Brazil....The First Ten Days

I wasn't sure what to expect from Brazil when I left the states. In some ways, I was excited about seeing it, but I had also heard some unflattering things about the city we are staying in, Sao Paulo. Among things I had heard is it's just "any other big city", and in some instances, that is somewhat true, but it also has it's own individualism, beauty and things you won't see in the states.

Our "day" started at 2:30 in the morning (local time). We left our hotel in Beunos Aires to get to the airport by the recommended time of three hours in advance for international flights. After difficulties with customs leaving Argentina and again when upon arriving in Brazil, we made the drive from the airport to the eastern outskirts of Sao Paulo, where are hotel is located. An impending storm was making it's way toward the city, making the sky increasingly dark. Even with the impending rain on the horizon, the countryside's lush vegetation was evident. Everything is green, and remember, this is the fall season down here right now. The closer we got to the city, the more we started seeing some of the dwellings and buildings. My coworker mentions the fact that there used to be a large shanty town in a place where it was bare now. There are some rough looking areas, but nothing shocking. The drive was pleasant to our hotel, although we are tired and in a bit of a foul mood.

The city is very green, with lots of vegetation occupying any non concrete covered land, at least in my area. Tall grasses, palm trees, primitive looking ferns, and coastal forest type of trees that remind me of the inner Oregon coast for the most part (think Corvallis). It's a far cry from our concrete jungle that we were surrounded by in Buenos Aires. I have a clear view to the city skyline from my hotel balcony and can watch the sun go down.

The weather has been everything from warm (usually in the mid seventies), to downright cold and we've even seen a fairly good down pour. Our first Tuesday during our first full week, Sidney and I went for our nightly walk and my light jacket I brought from the states wasn't cutting it. It was downright cold.

As I mentioned, we are kind of situated on the outskirts of Sao Paulo, the far eastern edge. The neighborhood is a fairly upper middle class (for Brazil) area, with some fancy high rise apartment buildings. There is a nice part right across the street and some restaurants and bars within walking distance. A fairly upscale mall is a quarter of a mile from the hotel. We've been eating lunch there often. Also inside the mall is a large supermarket, I'm talking 40+ check out lanes. It's kind of crazy in there, with some of the employees wearing roller skates to get from one end to the other, helping the checkout clerks.


We've had a good time eating at a little restaurant/bar not too far from the hotel. They serve up some mean Codfish balls (Bolinhos de bacalhau is the local name....I think), which is Portuguese in origin. They bread up cod and parsley and being the fish lover that I am, I love the things. They also have fried Yucca root (aka “mandioca frita”) , which kind of takes the place of french fries and is pretty good, with enough ketchup. There is another bar/restaurant about a half mile beyond that has fairly cheap beer. The beer here is good, but it all tastes fairly similar, which isn't a bad thing necessarily.

It's a couple miles to the nearest metro aka subway station. Our first Sunday, Sidney and I walked to it. It takes you through some questionable neighborhoods. Going through one of these neighborhoods, a man approached us speaking Portuguese. He was dressed fairly well, so I wasn't too worried, but he warned us that "someone" (he didn't elaborate who) was checking "stamps". I'm assuming they were checking passports or something, we never did run into whatever it was.


Downtown is more modern than I expected. We were hanging around the Rua Agusta/Avenida Paulista area. Avenida Paulista is sort of the Sao Paulo Wall Street, that houses a lot of the financial institutions. This particular Sunday afternoon has people out and about, riding skate boards, shopping in some of the malls that are located along the main street, just people enjoying the sunny weather. It's kind of fun to just sit and people watch from time to time. People are in all shapes, sizes, clothing, sexuality, it's all there. A far cry from some of the earlier Sao Paulo stories I had heard of people being stuck up in broad daylight. It's nothing like that, people with purses, iPods and dressed fancy are all out and about.

