February 13, 2005


I thought everybody might like to know about a new book about Brazil — Journey on the Estrada Real: Encounters in the Mountains of Brazil, by me, it so happens. The publisher is Academy Chicago Publishers.

so this is kind of an ad, but at the same time, it's personal. If anyone would like to contact me regarding Brazil, I'm at gcheney@adelphia.net

The Estrada Real is probably the oldest road in the Americas. Built by the slaves of the Portuguese in 1697, it reaches 750 miles from Rio de Janeiro and Paraty into the gold and diamond region of Minas Gerais, ending at Diamantina.

The Estrada Real is still there, a dirt road meandering through scores of villages in the states of Rio de Janeiro and Minas Gerais. Here we find the cradle of Brazilian culture. The people in this rural area still live very much in the 18th century. Most of the traffic involves horses and mules. Most of the food is grown locally and cooked on wood-fired fogão-a-lenha stoves. Many people remember the tropeiro mule trains that used to provide transport through the region. A few remember old folks who were once slaves.

With the intention of reporting on this tenuous rural culture, I hiked 200 miles of the Estrada Real. Stopping in each village for a few days, I talked with people about their lives today and their feelings about the old rural way of life and the new urban way of life that is creeping in. Along the way, I discuss some of the history of colonial Brazil and some of contemporary efforts to preserve what remains, physically as well as culturally.

Walfrido dos Mares Guia, Brazil’s Minister of Tourism, has this to say about Journey on the Estrada Real:

“Cheney’s narrative of life on the Estrada Real shows a love and in-depth understanding of the Brazilian heartland that few foreigners have ever experienced. By walking through the heart of our culture, he saw out past, our present, and our future. His vision and his words will give Brazilians a new perspective on their own country and will certainly show the rest of the world a Brazil far different from the beaches of Rio de Janeiro and the skyscrapers of São Paulo.”

I think the Minister’s words pretty well reflect what this book is about. It gives the reader an uncommon perspective on a fascinating culture.

So I think you might be interested to read Journey on the Estrada Real. If you teach a course relating to Brazil, you might suggest the book to your students. Two hundred miles on the Estrada Real will give them a good look at a place they aren’t likely to read about anywhere else. The narrative will also introduce them to a good number of words and phrases in Portuguese.

You read the introduction and see photos (which are not in the book): www.cheneybooks.com

If you would like any more information, please feel free to contact me at gcheney@adelphia.net . .

Thanks for taking the time to read this. I hope you get a chance to read the book.

Glenn Cheney