Polemic: Lula's White Blue-Eyed Bankers

Last Thursday 26 March during a visit of British Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva blamed the rich countries for the crisis.

"The crisis was caused by irrational behaviour of white people with blue eyes, who in the past seemed to know everything, and now show no knowledge at all", said Lula in reference to foreign speculators in the first world countries.
When asked by a journalist whether his statement would not have an ideological bias, Lula said: "As I do not know any black or indigenous banker [...] I can only say that it is impossible that the part of mankind, which is the worst victim, shall pay for this crisis. This is not possible," he added.
”We can not allow the poor to be the first to pay the bill run up by the rich," he emphasized.

During his statement to the press, at the Alvorada Palace (the Brazilian White House), with the visiting British Prime-Minister at his side, the president compared the financial crisis to a fever and also defended the actions of the government as inducer and articulator of policy.

“It is usually said that the government only is a hindrance, and when the crisis happened, those who seemed to be the “gods of the economy”, seek that same “non-knowledgeable” government, to save them.“

And continued to defend regulations for the international financial system, by saying: "It is not possible to have a society where you enter a shopping mall or an airport without being filmed, always being watched, and the financial system is not monitored and has no regulations."

Lula said that the global economic crisis will worsen if the G-20 meeting in London in April does not submit concrete initiatives to recover the global economy.

"If the G-20 is just a meeting to mark another meeting, we will be discredited and the crisis may worsen".

Lula questions the effectiveness of the economic package presented by the President of the United States, Barack Obama, which provides for USD 1 trillion for the purchase of assets considered "toxic”.
"If Obama made the decision in the best interest to the United States. Great. I hope it works," he said "but I can not use the little money we have left, to buy titles that I call “rotten”," he added.

He stated also that he hopes that Obama, in the G-20 meeting in London, presents a plan as the views of the American president are supreme and must be respected.

Note:
AmericaBlog's “Chris in Paris” writes in his post "Lula and Berlusconi need therapy":
"The last time I checked, disgraced but wealthy Merrill Lynch CEO Stanley O'Neal is African-American....." and contests Lula's words. Clearly he doesn't understand the language and the way-of-thinking in developing countries and doesn't know how the people living in these countries see AND experience daily the Americans living in their countries.
Lula's words had nothing to do with racism or discrimination, but everything with the cold truth as the big speculators (including bankers) of the USA created the mess the US and the world are in, in the first place and the European bankers ran into this pit out of greed too. Have you heard of any 'coloured' bank in Latin America which needed bail-out money? Brazilian banks proved to be sound. So, Lula is right, it were the "white, blue-eyed bankers" and it is of no importance that by any coincidence there was somewhere, sometime a 'black banker'.
Lula's words, blunt as they came from his infamous big mouth, are however correct. The poor, developing and emerging countries are suffering most, thanks to the insatiable greed of the white, blue-eyed bankers of the rich countries.
A sore blogpost. Better read the text in the original language first, before starting to shoot. Incredible that in general you attack the main stream media and now use their words as basis for your blog. A blogpost not worthy the slogan: "A Great Nation Deserves The Truth". It is not Lula who needs therapy, the white, blue-eyed bankers (speculators as Lula said) in the US and Europe need it most and urgently as well, as they don’t seem to be inclined to change their attitude. So don’t blame Lula without knowing what you are talking about.

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The Battle against Slave Labour in Brazil

One of the items on the FSM (World Social Forum) was the slavery. But always when I talk or write about slave labour, I get commented that I have to show pictures to prove my case. My words are apparently not credible enough or the horrific and the disgrace of contemporary slave labour rise above the human mind and should be underlined with hardcore photos. Slavery in the sex industry is widely recognized as existing, but slavery in the "normal" industry, especially in the sugar cane, is often seen as excessive. And the "evidence" is often no more than words, because pictures are almost never available.

To my joy Leonardo Sakamoto published on his blog a video, which I like to copy here. Expect no images of slave-drivers with swinging whips, the modern slave-driver is more subtle: He simply is a crass sweater. I translate here his short text:

”The battle against slave labour in Brazil”

Click on the picture above, the video opens in a new window.

This video "Frente de Trabalho", made on behalf of the Sindicato Nacional dos Auditores Fiscais do Trabalho (Sinait = Union of Labour Inspectors) addresses the battle against modern slave labour in Brazil. Director: Caio Cavechini.

Caio, one of the best directors among the young makers of documentaries, also directed "Correntes" (Chains), in cooperation with “Repórter Brasil”, among other national and international award-winning documentaries.

