Lençóis Maranhenses

I look like a giant, rumpled white bedsheet stretching for miles and miles. But I'm not soft cloth—I'm made of bright, white sand. Can you imagine a desert so big? Tucked between my sandy wrinkles are sparkling jewels of blue and green water. It looks like a secret has been spilled all over my sand. Who am I? I am the Lençóis Maranhenses, a magical desert in a country called Brazil that's filled with thousands of watery pools.

You might be wondering how a desert like me can be full of water. It’s my special secret recipe. For thousands of years, nearby rivers have been carrying sand all the way to the big Atlantic Ocean. Then, strong winds pick up that sand and blow it back onto the land, creating my huge, rolling hills of sand, which are called dunes. I have two very special seasons. My rainy season lasts from January to June. During these months, rain falls from the sky and fills up all the spaces between my dunes. This creates thousands of beautiful, clear swimming pools called lagoons. Then, when the dry season arrives, the sun warms my sands, and the lagoons slowly begin to shrink. You might also wonder how fish suddenly appear in my pools. Well, some of their tiny eggs are carried here on the feet of birds. It’s a wonderful surprise when the rain comes and they hatch.

I am so special that people wanted to make sure I would always be safe. On June 2nd, 1981, I was officially named a National Park to protect my unique beauty. Now, people from all over the world come to visit me in Brazil. They love to walk barefoot on my soft, cool sand and splash and swim in my refreshing lagoons. It makes me happy to hear their laughter echoing across my dunes. I am a reminder that wonderful surprises can be found in the most unexpected places. I love showing everyone how even a desert can be full of life, water, and magic.