Nestled in the green peaks of Serra da Mantiqueira, 180km northeast of São Paulo, Campos do Jordão is at once a kitsch and rather plain confection. Still, it makes a comfortable base from which to explore the nearby peaks, which are home to some of the last remaining virgin araucária (Paraná pine) forests and proffer spectacular views of the Paraíba valley. There is also a renowned winter classical-music festival in July.
The capital of Bolivia’s Pando department is the wettest spot in Bolivia, with 1770mm of precipitation annually. It is a hilly town on the banks of the Rio Acre, with a pleasant enough plaza but a somewhat gritty atmosphere. Prices in this section are listed in bolivianos (B$), which at the time of research was trading at roughly R$1 to B$4, or US$1 to B$8. That doesn’t mean you’ll need Bolivian money right away, however. In Cobija you can use Brazilian reais to pay for just about everything.
Curitiba is not particularly sophisticated nor sexy, but its residents enjoy a quality of life unparalleled in other parts of the country. With the help of a vibrant local economy, the modern city has managed to preserve historic buildings and green space.
It’s a strange feeling to cross a street and change countries, but you can do just that in Ponta Porã, a bustling little border town divided from the Paraguayan town of Pedro Juan Caballero by Av Internacional. The beer changes from Skol to Pilsen and prices on electronics are slashed – other than that, it’s hard to even notice there is a border here (Portunhol vernacular is rampant). It once prospered as a center for the yerba maté trade in the late 19th century; now it caters to Brazilians by the truckload, who flock to the Paraguayan shopping centers. It’s a get-in, get-out town – if you spend more than one night here, it had better be due to hospitalization.
One of the only towns on the Paulista coast that has preserved a portion of its colonial charms, São Sebastião sits on a dramatic channel dividing the mainland from Ilha de São Sebastião (popularly known as ‘Ilhabela’), a 15-minute ferry trip away. Prices are moderate by local standards, but for good reason. There are no beaches at hand, and the town is also a major oil depot, with huge tankers somewhat diminishing the natural beauty. Still, it makes a fine stopover if you’re traveling to Ilhabela or along the coast. And the windy channel is ideal for windsurfing. For information, check out the tourist office (3892 2620, ext 4; Av Doutor Altino Arantes 174; 10am-7pm Mon-Fri, 10am-8pm Sat & Sun) on the waterfront in the small colonial center of town.
With around a quarter of a million people and some 50, 000 daily commuters, Temuco is one of Chile’s fastest growing cities. While it is impoverished around the outskirts, it has a developed core with lots of businesses, shops, markets and even the American fast-food chains that you surely traveled all this way to find. The city is also the regional transportation hub, with steady transportation to Santiago and connections to pretty much everywhere you might want to go in La Araucanía, the Lakes District and beyond. Temuco does not have a lot of attractions in itself, but it does have affordable prices and gives a sense of the culture in the region that can’t always be seen in the sanitized-for-your-protection tourist towns like Pucón. If it has nothing else going for it, Temuco can always boast the fact that Pablo Neruda grew up here.
Valdivia is the most attractive city in La Araucanía and the Lakes District, although its competition is pretty dismal. This university town, with touches of German influence, loads of mist and its fair share of rain, is supremely relaxed and pleasant. The most striking characteristic of Valdivia is its superb location surrounded by the Calle Calle, Cau Cau and Cruces rivers. Make sure to visit the Feria Fluvial waterfront where sea lions have discovered the promised land – a place where they can float around all day and let tourists and fishmongers throw them scraps from the daily catch.
Known to most travelers as ‘that town that we passed through on the way from Temuco to Pucón, ‘ Villarrica is not without some appeal of its own. It is bigger and a bit more chaotic than its touristy neighbor Pucón, but has a down-to-earth feel, more reasonable prices and a faded resort glory that attracts travelers of a certain lax disposition. It also has a more local character than Pucón, which gets packed with vacationing Santiaguinos and foreigners. If you are here in the summer and wish to spend time at the lake you will find superior beaches down the road in Pucón.
Gympie Queensland Australia
Loxton and surrounds South Australia Australia