If you are considering a holiday in Brazil, I have some advice for you. Buy a train pass as it will save you lots of money especially on intercity. The single biggest item you will need is the train pass as most shops and even the basic highway are not cheap. Do as much research as you can as this will save you lots of money in the long run.
I’m not going to list all of the possible destinations but I will give you a short list of train passes that will take you to the cities and towns I think are the best. Remember that your actual time to travel and the time that you have available to spend on the holiday will be less than 24 hours so the trains will not run on schedule. In some cases the trains do run on schedule for the stretches of the excursions.
I’m going to start with the north and stay valid until September because that is the time for the bull dances. The best choice is the Temer Dome which is an open air stadium right on the bank of the Bund River. Usually the sides of the Dome are only visible at night so you will not be able to see the dancing lights. The aesthetics of the place are amazing though. There is also the negotiating of a route or the unda, never really gets into the actual route.
You can also visitDepending on where you are coming from, you can choose between the Colca Canyon or the Pacaya Samiria. The way to the Pacaya is the most popular. Some people choose the Acantilados de los Santos ahead of the negotiated route as it is less crowed, However if you choose the opposite of the route you will arrive at the top of the canyon and have a beautiful view of Itaipú Dam.
If you choose the Pacaya route you will negotiate a series of terraces up and down the canyon. You will also get to the Sinagua National Reserve and if you get to the end of the route there, you will have to consult the map to decide if you want to continue on that road or take a small dirt road south to OSA Brazil, a community of farmers, located at an elevation of over 3,000 meters.
While we were there a local farmer showed us around his combine harvester. We also caught a ride to a different village across the river. My experience was good because I learned that there are lots of people who live in these parts. My knowledge about them was limited, but from what I saw one does a lot of washing and vegetable farming. Another trade is in the timber, they cut down everything of wood to make furniture, beams, and doors.
A friend who is an owners rep construction and recently got back from Brazil told me, “You definitely should take a good camera because you will want to remember these moments. Even if you did not see the areas where the festivities are held, you should have plenty of photos of people enjoying their lives. It is always interesting to see how people live in different places.”
The next year will be even more enjoyable because I anticipate to see even more people happy enjoying the Brazilian lifestyle.