Why is the center of Brazil such a spiritual place?

This year we spend Christmas away from home. A season that is full of traditions and customs that we held on to for decades.

And whilst we try to still include some of these German traditions into our trip (we brought our own miniature Christmas tree which we’ll decorate), we are very interested in customs that are important to the countries and cultures we visited so far on this trip.

So this episode we don’t wander why, but wander what these local traditions are.

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Walking through the streets of Uruguay we smelled weed at almost every corner and to our surprise learned that they were the first country in the world that legalized it.

But it doesn't end there. Uruguay provides free education all the way to universities, legalized same sex marriage, abortion, made gender afirming surgeries a right and already runs on almost 100% renewable energy.

Even the most highly developed countries didn’t manage all these regulations so far, so in today’s episode we wander why Uruguay is more progressive than Europe?

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Sources:

Uruguay's price for using almost 100% renewable energy

What the U.S. Could Learn From Uruguay’s Progressive Policies

Our lovely guide from the free walking tour

Travelling through Bolivia we noticed even more than in Peru that a lot of people walk around with leafs in their cheeks.

These leafs come from the coca plant which is more famously used to produce cocaine.

Chewing coca leafs or drinking coca tea is as normal here as eating a croissant in Paris, but we could literally get arrested if we tried to bring some back to Europe.

So in today's episode we wander why you can legally buy coca leafs all over Bolivia.

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Sources:

Coca Leaf Myths and Reality

Coca is not cocaine - The sacred South American coca leaf

In Peru we go in touch with the Inca culture and were blown away by their intelligence and creative problem solving skills. 

However most of their cities were built in 3-4 thousand meter altitude which made breathing quite difficult for us and meant a lot of other problems for them in terms of food, shelter and construction.

So in today's episode we wander why the Incas choose to live in such high altitudes.

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Our local guides showing us around the Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu

When walking through Ecuador‘s markets we noticed that all prices here are in US Dollars.

This wasn’t always the case though. Only 23 years ago Ecuador had its own currency and the reason for why it changed gives a lot of insights about the history and current situation of the country.

So in today's episode we wander why Ecuador uses US Dollars as official currency?

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Sources:

Ecuador accepts Dollar as official currency

Why Ecuador uses the Dollar

Our Couchsurfing host Chester

In Ecuador we were amazed by all the traditional outfits locals are proudly wearing. One thing that particularly sticked out to us was this beautiful white hat.

This hat has been made in Ecuador for hundreds of years but weirdly enough it is called Panama Hat.

What sounds like a clear mixup has actually a super interesting story that gives a lot of insights about Ecuador.

So in today's episode we wander why Panama Hats are actually made in Ecuador!

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Sources:

A short history of the Panama Hat

Panama Hat history

My guide Pedro in Cuenca's hat museum

During our time in Brazil we came across its African influences like Capoeira and we‘re shocked by the dark history behind it. 

In this episode we talk about this aspect on the country and discovery why Capoeira is actually a relic of Afro-Brazilian resilience. 

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Sources:

Slavery in Brazil

Capoeira History

Disguised in Dance: the Secret History of Capoeira

We made our way to a small town in the center of Brazil and were surprised by an abundance of crystals and alien statues. 

The town 'Alto Paraiso' is known as Brazil's Area 51 and pretty much everyone here believes in UFOs, aliens and the healing power of crytals.

We wander why such a small town in the middle of nowhere can become so spiritual and what Brazil's dark history of slavery has to do with it.

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Sources:

Alto Paraíso de Goiás Gov Website

From supernatural light to apocalypse: discover Chapada dos Veadeiros

While walking through a less fancy area in Brazil we noticed a lot of bird cages in front of people's houses. 

What seemed quite cute at first is actually illegal and provides more insights into Brazil's history and social issues that we would have imagined. 

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Sources:

Understanding the motivations for keeping wild birds in the semi-arid region of Brazil

Tradition and trade: culture and exploitation of avian fauna

We arrived in Rio de Janeiro and got curious why there are so many of these amazing retro VW buses all around the city.

To answer this question we take you with us on the streets of Rio and dive into articles to get to the core of this observation - there is more to it than we would have imagined!

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Sources:

Long, strange trip ending for VW's hippie van

Bye Bye, VW Bus: The End of an Era in Brazil