Before starting work with whl.travel, Laura Lott studied tourism at Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais in Belo Horizonte. Like the other staff on the belo-horizonte.travel team, Laura is an avid traveller with a passion for seeing the world beyond the corner of it that she calls home.

Laura takes in a rock beach on the island of Hvar, Croatia, where the water is a shade of blue unlike anything found in Brazil

WHL Group: Which is your favorite WHL Group destination and which would you most like to visit?
Laura: I would be most interested in visiting Turkey someday. It would be awesome to go to Istanbul and get to know more about the Byzantine legacy, and to see Cappadocia where I’ve heard there is amazing natural beauty.

WHLG: What would you never travel without?
Laura: I guess I would never travel without my flip-flops and sunscreen.

WHLG: What do you miss most about home when travelling?
Laura: I miss my bed and the routine of eating rice and beans every day for lunch. Most of all, I miss my friends.

With the 'I AMsterdam' sign behind them, Laura (second from the right) and friends enjoy a Dutch summer day on the famous Dam Square of Amsterdam

WHLG: What’s the most adventurous trip you’ve ever taken?
Laura: I would say it was at this summer vacation, when I hitchhiked in Brazil from Lençóis, a city of the Chapada Diamantina in the state of Bahia, to Salvador. A friend and I were travelling for almost a month and we ended up completely broke on the road. So, to catch our flight home we had to figure out a way to get to Salvador. It was thrilling and we were lucky to have the chance to meet such different and interesting people on our way.

WHLG: What is your scariest travel experience?
Laura: I guess I can say that my hitchhiking trip in Bahia (see above) was also the scariest one. We didn’t know the people who gave us a ride, and the road wasn’t the best either.

WHLG: If you could go on holiday with anyone famous – living or dead – who would you take?
Laura: I’d have to say Johnny Depp.

For those who like to be in touch with nature, the Cachoeira (waterfall) da Fumaça in Chapada Diamantina, Brazil, has one of the most incredible views Laura has ever seen

WHLG: Describe the best and worst accommodation you’ve ever stayed in.
Laura: The best one was a hostel called Paprika in Budapest, Hungary. It was like a home for people from all over the world. Every day we had dinner together and went with the guys that worked there to some bar or club.

The worst accommodation was a hostel in Berlin, Germany. It was early July and Berlin felt like it was on fire! I confess that the weather was warmer than in Brazil. The rooms were crowded, there was no fan or air conditioner and the windows barely opened. It was like being in a sauna.

WHLG: Describe your earliest travel memory.
Laura: When I was really young, my whole family – including my grandma, grandpa, uncles, aunts and cousins – used to travel together. I remember us going every summer to some beach on Brazil’s coast or our country house. We rented a big house by the sea and made the most of the quality time on our vacation together. It was like a summer camp, but with family. Those were great times.

Laura and her friend Aiko enjoy the amazing blend of history, culture and friendly welcome in Split, Croatia

WHLG: Please briefly explain what you think local travel is.
Laura: I think local travel is experiencing a place by getting a close knowledge of the culture, food and history of the cities visited. It also includes an interaction between the tourist and the local community that allows visitors to truly know where they are visiting. This kind of tourist goes beyond the travel guidebooks and mingles with the locals. They are concerned not only about seeing the tourist attractions, but also about the problems and issues of each place.

WHLG: In what ways do you see local travel benefiting the country in which you live?
Laura: Brazil is well known for its natural beauty, culture and history. It also covers a large area that provides different landscapes for all types of tourists. Such variety allows the local travellers to explore and discover the unknown while they have the chance to interact with the local community and learn more about its cultures and traditions. Local travel is a way to improve travelling and get more knowledge about any destination.

The beautiful Brazilian horizon is not the only attraction of Belo Horizonte, even though it’s what inspired the name of this splendid city, the capital of Minas Gerais state. Did you know that Belo Horizonte, or Beagá, as locals fondly call it, is also the Brazilian capital of bars?

There is a huge number of bars all across the city, giving you many options for a cool beer, caipirinha or cachaça (a Brazilian kind of rum). You can also get appetisers and good food in a multitude of places where people enjoy going out and meeting or making friends.

Brahma beer with a short lagoinha glass and an appetiser

The most popular Brazilian beer brands are Brahma and Skol, neither of which is very strong compared to European beers. You’ll notice Brazilians sharing a cold bottle of beer, especially when the weather is hot, in short lagoinha glasses that can hold only a 190 millilitres. It’s the perfect way to ensure that your beer doesn’t get warm! A 600-millilitre bottle costs about 3 Brazilian reais.

If you aren’t much of a beer drinker, some of the best cachaças -– like Seleta, Vale Verde and Germana -– are produced in Minas Gerais state. One shot in a bar may vary from 3 to 5 reais. Most foreigners prefer to try them in mixed drinks, such as caipirinhas. Traditional caipirinhas are made from cachaça, ice, mashed limes and sugar. The average cost is 7 reais. They can be quite strong, so it’s best to have some appetisers as well. Popular choices include carne de sol e mandioca (dried, salted beef and manioc) and linguiça e torresmo (pork sausage and hard fried bacon). Both average about 15 reais a portion.

A mouthwatering selection of cachaças

One special place we recommend to all travellers is the Mercado Central, perfect for people of all ages, with friends, family or alone, for a drink or just to taste typical regional Mineiro dishes like pão de queijo (cheese bread rolls) and feijão tropeiro (beans with sausage, manioc crumbs, onions and eggs). Don’t miss the chance to drink a beer standing at the tiny and one-of-a-kind bars, where the waiters are eager to serve you another local specialty: fígado acebolado (cow’s liver with onions and zucchini). Of course, if you prefer shopping, you can choose from over 400 stores.

There are lots of handicrafts on sale at the Mercado Central

During the weekend, the Mercado Central is very busy; on Sunday, it closes early, at 1:00 pm. Be sure to leave enough time to get lost inside and then seek out two notable curiosities. First is the elevator lady, Therezinha, who possesses perhaps the most hospitable smile in Belo Horizonte. (She works only during the afternoon.) No matter how bad your day may be, she inspires you to spend the rest of it in good humour. Second is the two bars located face-to-face on the ground floor: Bar Zé da Onça and Bar da Tia. On busy market days, be careful as you pass by them along the balcony that forms a corridor next to the stairs; a waiter might be lurking on one of the benches behind the balcony and try to put a beer in your hand before you can blink!

Don't blink!

For more information about Belo Horizonte, including accommodations, tours, activities and lots of insider tips, contact your local whl.travel connection: Intex-Soluções em Turismo’s Vitor, Ramon and Wallace at www.belo-horizonte.travel.