“This land, Lord, it seems to me, from the southernmost point within my sight, to the northernmost point that can be seen from this port, is so vast that there must be 20 or 25 leagues of coast. Along the sea, in some parts there are great barriers, some red and others white, and the land above with plains covered in large trees. From one end to the other, it is all beaches..very level and most pleasant. From the sea, the remote and arid interior seems very large; as far as the eye can see there is tree-covered land–land which seems to us to be very extensive.” - Pero Vaz de Caminha