Todos os anos, o Carnaval do Rio de Janeiro atrai turistas do País e do mundo inteiro. Desta vez, não será diferente. A verdade é que a comemoração se transformou em uma indústria milionária. De acordo com a TURISRIO (Secretaria de Turismo, Esporte e Lazer do governo do RJ), no total, o estado receberá 2,5 milhões de turistas entre dezembro e março. Somente no Carnaval, serão 700 mil.

Esses turistas irão gerar uma receita de US$ 500 milhões no período da comemoração. A rede hoteleira espera repetir a dose do Réveillon, quando a ocupação ultrapassou os 90%. E o otimismo é o mesmo entre empresários do interior, cuja expectativa é de que a ocupação fique entre 95% e 100%.

As cidades do Rio mais procuradas pelos turistas são Petrópolis, Teresópolis, Nova Friburgo, Paraty, Angra dos Reis, Cabo Frio, Armação dos Búzios, Arraial do Cabo, Itatiaia, Resende e distritos de Penedo e Visconde de Mauá. Os hotéis e as pousadas dessas localidades aguardam plena ocupação.

Confira os Transatlânticos.

Foto: Rio Carnival Net.

Stuff.co.nz:
A report in The Guardian newspaper that American soldiers are looking to Rio de Janeiro for rest and recreation – especially sex tourism – prompted many Brazilians to say that the foreigners have it all wrong.

Despite all the jiggling, sweating flesh on display at the weekend as crowds of dancers pressed together in the first full day of carnival celebrations, Brazilians say the spectacle is not all about sex. They see it as a celebration of the body, closer in spirit to the Olympics than to a strip bar.

Though American soldiers could hardly be seen in the crowds, Brazilians complain about those who go mainly for sex tourism, and opportunities seemed to abound along Copacabana beach.

‘If they came here from Iraq, they wouldn’t go back!’ said Brian Simon, 43, a former Marine who was surrounded by barely dressed women as he drank at an outdoor bar.

Brazilians say nakedness at carnival is about sensuality. Yes, sexual imagery abounds in the samba schools, and thousands of revellers dance skin-to-skin on the sidelines. But nudity carries a different connotation in Brazil than in many other countries.

‘Here, nakedness doesn’t only lead to sexuality, it leads you to aesthetic appreciation. A woman is dancing but it’s not pornographic. It’s a collective experience of reconsidering bodies, like at the Olympic games,’ said Roberto Da Matta, a retired sociology professor and author of Carnivals, Rogues and Heroes.

The annual Samba parade is the high point of the festival. This year, it features 13 samba groups, each producing 80-minute-long spectacles costing upward of US$1 million (NZ$1.5 million). Total nudity is prohibited and a less-than-perfect score from the exacting panel of judges can doom a group’s chances.

Most Brazilians do not duck the issue of sex. The government distributes millions of free condoms at carnival time and talks frankly about sexually transmitted diseases. Experts credit the Brazilians’ openness about their bodies and sex for helping to contain the Aids epidemic in South America’s largest country.

‘I’m entirely comfortable dressed like this,’ said this year’s Carnival Queen, Jacqueline Faria, 23, wearing little more than a rhinestone-encrusted bra and a sequin-spotted see- through skirt revealing a G-string.

‘This is Rio de Janeiro, it’s all about the beach and sun. We don’t wear many clothes here at anytime during the year,’ she said. ‘But Rio de Janeiro isn’t just about bum bum. It has lots of other culture.’

Segundo números da da ABIPP (Associação Brasileira dos Importadores de Produtos Populares), as vendas de Carnaval representam 30% do faturamento anual, que no ano passado foi de R$ 9 bilhões em 2006. O Natal responde por 45% das vendas.

‘Neste ano, apesar das dificuldades que tivemos nas importações, desde o Natal, conseguimos trazer produtos melhores e com os mesmos preços dos anos anteriores, devido a desvalorização do dólar frente ao real’, disse Gustavo Dedivitis, presidente da ABIPP.

O setor de produtos populares espera crescer entre 8% e 10% em 2007, chegando a R$ 10 bilhões, e trazer cerca de 1 bilhão de unidades. ‘Os produtos populares geram um estoque de 150 mil empregos nas empresas importadoras e nas lojas de R$ 1,99 no país’, disse Dedivitis.

Mariana Barboza
Empreender com criatividade é característica do brasileiro.