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“What State is this? What Justice is this?”

When I wrote about the World Social Forum, held in Belém, I quoted the words the governor of Pará, Ana Júlia Carepa, used in her closing-speech. I repeat:

“…….. here in Pará we demonstrate that it is possible to construct a new development model for Pará and the Amazon. We feel one with these hundred thousand people, who believe that another world is possible and in the name of this ideal, we have built our government. In the name of this ideal, we work to transform Pará into a constitutional State.”
And I commented: If you know Ana Júlia and her political results, you get weak knees listening to these words.

Well, let’s have a look how weak our knees can get. First a few words as introduction.

Marajó

Marajó. A pearl dwelling in the delta of the Amazon River. With a land area of 47.573 km² (larger than the Netherlands) it is the largest island in the world surrounded by freshwater. Although its northeast coastline faces the Atlantic Ocean, the outflow from the Amazon is so forceful that the water around the island is brackish. Its beautiful beaches, creeks, vigorous nature, the primitive handicraft, the breeding of buffalos and culinary specialities created the eco-tourism attracting many a tourist to this beautiful island.
It is this island we will talk about in this post and (unfortunately) not about its beauty.

The Bishop of the Prelature of Marajó criticizes the government of the Federal State of Pará for omitting cases of paedophilia

“The omission of the State is the worst thing facing the people of Marajó in all sectors, which contributes to the persistence of sexual exploitation of young children, teenagers and to the misery in the 16 municipalities of the archipelago”, according to the testimony of the bishop of the Prelature of Marajó, dom Luiz Azcona for the Parliamentary Commission on Paedophilia, installed by the Legislative Assembly of Pará, to investigate cases of abuse and sexual exploitation of children and adolescents in Marajó.

The bishop, the first person to denounce publicly that there is an integrated paedophilia network by politicians, businessmen and other people in the towns of the archipelago, related that since 2005, when the first complaints were filed, till this very moment, nothing has been done to change this situation. He repeatedly denounced trafficking routes for girls from Melgaço, Portel and Breves to Spain, through Belém/Airport Guarulhos São Paulo/Madrid.

Dom Azcona recalled that in June 2006 there was a complaint against sailors who navigate the river Tajapuru between Melgaço and Breves, where 11 and 12 years old girls are sexually exploited in exchange for some kilos of meat or litres of diesel oil. “Until now, the authorities have done nothing. Members of the Pastoral of the Child who made the complaint and subsidized the reportage are suffering death threats”, he complained.

During his testimony the bishop presented a report, containing photos, video recordings, documents, names of parliamentarians, businessmen and other authorities involved, and statistics of social entities, a list of public and private establishments, involved in sexual exploitation of children and minors in the State of Pará.

The bishop of Marajó believes that the problem is very serious not only because of the scope and number of occurrences but also by the ‘modus operandi’, in plain daylight, near police stations, in classrooms, in the streets and public places, such as ports and bars with large movement.

“We are no man’s land, there is not one single navy vessel controlling the entry and exit. There is bio piracy, arms trafficking, distribution of drugs, and trafficking women to the exterior. The presence of the State is extinct” said dom Luiz Azcona.

In Portel you can find the sexual exploitation of girls between 12 and 17 years at the riverside and, according to the report of the church, in the bars Altas Horas, Mormaço and Tropical. In Breves, it is the central square of the town. In Anajás, gangs of lesbians are luring girls into sexual exploitation in neighbouring municipalities or tempting them to go to Suriname and French Guiana. In Bagre, at the riverside, boys and girls meet fishermen and owners of vessels, offering them “programs” that cost BRL 3,00 (one euro)

Another major complaint made by dom Luiz Azcona is that young people are enrolling in public schools with the aim to entice minors for sexual exploitation, scheduling meetings with businessmen and politicians in the region. “There are principals, teachers and public servants involved and all that happens in plain view of the police,” said dom Azcona.

Another case is the former councilman of Portel, Roberto Terra, son of the then mayor of the municipality, who was convicted for raping a 13 years old girl, but never went to prison. “The victims had to flee to not die, and the criminals are walking around freely. The municipalities continue to be miserable and with total absence of public policies.”

“What State is this? What Justice is this?” he exclaimed.
Parliamentarian Bira Barbosa, president of the CPI, said that after the official testimony of the bishop the commission had sufficient and concrete material to execute the investigations.
But as always a date for the following hearing was not set. And as always nothing will happen.

