I finally realized why many people unfamiliar with Brazil think of it as a country of nothing but tiny bikinis, sex, alcohol and parties. This past week was the famous Carnaval. Carnaval is a week’s worth of celebrations before Ash Wednesday and the time of fasting for Catholics. During this week there are parties of all types on the streets, in clubs, at beaches, in houses during the day and night. The main event is the samba parade which consists of Samba schools showcasing their talent. These samba schools have hundreds of people dancing for them, all trying to win the coveted winner spot as the best samba school of their city. The largest Carnaval celebrations and samba schools are in Rio de Janeiro and Salvador. The rest of the country have samba parades and celebrations all week long, but not as intricate, costly, and over the top as in these two cities.

I traveled to Florianopolis. It is a beautiful island south of S�o Paulo filled with beaches and lagoons and a lot of sun. To put it simply, I had a blast. My first day and night was spent going to street carnavals in which people drink, eat and dance until hours past midnight as well as enjoying the beautiful beaches the island had to offer. The day street carnaval on the second day had a theme in which all of the guys dressed as girls. I have never seen so many ugly girls in my life as I saw during that particular day. At night there were always parties in clubs (although they were a bit expensive). I went to a club with a live samba rock band, a Mexican bar where the bar tender enjoyed pouring tequila shots down every ones throats, and a very posh looking beach party with multiple pools and Jacuzzis with one of the most famous DJs in Brazil. I also got to FINALLY paraglide. I can now cross that of my bucket list!

Needless to say, it was sad to leave the island. To top of the week, this past Friday I attended the parade of the samba school winners in S�o Paulo. The parades were the schools that won and began at 10pm and ended at about 7:30 in the morning. Yes, I stayed during the ENTIRE procession. It was a one of a kind experience. The floats and music and dancing surpasses any parade in the United States that I have ever seen. Keep in mind that this parade of winners is supposed to be OK, but not as great as the samba schools of Rio and Salvador. This parade was the perfect way to end my Carnaval experience.

Pictures say what a thousand words cannot so enjoy the pictures.

Location: Florianopolis, Brazil