Numa banca localizada dentro do Pólo Multicultural de Recife, em frente ao Marco Zero, os foliões podem customizar suas camisetas e bandanas minutos antes de irem para as diversas festas, sem custo. Alguns ficam para acompanhar o trabalho que dura cerca de 20 minutos, outros foliões entregam suas camisetas para as costureiras e só buscam as peças prontas.

No primeiro dia do estande de customização, pelos menos 60 camisetas foram transformadas pelas mãos de 3 customizadoras. Uma delas, Luana Moura, sugere ainda que, para uma customização rápida, as foliãs usem fita dupla-face para fazer uma barra cheia de fitas nas camisetas.

6 passos para tranformar uma camiseta branca normal em uma camiseta mais ajustada com brilhos e lantejoulas:

1) Cortar mangas e golas para deixar a camiseta mais fresquinha;
2) Cortar no comprimento da camiseta. Se quiser mostrar mais barriga, corte mais de 20 centímetros;
3) Corte cerca de 50 centímetros de 3 ou mais fitas. A sugestão é usar duas fitas de cetim normais, de cores diferentes, e uma fita de lantejoula a metro;
4) Com as 3 fitas juntas, dê um nó em uma das partes de cima da manga;
5) O resto das fitas ficam livres para irem sendo enroladas ao redor do tecido. Um segundo nó é feito para prender o restante das fitas;
6) Com cola colorida, de preferência com purpurina, cubra os desenhos, texto existente no tecido. Se a camiseta for lisa, pode usar imaginação e criar novos desenhos.

Foto: Mariana Barboza

by Marcellus Bragg

by Paulo Alvadia / Ag. O Dia

by Lucio Tavora / Coperphoto

by Futura Press

by Reinaldo Marques / Terra

by Futura Press and Marcelo Pereira

by Marcelo Pereira

by Jôka P.

by Edson Ruiz

by Futura Press

by Caetano Barreira / Reuters

by Jôka P.

by Tuca Vieira/Folha Imagem

by Tuca Vieira/Folha Imagem

by Jôka P.

by Jôka P.

Special thanks to Jonas Eduardo. Visit his site at Avenida Copacabana!

*Carnaval Brasileiro, O Melhor do Mundo*
**Tenham Todos Um Excelente Feriado**

Portanto, neste Carnaval, não se esqueça desse colorido especial.

Se quiser aprender mais, aperte aqui e
aqui.

Campanha de Prevenção Contra HIV/Aids

Clique na foto e saiba mais sobre o Betinho, um grande garoto do Brasil.

Delma Medeiros
O Programa Municipal de DST/Aids iniciou, durante o concurso para escolha do Rei Momo e Rainha do Carnaval 2006, na Estação Cultura, a campanha de prevenção contra o HIV/Aids, com a distribuição de camisinhas.

Durante as atividades preventivas da folia de Momo, a rede pública vai distribuir 60 mil preservativos para os foliões, nos 21 eventos programados. Segundo a psicóloga sanitarista Elisabete Zuza, coordenadora do Núcleo de Educação e Comunicação Social (Necs) do Programa DST/Aids, trata-se de uma distribuição qualitativa, com enfoque no slogan do Ministério da Saúde para o Carnaval 2006, que é ‘Camisinha, não sai sem ela’. ‘A campanha de Carnaval vai até o dia 28 de fevereiro‘ , diz Bete, citando que a distribuição será feita nos desfiles de escolas de samba, blocos e bandas carnavalescas e nos bailes populares. Além disso, a entrega de preservativos é feita diariamente no Centro de Referência DST/Aids, mediante cadastro, e nas unidades de saúde. Segundo Bete, a procura por camisinhas nos centros de saúde muito.

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Updated (em 28.02.06): Camisinha Vira Brinco de Orelha no Carnaval da Bahia. É para não esquecer !!!

Foto: Raquel Stenzel

by Jason Bermingham
It’s late February on the Tropic of Capricorn. Down the avenue surges a tidal wave of sound – four hundred drums pounding out a two-four beat. Cloaked in iridescent feathers, flapping, leaping, singing, you’re part of this swell. The bite of lemon, sugar, and cane alcohol is on your tongue. The tang of sweat, perfume, and the sea in the breeze. A fiery mulatta perched on the two-story papier-mâché float before you spins in impossible circles. Beside her is a black Adonis. Wearing nothing but a sequined G-string, he flaunts his oiled body in Freddy-Mercury style. The samba quickens, your toes clench. It’s two o’clock in the morning, and the party’s just beginning.