So far so good in Sao Brazil....(to be continued)

Buenos Nochas, Buenos Aires

Tonight is my last night in Buenos Aires, Argentina. I fly out first thing in the morning to my next stop, Sao Paulo, Brazil. It's slowly starting to sink in that I'm leaving the first country I've really been to (I don't count Canada and Tijuana, Mexico), the place that has been my "home away from home" for the past four plus weeks.

This little block, this hotel, this room, it has all been my environment during a time that I felt vulnerable and isolated, but also challenged me and brought a new level of "aliveness". Buenos Aires has it's faults, don't get me wrong, but I've come to love this place. With it's tall buildings, it's quaint little shops, and it's people. Yes, even the mostly rude and snobby people will stick out in my memory. They weren't all stuck up. The waiters at La Cha Cra (the "mafia restaurant") were nothing but warm, welcoming and genuinely grateful that we would eat at their establishment six different times over the past month (we probably ate a whole cow between Sidney and I). The young man at the corner store that we would buy our water, snacks, or juice from, sometimes at six in the morning after a night of more than a few alcoholic beverages, he always had a "Hola" for us. We had to say goodbye to them, plus the hotel night bartender, Boris, a native from Russia, who by the end of the month would know to bring out "dos empanadas and dos cervezas" whenever we sat down at a table in the hotel restaurant .

I've never lived in a large city, but I can see now that the little block that you cohabit becomes your life. I would wake up in the morning and look out my second story hotel room window and see the asian man that ran a small store across. I saw the girl that would wave traffic into a pay parking lot. We would get out and walk down to the corner and comment on another shop owner that always sat out in front of his store front, or if he wasn't inside, he would be down at the internet cafe, giving the kid at the cashier grief. We saw the newstand at the corner every day. We'd see the same homeless guy sitting on the corner. Sometimes he'd just watch you walk by, other times he'd harass you, asking for money in Spanish. On a different level, there is Leandro, our connect with the other company we are working with in South America. Anything we needed, he got for us, including afternoon chocolate runs. The kid (he was 25) was great, a lively, funny and helpful kid on any level, American or Argentinian. He even took us out with his lovely girlfriend, which was a night that I'll probably remember the most as far as our weekend nights go. He'll be missed and I wish him the best of luck.

I'll miss all of this, for it was my life for a month, one of the most exciting months of my life. For a few days, when I was asked if I wanted to go on this trip back in late February, I actually had to say "I have to think about it," now I'm so grateful I made this trip. It's an experience I'll never forget.

The Last Few Things I Learned About Buenos Aires

- I know they put crack or something on the tomatoes here. They are so damn good. And I'm not a tomato person, I can live them or without them, but I go out of my way to get them here.

- They might do this in the states too, I wouldn't know, I never go to the overly fancy restaurants, but here, if you have a high priced dinner, certain places will offer you a complimentary glass of champagne or a dessert liquor.

- There is a pretty solid police presence in the streets, but you don't hardly ever see them harassing anybody. Not the homeless, or minorities, or anything else. They kind of just sit in the shadows.

- The police also drive around with their lights on more often than not. I'm not sure how you know to pull over for them. No one gets out of their way.

- During the bicentennial celebration, they partied for pretty much five days straight. The amazing thing was you didn't hear or see any problems. No drunk morons, no problems, no trouble, it was all rather peaceful and joyous.

Favorite Places to Frequent in Buenos Aires:

The month we stayed in Buenos Aires, we found places that my co-worker/friend Sidney and I would frequent multiple times. Whether it was good food, good help, a fun atmosphere or a little of those things combined, we tended to frequent a few places quite often when we had the chance. These places helped bring a little familiarity and routine to a otherwise topsy-turvy work schedule and stresses. Here are a few that will stick out in my memory for quite awhile....

