January 27-February 9, 2009 - Itinerary is Subject to Change

Fully Escorted in Association with Brazilian Agricultural Specialists, Agronomist and Farmers

Day 1: USA / Rio de Janeiro
Meet your tour director in Miami and depart on our overnight-flight to Rio de Janeiro. (In-flight meal service)

Day 2: Rio de Janeiro
Arriving in Rio de Janeiro, mid-morning, we'll check into our hotel– right on Ipanema Beach– and the balance of the day is yours to enjoy! In the afternoon we offer a visit to a gem factory, where you can learn the history and evolution of Brazil’s real gemstones. You can see the entire process, from the raw stone to the finished product exquisitely mounted. You might just want to check out their retail shop! Tonight we’ll be introduced to a true Brazilian style dinner along with a Samba Carnival show, featuring lavishly costumed dancers, along with musicians. (In flight meal service, D)

Day 4: Rio de Janeiro / Brasilia
This morning we fly from Rio de Janeiro to the capital city, Brasilia. This totally planned city with all-new skyline, is home to the nations' President, the Senate, and the House of Representatives. Brasilia, with its modern and interesting architecture, is laid out in the shape of a large airplane. You'll enjoy our guided tour of this very clean, attractive city where we'll stay the night. (B, in-flight meal service, D)

Day 5: Brasilia / Cuiabá / Rondonópolis
We continue our tour of Brasilia prior to our late morning flight to Cuiabá. Cuiabá is the stepping stone on our journey to Rondonópolis, a city in Brazil ’s Mato Grosso, its largest agricultural state. Here, the red fertile soils, along with the generous sun and abundant rainfall of this tropical climate, provide the potential to grow high-yield crops. During their growing season, October through April, they receive 60 to 80 inches of rainfall, while May through July, very little rain falls. It's the same pattern every year. Sky-high soybean prices in 1970 started the flow of farmers into Mato Grosso. Before that, the flat-to-rolling savannahs had been home to beef producers. Bulldozers cleared small trees and brush from the land, large discs followed, and lime spreaders poured in to make the acidic soils sweet. Millions of acres have been cleared in this area to make Brazil our largest competitor. We stay the night in Rondonópolis. (B)

Day 6: Rondonópolis
This morning we visit several of the largest farms in the area, with an opportunity to discuss everything from input cost and crop choices, to land cost and farm profitability. We view growing crops firsthand and investigate their huge line of farm equipment, much of it manufactured in Brazil. Farmers owning 80 tractors, 40 combines, a dozen cotton pickers and four or five spray planes are ususual. We see large-scale wood-burning grain dryers, visit a cotton gin, and see a machine shed large enough to house a 747 jet. We'll visit a seed production plant to learn about Brazil ’s soybean varieties as well as corn and cottonseed. Find out just how close Brazil is to having rust-resistant soybeans. Overnight in Rondonópolis. (B, D)

Day 7: Rondonópolis / Nova Mutum
Today, we visit more area farms and crops and our experience continues. The largest soybean farmer in the world, A. Maggie Grosso, currently the governor of the state of Mato Grosso, has his farm office located in Rondonópolis. We learn about his huge agricultural enterprise, which includes grain farming, seed production, marketing and barge shipping. Be ready – the numbers are mind-boggling. A big hit with past travelers is our visit to the A.D.M. plant with a special question-and- answer period. Later, we depart Rondonópolis for Nova Mutum, a newly developed agricultural. The soybean harvest will be underway and since we are traveling by motor coach, we'll be able to stop for field inspections along the route. Our tour provides an opportunity to see crops from the early stages all the way to harvest. Learn about this nation's transportation woes, see the ling truck lines at local elevators, and the poor road conditions. (B, D)

Day 8: Nova Mutum
In this area, we visit the world's second-largest farmer, with over 225,000 acres under cultivation. He also owns a large farrow-to-finish hog operation and a newly acquired hog processing plant. You'll learn about the farming operation and how he is planning to utilize the corn crop to supply the expanding hog operation. After lunch, we'll travel west to the city of Tangará da Serra, home of our Brazilian guide, to visit seed and fertilizer plants, equipment dealers and other Ag-related businesses. We will stay the next two nights in Tangará (B, D)

Day 9: Tangerá da Serra
A few days ago, we visited one of the largest farmers in the world. Today, we visit the largest soybean operation, the Maggie farm, as well as other smaller farms. This visit may help learn how someone can farm 350,000 acres profitably. This area has some of the best land in Brazil. Most area crops are trucked west to the Madeira River where they are loaded on barges owned by Maggie. The barges carry the crops northeast to the Amazon, where they are loaded on the larger vesels for international shipment. We stop at a John Deere dealer for a look at equipment manufactured in Brazil and perhaps a grain elevator and reatil seed and fertilizer store. (B, L)

Day 10: Tangará de Serra
Today, we visit the largest ethanol plant in Brazil, and we see how they have achieved a positive energy status. Sugar cane is the source of the alcohol, produced by crushing the sugar cane and leaving the stalk fiber as a by-product. This product, after having been run through the crusher twice, looks about like dry silage. It is piled up and later burned in large steam furnaces. The furnaces produce the steam that provides the energy to run the plant, including electricity. There is more energy produced than needed, so the extra is sold off. Brazil has a mandatory 25% alcohol in every gallon of gas sold. Their late-model " flex fuel" vehicles can burn any percent of alcohol, including 100% fossil fuel or 100% alcohol. Brazil became energy self-sufficient as of March 2006. This visit alone may be worth the entire cost of the trip. At the end of the tour, we will drive back to Cuiabá, where we'll stay the night, next to the airport.. (B,L)

Day 11: Cuiba / Iguassu Falls
Today we depart Cuiabá on our flight to Iguassu Falls. The afternoon is open for relaxation in our beautiful hotel. Take a swim or just relax and rest up for the next day’s busy tours. (B in-flight meal service)

Day 12: Iguassu Falls
Today's excursion begins with a guided tour of Iguassu Falls on the Brazilian side. Walk along the boardwalk for an up-close and personal view of the mighty Horseshoe Falls. Enjoy a short trip through the rain forest on our way to the Macao Boat Safari. Capture the magnificent view of the falls as our boat powers through the sea spray. Tonight, we take in a wonderful dinner and a show that features musicians from Paraguay, Brazil, Argentina and Mexico. (B, L, D)

Day 13: Southern Brazil Farm / Sáo Paulo / Miami
Today, we have an opportunity to visit a farm located in southern Brazil. This visit introduces us to farming on a scale similar to that of U.S. farms, a nice contrast to the huge farms in Mato Grosso. This farm is made up of soybeans and grass land -- a cow-calf operation feeding out production with an on-farm confinement feedlot. Silage comprised of Milo forage, along with grain and liquid supplement, is fed to the yearling cattle. Afterwards, we' ll return to our hotel and prepare for our late-afternoon departure. (B, in-flight meal service)

Day 14: Return to the USA
Arrive in Miami, pass through immigration, pick up your luggage, go through customs and catch your connecting flight home. (In-flight meal service)

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