Brazil is South America’s biggest and most influential country and takes up almost half the continent. It is one of the world’s economic giants and is revered for its football prowess, coffee production and distinctive music such as samba and bossa nova. Two-thirds of Brazil’s population lives near the coast, meaning that life is a beach for locals and tourists alike. People are the essence of the country, and while Brazil is home to a multitude of ethnic groups of varying economic status, there are some characteristics that everyone shares - energy and passion.

Brazilians enjoy a good party whatever the circumstances. Rio is the hottest of destinations, particularly around Carnival time. Dancers gyrate, the music beats and the summer temperature rises. Almost anything goes. Bodies of all ages, colours and sizes don the very minimum in beachwear and idle away the days on the sun-kissed Copacabana and Ipanema beaches.

Brazil’s landscape is as diverse as the people who inhabit it. Few tourists venture far from Brazil’s spectacular beaches but a trip into the interior reveals a different Brazil, one with a great deal to offer the visitor. As well as the world’s biggest rainforest in the Amazon, Brazil boasts many wilderness areas including the wildlife-rich wetlands of the Pantanal, the canyons and caves of the Chapada Diamentina, and the Mata Atlântica (Atlantic forest), which runs for much of the length of Brazil’s coastline.

The population of Brazil is a big melting pot of races, including indigenous people, descendants of slaves from Africa and the offspring of European immigrants. This variety is reflected in the food, architecture, music and culture of Brazil. It is this massive assortment of places, people and traditions that makes Brazil such an interesting country to visit.

Sharon Harris