Brazil

Brazil is one of the biggest festival places to celebrate carnival! The grandest celebration this globe has ever seen. From the eclectic samba beats and shows in Rio de Janiero to the historic celebrations in Salvador, the festivals in Brazil are not to be missed!

Brazil Florianoplis Coliving Carnival HomeCool X Cloud Connections

Elevate Your Lifestyle: Unveiling the Ultimate Coliving Experience for Digital Nomads in Florianópolis, Brazil: HomeCool

Retreat to Florianópolis, where the rhythmic waves of the Atlantic Ocean meet the vibrant culture of Brazil, offering an unparalleled coliving experience for digital nomads and travelers seeking both serenity, safety and connection. Nestled amidst the lush greenery in Southern Brazil with over 40 pristine beaches, this hidden gem beckons with promises of community, adventure, and a taste of tropical paradise. What exactly is coliving? A modern living arrangement where individuals share communal spaces and resources, fostering a sense of community and collaboration, often favored by digital nomads seeking connection and convenience. Journey: Imagine getting out of a grueling 20+ hour bus ride from Foz do Iguacu and finally arriving on the island of Florianopolis to be greeted by genuinely excited people in the heart of the city. These guys, I learned later, were the housemates staying with my partner and myself. They were so friendly and offered to help grab the luggage which after a long travel day was well appreciated. Arriving at HomeCool Coliving: The place was filled with light with floor to ceiling windows and plants all around, it felt like stepping into a tropical garden. I met Maria, the hostess who owns the HomeCool coliving. Her English was better than my Portuguese and she guided me around. For the first time in months, I felt at ease realizing I could just be here. The environment, her hospitality and the other guests at the coliving created a beautiful energy.  Deep-Dive into the Accommodation: There are 9 rooms in total themed after cities around the world and we were in Amsterdam which is funny as my partner is Dutch. Each room has a desk and bathroom and the common areas were shared spaces. We had house rules around laundry and basically just being a respectful roomie and taking care of anything you leave behind. The common areas had filtered water which is very important as Brazilian tap water is unsafe to drink. There was a lovely pool and two 2 seater dining tables with a view of the pool as well as a large dining room table made of wood. There’s also a pool and it was comfortable for 9+ friends to hang. There’s also a really nice lunch spot just down the corner providing traditional and affordable Brazilian meats and dishes called Tropicana.  Community Host and Owner: Friends are abundant, Maria does a great job at keeping her community intact and invites previous guests to come and hang out so that HomeCool will always be a part of you no matter how long you decide to stay. She does recommend at least a week though to get a feel for the community. Unleash the Powerpuff Bros: As soon as we got there, it was Carnival and HomeCool was the center of all the action. Maria helped the boys get costumes and they unveiled out their feminine side and embraced the Powerpuff Girls. It was so fun to witness guys dressing up as girls. I actually had the chance to interview Blossom aka Manuel. He’s from Portugal and was able to share why he chose HomeCool, see below: Interview with Housemate: Q: What do you do Manuel? (AKA Blossom from the Power Puff GIrls) A: I work in recruitment and I came to Brazil to take the airplane pilot course? Q: Why Floripa? (Florianopolis nickname) A: I wanted to move to Brazil during the summer time. I checked Brazil on best places and this came in the top 2.  Q: How did you find out about HomeCool? A: It was actually a referral from friend of mine that gave me the recommendation. I’ve heard of colivings before and wanted to try it. Q: Have you been in a coliving before and if so, what draws you to come back to one? A: You get to meet people that are more serious about their careers and choose to stay for longer periods of time. It’s something everyone should do if they work remotely and surround yourself with people with the same economic power. Q: What were some of your first impressions about Floripa and HomeCool?  A: I was really surprised how safe and beautiful and mountainous Floripa was and I’m amazed at just how nice people are at the coliving. It’s the easiest way to meet new people.  Q: What else do you like about HomeCool?A: The architecture is amazing and I’d say the social life can be too much but if you want to be chill you can be chill. It’s up to you.  Q: How has it been to get accustomed to Floripa?A: The host Maria has helped me in anything and everything, without HomeCool, I wouldn’t have had such a Brazilian experience.  Q: Anything else you’d like to share?A: I’d recommend anyone coming to learn Portuguese to adapt to Brazilian culture and try to go in Summertime.  Wrapping Up: If you want a community of beautiful, friendly people, a gracious hostess, a lax coliving environment, a beautifully designed home with multiple fridges, and the ability to explore Florianopolis in a stellar downtown location, then HomeCool is for you! It’s a space that combines all the above and more. Feel free to Whatsapp Maria: (+55 48 99184-1195) or check out her website today and partake in a memorable and immersed experience with the local Floripians. Safety Wing Shoutout! Make sure you stay safe when you travel, don’t forget to check out Nomad Insurance from Safety Wing to prevent any boo-boo’s for when you’re abroad! I love it and can’t stop raving about it so this will not be the last time you hear of the amazing insurance catered just for nomads.  Stay tuned for our next blog post highlighting Carnival and Sites in the beautiful Florianopolis and why this upcoming hotspot is somewhere that should be on your radar today! In the meantime, check out these other amazing Carnival resources: Guide to Trinidad & Tobago Carnival Guide to Rio de Janiero, Brazil Carnival Top of Page