1. La Chacra (aka "The Mafia Place"): Av. Córdoba 941, Buenos Aires.


Our first Friday night in Buenos Aires, we were wanting a restaurant that was of the Argentine steakhouse variety. I had already had beef at our hotel for lunch a couple times during the week, and while it was really good, I didn't really see it being better than a good steak in the U.S.. I was in search of something that would live up to my expectations of Argentina beef. One of the guys working for the company that was helping us suggested La Chacra. It ended up being only a couple blocks from our hotel. It quickly became our favorite restaurant by far during our stay in Buenos Aires and easily the best steak I have tasted...ever.....

On the outside, there is a large stuffed cow at the entrance. The window features critters of various types (lamb, goat, ribs) over an open spit and being cooked right there for the world to see. That alone is enough to get your mouth watering. Inside, it's like a large hall, narrow but fairly deep. Tables are scattered around in an organized clutter. The walls are filled with the heads of different variety of stuffed animals. It was almost German in style, definitely nothing fancy, but still kind of neat. Who are we kidding though, we didn't go there for the interior decorating, we were there for the food.


The place got the nick name of "The Mafia Place," from the wait staff. I didn't know the name of the place until about the fifth time we weren't there. I'd say to Sidney, "Where do you want to eat tonight?", and he'd reply, "Mafia Place?", and I'd know exactly what he was talking about. The wait staff are all older, professional looking guys. And when I say "professional", I mean professional "good fellas", "made men", or "hitmen". I'm sure they were of Latin descent, but the slicked back hair and older looks made them look similar to Italian guys you might find on the Sopranos. The maitre 'd is this little old man, again with slicked back hair, a nice suit, grey hair that was once black and half opened eyes behind some old glasses. We simply called him the "godfather". We were sure if you had a problem with a meal, he'd "take care of it", meaning he'd take you in the back and watch his boys beat you silly, then tell you kindly to get out of his establishment. There was Frankie Knuckles and Tony Bones as well. By our third time in the place, Tony would come over and give us a hardy hand shake when he would see us. The wait staff was great.


The food was even better though and if you left not full, it was your own damn fault. Before you even got situated, there was a big basket of assorted rolls an bread. After ordering, you got an emapnada simply for being there. The mixed salads were basic, lettuce, tomato and onion in a vinegar/oil dressing, but it was excellent and there was a big ass bowl of it. The beer was of the drought variety, one of the few places we found that had it on tap, and served in ice cold mugs.

I only tried two different things on the menu, the ribeye (or as it was labeled on the English menu, "ribs eye") and the salmon. It was thick and juicy and so easy to cut. It was also so good you didn't need any steak sauce or bbq sauce, and I'm usually the type of guy that puts BBQ sauce on anything, but that would have just ruined it. Depending on the server, they would sometimes bring some hot peppers to put on the steak as well. Those would just bring out the flavor even more with an added burn. As for the fish, I'm the type person that doesn't believe in ordering salmon in a restaurant. Don't get me wrong, I love salmon, but I have yet to have salmon that is any better than the way my Dad fixes it...until now (sorry Pops). I would have kept right on ordering my steak every time if I hadn't asked to have a taste of Sidney's salmon about the fifth or sixth time we were there. I was blown away by how good it was. A big, thick slab of fish is grilled, then thrown on your plate. They also have their own homemade tartar sauce which just added to the fish.

To round things off, the desserts are up to par as well, with the chocolate mousse and some Argentine ice cream (similar to the creamier Italian ice creams) on top would top off any great meal. While a bit spendy by Argentine standards, if you didn't get the two beers and dessert that we usually got, you could easily get a good meal for around $30 USD. I'll miss this place a lot, it was a fun place to go to and great food.

2. Tancat: Paraguay 645, Centro, Buenos Aires, Argentina


The Tancat (no, it's not a strip club as our boss feared on the way there) came from the recommendation from the front desk at our hotel. It was just right down the street, which is probably why we went there so often, more for the convenience than the food. Don't get me wrong, I only had one bad meal there, and that was more because of my newly discovered dislike for Octopus than anything he restaurant made. It could be a tad inconsistent, but it was good food, cheap and easy.

