10 reasons to love Rio Grande do Sul

That Brazil is a country privileged by nature and with reasons to be admired from North to South, no one doubts. Each in its own way, all states have beauties and events that attract and delight people from the most diverse regions of the country and the world.

How to highlight everything at once, from Oiapoque to Chuí, is impossible – I mean, it’s possible, but it gets looongo and boring –, it’s best to talk about one place at a time. And how about starting with Rio Grande do Sul? land of Gisele Bundchenthe biggest model on the planet, and Deise Nunesthe first black Miss Brazil (1986), he has many reasons to be loved.

Come with us, chê!

1. The four well-defined seasons

If in São Paulo people complain about the “four seasons of the day” and in the northern states of the country the problem, for many, is the lack of real cold in winter, in Rio Grande do Sul there is nothing to complain about.

Winter, as we know, is very cold (reaching negative temperatures) and summer, contrary to what many people think, is very hot (believe me: thermometers reach 42°C in Porto Alegre and Vale dos Sinos, where is Novo Hamburgo). Autumn and spring are mild seasons, with temperatures between 10°C and 20°C; the difference between them is the winds, colder in the first and warmer in the second.

Read more: All about Rio Grande do Sul

2. The weekend barbecue

(And weekdays too, if applicable)

Gaucho can give up many things, but barbecue is difficult. This is one of the greatest prides of the locals.

Those who visit friends or family already know that at some point the menu will be a beautiful barbecue made by the owner or the hostess – a woman from Rio Grande do Sul is also a roaster, you know!

And those who go for a walk can be sure that, in whatever city they are, they will find a great all-you-can-eat skewer (this is how they say it in “gauchês”).

3. The local “dialect”

And speaking of “gauchês”, it is not at all difficult to be enchanted with the way the gauchos speak. It’s not just a matter of accent: there’s a whole vocabulary of its own. Some examples:

– Well able = not at all

– Mumu = sweet milk

– Cacetinho = French bread

– Negrinho = Brigadier

– Branquinho = coconut kiss

– Chimia = jelly

– Bergamot = tangerine

– Cusco = dog

– traffic light = traffic light

– Tri = a lot, too much

– Tchê = friend

– My butiá fell out of my pocket = I was really surprised by something

4. The female writers from Rio Grande do Sul

Rio Grande do Sul has a tradition of incredible writers of both sexes (Eric Verissimo🇧🇷 Luis Fernando Verissimo🇧🇷 Moacyr Scliar🇧🇷 Lya Luft and many others), but women are the ones who are talking lately.

There’s Martha Medeiros with her chronicles about female life, Letícia Wierzchowski and her stories about strong women (her biggest success is A Casa das Sete Mulheres, which became a Globo series) and the new local literary darling, Carol Teixeira, who likes to debate empowerment in a spicy way and launched, last year, the praised Bitch (Editora Record).

It is worth reading what the gaúchas have to write.

5. The sunset

Anywhere in Rio Grande do Sul, the sunset is beautiful. Because of the state’s positioning and atmospheric gases, the sky has a very characteristic blue, and at certain times of the year the sunset is a mixture of blue, red and yellow.

The highlight in this regard is the sunset over Guaíba, in Porto Alegre. Every day, hundreds (or thousands if it’s a weekend or a holiday) of people stop by the lake (which is commonly called a river, but that’s another topic) to admire the sun going down. They just don’t applaud, but the scenario would deserve some applause.

https://www.instagram.com/p/Z89zbzylMP/

6. The country parties

All cities in the interior of Rio Grande do Sul have parties related to the best that exists in the place. And all festivities have sovereigns – queen, first princess and second princess – who represent the event and the city in the period before, during and after the feast, until they hand over the sashes and crowns to the next court.

The biggest is the Festa da Uva (Caxias do Sul), but there is also the Festa do Folclore (Nova Petrópolis), the Festa da Cuca (Rolante), the Festa da Colônia (Gramado), the Fenadoce (Pelotas – technically, it is a Fair, but it also has its court and functions as a party), the Potato Festival (Santa Maria do Herval) and many, many others.

7. “Gre-Nal” and its mixed crowd

Grêmio and Internacional star in one of the biggest rivalries in Brazilian football and the great classic Gre-Nal, which is even numbered (the most recent one, in March, was 412). But rivalry ceased to be synonymous with aggression and violence some time ago. Currently, all games have a mixed crowd, where friends and families watch the matches in a good way, be it the blue or red shirt. An example to be followed!

8. The landscapes

Rio Grande do Sul is very diverse when it comes to views.

The most famous landscapes are those of the mountains (Gramado, Canela, Bento Gonçalves, among others), but the canyons (in São Francisco de Paula and Cambará do Sul, for example) and the Missões Region (there are 46 municipalities, including São Borja and São Nicolau), with ruins of the Jesuit missions.

9. CTGs and traditionalism in general

Every gaucho city, no matter how small, has its CTG, the Center of Gaucho Traditions, where gaucho habits are kept and passed on to new generations, such as making a good chimarrão and barbecue with fire on the ground, the chula (a typical dance ), riding and even how to properly use the pilcha (the typical gaucho costume, which has male and female versions).

It is the CTGs that keep the celebration of Farroupilha Week alive, whose maximum day is September 20th. It is during this week that the children go to school dressed up or dressed as a gift. A cuteness!

10. Winter in the Serra Gaúcha

Winter is the time of year that most attracts tourists to Gramado and region. Temperatures are low, fog is abundant and it’s a chance for many people to experience real cold. With luck, you can even catch some snow. That set of hat, scarf and gloves leaning against the back of the closet certainly has use there between June and September.

Thanks: Augusto Drehmer, Carla de Andrade, Cristiane Ostermann, Fernanda Coiro and Laura Fraga