Recently we asked you via Facebook to vote on which Los Angeles events you want us to cover. The two most voted events were the LA Greek Fest and Brazilian Day. Golda already reviewed the LA Greek Fest so if you haven’t read it yet, you can do so by clicking here. Due to your support, we also attended Brazilian Day in Hancock Park. Brazilian Day is a party held in early September to celebrate Brazil’s independence day by bringing awareness of its culture to the rest of the world.

Brazilian Day in LA brought the excitement and energy of Brazilian dance to the crowd. Jander and his dancers presented a blend of forro, samba, and bumba-meu-boi from Amazonia. Jander explained to the audience that bumba-meu-boi is a traditional folk dance that focuses on the death and resurrection of a bull. They then danced and hopped around all sides of the stage, pumping their fists fiercely to the beat of the music like raging bulls. Brazilian Day in LA also provided a small demonstration of the Brazilian Street Carnaval, a festival held before Easter, by delivering a Rio de Janeiro-style parade and a Trio-Electrico parade. Dancers proudly displayed Brazil’s national colors by wearing bright, glittering burlesque-like costumes covered in green, yellow, blue, and white feathers. They spun gracefully through the crowd while a truck, called a trio-electrico, played music from the speakers. An assembly of percussionists also supported the group much like in a Rio-Style parade. Besides the bumba-meu-boi and the Brazilian Street Carnaval, the event also brought us another taste of Brazil, the food!

In addition to seeing and hearing aspects of Brazil, we also got to smell and taste its food. Golda and I purchased two pastels from the popular Ta Bom Truck. A pastel is a flaky stuffed pastry containing various delicious fillings. It reminds me of a large empanada. We bought a meal pastel with shredded chicken and spicy pepper jack cheese and a dessert pastel with banana and nutella. With cinnamon and sugar sprinkled on top, the banana and nutella pastel definitely satisfied my sweet tooth. I also got a guarana soft drink, a highly caffeinated drink made out of a plant that has a licorice taste similar to Inca Kola. In addition, there was a mini supermarket booth that sold various Brazilian treats like coco amelocochado, a sweet, chewy snack made out of sweetened shredded coconut and chocolate.

After attending Brazilian Day, we visited the La Brea Tar Pits that were located next to Hancock Park. The tar pits are active, and they provide spectators a sample of Los Angeles’ past. There are even 30,000-year-old bones preserved underneath!! If you have time, make sure to check out this free natural display.

Brazilian Day in LA is an event that showcases some of the best aspects of Brazil. It definitely piqued my interest in visiting Brazil someday. Brazilian Day was held in Hancock Park next to La Brea Tar Pits in Miracle Mile. Parking in Miracle Mile can be quite irritating. Fortunately, the event was held on Sunday, which meant that some of the side streets south of Wilshire Blvd had free parking but NOT ALL! Please be wary of signs. There are also parking lots available as a more expensive but convenient alternative. You can also take bus #20 from Santa Monica or Downtown. For more photos of the event, please check out our Facebook page. For 3D photos, please check out our Phereo page. Follow us on Twitter @SurvivingLA for all the latest updates.

STAY TUNED FOR SOME SURPRISES AS OUR BLOG’S ANNIVERSARY APPROACHES THIS WEEK!!

Until next time,

Steven