It was a traditional Spanish place, and I'm not talking Mexican neither. The inside decor gave it a great cozy feeling, like some bar you see in 70's movies. It was always packed during the dinner rush (9pm to 11pm) and we even had to wait a few times for a table. They had some great Spanish mainland beers on the menu as well (Estrella Galicia was my favorite). The last meal we had there was by far the best, which I had Bife de Chorizo, commonly known as a sirloin steak tip. I had it once before and it was only okay, mainly because it had been over cooked. This last time, it was cooked right and excellent.

3. The Italian Restaurant in Soho Palermo....

I don't remember the name of this place (ll Ballo del Mattone - Trastevere) or what streets it was on exactly. We found it the first Saturday night we had to go out. Soho Palermo is kind of a trendy district in Buenos Aires, lots of bars and clubs and tons of people out. We went to a few places, but neither of us like big crowds so we would have a drink then leave. After walking most of the way down the strip, there was this little Italian restaurant place. There was a few people eating outside and a few more having drinks inside. There was a younger guy standing out front with menus, encouraging people to come in. So we did. We get to the table and tell him we want a beer and he suggest this big tube like thing. Basically it's a tube of beer, probably three feet tall, with a cooling core system in the middle and your own little drought spout that you pour your beer out of. I'm not sure how much beer it holds, I lost count after about the fourth one, but for the $15 USD, it was worth the money. After one and a half of those, on our way out the door, we asked the same dude where a good place was to get good empanadas in the area. He quickly sat us down at a table outside and ordered us empanadas until we told him to stop. They were probably in the top three of all the empanadas I had in Argentina (and I had a lot of them).


We ended up going just there the next night we went to Palermo, two "turbo tubes", more empanadas, and some laughs and flirting with the cute waitress and it was time to find a taxi back to the hotel.

4. The corner store (aka The Homeboy Shopping Network)

Every block has at least two or three little stores with drinks, snacks and whatever else they might sell. We frequented the one on the corner of Paraguay and Suipacha. On our way back from an after dinner walk around the city or a six in the morning return trip from enjoying the Buenos Aires nightlife on Saturday morning, we would often stop by here to grab some water or snacks. Every night without fail, it was this rough looking younger kid manning the cash register. He has his front teeth partly knocked out and talked in a real gruff voice, but after a week or so, he eventually warmed up to us. He even complimented me on how much I had learned Spanish the last week we were in town.

The name "Homeboy Shopping Network", came from one of work conversations about the old "In Living Color" skits they used to have. With the urban back drop the corner store was on and the "ruffness" of the kid, it looked like something that would have been on that skit.

5. The Irish Pub on Reconquista St, Centro (I think)

Our first Friday night in town led us to this forgotten named Irish Pub not too far from our hotel. Nothing overly fancy, dim lighting, wooden decor, and a talkative bartender who spoke decent English. Oh and some great Irish beers on tap. I fell in love with a Stout they had, for the life of me, I can't remember the name of it though.

We went in there twice, once on the aforementioned Friday night before a Saturday that we had to work, so we were fairly calm. Had a good time just shooting the breeze with the bartender and having some beers. The second time, we actually had dinner. I tried the salmon, which wasn't too bad. It would have been better if it was cooked a little more.

7. The Plaza in San Telmo


We ended up going to the artsy, rustic San Telmo four or five times during our stay in Buenos Aires. During a weekend day, it was hustling and bustling with people having lunch, people or a drink with people selling all types of crafts and gizmos around it. At night time, there were many people going in and out of the bars and cafes that surrounded the plaza.


Not a far taxi ride away, we would go to a little store around the corner from the plaza, grab a bottle of wine or a liter of beer and go back to the plaza and just sit and people watch. All kinds of interesting people can be found there. We met an U.S. citizen who lived in Rio De Janerio, a chick from New York City, people from Chile and Colombia, had a bum beg us for wine, and watched Tango dancers. It has a little bit of everything. A great place to sit, people watch and converse with other people. Too bad they don't have anything like this in the states.

