brazil

We landed after 16 hours in paradise. A short ride by taxi and we were stranded in Gavea, a quiet, upscale neighborhood with a lot of green surrounded. For us, as a family, security is not an uninteresting point and Gavea gave us this feeling.

We planned to enjoy both ways of the trip – to have enough relaxing days at our pool or turquoise water beaches and some days to explore all the sightseeing. We were really delighted, that sightseeing was not as stressful than expected, because the Brazilian’s adore kids and let us go without making any lines and where in general very friendly and warm people.

A perfect place to escape of some hectic city life was the Botanical Garden, which offered impressive palms, meat eating plants and waterfalls. The kids were running through the park and explored multiple greenhouses, some monuments and had fun with walking stairs up and down to overview the park.

Another dream spot, we had on our bucket list, was the small beach located right below the Sugarloaf, which is really an amazing piece of earth. The beauty of this special light and the view we definitely enjoyed.

We were also spending the evenings listening to the rhythms of Rio´s music, which you can hear allover the city and got spoiled by delicious food of our hotel´s kitchen.

Why do we think, traveling with two little kids from Europe to Rio is a good idea: first of all, Rio is captivating with a mix of relaxing vibes, exotic animals to be close to, outstanding sightseeing and a incomparable spirit of the Cariocas. The kids can discover and learn from different cultures and live long from spectacular colors, soulful music and postcard perfect landscapes, which make the best family adventure.

Among the families on our editorial team, many of us have been heavily influenced by countries other than the United States. I was born outside the US and lived for a bit in Europe as a child as well. Our Editor-in-Chief, Priscila, is from Brasil. And as I’ve gotten older, feel more strongly than ever that experiences from other cultures should be a regular part of every kid’s childhood. It shouldn’t be a production or a big deal, it should just be a given! None of us are meant to just live inside our own tiny worlds. It’s so important for children to develop a well-rounded worldview.

While I dream of traveling internationally with my little family someday, until then, there are many ways to experience other cultures right here in our own city. And so yesterday, Aveline and I headed over to Silva’s Market, a local Brasilian deli and supermarket. (Our editorial team is primarily in Southern California, but a few of us live elsewhere — I’m in Orlando, Florida.)

Our friend Priscilla Barbosa — who is from Brasil and who had her camera along — met us at the market. Aveline roamed the aisles with the owner’s daughter, before sitting down in the deli to down nearly an entire helping of pao de queijo. (If there was any doubt that’s she’s two, fear not, she is. I turned around for one second to ogle the selection of sweets, and she plunged her mini GI Joe into a full glass, sending a cascade of water everywhere.)

See, the thing about introducing children to other cultures at a young age, is that it’s not a big deal for the kids. The outing wasn’t something different to her. It was just fun.

And isn’t that the way it should be?

-xo, Gina