The famous Hercilio Luz bridge alight

By Patrick Connelly

Florianopolis is a city cursed with names.  The current label is in reference to Floriano Peixoto, who was Brazil’s president from 1891-1894 and is accused by many residents of the city of being a brutal dictator that murdered hundred in the area during his administration.  Not exactly someone to build statues of or name streets after.  But, alas, he gets his own city.  However, the alternative is just as cacophonic.  Many residents are campaigning for the name to be restored to its original moniker: Our Lady of the Banished.

Despite its inability to come up with a suitable name, Florianapolis is booming.  The island city – well, half of it is on an island – has become a tourist and expat destination for adventurous people all over the world.  Great beaches are in no short supply and the climate, while still tropical, is not the same scorching heat that typifies some of the more northern cities.

Surfers first made the city famous abroad during the 1970’s and 80’s with the discovery of incredible wave breaks at the Joaquina and Campeche beaches, both of which are still hugely popular today.  Already frequented by Brazilians as a prime weekend destination, foriegners soon began to flock to the “magic island” in the 90’s and a healthy English-speaking expat population now exists.

The island, which is the main tourist and expat draw, is divided into north and south sections.  The northern half has seen the majority of tourist attention and thus has the hotels, popular beaches and nightspots, etc. etc.  Along with Joaquina and Campeche, the north also has uber-popular beaches like Jurere and Inglesias, popular among partygoers, expats, and families alike.

Conversely, the southern part of the island has been able to retain a way of life that has existed for hundreds of years.  Portuguese immigrants from the Azores islands arrived to the island in the 18th century and set up a fishing/agriculture society which is still evident despite the growing number of surfers and sunbathers around their fishing nets.  For the foreigner, the south offers a a refuge from the sometimes crowded north and, despite being underdeveloped in terms of tourist infrastructure, still has a number of hotels and real estate opportunities.

The island of Santa Catarina, on which the city is located, has been named by Newsweek as one of the most dynamic places to live in the entire world (http://www.newsweek.com/id/46125/page/12).  It is an extreme mix of traditional shrimping villages and modern skyscrapers, of bikini-clad women and sleepy hamlets.  Each year hundreds of foreigners fall victim to the spell of the “magic island” and now call it home.

Florianopolis can be reached by air from almost any city in Brazil and is a only a short flight from both Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro.

Here’s a video about the region

If you are interested in renting or buying Florianopolis real estate, visit VivaReal.

cover photo by Joao H at http://www.flickr.com/photos/john_jones/1537275160/

first photo by Eduardo Cavasotti at http://www.flickr.com/photos/cavasotti/16306955/

second photo by Pablo O Palmiero at http://www.flickr.com/photos/pablopalmeiro/2856353153/