Dos forasteros en la ciudad (two strangers in the city)

Finally!

After a long, but relatively pleasant flight, we are safe and sound in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

Everything went smoothly, no trouble with customs anywhere, no questions asked. Watched a few movies on the plane (Little Miss Sunshine (very good) and Barnyard (a nice easy watching animation)), studied a bit of spanish and slept a little. In other words, nothing really happened to prepare us for the culture shock.

I knew it was too good to be true! Even though was prepared for having a bit of a tough time I didn't realise that NOBODY speaks ANY English! We arrived on Guarulos Airport and exchanged a few dollars to Reals. One US$ is equal to about 2 Reals.

After this we tried to phone the hostel. We managed to get a phonecard quite easily, but operating the phone was a lot harder. The instructions are all in Portuguese! We asked a few people to help, but nobody understood us. At last we found a information booth and there we experienced the warmth and friendliness of the Brazillians. They were very helpful and at least spoke a little bit of English. We finally caught the correct bus and we were on our way.

The city is incredible. I have never seen something this big! 17 million inhabitants, most of them very poor. Certain parts look a lot like the Townships of South Africa. It is very rundown, without proper water and electricity. The big difference is that you can't just ignore them and go around. You go through the heart... The hostel where we are staying is nice, clean and secure and at least they can speak English. The rooms are about $18 per person in a double room. Not to bad, although it is possible to go a lot cheaper. But then you have to go into the shadier parts of the city (and our area is bad enough).

We went for a bit of a walk through the area searching for food and getting our bearings. It feels very alive here, the night clubs are throbbing, the restaurants are full and everybody is out and about. I'll try and get some photos sometime, but I don't feel comfortable carrying my camera in plain view just yet. Not here! Everyone here drinks beer and it seems as if they all party on the sidewalks! There are groups of people standing around drinking and being merry. Have already seen a couple of very "colourful characters"! Public affection is also not a problem (gay couples as well).

We went to a nice little bar/café and ended up ordering by pointing a things and mixing a bit of spanish in between. The sandwiches were very nice and the local beer, Bhrama, was very refreshing. They give you a 600 ml bottle of the sweetish, fruity beer and a couple of small glasses and then everyone shares. It was a very interesting experience!

We'll probably stay one or two more days in Sao Paulo as we try to sort out our travel arrangements. We will be heading west next to Foz de Iguazu. It is a 16h bus trip so we will be able to see a lot of the country side.

Now we have to go get some free Caiperhina, Brazil's most famous cocktail in the hostel bar! And then off to bed for a nice, long, well-deserved rest!

Internet is cheap and reasonably fast so I'll be updating often.

Neil