Qualidade de Vida

I’m sorry – can I say these words?  I am so glad I am not living in the United States of America.

Seriously - let’s look at the facts.

I earn a living by working about 15 hours a week.

I drink fresh fruit juice almost every day (name your fruit – I drink it – for cheap).

The Brazilian government is not chomping at the bit to invade another country.

Family is everything here. More than vacation or ice cream.

Health care for all citizens is mandated in the constitution.

Gay couples have the right to partner and get the subsequent benefits.

The beaches are perfect, and the people at the beaches blow you away.

OK – so taxes are high, but don’t sweat the small things.

Our housing bubble has not burst yet.

You can eat chicken hearts at almost every restaurant.

Men in Speedos look better than men in surfer shorts.

There are two huge specialty chocolate company chains competing for your loyalty.

Mango ice cream.

I have not worn laced up shoes (except sneakers) in three years.

Which Sunday is today?

Qualidade de vida, baby!

Slackline at Whale Rock at Piratininga beach

Slacklines are all the rage. When you go to the beach there are practice lines pulled tight between palm trees all over.

Here's a great video showing this sport taken to a higher level - and at one of our favorite beaches.

You know it is winter in Brazil when

Photo source: http://www.madeinbrazilblog.com/blog/too-hot-for-monday-the-boys-at-frankie-morello/

You know it’s winter in Brazil when:

The women break out their shin-high boots (even if it’s still warm out).

You close your windows for the first time in 10 months.

The electric shower head water heater does not have the oomph to heat the cold water.

All the windows on the bus are closed, and the air conditioner is off.

Scarves are everywhere – everyone is wearing a scarf.

The gringos’ toes are white in their Havaianas.

Ice cream parlors are selling hot chocolate and coffee drinks.

Weekend street festivals (Festa Junina) feature hot corn on the cob and a super delicious piping hot stew over polenta to warm the belly (Angu à Baiana).

Locals will spend an hour in the sun on the beach (for exercise), but gringos will try to pretend it is sunny and warm all day.

Even the most unlikely among us will learn to cook bagels – if only to heat the kitchen.  =;-)

The mosquitoes are oddly absent.

You dig around and find your socks.

A day on Paquetá Island in Rio

Last Friday we spent the day touring Paquetá Island in Guanabara Bay.  That is, we took a ferry from Praça IV in Rio to the island, about 15 kilometers – it took about 80 minutes.  We had a great time, in spite of the grey and chilly weather. I highly recommend a visit to this peaceful local getaway. No motorized vehicles are allowed on the island.  It’s all about horses and bikes.

Paquetá is actually a neighborhood of Rio, but its history is quite unique.

Carriages wait for you at the ferry terminal.

Paqueta is as old as Rio itself.  The first record historians have of the island is in 1555.  It has been an independent entity, a part of neighboring mainland communities, fought over, re-incorporated, etc. – the tiny island has a rather tumultuous history, which you can read about in rich detail on their website here.

I loved how fully grown trees were in the middle of the streets.

This small, figure 8-shaped island has a total area of just 1.2 square kilometers, just 8 kilometers in circumference.  There are about 4,500 permanent residents, mostly from families with long ties to the island. Tourism is the main source of income, but in fact most residents work for the City of Rio in municipal positions such as water treatment, governance, teaching, grounds keeping, etc.

Luiz and I visited the island as part of a group from his tourism course. We took a horse drawn carriage around the edge of the island, stopping at featured points such as a lovely park with a path to an elevated lookout. The carriage driver was very informative and took pains to share his knowledge of local history, along with some critical political remarks.

The island has some really scenic beaches (although the water is not always safe to swim in) and some beautiful parks.  The views of São Gonçalo, Niterói, and Rio are great. The place is SUPER peaceful – perfect for a romantic picnic. It is also quite safe – so families can enjoy the shoreline without worry.

I suggest if you have a sunny day in Rio and you are looking for somewhere to go – definitely consider Paquetá.  Enjoy the ferry ride, rent a bike or ride a carriage, tour the island, settle on a beach or in a scenic park, later have lunch in a bay-side restaurant.

It’s not Martha’s Vineyard. It’s not Mackinac Island. It’s not Key West. But it has its charm and you will definitely feel very distant from the cacophony that can sometimes characterize Rio.

Brazil: Can’t live with it, can’t live without it

I truly love living in Brazil.  The focus on family, friends and enjoyment is SO MUCH MORE pronounced than what I experienced in the USA.  The expression: “You work to live, not live to work” nails it. [OK, I know, I’m out of the loop.  Young Brazilians are working their butts off, chasing money. But I’m among the old school folks who focus on qualidade de vida.]

It makes me smile on the inside and out when complete strangers walking down the street catch my eye and say good morning. I have more than one story to tell from San Francisco when I was scolded by a parent for saying hello to a small child on the street.  Here – never.

Fresh, cold, coconut water (nectar of the gods), on the beach, with a view of Rio de Janeiro – with no reason to rush home for anything, ahhh. Sit and feel the bliss. Whatever else you have to do – it can wait. Trust me; it can wait. (Note: if you rush home to make that appointment, you will be the first person there and will wait another twenty minutes for the others to show up.)

