24 Sep 2005
In the run up to my trip to Brazil I was very excited, but also a little apprehensive. After all, Brazil has a slightly fearsome reputation for crime. That may be partially deserved in some restricted areas, but my own experience of the country and people was universally positive. Any country has cities with slightly dodgy areas, which you are wise to avoid, or travel through with caution. I can honestly say that I've felt less safe and more threatened in parts of Birmingham and London than anywhere I went in Brazil1.
Brazilian people are lovely. Not just in a 'Girl from Ipanema' kind of way2, but also in their warmth, friendliness, openness and generosity. I could give a slew of examples of the thoughtful and welcoming way in which we were treated---despite our mostly lamentable lack of Portuguese---but one instance in particular will probably illustrate it well.
After a day's work, our rather large party (more than 20 people) set out for the nearest bar, to which we'd been the previous night. Unfortunately it was closed (possibly because we had provided a week's takings in a single night), so we moved on to the next one on the block. This place was tiny, and only had a handful of chairs---certainly not enough to seat all of us. We didn't mind very much and were happy to stand, but noticed as we were ordering beers and sorting ourselves out that the few locals already in the bar were disappearing. I worried that we'd driven them out, but a few moments later they re-emerged from all directions, carrying chairs from their own houses for us to sit on.
Can you imagine that kind of thing happening in the UK?
1 To give you some context to my comments (and for the rest of my posts about Brazil), I spent the first few days at our base in a small town about 3 hours from Sao Paulo with a large group of people from the University, then travelled with them to the Pantanal for a further few days. They then returned to their base and I stayed on in the Pantanal on my own for 10 days. Finally, I travelled back to meet up with the group for the last couple of days. ↑
2 There are---it has to be said (even though I feel shallow saying it)---a huge number of physically stunning Brazilian people, both male and female. ↑
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Gald to see you back! Sounds interesting. The part about the chairs would never happen in Chicago either, so don't feel left out!by Nikhil Mulani @ 26/09/2005 12:10 am • Permalink
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Andrew: Thanks! ThoughtBadger: Actually, the only thing I find depressing about Birmingham (and this is hardly unique to my city) is the litter. But still, I came back with a really filthy cold, and those links really made my day. Did you see the [Brummie Baywatch](http://mysite.freeserve.com/rock_otter/vids/Baywatch.wmv)? The guts of that man strolling around an icy Victoria Square in tiny red Speedos has to be admired... Nikhil Mulani: I can't think of many other places it *would* happen. Amazing.4
I thought those links would tickle you! I also liked Hoochie Coochie Man from Kingstanding. I only noticed after making the post that you are included in his list of Brummie blogs, so it seems you may now have become an unwitting ambassador for Brum....by ThoughtBadger @ 27/09/2005 12:10 am • Permalink
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Hello I have just read your blog concerning your trip to Brazil. I must say youâve captured the very essence of Brazilian people. Itâs all true about how generous, friendly and welcoming people are. As for dangerous places I have to see that crime in Brazil is, sadly, very high in some parts of the country. Rio De Janeiro and São Paulo are very unknown for their crime and violence reputation. However, all these problems are sometimes restricted to certain areas and places. Apparently, you have never been to the northeast part of the country. I strongly recommend places like João Pessoa, Natal and Fortaleza, which for a biologist, places like these are like heaven. All the best Brazilian_blokeby Brazilian_Bloke @ 09/10/2005 1:11 pm • Permalink
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Ãtimo que você tenha gostado do Brasil e de nós brasileiros e que divulge isso para os seus compatriotas. Diversos estrangeiros já transmitiram-me a mesma impressão que você teve. Gostariamos também , nós brasileiros , de receber um tratamento gentil quando em visita ao seu paÃs. A propósito , seria muito bom se vocês tivessem o interesse de aprender um pouco de Português. It's nice that you liked Brazil and us, brazilians and saying that to your friends. Many strangers already told me the same thing. Whe, brazilians, would also like a gentle treatment when we visit your country. By the way, it would be good you had the interest of learning a little bit of portuguese..by Sebastião Corrêa @ 18/10/2005 10:10 pm • Permalink
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Sebastião Corrêa: I'm sure that people everywhere would like to get treated as strangers do in Brazil. One of your countrymen was treated particularly appallingly by my country, which saddens me a great deal, and makes me very angry. I did actually make an honest attempt to learn Portuguese before I went, but I didn't have much time, and had to learn from a book. It turned out that my pronunciation was so bad that no-one could understand me! Next year a colleague and I are going to take proper lessons and practice with native Portuguese speakers to make sure that we can hold a proper conversation. -----8
Hellow i have read your trip story to Brazil. but i found that people of that country can be compared to people of Tanzania. When you will be luck to have a trip in Africa please visit Tanzania you will enjoy.by bendera @ 24/12/2007 4:07 pm • Permalink
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rio de janeiro is amazing city and your post is tooby travel to rio de janeiro @ 21/02/2008 3:30 pm • Permalink
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Cool post! Thanks!
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Excellent post capturing the essence of the Brazilian culture. Kudos!----- Welcome back bsag, we are all glad to hear from you again. It is great that you have had such a wonderful trip, and I hope Birmingham does not seem too depressing by comparison. Lastly there is absolutely nothing shallow about appreciating physical beauty, it's something to rejoice in!by ThoughtBadger @ 25/09/2005 9:09 pm • Permalink