The temperatures outside in Pittsburgh are in the teens. The sidewalks were very slick for our morning walk but it is February 1. Our house mouse reared it’s little head again this morning–hello temperatures in the teens–and we went on our real life squeaky search. In our kitchen we brewed the new coffee of the month from Brazil, thanks to the Riley-Springer household.
Federative Republic of Brazil is the largest country in South America and in Latin America. With 217 million people living in the 26 states and federal district of Brasilia. The official language is Portuguese. São Paulo is the largest city with 12.5 million inhabitants.
Coffee History– Coffee was introduced to Brazil by French settlers in the early 18th century. Starting in the northern region of Brazil, coffee plantations began to expand down the coast, quickly surpassing sugar-cane, the predominant industry at that time. By 1840, Brazil was the largest coffee producer in the world. Tasting– coconut, chocolate, vanilla
The form of government is a democratic federative republic, with a presidential system. The president is both head of state and head of government of the Union and is elected for a four-year term, with the possibility of re-election for a second successive term. The current president is Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
Legislative houses in each political entity are the main source of law in Brazil. The National Congress is the Federation’s bicameral legislature, consisting of the Chamber of Deputies and the Federal Senate.
The political-administrative organization of the Federative Republic of Brazil comprises the Union, the states, the Federal District, and the municipalities.The Union, the states, the Federal District, and the municipalities, are the “spheres of government”. The federation is set on five fundamental principles: sovereignty, citizenship, dignity of human beings, the social values of labor and freedom of enterprise, and political pluralism. The classic tripartite branches of government (executive, legislative and judicial under a checks and balances system) are formally established by the Constitution.
Futbol is life in Brazil. The samba kings play a very beautiful version of the game with skill and movement. Our next door neighbor grew up in Brazil before leaving to play futbol in Costa Rica.
The Roman Catholic Church is the predominant religion in Brazil.
Rio de Janeiro the city has a population of 12.3 million people and is the countries main tourist attraction with it’s beaches, UNESCO sites and Carnival.
Amazonia is a major area of biodiversity and concern for deforestation. As the push for development, oil exploration and farming has grown in the Amazon, concerns for environmental degradation have become global concerns. 60% of the Amazon is located within the borders of Brazil.
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