Popular misconceptions about Brazil are rife, but rarely do these myths have any solid grounding 
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Before travelling to Brazil for the first time, my friends gave me pretty concerned looks. 
“Are you not afraid of being shot in the street?” 
“I heard during Carnival the death toll is in the thousands.” 
I could go on and on listing the prejudices people have towards Brazil (and many other countries, for that matter), as the mere fact of being “foreign” is often enough to make many people uncomfortable. However, unwilling to form my own opinion without evidence, especially when it comes to travelling, I&#8217;ve always preferred to verify information first-hand. As such, travelling to Brazil multiple times has given me the opportunity to fall in love with this “controversial” Latin American country. 
Be it because of distorted media coverage or other reasons, many people seem to know everything about Brazil. As it happens, most of the time, such opinions are as alarming as they are lacking in actual evidence. 
So let&#8217;s debunk some common myths about Brazil. 
<figure id="attachment_7201" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-7201" style="width: 446px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><a href="http://www.the-platform.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/copacabana-promenade.jpg"><img loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-7201 " title="copacabana promenade" src="http://www.the-platform.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/copacabana-promenade.jpg" alt="" width="446" height="296" /></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-7201" class="wp-caption-text">Copacabana Promenade</figcaption></figure> 
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No, Rio de Janeiro is not a city at the mercy of drug gangsters. For sure, drugs circulate in a metropolis of 14 million people, but I believe this happens in many other places, and if you don&#8217;t look for it in Rio, you won&#8217;t find it in the markets. 
No, I didn&#8217;t get mugged every time I went to Brazil. As a matter of fact, I went seven times, travelled around extensively and have been to Copacabana in Rio de Janeiro (allegedly the most dangerous area in the most dangerous city) – never once was I robbed. I have been through robbery/pickpocketing experiences elsewhere though, three times in Rome and once in Seville. 
No, Lula did not “ruin” Brazil as many people would think &#8211; and which has also been suggested by some media outlets. As a Brazilian friend of mine who didn&#8217;t vote for Lula put it: “I didn&#8217;t like him before, but I have to admit that now the poor in Brazil can eat.” 
No, Brazilian women are not promiscuous. Brazil has been a poor country until relatively recently, and sex tourism was one of the worst aspects which, thankfully, is now being properly addressed. It goes without saying that this is a vulgar generalisation and stereotype of Brazilian women.
<a href="http://www.the-platform.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/lobster-meal.jpg"><img loading="lazy" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-7210" title="lobster meal" src="http://www.the-platform.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/lobster-meal.jpg" alt="" width="440" height="293" /></a>
No, Brazilians do not party every day. Maybe due to their samba and capoeira traditions, it&#8217;s a common belief that nationals spend their lives dancing, singing and partying, but I can pretty much vouch for most Brazilians leading normal working lives. They do smile a lot though, and maybe this also contributes to confusion about their lifestyle. 
No, Brazilians do not live in forests. Some native tribes of the Amazon do live in the rainforest, far from modernity and happy to preserve their culture and heritage away from the modern onslaught, but Brazil is a huge country with big cities, small towns and tiny villages. All of them with their own municipality council, offices, schools, hospitals and with the modern facilities we see in the rest of the world. 
No, Carnival is not a massacre. Every year around February, I witness an escalation of alarming headlines warning citizens from participating in a potentially deadly festival – leaving behind thousands of victims. These reports do not mention that the statistics also include people who have died as a result of accidents, illnesses, etc., unrelated to Carnival. 
No, you are not going to get Brazilian full residency just because you are European or because Latin Americans will be honoured for you to grace them with your presence. Getting full residency in Brazil is a hard process unless you have a spare £50,000 or €70,000 to invest in a local company &#8211; either yours or someone else&#8217;s. 
Last but not least: yes, Brazil is a very friendly and welcoming country where tourists will most certainly spend a great holiday and may return with lovely hand-crafted souvenirs, gained kilos, and a better working knowledge of samba steps! 
<figure id="attachment_7211" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-7211" style="width: 440px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><a href="http://www.the-platform.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/morro-branco-beach.jpg"><img loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-7211" src="http://www.the-platform.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/morro-branco-beach.jpg" alt="" width="440" height="293" /></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-7211" class="wp-caption-text">Morro Branco Beach</figcaption></figure>
<pre style="text-align: left;">Photo Credits: Angela Corrias Featured image is of the Jericoacoara dunes</pre>

Brazil: Debunking Travel Myths

If you have ever wondered whether it is possible that different styles and cultures can live together, delight yourself with a trip to Andalusia, an enchanting region of southern Spain where places like Sevilla, Cordoba and Granada are a magnet for tourists all year long. Regularly under close academic analysis, these cities never experience tourism low seasons, and the main reason is that their history provides inspiring evidence that different traditions and religions can beautifully mingle and elevate each other. 