Children rule. Everyone reveres children. Children are everywhere, smiling. Everyone looks after everyone’s children. Children get a pass. I don’t usually like children (I didn’t, much, before I moved here…now I have had a change of heart), but here – the relationship is somehow more authentic, more direct, more personal.  I can see the little person.

Some of the cultural differences between the USA and Brazil are so amazing. So sweet.  So inspiring. But of course there are other differences that rub me the wrong way (but I keep my glass half full).

Like when I go to the grocery store and never get eye contact or friendly chatter from the checkout lady. She’s allowed – she gets paid sh*t.

While I love my mother-in-law, daily visits are just not in the cards. Over about 24 years living in San Francisco I saw my own mother face-to-face maybe 8 times.  Visiting my MIL DAILY is just not fathomable to me.  But she cannot understand why I would not want to visit and eat her wonderful food. Different worlds. We have found our balance point.

It never fails. I’ve seen it a thousand times. Perfectly nice people become myopic and maniacal when they get behind the wheel of a car. Pedestrians are dismissed. Traffic laws are optional. Faster is better. [Is this true in Bahia as well?]

There is no question that I love living here.  But differences bring on irritations.  Call me normal.  I feel them.

Marginal critiques aside -- do come visit us and I will make you feel at home with love and a perfect caipirinha.

US American prudes screw it up for all of us, again

OK, so I know the movie trailers for the upcoming animated feature "Rio" have been posted and reposted all over the place, but I just read here that the Brazilian director Carlos Saldanha told a Rio de Janeiro newspaper recently the film’s animated beachscapes had to undergo at least one change for American consumption: bigger bikini bottoms.

Oh please. And I suppose he had to fight off adding Bibles to people's beach bags as well. US American culture police make me sick to my stomach.

Viva Brasil!

Embedding the YouTube file has been disabled.  You have to watch it on YouTube directly.  Here.

Said "Ameicanized" bikini bottom is at 1:47.

Staying cool in hot Brazil

Here we are, summer in Rio de Janeiro. That means two things: punishingly hot days and sporadic (nearly daily) summer downpours. When it is hot, it is HOT. And when it rains, it RAINS!

But it’s pretty much predictable. The mornings will be hot and sunny and the afternoons will be overcast, then rainy (but still hot).

It’s not rocket science. In fact it is predictable meteorologically. While your travel agent will never tell you that Rio in the summer is rainy, it definitely affects how you spend your day.

Take it from a local: get to the beach by 10:00 a.m. It will already be jumpin’ with activity. It will be sunny and HOT. Stake out your place and enjoy the water. Do not forget to re-apply your sunscreen. You may think the early hours of sunshine are less consequential, but no…

Then by 1:00 or 2:00 p.m. – GET OUT OF THE SUN. Even if you are under an umbrella – the sun is scorching you. Trust me. Go back to your apartment or hotel and take a shower. Take a nap. There will be more fun to participate in when you wake up.

Now you can return to the beach after the worst of the heat has past. Go have a beer at a beach-side kiosk. Go join a gathering crowd around a group of musicians celebrating summer in song. Go find your place to munch on appetizers before you move on to your night time activity.

Celebrating summer in Rio is about enjoying the beach without a sunburn, escaping the worst of the heat and then showering, reconnecting with friends in the evening hours, and not shying away from the night time rain while you go out for dinner and then clubbing until dawn.

Yes it will rain, but as Luiz often asks: “What? Are you made of paper?”

360 degree images of favorite spots in Brazil

I've recently found this great website that has interactive 360 degree images of a lot of spots/events in Brazil.

Check it out:

The view from Corcovado.

An evening view around the MAC museum in Niterói.

NYE fireworks in Copacabana in 2009.

Living the life at a kiosk in Copacabana.

Be sure to click and drag your mouse to change the view, and you can turn off the sound by clicking the little icon in the lower left of the screen.

Cool stuff!

Celebrating New Year's Eve in Niterói

Our New Year’s Eve party was a lot of fun.  It was so much fun that we never pulled away to go to the beach to watch the fireworks.  **It’s hard to do everything!**

Luiz’s floating offering to Iemanjá played double duty as the buffet centerpiece.  As it turned out Luiz and I went to Itaipú beach the next day to set the boat afloat and offer our thanks.  The sea was a bit rough, so Iemanjá reached right up, grabbed the boat and sucked it under.  (That’s a good thing.)

Back at the house we celebrated the beginning of 2011 in all the usual ways: ham, pork loin, empadinhas, coxinhas, beans, rice, farofa, fruit, rabanada, Panetone --- and Jim cooked but no one ate: green beans (what!? a vegetable!!?)  Did I mention cold beer?

Marco Aurelio got a loud speaker and DJ software for Xmas, so he kept us in tunes.  In fact, I woke up early the next morning and Marco Aurelio was STILL seated in front of his laptop (asleep, however) keeping the music going.  I'm sure the neighbors were happy about the endless entertainment.

We had a great time.  It’s always fun to bring our group together.

