While writing about driving in Brazil, I wondered how I would manage Brazilian traffic challenges without the adaptive defensive skills I've had years to develop. I also tried to imagine what local traffic must feel like to a newcomer in a rental car. Luckily, I've had help. "Tell your readers it's rude," said an American friend. Which reminded me of a comment by a friend's British expat husband: "Brazilians – so friendly when you meet them, but it's amazing how they change when they get behind the wheel."

Like the now-seasoned Brazil drivers quoted above, you may end up having to, or wanting to, drive in Brazil. My alerts don't mean it can't be done. But it may take starting in a smaller town with less traffic and a more peaceful driving scene. And while we're on the subject of cars and not-so-large towns, don't miss "Beetlemania", an article in the latest issue of American Way, the American Airlines inflight magazine. Writer Kevin Raub and photographer Sean McCormick went to Pirenópolis, GO – a city which is hosting Festa do Divino (see last Sunday's post) – and reported on the local passion for what Brazilians call fuscas.

Photo: Patricia Ribeiro