Starting from Seville, my journey also included Cordoba and Granada. These cities epitomise how enhancing cultural differences, instead of holding them back, gives a place a fascinating past and a provocative culture, as well as making it a beautiful subject for photography. 
It&#8217;s easy to get lost in the maze of narrow alleys that form Seville&#8217;s city centre, but the kindness of locals makes it almost a pleasure to be in need of help. “You&#8217;re Italian, I love Rome, such a beautiful city,” said the man from whom my cousin and I asked for directions. We were downtown looking at the cathedral tower bell, yet we couldn&#8217;t find the way to the entrance of the main church. “If you are interested in history, you will love Andalusia,” he went on. “The brightest period in Seville was during the Moors&#8217; rule.” With this in mind, I started exploring one of Europe&#8217;s most intriguing corners. 
The first thing visitors notice in any of the main Andalusian cities is the spellbinding interplay of architectural styles that defines the spirit of the region in one of its most splendid moments. Whether it is Seville&#8217;s minaret La Giralda or its Alcazar, originally built as a Moorish fort, Cordoba&#8217;s former mosque and cathedral La Mezquita, or the wonderful Alhambra, sensitive and curious travellers will wonder how the region would have looked if the different rulers and dynasties had worked together, instead of fighting each other. 
When I first entered the Mezquita, I knew I was going to like it, but the feast of artistic styles and personalities that slowly unfolded before my eyes went well beyond my expectations. Visitors are immediately confronted with a forest of arches and columns, built with an alternating pattern of brick and stone that creates the unique red-and-white look. 
The mosque/cathedral involves a fascinating intricacy of historical moments; precious accounts of our past and an invaluable opportunity to learn from it. Caliph Abd el-Rahman I bought the land from the Christians, who had already built a Visigothic church on the site which, in turn, was built on top of a Roman temple. The Islamic place of worship built on top of all of these spiritual havens and was given a Caliphal style that blended Roman, Byzantine, Gothic, Syrian and Persian architectural features. The latest “touch” has obviously been Christian, with the placement of a huge cathedral in the very centre of the mosque. 
When you think you have caught the essence of the lost Moorish soul of southern Spain in Cordoba&#8217;s mosque and central quarter, La Judería, head further south and stop in Granada. In a sort of artistic climax, the majesty of this togetherness of styles and architectural traditions reaches its peak at the Alhambra, an awe-inspiring fortress-palace that stands above the city as if still holding its ancient power and purpose. Nowhere more than in this spectacular masterpiece is it possible to judge the different styles and personalities intertwined in one of the highest representations of Islamic architecture in Europe. The gentle, pastel-coloured patterns and the ever-present flowers suggest the sophisticated yet tranquil decorations of Moorish culture. These decorations contrast with the swift transition to a more rigidly solemn and severe style, introducing visitors to the Catholic era, darkened by the actions of the Inquisition, strongly endorsed by Queen Isabella. 
Federico García Lorca, Granada&#8217;s much acclaimed poet, used to say that the Christian re-conquest of the city in 1492 by the Catholic monarchs Ferdinand and Isabella had been a disaster, as the harmony with which Christians, Muslims and Jews lived under the Nasrid rule was suddenly replaced by persecution, intolerance and fear. What made that particular period an enlightened example of civilisation is the tolerance and the enhancement of the differences of culture, religion and traditions among communities, a diversity that was seen as a tool for growth and development. 
If the Latin proverb that “history is a teacher of life” is true, today, more than ever, we should understand that trying to erase cultural differences doesn&#8217;t bring about progress, but only conflict. If, throughout the centuries we have had glorious moments that showed us the right path, we need to take advantage of such examples and recreate them to promote peace and cooperation. Although the planet is shrinking, thanks to ever-evolving technologies, communities&#8217; basic needs of mutual assistance and friendship are always the same.
