Roots and Rhythms: My Journey Back to Brazil

I’ve just come back from Brazil and I feel like my whole body is still buzzing with it. Each place I visited had its own heartbeat, its own rhythm, and together they reminded me of all the layers of home that live inside me.

First was São Paulo, the city where I was born. The moment I landed, I was wrapped in its noise. The endless honking of cars, the chatter of people, the rumble of buses. High-rise buildings rise like walls of concrete, sometimes so grey and uninviting they almost push you away. But then you find a street lined with old, traditional houses, their balconies full of plants, their tiles still shining with history. That’s São Paulo: it hides its beauty, but it’s there if you know where to look. And for me, the warmth of it comes most of all from my family and friends. Sitting at a noisy table, laughter spilling over each other’s voices, I felt the chaos turn into comfort.

From there, I escaped to the mountains, to São Roque. The air was cooler, the kind that fills your lungs and makes you breathe deeper without even realising. Birds sang from every corner, the forest whispered with every breeze, and I felt the same peace I had known years ago when I lived there. That was where Jungle Glow was first born: in the silence and inspiration of those trees. Walking through them again, I felt as if they had been waiting for me. The roots of that place aren’t just in the ground, they’ve grown into me, and they will never leave.

And then came Bahia, the Cacao Coast. If São Paulo is all speed and São Roque is stillness, Bahia is rhythm. The Atlantic Rainforest tumbles into the ocean in a burst of green, and the air hums with life—birds calling, fresh coconut water, waves rolling, crickets singing at night. The colours there feel brighter: the red of ripe cacao, the blue of the endless sky, the gold of the sunrise as it breaks over the sea. I swam in the warm, calm water, felt the salt on my skin, and let time slow down until all that existed was the present moment. Morning with the birds, evening with the waves. It was pure presence, pure joy.

Coming back, I feel like I’ve brought all of this with me: the chaos, the stillness, the rhythm. It’s this energy that will keep flowing through me, and into everything I create with Jungle Glow.