More to Brazil
With England's chances of going through to the next stage now owing more to mathematics than their ball skills we thought we should explain that there’s more to Brazil than just the World Cup!
This year Brazil will see a 240% boost in its tourism due to the Country being the hosts of the 2014 World Cup. Football fans from all over the world have already been piling onto planes, eagerly anticipating the reality of being able to watch their countries playing live in the cup. At I Love Meet and Greet, we have already provided valet parking for lots of our football fanatic customers travelling to Brazil and therefore we thought it was only right that we did our research on the country that they’re all visiting…
Firstly we found out that Brazil is big, like really big. To be precise, it’s the fifth largest country in the world, which is the size of India, Argentina, Algeria, Britain and Portugal all put together! The country covers nearly half of South America and is the continent’s largest nation; however, over a third of Brazil is drained by the Amazon and its more than 200 tributaries!
For those who don’t know, Brazil is the only Latin American Nation that delivers its language and culture from Portugal. In April 1500, Brazil was claimed by Portugal and even after the country gained its own independence in 1822, the Portuguese language and culture stuck. Do not be fooled though, as Portuguese is most definitely not the only language the football supporters will be hearing, as there are more than 180 native languages spoken in Brazil!
The hosting country is made up of 13 Cities, with over 1 million residents. Throughout the World Cup, matches will be played all across Brazil, ensuring that the fans aren’t the only ones that will have to make the air miles. In fact, the USA World Cup squad will travel 10,188 miles during the group campaign, which is the equivalent of flying from London to Rio and almost back again! Belgium got the luckiest draw as they will have to travel the least out of all the teams at just 1,368 miles and England are right in the middle with an air mile count of 4,424.
For the football fans that intend to explore the country while their teams aren’t playing, there is lots to see! From more than 1,500 beaches to choose from and over 500 picturesque Island paradises, there are plenty of things to keep them busy. Brazil is also home to one of the most famous mountains in the world called the Corcovado, which is located in Rio de Janeiro and features a 98 foot statue of the city’s emblem, Christ the Redeemer. Rio de Janeiro also attracts thousands of visitors each year for The Rio Carnival, which involves outrageous costumes, street dancing and unforgettable parties!
Just in case you don’t feel like we haven’t provided you with enough facts about Brazil, here’s one more. The name of the country comes from the Amerindian word ‘Brasil’ which describes a dark rosewood type which is very common in the country!
We hope we’ve highlighted the fact that Brazil has so much more to offer than (just) football and if we have, then why not start planning your trip to Brazil now by booking your ILMG valet parking!
By Sarah Anglim at 20 Jun 2014