In the last two days more than twenty new cases of sexual abuse against children and adolescents, both in the interior of the capital, were brought to the attention of the parliamentarians and senators who participated in Belém in a joint session of the CPI’s about Paedophilia of the Senate and the Legislative Assembly.

Two cases are in this context of immense importance to the public. The accusations against the parliamentarian Luiz Afonso Sefer and João Carlos de Vasconcelos Carepa, a.k.a. “Caíca, brother of the Governor of the federal state of Pará, Ana Júlia Carepa. Yes, the same, who I quoted in my introduction to this article,
A dossier sent in February by judge Paulo Gomes Jussara Júnior addressed to police-inspector Socorro Maciel, who chaired the investigation in which João Carlos de Vasconcelos Carepa was accused, disappeared mysteriously, according to the judge himself.
The judge, hearing that the dossier did not come in the hands of the police, went to the post room, where he got the confirmation that the document had arrived on February 9, but then got lost.

So tell me, what will be next? Don’t dream of a conviction and prison. Forget it, be realistic! Nothing happens as usual.
“What State is this? What Justice is this?” You give the answer.

Source: CNBB, O Liberal and Agência Pará de Noticias
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War between the Vatican and Brazil

First in brief the (shocking) facts:
A 9-year-old girl was raped by her stepfather. The child is in the 15th week of pregnancy with twins, when an abortion is performed.
Although banned, the Brazilian law allows an abortion in two situations, namely in cases of rape and when the life of the mother is in danger.

The Roman Catholic Church had the (ridiculous) hope that the child would carry the twin pregnancy to the end. Last Tuesday, the Archbishop of Olinda and Recife, Dom Jose Cardoso Sobrinho, tried to convince the girl’s parents to refrain from abortion. The mother of the girl did not budge and did not even wish to talk with the Archbishop.

Subsequently, the Archbishop excommunicated the mother, doctors and others involved in the abortion.

“As a Christian and Catholic, I regret the fact that a bishop of the Catholic Church takes, I should say, this conservative position. Or in other words, it was not possible for the girl raped by her stepfather, to give birth to a child, as the girl herself was in mortal danger. I think that in this aspect medicine acted more appropriately than the church. The doctors did what needed to be done: save the life of a nine years old girl,” said medical-director Sergio Cabral.

According to the doctors, the girl, who is 1.33 m high and weighs 36 kg, had no physical structure for a pregnancy, let alone for a twin.

I do not need to make critical remarks myself. Here is a translation of the blog of Ricardo Kotscho, Paulista, 60 and reporter of iG and the magazine “Brasileiros”.

Can I excommunicate a bishop of my church?
This morning I opened the newspaper after I had written my previous article and could not believe what I read about this incredible incident of a 9 years old child, raped by her stepfather and pregnant with twins.

To save the life of the girl, the doctors of the Maternidade CISAM, University of Pernambuco, in Recife, did what they had to do. On Wednesday, she was subjected to an abortion to terminate the pregnancy.

The medical director of the Maternidade, Sergio Cabral, who was responsible for the operation, explained everything in detail:

“The biggest risk would have been the continuation of pregnancy. The body of a nine years old child has not yet been fully formed. If everything goes well, she will leave the hospital this week.”

Everything well, although not for the lawyer of the diocese of Olinda and Recife, Marcio Miranda, who announced that he will file murder charges against the victim’s mother, who allowed the abortion.

Can you imagine such an absurdity? As if he speaks in the name of God, the Archbishop of Olinda and Recife, Dom Jose Cardoso Sobrinho, personally justifies in public the activities of the lawyer:

“We, representatives of the Catholic Church have the obligation to proclaim God’s law. In such cases the aim does not justify the means and is the secular law contrary to God’s law against murder.”

We? Who? This paleface? As a practicing Catholic, baptized, confirmed and educated at a priest school, ex-member of the Council for Justice and Peace of the Archdiocese of São Paulo, I can not accept that this bishop speaks on behalf of me and my church.

Outrageous. But what is at stake are not the laws, neither the secular nor the religious, but the life of a helpless girl and that all in a country, where the law allows victims of rape abortion into the 20th week of pregnancy, without judicial authorization.

As bishop Sobrinho has excommunicated already the whole family and half the world in this tragic drama, I wonder: Do I have the right to ban him from my church?

The more he tries to defend his position, the more rebellious the bishop makes me with what I read in the newspaper, to the point that I doubt whether the words are really from him:

“The girl was totally illegally pregnant, but we must save lives. The Church has always condemned abortion and will continue to condemn.”

