Perplexed in the City

Hello gang, I figured it was about time for me to check back in and give you all an update on how my week in Sao Paulo has been. Since I arrived, I have been treated like a prince by my friends George and Dani and their families. For those of you who don't know the connection I have with these two, George was my roommate on Semester at Sea and Dani is his longtime girlfriend who was on the ship as well. They have been great over the years about letting me play the third wheel.

George lives with his mother in one of the more upscale parts of town, called Jarjins (gardens). They live in an apartment that takes up the entire 6th floor of the building, and to my delight they have amazing air conditioning! Their maid/cook is named YaYa, and she never ceases to amaze me with her culinary delights. I arise every morning to a meal that makes me giggle inside because of the ridiculous amount of choices. I am beyond grateful for the treatment I have received during my stay, I feel the love of my friends with every meal that I eat and night that I spend in their exquisite home.

The shopping here is unparalleled, the only place I have seen that I could compare it to is Manhattan. Every store seems to be a different kind of luxury brand, even if it simply a small boutique with a few pairs of shoes and handbags. It is fun to simply walk in and ask how much a pair of shoes or a bag is just to hear how high the prices are. As you can tell, most of the shopping is geared towards women, and walking through the streets you can tell that all of the items from the stores are put to wonderful, wonderful use. I shudder at the amount of damage that my Mom and sister could do in this area. They are patiently waiting your lottery win and subsequent arrival ladies!

Sao Paulo as a whole is something that is difficult for me to comprehend, let alone describe to you. There are seemingly countless different neighborhoods in the city, some in the foreground and others stretched far on the horizon, but each one is the size of Denver. I need to try and find a spot in the city where I can have a 360 degree view so I can give everyone at home a feel for how awesomely massive the city is. I took a trip to the largest park in the city on foot yesterday, which took me about an hour, and I had merely gone from one of these neighborhoods to the next. I feel as if I could eat at a different restaurant and visit a different part of the city everyday for a year and I would be laughed at if I said I had seen it all. The population varies, depending on how much of the area you put under the label of Sao Paulo, but the best estimates range anywhere from 18 to 26 million people. Just writing that now blew my mind! It's a daunting task to experience as much as I can, but I do have a considerable amount of time, so I will just take it step by step, day by day, fresh start over, and a different hand to play. The deeper we fall, the stronger we stay, and we'l be better the second tiiiiime around!

As far as culture is concerned, there are definitely some differences. Ever since I travelled with Semester at Sea, I strive to find the connections in how we live and love rather than the disparities. It is also hard for me to describe a culture or population as a whole when I have only seen a few parts of the country and only met a microscopic percentage of the population, but I will share a bit of my experience. The most welcome change for me has been the schedule that everyone runs on here. Let's take dinner: in the States we are usually getting started with dinner at around 7, and eat for an hour or so in total if that. Here I have not started dinner before 9 and it is more of a social event. Everyone really takes their time and enjoys each piece of the meal separately, including amazing drinks called caipirinhas complete with any type of fruit your heart desires. Dinner will run for a few hours and then it's time for dessert or a late night espresso. If you are heading out to a club, you usually don't head in that direction until after midnight, and when George and I went out on Saturday night (to one of the greatest clubs in the world, mind you! check it out here: http://www.d-edge.com.br/) our return home was greeted by an immense Paulista sunrise. I imagine that my Dad would do very well here, as he is known simply as "the night owl" back at home (bahaha!!).

The truest Brazilian culinary experience I have had so far has been our trip to a restaurant that served traditional feijoada, which is pictured above. It is a bean and meat stew that is slow cooked for days and served with rice and pastries. The meat is fall off the bone tender and it really needs to make it's way to the States as it is one of the world's great hangover cures (along with a hair of the dog caipirinha).

I am excited for the transition into the next aspect of my trip here, which is to start work. I am moving up to Campinas, which is 40 minutes northwest of Sao Paulo this weekend to get settled in and I will begin working next week. I have been working towards trying to rid myself of any expectation, and as it has served me well thus far on my journey I will continue to use that philosophy when thinking about the new position I will hold and the company I will be working for. As for right now, I am heading out the door to visit one of the city's larger markets to experience yet another small piece of the puzzle that is Sao Paulo.

If any of you have any specific questions about my trip or the culture here, feel free to leave comments and I will do my best to respond in the next post. I like to simply see myself as a conduit between two worlds. I am plugged in to a brave new world full of vibration, spirit and richness that hopefully I can share with you using this blog as a vessel. Thanks for reading and you will hear from me again soon.

Paz e Amor,

Conor