Elevate Your Lifestyle: Unveiling the Ultimate Coliving Experience for Digital Nomads in Florianópolis, Brazil: HomeCool Read More »

Climbing the W Trek to the top of the W in Chile

3-Day Chile W Trek Guide: Dominate Your Booty Game for Carnival Brazilian Beaches!

Carnival Prelude: Carnival is a sensational cultural festival put on every year in the Brazilian summertime around February (official dates change every year pending the lunar calendar cycle) . 2024 Dates: Feb 9th- Feb 17th 2025 Dates: Feb 25th – Mar 05th It’s a time where you can dust off your closet from Halloween and have the glitter, the glam, and the sparkles come out in full force. It will be sizzling and glorious with all the locals dressing up in their most celebratory outfits. Guys, do remember to bring tutus as you’ll soon have the moves of a samba dancer when you remix this classic ballerina style.  Summer in South America: Now you’re packing your bags and you’re ready but then, you remember that Brazil was home to the booty and you’ve been a little snowed in during your winter months.  Don’t fret, there is still plenty of time post the holidays and take advantage of the summer season in South America where seasons are inverse those coming from the Northern Hemisphere.  This means plenty of time to soak up the rays and have some fun in the sun. This of course meant booking a ticket to El Calafate, Argentina and crossing the border to get into Puerto Natales, Chile. This is the base of the Torres del Paine region and has the W trek O trek.  W or O Treks: Choosing Your Adventure: The trek names are pretty intuitive, the W trek looks like a W on a map and the O trek is a giant loop that also swallows up the W meaning a longer expedition.  On average, I met people finishing the O in as little as 6 to as much as 12 days to soak it in.  I went on a whim with my partner on the W trek and we decided to book the night before. Boy were we lucky! Usually people have booked the treks 6-8 months out in advance.  We were able to score last minute cancellations and the advantage meant that we could camp in the national park vs having to bus out and take multiple day trips back and forth from the town of Puerto Natales. Convenience and opportunity for the win.  Booking Tips and Cost Breakdown: It was a bit pricey, however, I realize that these once in a lifetime experiences like the W trek or attending the carnival celebration in Brazil are especially worth it as you are uncovering some of the world’s most incredible places for different reasons of experiencing great landscapes and/or experiencing breathtaking cultures. Let’s break down the price for the W trek:  We went for 3 nights and 4 days. There’s 2 major companies with the W Trek where offices are adjacent to each other in Puerto Natales: Las Torres: Pricing: (In USD) Premium Campsite: $220 (Pitched Tent, Sleeping Bag, Pillows, Mat) Dinner: $50 BLD: $100 *Pro Tip: You can buy meals onsite in Chilean pesos which is about 30-40% less than the USD rate. Be cautious though as some campsites may run out of food. Campsites: Sector Central Y Norte (Near visitor’s center & Torres Hike) Sector Chileno (Base to Torres Summit) Sector Cuernos Sector Frances Sector Seron Vertice Prices: Premium Campsite: 71K CLP or $100 USD  (Pitched Tent, Sleeping Bag, Mat) Dinner: 23K CLP or $40 USD BLD: 45K CLP or $80 USD Campsites: Paine Grande (Where you can take the boat back to Puerto Natales) Grey (Intersection of W & O)  Dickson (Available for O Trek) Perros (Available for O Trek, closest to Grey) *Pro Tip:There’s a big advantage of Vertice, if you’re able to get a last minute spot, you can pay in Chilean pesos in person in their Puerto Natales headquarters, whereas, with Las Torres this was only a possibility if you were a Chilean citizen and would only be able to pay in USD through credit card.  This made staying at Vertice for a night half the cost of staying at Las Torres. We were only able to use this advantage for our last night for the Paine Grande campsite as Las Torres camps were more abundant with the W circuit.  Day-by-Day W Trek Experience: Day 1: And so it begins… 19 km/11,8 mi | Loop: Torre Norte Campsite – Lookout Base Los Torres We darted to the bus station after a quick homecoming breakfast of waffles and homemade jam from this bomb Puerto Natales hostel. I highly recommend staying here as the staff were beyond friendly and accommodating. After roughly 2 hours, we arrived at the national park office and were quite confused…  My partner and I talked to a ranger and he had us register but there was nowhere we could pay. He found some Dutchies that gave us a ride to the visitor’s center. Normally, you’d have to pay an additional $4K CLP per person so this was a sweet surprise.  The visitor center was quite bougie. I was shocked to see a cafe with wine and luxury travel goods. It was a 5 minute walk from there to the first refugio/campsite name here. We were able to check in and leave our stuff as we were to hike Torres del Paine that day, meaning a straight up and back 19 km here. It was nice to not have to take all our things up the mountain. It was a pretty mellow hike until we reached El Chileno base point where you could choose to camp for a good morning start to the peak but was more basic facility-wise than the Torre Norte site.  They had quesadillas, burgers and beer you could buy! I was ill-prepared as it was last minute and we had no clue how serviced everything would be. We still brought enough for breakfast and lunch. I decided to spring for the dinners as I know hangry me from a hike would want that vs my partner that opted out due to steep prices.  The part from Chileno camp to Torres

