Experience Aruba’s Cultural Roots during Dia di Brazil Celebrations
It’s 6:30pm in the neighborhood of Brazil, a barrio on the southern side of Aruba just west of San Nicolas.
The cactus and stone-wall lined road winding through the area is typically quiet, but this evening, as the sun sets in the distance and washes the streets in a warm, golden light, chairs are being set up, friends and family are gathering, and the sound of merriment from many local homes carries along the breeze in anticipation of this community’s special time of year. It's Dia di Brazil, a weekend of cultural festivities marking the storied folkloric period of Aruba’s heritage. The weekend kicks off with the Lantern Parade.
Although populated with music events and competitions, queen elections, and parades like Aruba’s Carnival season, Dia di Brazil celebrations are decidedly unique and a more humble representation of Aruba’s cultural roots. Dia di Brazil events take place during the first weekend of September (with pre-events and queen elections starting in July), and this year is the 15th edition of this annual celebration. This time of year once marked the island’s harvest season that is now fondly memorialized through Dia di Brazil.
Music is typically at the heart of Aruban celebrations, and Dia di Brazil infuses the island’s rhythms of tambú, tumba, danza, and mazurka into the parades and events. Similar to the format of Carnival parades, various groups and organizations participate, each accompanied by a music trailer with live bands providing the soundtrack to shuffle on down the road. The Lantern Parade starts at 7pm on Friday, just as the sun sets, with paraders carrying lanterns to symbolically light the way, while the main parade takes place on Sunday at 3pm, taking the same route that begins and ends at Central di Barrio Brazil (a community center).
While Carnival’s roots stem from Caribbean traditions, Dia di Brazil is 100% authentically Aruban—from the music to the colorful folkloric costumes. It’s not glamorous and glitzy like Carnival, it’s homegrown by the people, for the people. If you want a truly local cultural experience, this is it. The event has grown in popularity, with this year seeing 14 groups representing hundreds of participants—from toddlers to seniors—and hundreds more enjoying from the side of the road.
Food is also central to Dia di Brazil. There were several small food vendors set up in front of various homes along the parade route during Friday’s Lantern Parade, and all day Sunday there’s a Food Festival featuring tastes of local dishes at Centro di Barrio Brazil.
The Aruba Tourism Authority recognizes the invaluable contribution that Dia di Brazil brings to keeping the island’s culture and heritage alive and relevant to both young and old, and this year sponsored a small grandstand of complimentary seating for locals and island guests to enjoy both parades, and De Palm Tours offered a special transportation package for island guests from the hotel areas to enjoy Sunday’s main parade.
If you can’t make it to Aruba for the Carnival season, a vacation in Aruba during September and Dia di Brazil weekend brings an opportunity to connect authentically to Aruba’s culture and its people.
