The history of Swiss immigration to Brazil began with the foundation of the colony of Nova Friburgo in 1819. Nova Friburgo was the first colonial company contracted by the Portuguese government. This paper is an invitation to go back in time to the period in which Nova Friburgo was founded, through the letters the immigrants wrote for publication in Swiss newspapers of the period. The meeting of the Old and the New Worlds is seen in these letters, as well as the encounter with other Swiss people already established in Rio de Janeiro or who were in the process of becoming so. They show the dynamics of the coming and going of immigrants, whether or not they participated in the companies. The migrants' perceptions, information and expectations set the tone for these messages.
history; Swiss immigration; Nova Friburgo; correspondence; expectations; representation
