Santa Catarina is one of the Brazilian states that shows the most signs of recent European colonization. Most of the population are descendants of European settlers.
The Portuguese started arriving in the 1750s. The came mainly from the Azores islands, and colonized the coast. In the late 18th century, half of Santa Catarina's population was Portuguese-born. These Portuguese created many important towns of the State, such as Florianópolis, the capital.
Germans started arriving in 1828. They were peasants that came to Brazil to get their own lands. They did this since Germany had many people and many people had no lands to work. German immigration was very low, until the 1850s, when many Germans started arriving in Southern Brazil. To create more German colonization in Southern Brazil, the Brazilian government created many "German colonies." Many of these German colonies became big towns, such as Blumenau and Joinville, the largest city in Santa Catarina.
Germans had kept to themselves in these communities for decades. They did not have much contact with other people of Brazil. For generations they were able to speak German and keep their German traditions in Brazil. This changed in the 1930s, when Brazil declared war against Germany in 1942. The German immigrants learned Portuguese and followed a "Brazilian way of life."
Nowadays, the German influence in the State of Santa Catarina is still very strong. Many towns still have many parts of the German culture. For example, Pomerode is a small town where 90% of the people are German-Brazilian. Most of the people speak German fluently. Another example is the Oktoberfest of Blumenau and many other towns in the region. The architecture and food also show German influence.
Italian settlers started arriving in Santa Catarina in 1875. They came in large numbers until the 1910s. They were peasants from Northern Italy. They created Italian colonies close to the coast. In the beginning, the Italian settlement had failed. This was because many Italians died of tropical diseases or left the colonies to find better conditions. However, in southern Santa Catarina, they found cooler weather and better lands, and the colonies did very well. Many Italians worked in the coal industry.
Trail
A trail is a pedestrian path or road mainly used for walking, but often also for cycling, cross-country skiing or other activities. Some trails are off-limits to everyone other than hikers, and few trails allow motorized vehicles.
In the United States, the word footpath is also used to mean a trail; however in Australian English, New Zealand English, Indian English, and Irish English this word means "sidewalk" (American English) or "pavement" (British English).
In Australia, the word track can be used interchangeably with trail, and can refer to anything from a dirt road to a pedestrian walkway (generally also unpaved). The term "trail" gained popularity during World War II, when many servicemen from the United States were stationed in Australia, which probably influenced its being adopted by elements of the Australian media at the time (see Kokoda Track). In New Zealand, the word track is used almost exclusively except in reference to cross-country skiing, where trail is used.
Trail use has become very popular for a wide variety of users. Some trails are meant as nature trails, and are used by people learning about the natural world. Many trails are day trails, what means that they are generally used by people out for a short hike, less than a day. Some trails are backpacking trails, or long-distance trails, and are used by both day hikers and by backpackers. Some of the trails are over a thousand miles (1,500 km) long and may be hiked in sections by backpackers, or completed in one trip by dedicated hikers. Some trails are specifically used by other outdoor enthusiasts to gain access to another feature, such as good climbing sites. Many runners also favor running on trails rather than pavement, as giving a more vigorous work-out and better developing agility skills, as well as providing a more pleasant exercise environment. See trail running.
Stairway is another way to ascend higher slopes. Stairway trails are usually for walking only. The stairs are constructed using cuts in dirt, rocks or concrete. Popular stairway trails include Stairway Trails in Bernal Heights East - San Francisco, Stairs at many hill top Hindu temple (Tirumala, Palani) used during Pilgrimage & Machu Picchu.
Recent decades have seen an explosion of interest in cycling, both street-type and off-road type. A common term for these facilities is simply "bike trail". These trails may be built to a different set of standards than foot trails, requiring more stable, harder surfaces, less strenuous grades, longer sight visibility, and less sharp changes in direction. On the other hand, the cross-slope of a bike trail may be significantly greater than a foot trail, and the actual treadway may be narrower in some cases.
Horseback riding has continued to be a popular activity for many trail users. Again, horse trails must be built to different standards than other trails. Sight distance is an important issue with horse trails, as is overhead and side clearance. While trail surface types are a relatively unimportant issue with hikers, they may be an important issue with horses.
In cross-country skiing, a trail (also called a 'track' or 'piste') refers to the parallel grooves cut into the snow, one for each ski.
Motorized trail use also remains very popular with some people. Such terms as "ORV", "four-wheeling", "all-terrain vehicle", and others actually have highly specific meanings.
The Pardoner's Prologue and Tale
The Pardoner's Prologue and Tale is a story that is a part of "The Canterbury Tales" by English writer, Geoffrey Chaucer.
The Pardoner went on a journey to the town of Canterbury from Rouncivalle with his friend the Summoner.
The Pardoner had hair as yellow as wax which fell on his head smoothly wisp by wisp. He has piercing black eyes and his face was as smooth as he had just shaved. He had a thin and feeble voice yet he was hardly an old spiritual man.
Although the Pardoner was a priest he lived a life that was far from the word of Jesus Christ. He often broke many of the seven deadly sins including greed, gluttony, and pride. He earned a living through preaching and selling fake relics to his supporters. He lies to people and promises them salvation and prosperity for a price. He has even taken money from a poor widow with starving children in order buy himself more luxuries.
The tale describes him getting money from the crowd as he cared more about money than a holy life.
The host asks the Pardoner to tell a happy story after the sad tale that the Franklin told. The other people object to this and hope that he will tell a tale that is rich in morals.
He starts his tale by talking about three young men who, like him, do sinful things like drink alcohol and sleep with young women. The Pardoner goes on to talk about the sins of the men in detail especially gambling, drunkenness, and gluttony. These three young men are rioters from the town of Flanders.
One night the three drunken men were at a tavern when they saw a corpse being carried to a grave. They ask who had died and find out it is one of their friends who has been killed by a murderous thief named "Death". The three men plan to avenge their friend's death and kill Death themselves.
On their way to find Death they see an old man that says Death will not take him even in his old age and suffering. The man says that he had left Death under an oak tree and that he was sure to still be there. They run to the tree and instead of seeing Death, they see lots of gold under the tree. They want to bring the gold back under the cover of night so that nobody will think they have stolen it. They sat down and sent the youngest to fetch 3 pies and 3 bottles of wine.