Illegally pregnant? What is that? Is there legitimate rape?

If the bishop really is interested in saving lives, he would have given full support to the physicians of the Maternidade CISAM and the mother of the girl and not threatened them with a trial in a secular court.

Or he should go talking to Paula Viana, coordinator of Curumim, a non-governmental organization for the defence of women, who could explain whose lives must be saved:

“With each advancing day, the risk would be greater, the girl felt sick and showed already other complications. Immediate medical intervention was necessary.”

And to think that this Archdiocese of Olinda and Recife has been occupied by a man as my friend Dom Helder Câmara, the bishop who in the darkest days of the military dictatorship, risked his own life to save the lives of others.

I am sure that this church, which dom Sobrinho claims to represent not is my church, not the church of Dom Helder. Someone is in the wrong church.

end blogpost

The Minister of Health José Gomes Temporão, regularly locking horns with the Catholic leaders because of his programs against sexually transmitted diseases and AIDS, classified the decision of the Catholic Church to excommunicate those involved in the abortion as “radical” and “inappropriate”.

“I was shocked by two facts: what happened to the girl and the position of this clergyman who wrongly claims to advocate for life and puts a very important other life at risk.”

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva also entered the war with the Vatican, when he said in an interview that “medicine has been more correct than the Church.”

I don’t need to add more words. Excommunication! Who cares? The Brazilian might be a Catholic, but he is no fool.

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The Most Envied Man of Carnival 2009

Betto Almeida, 36, paints the body of (female) dancers, who participate in carnival parades in Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo. For many Betto Almeida is a lucky bird. In addition to his daily work as art director of TV soaps, he paints, brushes, drips and sprays paint on some of the finest Brazilian carnival bodies and that already 12 years.
With sweat on his forehead, he says that it is hard work but worth it. A modelling agency pays him BRL 1,000 (€ 335) for about two hours required for painting a model. During the samba parades, he paints two models a night. And throughout the year he paints a minimum of 50 women for various events.
“I started to do it for the …. continue reading and see the video

Carnaval 2009 in Olinda: The Giant Dolls

The, of origin pagan festival, that was brought from Europe to Brazil by the Portuguese colonists, is in Olinda, as we know it today, a relatively recent event, dating from the beginning of the twentieth century.
Although a relatively recent event Carnival of Olinda has maintained its purest traditions of celebrating carnival in Pernambuco. Each year, hundreds of carnival blocs and carnival groups meander through the streets and on the slopes of the Cidade Alta (Upper City), keeping alive the original roots of the most popular festival in Brazil.
And don’t forget the giant dolls, each year, new versions are created and total now more than a hundred. The Calungas (sacred doll in the Candomblés of Pernambuco) are carried in … continue reading and see the full photo session

Galo da Madrugada - The Early Morning Cock

Recife. Multicultural Capital of Brazil.
Early Saturday morning (21), the parade of the block Galo da Madrugada toured the streets of the centre of Recife. The sculpture of a Galo (cock) with a height of more than 6 metres is the sensation of the bloc. In its 32nd edition, the first time without the founder Enéas Freire, who died in 2008, the block came with news. With 23 trio-elétricos leading the party of some 1,5 million foliões (partygoers), it was the first time that the bands did not play solely frevo (frevo is a rhythm from Pernambuco derived from the march, the maxixee (Brazilian tango) and the capoeira).
The Galo travels a route of 4,5 kilometres. The Galo is considered the largest carnival block in the world according to the Guinness Book of Records.
The VIP area was stocked with celebrities as Reinaldo Gianecchini, Adriane Galisteu, Seu Jorge, Luiz Melodia and Gutta Stresser.

The Carnival of Recife is one of the best known in the world and one of the most attended in Brazil. The capital of Pernambuco was, as every year, the stage of various cultural events: the sound of Frevo, Maracatu (an Afro-Brazilian rhythm), samba, rock, reggae and many other musical styles.
On Sunday (22), the group Quanta Ladeira which housed in the Pólo Rec Beat, in downtown Recife, founded just over 10 years ago, was a must - with its parodies and songs satirizing the political and current events.

The Multicultural Carnival of Recife is democratic, popular and, especially, original in its format. Completely decentralized, with poles of entertainment throughout the city, is this format undeniably a success. Shows are free and of high quality, both in presentations of carnival groups, and in stage shows with well-known artists and orchestras.