3-Day Chile W Trek Guide: Dominate Your Booty Game for Carnival Brazilian Beaches! Read More »

Brazil Rio Carnival Group Sambardrome

3 Samba Steps and Remote Work: Experiencing Carnival as a Digital Nomad in Rio

Welcome to the pulsating heart of Brazil, where the rhythm of samba, the vibrant costumes, and the contagious energy of Carnival in Rio de Janeiro await. As a digital nomad seeking thrilling festival experiences, Cloud Connections is your go-to company for immersive and unforgettable adventures. Join us as we dive into the mesmerizing world of Rio’s Carnival, uncovering the best spots for capturing breathtaking imagery to enhance your festival journey. The Sambadrome: A Spectacular Showcase Step into the electrifying world of Rio’s Sambadrome, where the magic of Carnival comes to life. This iconic venue hosts unforgettable parades featuring extravagant floats, samba dancers, and captivating performances. As a digital nomad with a passion for photography, don’t miss the opportunity to capture the grandeur and spectacle of the Sambadrome. The vibrant costumes, intricate details, and pulsating energy will provide endless opportunities for breathtaking images. The Spirit of the Streets: Exploring the Blocos Venture beyond the confines of the Sambadrome and immerse yourself in the spirited street parties known as Blocos. These lively gatherings take place throughout Rio’s neighborhoods, captivating locals and visitors alike. Join the crowds as they dance to the infectious beats of samba and revel in the vibrant atmosphere. Explore neighborhoods like Santa Teresa, Ipanema, and Lapa, where the Blocos reach their peak. The lively streets, vibrant costumes, and enthusiastic crowds offer countless opportunities for capturing candid and colorful images. Iconic Backdrops: Copacabana and Ipanema Beaches No visit to Rio de Janeiro is complete without a visit to its world-famous beaches. During Carnival, Copacabana and Ipanema Beaches become vibrant hubs of celebration. Soak up the sun, feel the rhythm of the drums, and embrace the joyous beach parties that blend seamlessly with the Carnival spirit. Capture the energy and excitement of the revelers against the stunning backdrop of golden sands, turquoise waters, and dramatic mountains. Do be careful as these beaches are prone to pickpockets, so think twice before taking that selfie! Captivating Carnival Street Art Rio’s streets come alive during Carnival, adorned with stunning street art that adds an extra layer of vibrancy to the festivities. Take a stroll through neighborhoods like Lapa and Santa Teresa, where colorful murals and graffiti create a visual feast. These artistic masterpieces serve as perfect backdrops for striking images, showcasing the fusion of Rio’s vibrant culture and Carnival’s infectious spirit. Santa Teresa is the bohemian artsy neighborhood of Rio de Janeiro and one of the safest according to recent crime statistics of Rio. It’s felt so safe for myself as a female walking around solo to explore the beauty and to head over to an amazing hole in the wall Bonde Boca for some yummy frango (chicken), pasteis (Brazilian empanadas) and caipirinhas. They are known for their passion fruit cocktails and feijoda (bean stew) pasteis so definitely be sure to give those a try! As a digital nomad, experiencing Carnival in Rio with Cloud Connections promises to be an adventure of a lifetime. Capture the essence of this extraordinary celebration through your being, preserving the pulsating rhythms, vibrant colors, and unbridled joy in every breath. Whether you find yourself at the grand parades of the Sambadrome, amidst the vibrant Blocos, or against the backdrop of Rio’s stunning beaches and street art. Join Cloud Connections in 2024 and unleash your inner nomad at Carnival in Rio! You’ll be able to walk away with captivating experiences of not just experiencing one of the world’s greatest cultural festivals, but learn how to shake and move to the beat of samba, check out the best cafes and dine at the best places with an amazing group of motivated people. Top of Page

3 Samba Steps and Remote Work: Experiencing Carnival as a Digital Nomad in Rio Read More »