Then the phone rings – and you wake up on the couch. The remote control is on the floor, the television screen is a scramble of gray fuzz, and saliva has dribbled onto the collar of your pajamas. Like some transplanted, tropical Dorothy, you’re not in Rio anymore.

When the ringing stops, drowsiness overtakes you. The couch pulls you back into its arms and suddenly the hiss of the TV screen is the roar of sixty thousand men and women in the bleachers. The lights of the Sambódromo are upon you. This time it’s you wearing the G-string, and you’ve never danced so well. People sing your name, a chorus ringing in your ears. You feel dizzy, disoriented. You fall. Someone beautiful, with breath like eucalyptus leaves, catches you. Whispers words into your ear, a language vaguely familiar. Could it be Portuguese?

* * *

This week Brazil kicks off the world’s biggest party – a bacchanal of color, music, and dance from which the country won’t regain consciousness until early March. Unfortunately, many Americans won’t be in Brazil to live out their Carnaval-time fantasies in 2006. With orange-level terrorist alerts, a devalued dollar, and repercussions from the United States’ stringent new immigration policies, the Rio de Janeiro Sambódromo has never seemed farther away. But the essence of Carnaval is spirit, not geography – so if you can’t go to Rio, why not bring Rio to you? This article offers five easy-to-follow steps that promise to transform your living room into a Sambódromo.

STEP 1: SEND OUT THE TICKETS
While Carnaval is a nationwide festival in Brazil, stretching from the shores of the Amazon River to the villages of the country’s deep south, no place conveys the spirit of revelry as well as Rio de Janeiro’s Sambodrómo. This enormous, concrete runway is the epicenter of Brazil’s Carnaval quake. Globo TV, the country’s largest media group, broadcasts the Sunday and Monday evening parades nationwide, and no matter where you are, all eyes are on Rio.

Note: Rio de Janeiro’s Sambódromo was completed in 1984. The structure, comprising a nearly half-mile long cement strip lined on both sides by massive grandstands, is about as visually appealing as Brazil’s drab capital city Brasília. Not coincidentally, both were designed by renowned Brazilian architect Oscar Nieymeyer. Carnaval, however, draws a more colorful crowd than does politics and the austerity of the Sambódromo only serves to draw more attention to the explosive color and energy of the samba schools themselves.

The Sambódromo, however, is a tough party to crash. Tickets are sold-out well in advance, and most tourists are obliged to buy from tour operators or, worse, scalpers. So to make your Sambódromo soirée authentic, I suggest tickets instead of invitations. No charge required, but be sure to add color and creativity. You might also trace the evolution of Carnaval from the Middle Ages to your living room. Carna Vale, remember, is Latin for ‘farewell to meat’, one last blowout before the forty days of Lent beginning on Ash Wednesday. But of course Carnaval has less religious connotations as well. Especially in Brazil where it has been transformed into a tasty feijoada of Latin culture, African rhythms, and indigenous flare. It is an explosion of joy, sexuality, and imagination that aims to disintegrate social hierarchy and release frustrations.

STEP 2: CHOOSE A THEME
Each of the samba schools in Rio’s Carnaval parade follows its own theme. This enredo is the unifying motif behind the samba, costumes and floats. To make your Sambódromo come to life, choose a theme as well, and your guests to dress accordingly. Go crazy – feathers, body paint, and glitter. Load up on the confetti. Hand out disposable cameras (what‘s a gringo in Rio without a camera?) Teach guests some expressions in Brazilian Portuguese. Boa noite! (good evening!) Estava com saudades! (I’ve missed you!) Viva Brasil! Viva Carnaval! (Long live Brazil! Long live Carnival!). Americans will do things in Portuguese they wouldn’t dream of doing in English.

STEP 3: MIX THE DRINKS
If you were hoping for a keg party, we‘ve got good news. Beer is the drink of choice at the Rio Sambódromo. In fact, Brahma (one of the better known brands) owns the sky box where crème de la crème like Arnold Swarzenegger and Barbara Bush hang out. And for a slightly more dangerous festa, try serving one of Brazil’s best known alcoholic beverages: the caipirinha. Simple and sweet, but deceptive, this mixture of lemon, sugar, and cane alcohol (called cachaça or pinga) is the perfect fuel for a night of samba and a morning of regrets. But beware: one or two glasses and your guests will think they’ve really flown to Rio.

