Job Discussion Forums

JZer · Joined: 16 Jan 2005 Posts: 3898 Location: Pittsburgh

I was wondering if anyone knows or has been to the cities in Brazil where the people speak German? I was wondering where these cities are, so if you have been there let me know!!!

Thanks!!!

nomadamericana · Joined: 18 Dec 2004 Posts: 146 Location: Minneapolis, MN

Blumenau (in Santa Catarina state) has German speakers, probally the most in the country... it has the 2nd largest Oktoberfest in the world... if that says anything. I went there several years ago and in the downtown area the building even had German type fronts. One other city to look into is Joinville.... it is also in Santa Catarina state and I have heard there is also a large German community.
I hope that helps.

~Nomad Americana

JZer · Joined: 16 Jan 2005 Posts: 3898 Location: Pittsburgh

Are there any jobs in Blumenau? What is the city like? Just curious. I was thinking about going there.

nomadamericana · Joined: 18 Dec 2004 Posts: 146 Location: Minneapolis, MN

It is nice. Quite small by Latin standards. It is about 1 hour from the coast. I was there with aboiut 12 Argentines... and they informed me it is a great place to by linens... which wasn't really of importance to me. Needless to say, it is a shopping destination for tons of Argentines and Uruguayans. I honestly don't know if there is a need for English teachers per se in Blumenau, since it is small and most tourists are NOT English speaking.
The nearest city that I would think has a need or large potential need for English teachers would be Florianopolis... about 1 hour from Blumenau. I say this because it tends to be a tourist destination for more and more English speaking tourists... for surfing and vacation. It is a larger city and more large businesses are located there.
Another posibility... though a bit in land is Curitiba. I know foreign tourism is big there... due to the urban planning of the city and there are MANY English schools there.
I guess it all depends on what you are looking for and if you are flexible.

samizinha · Joined: 12 May 2005 Posts: 174 Location: Vacalandia

I lived in Blumenau for a year... a lot of people can speak German like they would speak English- as a second language. There was a city close by called "Pomerode" and it was labeled as the most German city in Brazil- also spotless! Blumenau itself is sort of a caracture for Germany, it has the facade but the people there are as Brasilian as they are in Recife or Rio...
I taught at an English school in Blumenau for six months, it was called "CCBEU". A popular place was "Wizard"... in fact, there were quite a few schools there for a place to small in Brasil. This was a loooong time ago though!
Good luck.