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Keep time free for
ARMAEEO DOS BEZIOS
, or BEzios as it's more commonly known; direct buses run from Rio at least five times a day, or every fifteen minutes from Cabo Frio, a bumpy fifty-minute ride along a cobbled road. A place of great natural beauty, it's a bit like taking a step out of Brazil and into some high-spending Mediterranean resort: built in the Portuguese colonial style, its narrow cobbled streets are lined with restaurants, bars and chic boutiques where you can buy beach gear at extortionate prices, and even the landscape appears more Mediterranean than Brazilian. BEzios has been nicknamed "Brazil's St Tropez", and it comes as little surprise to find that it was "discovered" by none other than Brigitte Bardot, who stumbled upon it by accident while touring the area in 1964. Despite being transformed overnight from humble fishing village to playground of the rich, BEzios didn't change much until some serious property development took hold in the 1980s. Now, during the high season (December to February), the population swells from 16,000 to 150,000, the fishing boats that once ferried the catch back to shore take pleasure-seekers island-hopping and scuba diving, and the roads connecting the town with the outlying beaches have been paved. This is the kind of place one either loves or hates: if a crowded resort full of high-spending beautiful people is your thing then you're sure to fall for BEzios, but if not give it a miss - at least during the summer high season.
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