Shopping for Iemanjá

Luiz and I spent our first New Year’s Eve together on Copacabana beach watching what were certainly the most spectacular fireworks I had ever seen.  The year was 2000, the turn of the millennium.  It was some party.

Unbeknownst to me Luiz had two gold wedding bands in his pocket.  After midnight, when the fireworks ended, we walked to the edge of the sea. Luiz stepped in and jumped seven waves.  Then he took the rings, submerged them in the water, and asked Iemanjá (goddess of the sea) for her blessing.  I don’t know exactly what he asked, but it appears we’ve been doing pretty well ever since.

Friday night we will be returning to the sea at midnight, this time at Itaipú beach.  Luiz is preparing an offering for Iemanjá.  It will include many of her favorite items: white flowers, perfume, a looking glass, a hair brush – all arranged in a little blue boat lit with a candle.  Luiz will set it to float away, to thank Iemanjá for all she has brought us.





We picked up the little boat a few days ago at a spiritualist shop in centro Niterói.  They also had a package with perfume, mirror, brush, etc. that forms the beauty items core of the offering.

On Tuesday we got up at 5:00 a.m. to go to the Rio flower market and get some flowers.  Luiz had a list and his mother (who has her own year-end ritual offerings) asked him to pick a few things up for her as well.

The place was a sea of white flowers.  There were countless vendors with white gladiolas, a favorite NYE flower that will be sold from nearly every street corner in Copacabana on Friday and into the night.  Residents and tourists alike will be taking their flower offerings to the sea in honor of Iemanjá.

Next year, 2011, the principal deity for the year will be Oxun, mother of fresh water, queen of the waterfalls.  Her color as known in the Candomblé religion is yellow.  So Luiz bought a few yellow flowers as well for him and his mother.  It will be a good opportunity to check in with Oxun, as the year gets underway.

We will be staying at the house this weekend and I will be away from my computer.  I promise to return with photos of our NYE celebration and Luiz’s modest gift to one very special Orixá. 

Happy New Year.  (I just ended 2010 by posting my 500^th post.)

You know you are living through a hot Rio summer when

You know you are living through a hot Rio summer when:

- the butter you have on your counter has separated into oil and a mushy yellow nothing

- everyone on the street is seeking out the thin strips of shade when they have to wait to cross the street or board a bus

- taking three cold showers a day is not quite enough to keep you cooled

- your t-shirt, after going to the grocery store and back, is drenched

- you have a ‘regular’ waiter on the beach who knows your type of beer and who anticipates your lunch desires

- your normal working friends call and accuse you of having too much fun

- the late afternoon rains interrupt your plans to turn daytime relaxation into nighttime partying

- even the most uncomfortable and vocal mother and child struggling to make it home after an over-heated necessary errand are greeted with patience and generosity by the people around them – helping to make the way home more possible.

Brazilian sun - Gringo skin

Even with all the rain of late I am thinking about the hot sun.  Summer has kicked in.  When the sun is out it is STRONG.  Temperatures are up in the mid 30’s (low 90’s Fahrenheit).

Given our hustle-bustle lifestyle (NOT!), Luiz and I find ourselves at the beach quite a bit.  The sun’s warmth lulls us for hours; the cooling sea breeze conspires to keep us on the sand.  Even the largest of shade umbrellas is merely a pretext of sun safety.  Every sand crystal reflects penetrating solar rays, sneaking up into our shade oasis and nailing this gringo’s skin.

Sunscreen, hat, umbrella – forget it.  The only real strategy for skin protection is staying out of the sun (duh!).  But that’s no fun!

The good news is that after three years I have adapted enough that I no longer get heat rashes or flash burns.  Slowly but surely I get tanned, not burned.

It's an ice cold caipirinha day

Actually, the day is swelteringly hot, it is the caipirinha that is ice cold.

Luiz and I have a long list of errands for today, most of which include air conditioned stores.  We're finally replacing the ceiling fan that went kaput during Carnaval (in March!) and other stuff.

The day is punishingly hot.

But we have our sights on tomorrow when we will take to the beach and sip refreshing iced drinks.

For a full panoply of caipirinha recipes and all things cachaça, visit the Cachaçagora blog.  It will not disappoint.

From Fernando de Noronha to Niterói

Luiz and I just enjoyed four days hosting an old friend and her new fiancé, both visiting from the US. Cristina and Bill were here for Cris’s parents’ 65th wedding anniversary.

After the first party, Bill got on his knee and proposed to Cristina and – bam – party number two. Then the two of them flew to Fernando de Noronha for a few days of newly-engaged pre-marital bliss among the dolphins, sting rays, and sea turtles in crystal clear water.

On their return to Rio prior to going back to California they changed plans. Given the unrest in the City they decided to stay with us instead of at a hotel in Rio. They were real troopers sleeping on cushionettes on the floor of our office/den.

It was a fun few days showing them the sights here in Niterói. I love me some days on the beach working our way through a bottle of sunscreen and multiple bottles of beer. And as it turns out I could have done well to have used even more sunscreen.

Oh, and I forgot to mention, we celebrated Cristina's 50th birthday on Tuesday.  Lookin' good grrl!