The distinctive feature of the visual artist Cicero Dias, linked to the themes that were part of the carnivalesque life of Enéas Freire, two of the three persons honoured during the Carnaval Multicultural do Recife 2009 (the third was the composer Carlos Fernando) coloured the streets of the city during these days. Elements that allude to the president of the Galo da Madrugada and others remembering the pictures of the modernistic author of Rosa dos Ventos (March Zero) were distributed over the city greeting the incoming foliões.
The decoration project was executed by the team of architect Carlos Augusto Lira.

Website of Recife at: www.carnavaldorecife.com.br

The Best Carnival of Brazil is in Salvador

Anyone who spends carnival in Salvador just wants one thing: fervour every day. And he gets it. Here fun is granted. This year was even more agitated, with the commemoration of 60 years of the Filhos de Gandhy (Children of Gandhi), which has been honoured along with other afoxé blocks.

50% of the people chose the carnival in Salvador as the best in Brazil. A survey organized by the Jornal Nacional/O Globo on their website, chose the capital of Bahia. With six days of festivities, 234 blocks with 45 trios-elétricos, and the presence of big music stars, the capital of Bahia attracts 650 thousand national and foreign tourists, resulting in a carnival for two million foliões (partygoers). Recife and Rio de Janeiro were, respectively, with 19% and 15% of the votes. São Paulo and Florianópolis got 4% each, with 8% of the Internet users indicating other cities.

The president of Saltur - Salvador Tourism Company -, Claudio Tinoco, was not surprised with the outcome of the survey. For him, the capital of Bahia has a carnival tradition with strong popular roots. “It is the sum of the magnetism of the trios-elétricos and the big stars of our tribal music to the sound of African drums, the irreverence of the people and the cultural mix.”

Carnival in Salvador de Bahia requires a dictionary: First: afoxé, also known as Camdomblé de rua, is an Afro-Brazilian street manifestation with roots in the iorubá people and is a genre of music known as ‘ijexá’. The biggest and best known afoxé is the Filhos de Gandhy.

Then we have the trio-elétricos. Large lorries or even trailers stacked with high power audio equipment with on top a stage for the performing artists of the music group. I.e. a moving stage, as the truck tours the city streets while the artists play for the crowd.

In the two trio-elétrico circuits in Salvador, Avenida and Barra/Ondina, the heavy-weights of the axé (a music genre) were back in full swing. On Thursday (19) Timbalada performed in Nana Banana, Friday (20) and Saturday (21) Chiclete com Banana took the block. On Sunday (22), Monday (23) and Tuesday (24), Chiclete reigned the Chameleão. EVA, with Banda Eva, performed Sunday (22) till Tuesday (24) - the same days, Ivete Sangalo, former lead singer of the band, stirred the crowd with the block Coruja. The Voa-Voa, also from Chiclete com Banana, closed carnival at 0h30 of Ash Wednesday (25).

During the six days of the Carnival in Salvador, it is estimated that some 10 million litres of beer and 8 million litres of soft drinks are consumed. These are initial estimates of the breweries and show the economic impact of this most popular festivity. According to Salvador Tourism Company (Saltur) the activities related to carnival during a year of preparation and the festivity itself, move about BRL 1 billion (€ 325 million) and generate some 220 thousand temporary jobs.

Enjoy the images. An attentive reader of my carnival posts should observe the difference between the ‘stars’ of Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo and the muses starring in Salvador. In Salvador it is the music, in Rio and SP it is the glamour.

The big music stars:
Claudia Leitte - photo Fred Pontes and Ag
Daniela Mercury - photo Divulgação and Ag
Margareth Menezes - photo Wellington Carvalho
Ivete Sangalo - photo Charles Naseh
Claudinha Leite - photo Ag A Tarde

Visit www.amsteeman.com to see large pictures

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The 7 Best Places in Brazil to Enjoy a Hectic Carnival

Is Rio de Janeiro world famous for its spectacular carnival and awesome beauties, year after year industrial and economic centre São Paulo is trying to excel Rio in luxurious floats as well as in breathtaking beauties.

Glamour, glitter, sensuality, competing samba schools and millions of euros are however not part of the carnival in all Brazilian communities. There are Brazilian towns where carnival still is what it was and should be, ordinary people enjoying and participating in traditional street carnival. No sensuality, no spectacular semi-nude queens, no floats, no millions. Just traditional local music and fun, much, much fun. The original sound of carnival.

Let’s visit 7 places, Florianópolis, Ouro Preto, São Luís do Paraitinga and of course Salvador, Recife and Olinda. Number 7? That’s a surprise, wait and see.

