Products From The Amazon Jungle That You Might Know

You may be aware of the Amazon Jungle by  the environmental news about deforestation. You might also know that the Amazon rainforest contains the largest river in the world and the second in length. But did you know that the Amazon Jungle provides unique products that can link you its nature?

Although the Amazon region includes territory belonging to nine nations, the greatest part of this forest is in Brazil comprising about 60%. The area called Legal Amazon covers 59% of the Brazilian territory. But for a long time, this area was quite isolated because of the distances to the bigs cities like São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro.

Nowadays, although the Amazon is still distant from large Brazilian cities, the products of Amazonia are increasingly available in Brazil urban centers and exported to countries all over the world. Here are some of them.

Chocolate

Chocolate from Amazon is good for consumers as well as for forest preservation and economy. Cacao production is an income alternative for those who want to keep the forest standing. The state of Pará is where the greater production in Amazonia occurs.

Brazil Nuts

Brazil nuts are an excellent choice for snacks between meals. Besides being a delight, this seed also has serious health benefits. Among the main ones is the presence of good fats, fiber, vitamins and minerals. In Brazil we call this “Castalha do Pará”, literally “nut from Pará”.

Açaí Berries

The açaí (euterpe oleracea) is a palm tree that produces a fruit of purple color, much used in the confection of food and drinks. To be consumed, the açaí should be first pulped in a special machine which turns it into a thick juice.

In the Amazonia, the açaí is traditionally consumed fresh along with cassava flour or tapioca usually with ice, but this way of preparing is just possible in areas near the harvest zone because once processed, the açaí is quickly spoiled. In other areas of Brazil, the açaí must be industrialized by a preparation from the frozen pulp beaten with guarana syrup, generating a paste similar to ice cream. People eat this adding cereals and fruits like banana.

The açai can be also used in the cosmetic and pharmaceutical industries to make vitamins and supplements.

Cosmetics

The company “Natura” invested in research to create products using Amazonia raw materials. They produce shampoo, conditioner, fragrances, soaps, and moisturizing creams with fruits and plants from Amazonia. You can find more information at https://naturaeco.com/.


If you want to learn Portuguese I can teach you in individual lessons by Skype at Cafetalk .

Special Places in Nature to Visit in Brazil

Brazil is a big country with many natural parks to visit. If you like to see awesome landscapes or you love adventure, Brazil is the perfect country for your vacation. Here are three interesting and unique sites to appreciate.

Lençois Maranhences

The Lençois Maranhences is a gigantic area formed by white sand dunes interspersed with blue lagoons supplied by rainwater. Few other landscapes are as impactful as the vision of this "wet desert". Every day there are 4 × 4 traction cars full of tourists taking them to the lagoons, which is the best way to see them.

The scenery is dominated by endless dunes and freshwater lagoons. The large formations of sand reach up to 40 m in height and are generated by the action of the winds that constantly blow from the sea. The continent-wide advance reaches 50 km and extends for about 70 km of deserted beaches.

You can stay in a typical local hostel in the city of Barreirinhas or in a resort with all the amenities. The best period to visit is between June and September when the lagoons are filled with more water.

Here you have this official site the National Park of Lençois Maranhances with information in Portuguese http://www.icmbio.gov.br/parnalencoismaranhenses/guia-do-visitante.html

Iguazu Falls

These falls are located on the border of three countries: Brazil, Argentina, and Paraguay. There are two options to see the Iguazu Falls: the Brazilian or the Argentinean side. On the Brazilian side, we have the Foz do Iguaçu city.

Around the falls there is the Iguaçu National Park that preserves the original habitat including the exuberant vegetation of the subtropical jungle. There are an average of 1.3 million liters per second in no less than 275 falls of water that compose the complex of falls in this world heritage site considered the biggest falls in the world.

Here is the official site the National Park of Iguazu Falls with information in Portuguese.

http://www.icmbio.gov.br/parnaiguacu/guia-do-visitante.html

Aparados da Serra National Park

This park is located in the south of Brazil between the states Rio Grande do Sul and Santa Catarina.

The biggest attraction here is the Itaimbezinho Canyon. With a depth of up to 700 m, vertical walls and a narrow crevice, it is one of the largest canyons of the Americas. In addition, it has rocky walls adorned with the lush green of the Atlantic Forest.
There are three trails open to the public, with the trail of Vértice and Cotovelo being the main attractions. Some canyons require a special guide to explore.

Here is the official site the National Park of Aparatos da Serra with information in Portuguese

http://www.icmbio.gov.br/parnaaparadosdaserra/guia-do-visitante.html

Portuguese vocabulary - professions

In Portuguese, the nouns and adjectives are either masculine or feminine. Words for professions are also masculine (o advogado, o engenheiro) or feminine (a advogada, a engenheira).

