Brazil

I recently returned from a 2-week trip to Brazil which was just amazing. The people were incredibly nice and the scenery was absolutely breathtaking. I spent equal time in Rio de Janeiro, a beach town called Búzios and the remote island Ilha Grande, all of which offered pretty different types of Brazilian life.



Road trip to Búzios. The country was beautiful and had lots of great hand-painted type everywhere.

This was my first tropical, beachy vacation. My last overseas vacation was to Spain where I toured the whole southern coast and Madrid. It was a trip packed with museums, historical places, buildings and lots of food and culture. There was time to relax but for the most part, our trip was go-go-go.

Lopes Mendes, an insanely beautiful beach on Ilha Grande looking out over open Atlantic water.

However in Brazil, I spent more time enjoying the beaches, nature and the relaxed and fun attitude the natives all shared. It was definitely a departure from what I had intended, but it was really nice. Don’t get me wrong, I got to see some amazing places, dance until sunrise and experience the culture, but it was all done in a much more relaxed, easy-going fashion. 



Relaxing with drinks on an island patio.

And that was my main takeaway / lesson learned / biggest personal impact from this trip. To chill. Take it easy sometimes. In America—especially in a bustling city—it’s no secret that we often times rush through life. Our city legs propel us down sidewalks and our mission at hand often narrows our vision. While rushing is sometimes a necessity, it really is therapeutic to spend some of your day just being. Existing. Getting lost in your senses.

If you don’t already, I’d encourage you to try it out every day. I think you’ll find, like I did, a way to better balance the craziness of your life and being at peace. It’s pretty neat. 

Catching the sunrise in Copacabana.

This post was born on Monday, May 2nd, 2011 at 3:02 pm. It lives in the Blog and is tagged by Art, Blog, Brazil, Búzios, Culture, Ilha Grande, Life, Rio de Janeiro, Vacation. Follow it with the RSS 2.0 feed.