A Big Brazilian Announcement

Sunset in Brasilia
A perfect way to cap off a great weekend in Brasilia, with a sunset boat ride on the lake.

As I sit here in the Brasilia Airport eagerly awaiting my flight to the Brazilian wetlands of Pantanal, I’m happy to finally officially announce a very big project.

Over the next three months I will be partnering with the National Tourism Board of Brazil to travel across Brazil and document my adventures on their new blog (launching at the end of May).

I will be exploring 13 Brazilian cities across many different regions from North to South.

Along with writing for their blog, I will also be shooting a video at each location to share on my YouTube channel and I’ll sharing photos from my adventures on the T2T Instagram page as well as here at Tourist 2 Townie.

This is the first half of my tentative schedule for the big trip and a few things I’m most looking forward to at each place.

  1. Brasilia – I spent the last four days in the capital city of Brazil and I love it here. Buzz Lightyear would be proud of the architecture, Anthony Bourdain would be proud of how much I ate and T-Pain would be happy to know that I spent a lot of time on a boat.
  2. Pantanal – I’m about to board my flight to Campo Grande, which will be the launch point for a three-day tour into the Brazilian Wetlands to hopefully encounter some amazing wildlife.
  3. Porto Alegre – The southern city of Brazil is known for its European culture and close proximity to the Brazilian wine region.
  4. Florianopolis – I’ll be heading to “Floripa” to meet up with friends from Rio for a wild weekend of fun and adventure.
  5. Curitiba – I honestly have no idea what to expect here.
  6. Sao Paulo – South America’s largest city gets many mixed reviews but I heard the food and nightlife are not to be missed, so, I won’t.
  7. Belo Horizonte – Like Curitiba, I know nothing about Belo Horizonte and I’m excited about that.

From Belo Horizonte I will return to Rio de Janeiro for a few days before making my way up north for the second leg of my trip.

Okay, they’re calling my section it’s time to board. In the meantime, I would really appreciate your help on a few things…

First, if you have any advice on any of the listed locations, please don’t hesitate to leave a comment or contact me directly.

Second, please take a second to subscribe to my main YouTube Channel (it only takes an email) and follow along on Instagram for daily photos.

As a bonus, you can also check out and subscribe to the T2T Behind the Scenes YouTube Channel for quickies and outtakes.

Here we goooooo!

My name is Gareth Leonard, a Marketing Director turned World Traveler with a passion for slow, meaningful travel. I have been traveling the world full-time for the past 9+ years and document it all on Instagram and YouTube. Come join me!

22 Comments

    1. I appreciate it! It’s been way too long since the last T2T Slaughterhouse comment. That’s when I know I need to step my game up.

  1. Congrats! I’ve heard it’s not that easy to work with the Brazil tourism board, so it’s great to see someone making it happen.

    Does this mean you aren’t going to pursue your original goal of working at The World Cup?

    Are you at least planning to try and get some tickets and see some matches live, or is that not a priority now?
    Dave recently posted..Anthem of the Seas: Facts and Figures [Infographic]My Profile

    1. Thanks Dave, we will see how it goes.

      And as far as the World Cup goes, I have another project I’m working on for that and I still have tickets to two big games in Rio! There will DEFINITELY be a lot of World Cup coverage!!!

  2. Very exciting! I have a close relationship with Brazil because my husband is from there, and we visit his family there every year for about 4-5 weeks. I’ll be there soon, actually. I have a big guide to Sao Paulo on my site (“30 things to do in SP”) since that’s where we spend most of our time when in Brazil.

    I have a friend from Curitiba and have heard that it’s an excellent example of urban planning and the Oscar Niemeyer museum is there (recommended!). I’ll be takign a road trip through Minas Gerais this summer but would love to experience these places on your list, including the Pantanal! Have a wonderful time!
    Jenna recently posted..A Sense of Place through SculptureMy Profile

  3. Hi Gareth (and Jenna)
    I come from Belo Horizonte (living in Scotland now). When you’re there, don’t miss the Central Market (Mercado Central) (in Rua Curitiba – Curitiba Street), Pampulha (with its lake, the St Francis Church (Igreja de Sao Francisco) by the architect Oscar Niemeyer, the Museu de Arte Pampulha which has a garden designed by Roberto Burle Marx (who worked with collaborator with Niemeyer on the creation of Brasilia). I’ll send you more places if this isn’t enough.

    Don’t know how much time you’ll have but, if at all possible, visit Ouro Preto (about 1 hour outside Belo Horizonte). The town has been preserved as the Portuguese built it in the 1800’s and is famous for its colonial architecture.

  4. When you’re in São Paulo, don’t miss:
    -Pizza
    -Parque do Ibirapuera
    -Avenida Paulista
    -Castelo Ra-Tim-Bum exposition on MIS (Museu de Imagem e Som) until October 12.

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