Return Friendship Exchange to District 4600 Brazil
September 6-17
Information provided by Raju Jairam of District 4600
This return trip is finally happening! The dates of the Exchange are September 6 – 17, 2018
I am contacting you since either you or someone from your club had expressed interest in going on this return exchange to Brazil (Dist. 4600). Please pass the information on to those that expressed an interest.
The Dist. 4600 Rotarians can accommodate 10 individuals (singles or couples) from our District 5440 team.
Please fill out the attached form for you and your traveling companion. Use the column to the right of the highlighted column for your partner’s details.
Here is the itinerary and details of the exchange:
The outbound portion of the exchange will begin September 6 and end September 17, 2018. It is a home hosted program starting in Rio de Janeiro and ending in Sao Paolo. You will be responsible for your own transportation to and from Brazil and any interior travel arranged for by your hosts that they are unable to transport you in their personal vehicles. It may be advisable to compensate your hosts for fuel. Overnight costs for hotels that are not hosted would also be your responsibility. Entrance fees to monuments, parks, areas of attraction are your expense. I would recommend that you take gifts for your hosts (at least 1 gift per host in the $25 to $50 range or anything more that you can afford). Once I have a full itinerary, I will share the host information and matching Bios with all participants that are chosen for the trip.
Since each of you has been on overseas exchanges of different kinds (RFE, GSE, etc.), I believe that you understand the protocol. Please let me know if you have questions that I might be able to answer. Once the team is chosen, we will get one of the team to be the team leader to represent our district.
Our hosts have agreed to help with additional sights pre or post trip. You may want to start your journey (before September 5) to explore Rio and meetup with your fellow team mates in Rio on September 6 at a place and time that will be published. You will end your trip in Sao Paolo after the Exchange (after September 17) and perhaps add an extension with a visit to Iguazu falls and the surrounding areas in Argentina and Paraguay. If there is enough interest from the participants to travel together, we can arrange for common flight times, sightseeing, etc. Please indicate your preference in the attached form.
You will need a visa to enter Brazil. You must secure it ahead of travel and cannot get one at the airport. You will be refused entry.
Check with your local county health department for immunizations – you will most probably need malaria pills and yellow fever shots. Make sure that your immunizations are current. I would recommend traveler’s standard medications for diarrhea, antacids, etc. Pay heed to water borne diseases. So follow the appropriate protocol.
RT flights to Brazil start around $1,500 per person. Allow about 12 to 14 hours for the flight with stops. Plan on another $1,000 for expenses. Costs to go to other locations and for sightseeing outside of the exchange will be additional. I will set up a group expense account that common expenses are shared from. You will have to put down a deposit to secure your spot.
All participants will be collected in Rio on September 6 at a time and place to be designated. Please plan accordingly.
Let me know if you have any questions. I hope to hear from you soon.
Best Regards,
Raju Jairam
(970) 691-6244 (cell)
Dist. 5440 RFE Chair