On Friday, November 30, we crossed the border into Brazil. This was one of the longer crossings we have had in South America as the Brazilian side was a bit less organized than we would have liked, but we were in and sipping on caipirinhas before we knew it.
Details on the process are on our Border Crossings page for interested parties.
When in Brazil…
On the following day, we visited the Brazilian side of the Iguazú Falls (Foz do Iguaçu in Portuguese). The entry cost a bit more than the Argentinian side at 160 BRL (~55 CAD) for the two of us, which was around 9 CAD more. The views were great; however, we are in complete agreement with those who say that the Argentinian side is better.
The Brazilian side has just one long pathway that gets crowded quickly, especially if you visit on a weekend like we did. There is only one viewpoint that allows you to get reasonably close so you will get wet on this side as well, but not as much as you would in Argentina. All in all, this is an amazing site and you can’t go wrong with seeing it from either side; however, if you are only able to visit one and are on the fence as to which side to see it from, our recommendation is definitely the Argentinian side.
Still high from our brush with the power of nature, we made our way east towards the city of Curitiba. Curitiba is the capital of the state of Paraná and the largest city in Brazil’s southern region. The city’s population is comprised largely of descendants of German, Ukrainian, Russian, Italian, and Polish immigrants so, unsurprisingly, Curitiba has a European vibe to it – from the people to the architecture to the commerce.
There are number of things to see and do in Curitiba, but we didn’t experience all of it since we only spent one full day in the city. We did visit the Rua 24 Horas (24-hour Street), which appears to be more of a small shopping center as opposed to a street. The area is covered with a glass ceiling and a metallic tubular structure extending through its 120-meter stretch. It has around 34 shops so it doesn’t take long to explore, but you can get some good coffee and pastries there so don’t rush to leave.
The next stop was in Blumenau, a city that looks like it belongs in Germany rather than Brazil. It became home to a large number of German immigrants in the late 19th century and yes, they celebrate Oktoberfest every October and have been doing so since 1984 (a great year indeed). In fact, Blumenau’s Oktoberfest is one of the largest in the world that we sadly missed by two months. Instead, we explored the city center with all its German-style architecture and had some beer at an English pub later that evening.
A few more stops and stunning views later, we made it to Gramado for the weekend.
Brazil, you’re so pretty
Gramado is a small town where most of the population is of either German or of Italian descent so, again, we have a place that feels like it belongs in Europe more than in Brazil; however, Gramado was unlike any other place we have been to so far.
We were lucky to have ended up here in December despite not planning it because Gramado is one of the most festive places you can be during the holidays. Christmas lights and decorations were EVERYWHERE. All the stores, restaurants, hotels, and streets in the town were brimming with Christmas feels. I felt like I had opened the door to Christmastown. The only things missing were snow and a bunch of little elves.
Even though walking through the town in the evening was absolutely spectacular, our daytime explorations did not disappoint. It’s hard not to be happy in a place like this.
While still humming Christmas tunes, we left Gramado at the start of the following week and headed towards Porto Alegre. The city is one of the wealthiest in country; however, it is one of the less beautiful places we visited in Brazil. Not that we were too disappointed because our main objective for stopping in Porto Alegre was to get new tires because the ones we had were worn to a point where it was risky to ride with them.
Yup, it’s time for new tires
We got our new tires, did a bit of exploring in the city, and were in Jaguarão, our last stop in Brazil, before the end of the week. We’re ready to take on Uruguay!
Escadaria 24 de Maio in Porto Alegre
You may have noticed that we kept our road trip in Brazil restricted to its southern states of Paraná, Santa Catarina, and Rio Grande do Sul; we didn’t even venture to nearby São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro was never on our itinerary. If you have been following us from the start, you know that we don’t let the media taint our view of a country before we even set foot in it and we don’t heed advice from those who have never visited it.
It is because LOCALS had warned us to not venture outside the southern states on our motorcycle that we chose not to stray. The south is the most developed region of the country and has a significantly lower crime rate than the rest of Brazil. Plus, it came with high recommendations from local riders and it certainly did not disappoint. If you have ever wanted to visit Brazil, but are apprehensive due to the high crime rate, the southern region is a great place to start. Even though many of the towns and cities look like they belong in Europe, you still get to experience the essence of Brazilian culture.
