Brazil, map of Brazil

Brief information about the country

Оfficial name:  Federative Republic of Brazil

Location: It borders Venezuela, Suriname, Guyana and the department of French Guiana to the north, Uruguay to the south, Argentina and Paraguay to the southwest, Bolivia and Peru to the west, and Colombia to the northwest.

Total area: 8,511,965 sq km

Population: 190,010,647. Ethnic groups: white 53.7%, mulatto (mixed white and black) 38.5%, black 6.2%, other (includes Japanese, Arab, Amerindian)

Capital: Brasilia
 
Principal cities: Sao Paulo, Belo Horizonte, Rio de Janeiro, Salvador

Climate: A tropical climate is predominant. In the south of the country, subtropical climate prevails. Temperatures along the equator are high, with averages above 25C, and occasionally reaching the summer extremes of up to 40C in the temperate zones. Southern Brazil has a subtropical temperate weather, normally experiencing frost in the winter (June-August), and occasional snow in the mountainous areas, such as Rio Grande do Sul and Santa Catarina. Temperatures in the cities of Sao Paulo,  Belo Horizonte, and Brasilia are moderate, usually ranging between 15C and 30C. Rio de Janeiro, Recife and,  located in the coast, have warm climates, with average temperatures ranging from 23C to 27C. The southern cities of Porto Alegre and Curitiba have a subtropical climate similar to that in parts of the USA and Europe, and temperatures can fall under 0C in the winter.

Official language: Portuguese (official), Spanish, English, French

The political structure: federal republic. President and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for a single four-year term.

International organization participation: UN, UNESCO, WTO. Not in EU or Shengen zone.

How to get there: Ports and terminals are in Gebig, Itaqui, Rio de Janeiro, Rio Grande, San Sebasttiao, Santos, Sepetiba Terminal, Tubarao, Vitoria.

Time zone: Brazil is divided into four time zones. 5-8 hours behind Moscow time.

Currency: Real (BRL); 1 USD = 1.97 BRL, 10 BRL = 5.08 USD

Religion:  Roman Catholic 73.6%, Protestant 15.4%.

National Holiday: Independence Day, 7 September (1822)

The reference web-site “Wikipedia”