Catarina), Italians (
Bento Gonçalves
in Rio Grande do Sul) and Ukrainians
(
Prudentópolis
in Paraná) have lost much of their former ethnic character, but close
by are villages and hamlets where time appears to have stood still. The highland areas
between
Lages
and
Vacaria
, and the grasslands of southern and western Rio Grande do
Sul, are largely given over to vast cattle ranches, where modern
gaúchos
(see box, p.632)
keep many of the skills of their forebears alive.
Futebol Curitiba
p.543
Poles and Ukrainians in Paraná
p.549
Serra Verde Express
p.551
Morretes cachaça
p.556
Barreado
p.558
Parque Nacional do Superagüi
p.562
On the Ukrainian trail in Paraná
p.564
Visiting the land of waterfalls
p.566
The selva: Iguaçu wildlife
p.570
Iguaçu activities: the Brazilian side
p.571
Gay Floripa
p.578
Dancing Joinville
p.590
Deutsch Santa Catarina
p.591
Oktoberfest in Blumenau
p.594
Blumenau beer
p.596
Rota do Enxaimel
p.597
Pomerode's festivals
p.598
Right whale-watching
p.599
Porto Alegre's art and book fairs
p.605
Bom Fim's Sunday Market
p.610
Futebol Porto Alegre
p.611
Alegre's art cafés
p.614
Gramado's festivals
p.617
Strudel at the Castelinho
p.619
Visiting the Aparados da Serra
p.620
Brazil's Little Italy
p.621
Touring the Vale dos Vinhedos
p.622
The charqueada
p.625
The Rota Missões
p.628
Crossing into Uruguay and
Argentina
p.629
Getting to grips with gaúcho life
p.632
