Campo Grande and (not only) the evening of the Three Kings

The capital of Mato Grosso do Sul is Campo Grande - with about 120 years of existence, it is a young, fresh, and modern city. Tall skyscrapers and glass buildings combine with well-kept gardens and greenery of all kinds. Moreover, this year the air is cooler (or less hot) than in Batayporã - which is usually the opposite - and therefore easier to breathe. Compared to São Paulo or Rio de Janeiro, it also feels much more relaxed and safer on the streets. Campo Grande is also a city where my husband has many relatives and friends, so we ended up here on January 2, right after the exuberant New Year celebrations.

It takes less than six hours to get here from Batayporã. For Brazilians, this still fits the term "pertinho" - "close by". For our children, however, it is not so close, which is why we extended our stay in this metropolis to a week from the originally planned 3-4 days.

After the first few days, which were spent mostly visiting family, friends, and one playground, my heart as a traveler and (for now) former tourist guide was awakened and I wanted to see the local sights and points of interest, so one sunny afternoon we headed to the Parque das nações indígenas - the park of the Indian nations. It is a large park with tropical flora and free-ranging capybaras. And because it's located in the heart of the city, it's surrounded not only by modern skyscrapers but also by the Bioparque Pantanal aquarium, which is one of the local uniquenesses (and which, God willing, I'll talk a bit more about in a future article). But the park isn't just about the flora and fauna - there's also a children's play area with a playground and an outdoor stage for music and dance performances, making it a great place to go when you need to tuck yourself away in the shade for a nice family afternoon. We were most excited, of course, by the presence of capybara in our often close proximity, and our palates particularly appreciated the pineapple-flavored ice cream and local goiab fruit. For the children, the number one item on the agenda was "sledding" in the grass on a piece of a cardboard box, which is one of the favorite hobbies here, and for our children, this hobby perhaps put the playground in its full glory. In short, an idyll :)

Then on Saturday, as the Adoration of the Three Kings was being celebrated, we went to Cidade do Natal - Christmas Town, a family-friendly attraction also installed in the city center. The dominant feature of this Christmas village is a huge Ferris wheel that you can ride and see the city from a bird's eye view. The average waiting time is about 1.5 hours, but the view is definitely worth it! After riding this gigantic attraction, we got to explore the city itself. You'll find plenty here - the house where Papai Noel is said to live, a life-size Nativity scene, even a municipal school, and a traditional Orthodox Greek church with blue windows and doors. You can buy cotton candy, popcorn, and other "goodies" that we parents don't exactly like to see in our kids' mouths.

The lively Papai Noel even uploaded a message on our cell phones inviting us to the Czech Republic! The whole parade was topped off with a parade of Christmas-themed masks accompanied by the beautiful music of a local marcial band (translated as something like a marching band - a group or orchestra, especially of brass instruments, playing as they march). 

We said goodbye to the Christmas season so that we could slowly start preparing for the coming year with all the joys and challenges it will bring...