Rio de Janeiro: Waiting for the Games
Brazil is tomorrow's world superpower... and it will always be. This unflattering definition is often used to mock the myth of Brazil as the "sleeping lion", a country that will wow the world when it wakes up.
But if we look at recent economic, political and cultural indications, there might be some truth to that image. Brazil's economy has been growing steadily during the last years, now with more equality than in...
more »Rio de Janeiro: Waiting for the Games
Brazil is tomorrow's world superpower... and it will always be. This unflattering definition is often used to mock the myth of Brazil as the "sleeping lion", a country that will wow the world when it wakes up.
But if we look at recent economic, political and cultural indications, there might be some truth to that image. Brazil's economy has been growing steadily during the last years, now with more equality than in the past, and the country is coping with the worldwide financial crisis better than most. Huge reserves of oil recently discovered in the state of Rio de Janeiro will make of Brazil a power player in the energy field, giving it energy independence for decades to come and also providing the funds for reforms and social policies still very much needed in the country. Brazil's government and notably its President Lula da Silva have also become more assertive and confident in the international scene. The lion might indeed be awakening and starting to roar.
Nowhere is this new Brazilian oomph more evident than in Rio de Janeiro. The former imperial capital, surpassed in the last decades by Sao Paulo as Brazil's hippest town, has shaken off its dust and is back in shape, getting ready to host the two main cultural and sporting events in the world: the 2014 Football World Cup and the 2016 Olympic Games. Walking the streets of Rio and particularly its beaches, one would think that all Cariocas are training for the games. Jogging, playing football or beach volley, surfing, swimming, weight lifting and doing gymnastics or yoga, in Rio the hedonistic cult of the body is combined with sports with a passion seen in few other places in the world. The girl from Ipanema has been joined by the Ipanema jogger and both are equally charming...
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