Daire Collins | Contributing Writer
Rafael Duarte has managed to create a living out of ‘work’ which most of us could only dream of, travelling the globe, trekking, hiking and cycling, all the while documenting his trips
The goal and driving force behind Miramundos is to inspire the common man and to illustrate how a person’s dreams of adventure are easily achievable
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Born in Rio De Janeiro, a city which we equate with Carnivale and beaches, Rafael’s childhood would not strike you as a precursor to the life of an intrepid explorer. Sport is a major part of life in Brazil, yet because of this, almost contradictorily; it is not taken as seriously. After attending high school in the US, he returned to Brazil to study and soon after began his career as a journalist and photographer. In 2009, Rafael and his childhood friend Jaime Portas Vilaseca created the expedition company, Miramundos. This business became a national success and the business has expanded to include expeditions across South America and Europe, with Rafael recording these impressive trips along the way. The goal and driving force behind Miramundos is to inspire the common man and to illustrate how a person’s dreams of adventure are easily achievable.
While hugely popular here in Ireland, they were in the first two Brazilian journalists to record their journey on the pilgrimage
Rafael and Jaime’s most recent Miramundos adventure together was a mammoth cycling expedition, retracing the Estrada Real through the heart of Brazil. The team had previously undertaken a similar style trip a bit closer to Ireland. Their first Miramundos trip was to tackle the entire length of the original French route on El Camino de Santiago. While hugely popular here in Ireland, they were in the first two Brazilian journalists to record their journey on the pilgrimage. Their blog and photography coverage proved so popular that they recently released a book detailing the trip. For Rafael, the most memorable part of the trip was the meeting of fellow travellers along the wood lined paths. This sense of camaraderie with a fellow traveller inspired him to encourage more people to take up the Estrata Real, in the hope of creating a similar route.
Even in the month of May, Morocco’s Toubkal remains dusted with snow and ice, at 4,167m it is no easy climb
Rafael spent time last year in the Sahara desert in Morocco, before ascending the Toubkal the highest mountain in North Africa. This was a major step toward improving his climbing skills in order to able to scale higher peaks. Even in the month of May, Morocco’s Toubkal remains dusted with snow and ice, at 4,167m it is no easy climb. Mont Blanc was the next target for Rafael, an experience which he speaks frankly about in the interview. What Rafael only revealed after the interview was that, three weeks earlier, he had been bed ridden in a Thai hospital. While traversing the jungles of South East Asia, Rafael had contracted Dengue Fever, a debilitating illness transmitted by mosquito. The stay in hospital put him behind on his training plans, forcing an increased intensity within a smaller time-frame. Upon his release from hospital, Rafael immediately restarted an even tougher training regime in order to reach the minimum fitness level for scaling Mont Blanc.
Hear more about Rafael’s expedition in his interview with Daire Collins here:
