São Paulo – The Travelling With Art project is taking Brazilian tourists to tourist spots in Morocco in October this year, focusing on art and culture. The initiative is from two history-loving women from Brazil’s Rio Grande do Sul state, who organize trips to exotic destinations around the world in a bid to introduce tourists, in Portuguese (the language spoken in Brazil), to local artistic and cultural peculiarities, rather than the traditional attractions.
The trip to Morocco will take place from October 28th to November 9th, covering cities such as Casablanca, Chefchaouen, Meknès, Fez, Merzouga, Ouarzazate and Marrakech, among many others. Chefchaouen, for instance, is a mountain village painted vivid blue, whose residents still don typical attire. In Marrakech, among other activities, the tourists will see a lesson in Moroccan cuisine. From Merzouga, the group will leave in jeeps to the edge of the desert, then ride camels and spend the night in tents with typical music and food.
Clarisse Zanetello Linhares, one of the Rio Grande do Sul natives in charge of the project, explains that a very interesting feature of Morocco’s is the diversity of its landscapes. She cites places like Volubilis, with its Roman ruins, the old city of Fez, Ifrane, which looks just like a Swiss town, and the country’s valleys and mountains.
The route in Morocco includes a visit to the site in Ouarzazate where movies like Gladiator, The Last Temptation of Christ and Kasbah were shot. The idea of Travelling With Art is to deliver a travel experience, according to Linhares.
The tourists travel along with local guides who tell them about the history of where they are going to, but what sets the project apart is the fact that Linhares and Mylene Friedrich Rizzo, the other entrepreneur responsible for the project, also tag along to give explanations on history and art. The trip to Morocco will be accompanied by Rizzo and Ana Claudia Costa, the owner of agency Porto Brasil, which handles the trip’s operational aspects. Costa takes care of logistics, since the Travelling with Art project is partners with a travel agency.
Rizzo holds a major in Psychology from Pontifícia Universidade Católica in Rio Grande do Sul (PUC-RS) and a postgraduate degree in History of Brazil from Faculdade Porto Alegrense (Fapa). Linhares holds a degree in Advertising and Marketing from PUC-RS and has always conducted alternative studies into History.
The project has existed for nine years. Linhares and Rizzo used to teach art history classes in Porto Alegre and the trips were a request from students. They have travelled to Arab countries such as Egypt and Morocco, and non-Arab ones like France, Italy, Peru, Russia and Thailand. Presently, the two entrepreneurs also render consulting services to travellers, offering tips on where to go, where to stay and assist with itineraries for people travelling alone, with their families or spouses.
According to Linhares, the trip to Morocco is in high demand. The project’s group will comprise 25 people at most and will be closed as soon as all slots are filled.
‘Morocco with Art’ Trip
From October 28th to November 9th, 2015
Agência Porto Brasil
Telephone: + (51) 30252626
Website: www.viajandocomarte.com.br or www.portobrasil.com.br
Email: roteirossobmedida@portobrasil.com.br
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