Here’s a per-glass recipe:
1 lime
1 shot of cachaça
1 tablespoon of sugar
½ cup ice cubes

Preparation:
Wash the lime, then loosen up the juices by rolling it in your hand. Cut into quarters and place the pieces in a glass. Add sugar and crush lime (pulp side up) with a wooden spoon. Finally, pour the cachaça into the glass, add ice and stir. The drink can be decorated with slices of lime. No pinga? No problem. With vodka, the drink is called a caipiroska. With white rum, it becomes a caipiríssima.

STEP 4: CALL IN THE DRUMMERS
Carnaval is a loud affair, and at the core of the commotion is samba. First performed at Rio Carnival in 1917, samba’s origins go back much further. Old African rhythms, notably the Angolan tam-tam, provided the basis for its music and distinctive dance steps. With the advent of radio and records, samba caught on quickly and has since become a national symbol. It is the music of the masses. The beating heart of Brazil.
If you don’t know a few hundred drummers to invite to your party, here’s the next best thing: the Rio de Janeiro state government releases a CD every year that features the sambas de enredo that will be played in the Sambódromo. For Portuguese aficionados, all lyrics are included. It’s as close as you can get to the sound of the Rio Sambódromo without leaving the northern hemisphere.

STEP 5: START DANCING
Now for the hard part. Dancing samba is like setting your feet on fire while keeping your upper body absolutely still. More technically, it is a 2/4 dance that incorporates the Latin hip swing with a continuous knee flexing called the ’samba bounce’. Brazilian babies can do the samba bounce before they leave the maternity ward. For gringo’s, however, it’s a different story. But it should also be remembered that samba dancing, like Portuguese-speaking, tends to improve in direct proportion to the number of caipirinhas consumed.

* * *

The rest is up to you (and perhaps King Momo, the King of Carnaval). So print your tickets, buy the CD, whip up a few caipirinhas, and before you know it, you’ll have transformed your living room into a do-it-yourself Sambódromo. If the neighbors complain, invite them over. If the police show up, serve them drinks. Yell ‘Viva Brasil!’ at the top of your lungs. Let your legs blur into dance. Before you know it, it’ll be two o’clock in the morning and the party will just be starting. Perhaps you’ll feel dizzy, disorientated. Even fall to the floor. Amid the clamor of beating drums. The bittersweet taste of lime, sugar and cachaça on your tongue. And somebody whispering words into your ear. A language that sounds vaguely familiar. It might be Portuguese!

E vão pular carnaval com George Bush e outras tantas ‘celebridades’: Ronaldo, Carmem Miranda, Luiz Gushiken, Juscelino Kubitschek, Batman, Ali Babá e os 40 Ladrões, … Todos são convidados de honra de Armando Valles, proprietário da Condal Indústria e Comércio, fábrica que abastece as lojas de fantasias do Rio de Janeiro. Este ano, o empresário espanhol radicado no Brasil, lançou uma série completa de máscaras de personagens políticos envolvidos direta ou indiretamente no escândalo do ‘mensalão’.

A aposta em cima do noticiário político surtiu efeito. As máscaras se tornaram um sucesso. ‘Tive que recusar um pedido de 70 mil máscaras por não ter condições de fazer a tempo’, disse ele.

A fabricação é feita de forma semi-artesanal. A pintura das máscaras é feita com pistola, após a fabricação dos diversos tipos de moldes. A expectativa é de que as vendas deste ano sejam maiores em razão do lançamento da nova série.

Até o Carnaval, o empresário prevê que 100 mil máscaras de políticos tenham sido vendidas para as principais cadeias varejistas do país. Segundo Valles, personagens políticos sempre foram vedetes do Carnaval carioca, mas nunca o folião teve tantas possibilidades de escolha. ‘As máscaras de presidentes sempre fizeram sucesso, mas nunca tivemos um leque tão grande de opções’, afirmou.

Valles, 80 anos, acompanha a vida política brasileira desde 1954, ano em que chegou ao país e foi marcado pelo suicídio do então presidente Getúlio Vargas. Com o fim do regime militar, passou a fabricar máscaras de políticos. Entre os principais sucessos, ele destaca as máscaras do presidente Tancredo Neves e dos fiscais do Sarney. Além do apelo junto ao público, os políticos costumam ser as figuras mais retratadas porque não têm direitos de imagem, segundo Valles. ‘Uma pessoa que não é figura pública pode pedir indenização’, disse.

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