this is one of the best explanations of a brazilian I have seen:
http://www.femail.com.au/brazilianwax.htm
(and, depending on your painthreshhold, it's true)
A brazilian leaves you will a "landing strip" on the front of your vagina.. .a very small landing strip -- everywhere else is hair free.
Full Brazilian, takes EVERYTHING off...
A regular bikini wax keeps that area tidy - -it strips off the hair that might peak out when you were wearing a skimpy bikini.
For five minutes of pain, it lasts a lot longer than shaving.