This post will describe the first three in a bird’s-eye view. Salvador, Recife, Olinda and No. 7 deserve some special treatment.

Florianópolis
Who thinks Florianópolis has no Carnaval is wrong. In the most festive time of the year the streets of this island-capital of the federal state of Santa Catarina in the south are invaded by catarinense carnival blocks, bringing residents and tourists together in an unstoppable agitation.

The most famous block is the “Bloco de Sujos” (the Dirty Sods), where in the centre of the city men dress as woman - this year, the parade of the block took place on Saturday (21). Sambaqui and Santo Antônio de Lisboa are neighbourhoods in Florianópolis with a long carnival tradition. In the latter, for example, the parades of the blocks Avante and Baiacú were on Friday (20) and Monday (23). Just in the street, free to the public to enjoy.

Site Florianópolis: www.visitefloripa.com.br

Ouro Preto
In Ouro Preto, a town in the federal state of Minas Gerais, famous for its magnificent colonial architecture, carnival blocks have a long tradition. During carnival, the excitement with the blocks on the slopes of the mining town is contagious. The first block of the city came in 1867 and is still successful in Ouro Preto. The “Zé Pereira Clube dos Lacaios” was founded by officials (lackeys) of the Palace of the Governor and has dolls with more than two meters height as its principal allegory.

The town also houses independent blocks, such as the Bandalheira, which satirizes the days of military dictatorship, linking doctors, masons, workers and students, the Cordão Banjo de Prata (Silver Banjo String), founded in 1934, revives the atmosphere of the 1920’s carnival and Balanço da Cobra, which has a doll of the animal which gave the block its name, satirizes politicians.

As you may recall, originally carnival was about ridiculing political decisions, governors, regents and the clergy. Ouro Preto still breathes the original atmosphere.

Site Ouro Preto: www.ouropreto.mg.gov.br

São Luís do Paraitinga
In São Luís do Paraitinga, at 170 km from São Paulo, the fun is in traditional style, with blocks and marchinhas. The carnival’s march, also known as “marchinha” is a music genre that was popular in Brazilian carnival during the years 1920 to 1960, when it began to be replaced by the samba-enredo. Already for 28 years the residents of the town and nearby villages create the intrigues. In all, São Luis has 35 blocks, 25 professionals and ten amateurs. They pass through the streets of the historic centre and at the end of the presentations, they gather at the Praça Oswaldo Cruz for an enormous party which unites foliões (partygoers) of all ages.

As is custom, the municipality arranges a contest to choose the three best marchinhas. The winners earn cash prizes and a trophy. The foliões don’t need to pay anything to join the carnival in the streets, but creativity is vital: each block requires that participants wear a special costume. The block Maricota, which paraded on Sunday (22), for example, had the clothes made with cans. On Saturday (21) the block Juca Teles paraded, with the mandatory use of a colourful hat, tiara and parasol.

It is indeed a different carnival. São Luis do Paraitinga has one of the most inventive, fun and colourful carnivals of Brazil, with each year a theme chosen to celebrate, in 2009 it was the 100th anniversary of the birth of Elpídio dos Santos, Brazilian conductor and native of the town.
In São Luis do Paraitinga they play with their culture, their revered traditions, their stories and legends, their customs…

Carnival is in the Air!

Site São Luís do Paraitinga: www.saoluizdoparaitinga.sp.gov.br

This post is based on information from: viajeaqui

Visit www.amsteeman.com to see large pictures

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Blondes, brunettes, mulattos …. Ahh, Muses, What's Carnival Without Them?

São Paulo as the industrial and economic centre of Brazil starts its carnival parades on Friday night with the highlight on Saturday night. Then it is over in São Paulo, the Paulista can not spend valuable working hours with something as frivolous as carnival. Monday is simply back to work.
Rio de Janeiro is different. Cariocas are partying all the time and working a bit in between. Rio is the glamour city, São Paulo is for serious business.
Although in Rio carnival in the streets starts on Friday, the big carnival parades in de Sambódromo are Saturday night with the top on Monday night. The Carioca is slowly cutting-back on his festivities on Tuesday to enable him to quietly sleep on Wednesday, as officially his working day starts at noon. But don’t contact a company in Rio before Thursday morning, better still wait till next Monday.

Anyway, let’s start with:


The Muses of 1st day of carnival parades in São Paulo:

For a full reportage with all the pictures of the carnival queens and beauties visit: “Blondes, brunettes, mulattos …. Ahh, Muses, without them carnival would not be fun” at Anton Steeman Homepage