My holiday in Brazil - by Gavin Ferguson

My trip to Brazil

In April this year, I went to Rio De Janeiro, Brazil for the wedding of my good friend, Cameron. Cameron is a Scottish guy who was marrying his Brazilian wife, Aline.

 Do you think Brazil would be a good holiday destination for you?

The beaches

I had already been to Rio De Janeiro, but every time I go there, I am struck by the beauty of its beaches. The water is refreshingly cool, the waves are reasonably big and will turn you upside down if you’re not careful. Steep green hills provide a spectacular backdrop for the main beaches in the city. An army of sellers march relentlessly up and down the beach selling everything from cocktails to corn on the cob. There is football everywhere.

A few times on my holiday, I went for a run down the beach and bought a cold coconut afterwards to quench my thirst. The cold, natural, slightly sweet taste of the coconut water felt like a little miracle in my mouth.

 What’s the most beautiful beach you’ve ever been to? What type of beaches do you prefer?

The Scots

Cameron had about 20 guests coming to the wedding from Scotland, the vast majority of whom I had never met before. The first time I met them was in a bar called ‘Ferreirinha’ in Rio De Janeiro, about a week before the wedding. I immediately discovered that the Scots were obsessed with football, just like me, so we got on like a house on fire.

The Scots drink like fish, and this is something that our waiter, Francisco, learnt the hard way. For poor Francisco, this shift was like a game of whack-a-mole – every time he’d filled one glass, another would empty. I imagine that by the end of the day, his step count would have been remarkably high, mainly due to how much beer the Scots were drinking, but also because of the shortness of his legs.

Me with an exhausted Fransisco and my new Scottish friends

We visited the iconic Maracana stadium

 What do you know about Scotland? Is it a place that you would like to visit?

What type of people do you get on well with?

Brazilian food

I have never come across a nation more proud of its national cuisine than Brazil. If I’m not mistaken, the national dish is called ‘Picanha’, which is grilled beef, often served with chips, rice and a uniquely Brazilian food called Farofa. Farofa is made from toasted cassava, but on the plate it just looks like a dry yellow powder. The Scots appeared to be a little confused by the farofa. They poked at it with their cutlery, smelt it, but none of them ate any of it. Perhaps they thought it was a bowl of sand from the beach being used to decorate the table.

The night before the wedding, the groom tried to organise a big Picanha meal for his Scottish wedding guests. Attendance at this meal was quite low because half of the Scottish guests had decided to go on dates with Brazilian women instead. As a loyal friend of Cameron, I attended his final pre-wedding dinner. The food was spectacular. At the end of the meal, no food was left on the table… apart from mountains of farofa.

 Is your nation proud of its food? Are there any foods in your country that British people might find weird? What type of places do you like to eat in when you are on holiday? Do you remember a great restaurant you visited on holiday?

The wedding

I had really been looking forward to this wedding, I knew it would be spectacular. The thing I was most looking forward to was the cultural mix between the Brazilians and the Scots. 120 guests from Rio De Janeiro, the land of sun, sandy beaches, samba music, bikinis, tropical rainforests, football and cold coconuts. 20 guests from Aberdeenshire, the land of bad weather and sheep.

 All of the Scottish guests wore the traditional Scottish kilt to the wedding. You may have heard a horrible rumour that the Scots don’t wear anything under their kilts. Apparently, if you own the kilt you don’t wear any underwear, if you rent the kilt you wear underwear. Thankfully, the kilts you can see in the photos were rented.

I had a whale of a time at the wedding. The venue was spectacular, and I enjoyed the food, the speeches, the music and the dancing. This was a holiday I’ll never forget!

Do you enjoy weddings? Do you think it’s a good idea to spend a lot of money on your wedding? What’s the best wedding you’ve been to?

The student must choose 6 of the underlined words/ phrases to study in the lesson.