When I think of Belém, it’s the vibrant music scene found in this corner of the Amazon, rather than the Cop30 climate summit, that comes to mind. And yet, the diplomatic event kicks off in the northeastern Brazilian city next week. A tip for visiting dignitaries? Forget samba or bossa nova: in Belém, brega dominates the charts. It is a tricky genre to define due to its mix of styles, from funk to calypso, which meld into a romantic, dramatic and admittedly quite cheesy whole. Earlier this year the UN recognised Belém as the world capital of the genre and the Brazilian government is leaning heavily on it to promote Cop30 and distract from months of headlines criticising its decision to host the global gathering there.

With the leaders of the world’s largest polluters (the US, China and India) not attending Cop30, many seem pessimistic about its chances of success. But, even with a parade of leaders still descending on the port city, it will be the divas of brega that will be the summit’s real stars. The most famous name of them all is Joelma, who has now gone solo after being part of the duo Banda Calypso. Her gigs are eclectic and carnivalesque. She embodies Belém and brega like no other. A recent European tour was packed full of Brazilians and their slightly bemused foreign partners. Joelma recently performed at Amazônia Live, a special pre-Cop30 concert, alongside other brega stars and the biggest diva of them all: Mariah Carey. But it was Joelma, performing atop a giant water-lily-shaped stage floating on the Guamá river, who stood out. The show was what my fellow countrymen would call “pure Brazilian juice”. Also on stage at Amazônia Live was the ever-impressive 86-year-old Dona Onete, who released her first record at the tender age of 73. Her song “No Meio do Pitiú”, which translates as “strong fish odour”, was a massive hit.

Growing up in São Paulo, I was not exposed to the wonderful sounds of Belém until singer Gaby Amarantos began incorporating it into her electric grooves, bringing the genre to other regions of Brazil. But as with so many of the nation’s infectious rhythms, it migrated first around the country and then beyond.
 
On the world stage, music is as big of a cog in Brazil’s soft-power machine as football. A little flamboyancy and a good dance are never amiss. Belém’s infrastructure has long been criticised but if there’s a dance floor (perhaps a well-made caipirinha too) then Cop30 has every chance of getting leaders to sing the same tune. While Brazil prepares to host the climate conference in the Amazonian city, I would advise all delegates to spare some time to explore the city’s music and shake their hips to the energetic and sweaty sounds of Belém’s wonderful divas.
 
Fernando Augusto Pacheco is a senior correspondent for Monocle Radio and host of ‘The Stack’. For more opinion, analysis and insight, subscribe to Monocle today. Further reading? In Brazil’s agricultural boom towns, ‘sertanejo’ now trumps bossa nova.

The Trump administration could be recalibrating a longstanding US policy regarding the balance of power in the Middle East (writes Rory Jones). A potential multibillion-dollar deal to sell F-35s to Saudi Arabia reportedly passed a key Pentagon review stage this week. If further approvals from the defence department, state department and Congress follow, it would test Washington’s legal commitment to conserve Israel’s “qualitative military edge”. Until now, only democratic allies have been sold the top-of-the-range aircraft but Saudi Arabia hopes to buck the trend. Despite Israel’s deal for 25 additional F-35s in the coming years, a sale to the Gulf state would dramatically alter the strategic advantage that the Israeli military has over its neighbours.

But it is likely that any sale would be contingent on Riyadh normalising its relations with Israel. Using the F-35 as a diplomatic tool is not without precedent. President Trump agreed to sell 50 jets to the United Arab Emirates in his first term, following the signing of the Abraham Accords, though it was later blocked by president Biden. As the White House prepares to welcome Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman later this month, it appears that the supersonic stealth aircraft are once again on the table.

In the latest issue we profile five new openings that have caught our eye, from the Park Hyatt’s debut Malaysian property to a hushed hotel hidden in plain sight amid the bustle of the Spanish capital. Here’s one from Fürstenau.

Schloss Schauenstein, Switzerland
The ivy-clad, medieval Schloss Schauenstein in the small Alpine town of Fürstenau has long been a place of culinary excellence under chef Andreas Caminada (writes Sonia Zhuravlyova). The Graubünden-born restaurateur is known for his love of local produce, serving up delights such as herb and roe cannelloni, fresh fish and hölzige geiss goat’s cheese.

To mark the hotel’s 20th anniversary, the castle’s interiors have been renovated by Danish design studio Space Copenhagen. Its ancient stone walls, timber beams and winding staircases have been softened with oak, wool and linen finishes. Vintage pieces mingle with modern designs – sofas by &Tradition, Gubi chairs, Frama’s Sintra stone tables – while bedrooms have been refreshed with furniture from the likes of B&B Italia and Cassina. Bathrooms, finished in stone with minimalist fixtures, have rainfall showers and deep tubs.
schauenstein.ch

For a glimpse into the other boltholes on our list, from Athens and Kuala Lumpur to Madrid and Marrakech, click here.