Masculine / Feminine

o advogado / a advogada   -   lawyer
o arquiteto / a arquiteta   -   architect
o ator / a atriz  -   actor/actress
o cantor / a cantora   -   singer
o engenheiro / a engenheira - engineer
o escritor / a escritora   -  writer
o médico / a médica   -   physician
o fotógrafo / a fotógrafa   -   protographer
o professor / a professora   -   teacher, professor
o programador / a programadora   -   programmer



However, some of these words have only one form (o estudante, a estudante).

Masculine & feminine

atleta   -   athlete
cineastra   -   filmmaker
dentista   -   dentist
diplomata   -   diplomat
economista   -   ecomonist
estudante   -   student
gerente   -   maneger
jornalista   -    journalist
motorista   -   driver
policial   -   police officer


If you want to learn Portuguese I can teach you in individual lessons by Skype at Cafetalk .

Portuguese vocabulary - Talking about sickness

The flu - gripe
a high fever - febre alta
a slight fever - um pouco de febre
a sore throat - dor de garganta
a cold - resfriado
asthma - asma
bronchitis - bronquite
an upset stomach - dor de barriga
a backache - dor nas costas
arthritis - artrite
a toothache - dor de dente
a headache - dor de cabeça
diarrhea - diarréia
the chicken pox - variola
a hernia - hernia
a cough - tosse

Brazil: An Exciting Place to Vacation

 Brazil is an amazing country to visit. The country offers a lot of possibilities of things to do and see. In this continental country, you can see beautiful landscapes, have fun with friendly people, and practice a new language without spending a lot of money.

1) The unique and exotic landscape

Brazil is in an amazing country to see different kinds of beautiful landscapes. With an extensive coastline in tropical and subtropical areas, the beaches are wonderful. Also in Brazil the world's largest rainforest - the Amazon - where the highways are rivers. In addition, there are a lot of natural places to explore like waterfalls, caves, lakes, canyons, and mountains.

2) Fun, friendly people

In the country of football and Carnaval, you have a lot of fun things to do, not just during Carnaval, but all the year. Brazilian people enjoy life and openly receive foreigners regardless of their origin. On the weekends, Brazilians like to play football, drink beer with friends, have a barbecue, or go to the beach. Sunday is the day to stay with family and friends.

3) An affordable vacation

The most expensive cities to live in Brazil are Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo. But if you go to other cities, such as Natal, Fortaleza, and Salvador, it is not so expensive to stay. As Brazil produces many agricultural products, food is not expensive. On the other hand, electronics are more expensive to buy, but you can bring these items with you.

4) Language

Once a Portuguese colony, the official language of Brazil is Portuguese. Brazilian people like to help foreigners who don’t speak their language. Because English is not a language spoken by most of the Brazilian population, it is still a good idea you study basic Portuguese before travel.

I teach Portuguese in individual lessons on Skype. With a package of 10 lessons, you can learn survival Portuguese to travel. If you are interested write to me portuguesewithangelica@gmail.com or at Cafetalk .

3 Aspects of Portuguese Language That You May Not Know

What do you know about Portuguese? I invite you to expand your knowledge about the Portuguese language. Here are some aspects of the Portuguese language that you may not know. 

1) There are more words in Portuguese similar to English than you think.

Agenda, animal, artificial, bar, base, cafeteria, capital, casual, central, chance, chic, chocolate, cinema, colonial… all of these words are cognates, meaning they are written the same in both English and Portuguese. In fact, many other words are identical in English and Portuguese like real, natural and hotel. There are also other nearly-identical words such as apartamento, simples, and opinião. It happens because many words in both English and Portuguese have Latin origin. 

2) 80% of all people who speak Portuguese are actually in Brazil.

Portuguese language should be called “Brazilian” language as most people that speak this language are in Brazil. There are 244 million people speaking Portuguese in the world. About 80% of that is in Brazil. Nevertheless, for the longest time, the Brazilian government wasn’t interested in promoting the Brazilian dialect as a foreign language. On the other hand, Portugal has always promoted its dialect by the Camões Institute and other initiatives. 

3) Average Brazilian people do not speak English.

For a long time, English was not an obligatory subject at school. In addition, the quality of the English teachers in Brazilian schools are not good enough at effective conversation. Private English courses are expensive and the teachers are not native speakers. In general, Brazilians people don’t need to speak English in their everyday life. There are plenty of materials translated from English to Portuguese, and there are good publications produced in Brazil for the country's needs.


If you want to be updated about Portuguese language and Brazil send me an e-mail portuguesewithangelica@gmail.com to receive a list of cognates in Portuguese and English.