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<pre>Photo Credits: Angela Corrias</pre>

Andalusia: The Moorish Connection

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It’s mid-Autumn and I&#8217;m darting up and down trendy Via Cola di Rienzo in central Rome, excited and worried at the same time. I&#8217;m looking for a sort of long tunic, coat, jacket. Anything. Just long. And possibly able to hide any body shape, or anything at all for that matter. I struggle but eventually buy a jacket &#8211; a purchase that didn&#8217;t really manage to give me peace of mind. 
The day after I was to fly to Iran, and instead of focusing exclusively on my usual pre-travel research, my thoughts were mainly about what I was supposed to wear. 
My journey included a stopover in Istanbul from where I was to take a direct flight to Tehran. All I did during the two hours in Turkey was to carefully study what Iranian women were wearing. Somehow, I felt inappropriate. I knew Iran&#8217;s policy was not as strict as mainstream British media suggested, but every time I travel to a country that is new to me I pay extra attention not to go against traditions and social mores. 
My hijab consisted of a pashmina that I had recently bought in India, worn clumsily to the extent that it kept falling off. To my ill-concealed disbelief, however, I noticed that Iranian girls&#8217; hijabs, as casual as mine, were worn in a manner that naturally enabled them to enhance their femininity. 
The first thing tourists will notice as soon as they venture out of Tehran&#8217;s airport is the hectic traffic, pretty much like in every other city. Feeling a little more familiar immersed in daily routine, travellers can defy their own inner feelings with greater ease before actually landing in Iran. Despite global perception, Iranians don’t really look oppressed, and the capital appears as busy as the typical modern metropolis with all sorts of cars darting back and forth, couples strolling about hand in hand and commuters waiting for their bus. 
If part of the Western media landscape indulges in detailed explanations of how oppressed Iranians are, it will probably take no more than an hour, and not much attention, to understand that the natives of the Islamic Republic, like everybody else, wake up in the morning to go to work or college, or to go shopping or any other leisurely activities they like. Similarly it won&#8217;t take long, even to the lesser informed traveller, to understand that Iranian women are not confined to the kitchen, but rather, to study and work as much as their male counterparts showing great ambition. In a nutshell, it&#8217;s easy to understand that our media&#8217;s distorted reporting is simply that &#8211; distorted reporting. 
My personal epiphany involved the Iranian people in general. And obviously I&#8217;m not referring to the members of the Unified Ummah, the NGO that invited me to Iran, but to the random citizens that I had the opportunity of meeting fleetingly during the week I spent there; from the girls at the ladies&#8217; restroom in Tehran&#8217;s Milad Tower to the street vendors at Tehran&#8217;s local markets, who never shied away from showing their curiosity about my provenance and asking my opinion on what I had seen of their country. 
Conceiving of Iran requires thinking outside of the box, of being fully aware of the distorted mainstream media images often given. Despite this, I travelled somehow preoccupied, with the kind of stress that fades away only when you set foot on a new land. Nobody paid attention to my clothes, nor to my ‘foreign’ hijab. No inspector suggested I dress more appropriately, except a smiling girl that I soon found out was a police officer. “Sweetheart, that&#8217;s too short”, she hinted to me, before learning I was foreign. 
Going to Iran, tourists will face an unexpected welcoming, an unbearably fascinating culture &#8211; and a population that never misses flaunting it &#8211; natives who love barraging their guests with questions about their opinions on Iran, and about their own countries&#8217; lifestyles, hungry for cross-cultural exchange. 
Iranian society is one that inevitably lures you off the beaten track, one that makes you sense those ancestral elements that you long to unearth, one that makes you beg for more at every step. If you are not impressed when spotting McDonalds in the middle of the desert or Starbucks in Shanghai&#8217;s Yu Gardens, then Iran might be the place for you. Sanctions have had the effect of encouraging the local economy, pushing Iranian companies to produce their own goods, with the obvious result of rewarding tourists with comforting authenticity instead of the run-of-the-mill KFC. 
I was fortunate enough not to limit my stay to the capital and ventured to ancient villages such as Kashan and Abyaneh, dating back thousands of years. And it was precisely when wandering through the tangled streets of ancient towns that I wondered how it could be possible, in 2011, for the East and the West to still remain so unknown to each other? How is it possible that the media is capable of influencing people&#8217;s perception on countries to the extent that they prevent us from planning a holiday to undoubtedly interesting destinations? 
Is Iran the perfect country? I doubt it. But then again I have never found such a place. More pointedly, a hungry media and the rhetoric of desperate politicians, promotes to the extreme the false idea of a clash of civilisations, and this is not bound to achieve anything good &#8211;  not for Iran, nor for the rest of the world.
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