bom dia brazil

The flight from Caracas to São Paulo took around six hours, but because São Paulo is two and a half hours ahead of Caracas (itself a half hour ahead of Boston) I spent most of the day in transit, and the São Paulo International Airport did everything in its power to prolong this exposure. Collecting my bags, I made a valiant effort to exit the airport, but was foiled my the cleverly-designed Duty Free shop that appeared to be guarding the exit. In reality, having failed to notice what was little more than an unmarked door leading out into the airport, I entered a maze of tax-free items from which there was no escape. It took me the better part of 20 minutes just to get to the point where I could then wait to clear customs and officially enter the country. After a bit of chaos, I was able to get a cab into town that dropped me off at my friend Walter's apartment, a little more than 15 hours since I had first left the apartment in Caracas.

Surprisingly alert, I showered, changed, and joined Walter and a collection of his friends for diner at a nice little Italian/Brazilian restaurant. The food was great, the company was excellent, and it was a good opportunity for me to meet the group of people I would be spending a good deal of time with over the next few weeks. After dinner, we drove to a rather hip and trendy night club as a way of integrating me into Paulista culture. We stayed out late enough for me to be just shy of the 24 hour-long day mark, and I was properly exhausted when we finally returned to Walter's place. I must say, he had quite the set up ready for me in his converted three-bedroom apartment, and I continued to feel spoiled by South America as I sank into my comfortable double-bed.

The next day was kicked off by a stop by a nearby shopping mall with Walter's friend Andrea. I was hoping to find some clothes to replace the ones stolen in Venezuela, but time and again Brazilian fashion/sizes didn't exactly conform to even my more eccentric standards. I returned from my shopping venture to pack for a trip out to Walter's country house out in Minas, which promised to offer a few days of rest, relaxation, and (most importantly for me) rural surroundings. Adrea was also coming along, and the two of us met Walter and walked over to his parent's apartment (half a block down the street from Walter's) for a quick lunch followed by a frenzy of loading. Soon enough we were off, the towers of São Paulo melting away into the background as we sped north.

Whizzing by the Brazilian countryside.

The drive took most of the afternoon, and when we finally pilled out of the car in the charming provincial town of Saint Sebastian of Paradise, I was more than ready to stretch my legs. made a pit stop to see Walter's grandmother - most of his family lives in SSoP. We had a light dinner, performed a rather inspired arrangement on kiddie instruments for Octavio - Walter's gigantic 16-month old cousin - and then headed off for the country house. Andrea and I were shown to our rooms, and we spent of the rest of the evening relaxing by the pool. The pool would largely become the focal point of our activities over the next few days. I have to imagine that in the few days we spent in SSoP, I swam as much in this pool as I did my own back in New Hampshire, during its all too brief life. In the morning, I would wake up before anyone else, and slip down to the water for a few laps while breakfast was set out by the maid. Walter's father was usually the first up after me, and we would sit and enjoy an embarrassingly full breakfast while everyone else slowly left their beds. Walter was always the last out of bed by far, and I grew to not expect the pleasure of his company before 13:00, though usually much later. This was in part a symptom of a developed nocturnal habit that usually kept us up passed 3:00 in the morning (on at least one occasion everyone did not sit down to dinner until a quarter to midnight), and in part a result of the excellent sleeping environment provided by the countryside.

Casa, sweet casa.

On our second full day in Minas, we took a trip out to see the family ranch, and the "villa rustica" (as apt a way of employing my Latin education to describe something as I've come across) farther out of town. Our adventure began with a tour of the villa rustica, currently in the final stages of construction. The tour was punctuated by a visit to the basement, where with a series of loud claps, Walter's father startled some bats into flying around our heads. A second round of applause accidentally frightened a pair of bats into the main area of the house where we cooridinated our efforts to herd them outdoors. Quite proud of our mastery of nature, Walter, Andrea, and I continued our tour of the grounds, where I enjoyed seeing my first wild parrots and leaf-cutter ants. There were, I am grieved to report, no monkies in the trees that day, and so the bats, birds, and bugs were the only creatures I was able to see.

An admirable Land Rover advertisement if I do say so myself.

Before returning to the country house, we drove through the family coffee plantation in persuit of a rather elusive waterfall, nessled in one of the few stretches of pristine Atlantic forest left. While the womenfolk waited in the car, Walter, his father, and I set out through the mud and vines on an admittedly short, yet very satisfying expedition. The waterfall thus appriciated (from a safe distance, given my history with foreign waterfalls) we returned to our lives of near-comatose activity lounging by the pool.

Brave river explorers.

Different branches of Walter's family were constantly stopping by the house, and it was right after a rather large family lunch that one of Walter's cousins happened upon my Portuguese phrase book. It is fare to say that the selection of words and phrases complied in such a book provide insight as to the author's opinion on what forms of social interaction their readers are likely to be involved in. And so much was made of the "Dating", "Romance", and "Problems" sections of the book, which were the cause of many mock-scandalized looks cast my way.

Gazing out at SSoP from the window of my room.

We spent our last days in pool and hammock-related relaxation before finally packing things up and heading back to the city. Saint Sebastian of Paradise provided an excellent introduction to Brazilian food, culture, and napping habits, but it was time to switch things up with a proper immersion into the São Paulo nightlife. But that's a story for another time.