8. The African-beat bar in San Telmo


The only bad thing about this place is we found it the final weekend we were in Buenos Aires. The last weekend, we had both Saturday and Sunday off of work, our only "full weekend". We went to it both nights. Just right around the corner from the plaza in San Telmo, we would hang out on the plaza until our wine or beer was gone, then head over to this bar. It was ran by a couple from the Ivory Coast. Not very crowded, they played Afro-beat music, like Fela Kuti and other native African artists (except for the end of Saturday night, when they played some crappy rap music that I didn't care for) and were very cool to us. We ordered beers and empanadas Friday night (great empanadas), but on Saturday night, we had some Caipirinhas, a Brazilian drink that was fabulous.

9. Hispano, Salta 20 Buenos Aires, Argentina

Another restaurant we found toward the end of our stay. Actually, Sidney had already known about it, but we didn't make our way over to the area it was at until later. It's in the working class section close to our hotel. It's been around for awhile, since the 50's and was fairly packed both times we went in. They had the best seafood I had in Buenos Aires.

10. Florida Street


Even though I hated going down this street with all of it's hustle, bustle, tourists traps, hustlers, street vendors, and sidewalk musicians, I couldn't leave it out. No matter how much I tried to avoid it, I still walked down it at least a couple times a week. There was a large (and fairly ritzy) mall that we would go the food court for lunch (not my idea), it was also a way to other near by places.

Yet More Things I've Learned In Buenos Aires

- They have a healthy dislike of having stop signs at four way intersections. Not the big city intersections, but the smaller ones off the beaten path. Sidney and I spent a Sunday afternoon on a cafe patio near one of these intersections waiting for an accident, nothing life alternating, just an entertaining fender bender. After many near misses, there was no such luck. We decided the bigger vehicles had the right of way, no matter what directions they come from.

- Not having ever been to a big east coast city, which I'm assuming Buenos Aires most resembles, I don't know how people are there, but here, they are not the friendliest people in the world and in some cases, down right snooty.

- Movie theaters leave something to be desired, at least the one I went to off of the very popular Florida Street. I've been to people's houses that have a nicer entertainment center.

- It's kind of fun to be able to say whatever I want around people and there is a good chance they aren't going to understand me. Of course this has a chance of biting me in the ass one of these times, but for now, it's been fun.

- I'm sure this isn't restricted to Buenos Aires, but four different taxi rides to the barrio of Palermo have equaled four different ways to get there.

- Women wear skin tight pants. This can be good and bad. Tight pants are a privilege, not a right. But (no pun intended) there are some women here that could put J-Lo to shame, and I'm not even a butt guy....I'll leave it at that.

- They have a healthy fear of ice in drinks. I've heard this is common in other places, but it's still kind of weird.

- Speaking of food and drink, portions here for the most part are rather small, which probably explains the small percentage of over weight people. They don't skimp on meat though, steaks and fish are good sized portions. You won't go hungry, let's put it that way...

- It's funny to watch dudes gathered around TVs in bars watching soccer. 60 minutes to watch a couple goals....no thanks.....

- Their Federal capital building is pink....no really, it's pink, like pink pink. There are some rumors behind why this is, but still....pink?

- In this particular area (downtown), there is almost a 50-50 split between cabs and regular cars on the roads. Even in the other parts of the city I've been in, we've never had a problem getting a cab. Well there was the Saturday night we went to Palermo and the bars were starting to empty. Neither of us had a skirt on, so it was kind of hard to get a cab to pick us up. My bare legs don't exactly scream "hotness".

- It's freakin humid here...and somewhat chilly from time to time. We've only had one day with much rain (at least that I've seen, I spend most of the daytime inside).

- You don't see a whole lot of homeless on the streets here. Sure, it's here, but for a city of 13 million, I was kind of expecting to see more. It's when I see kids or a guy in a wheel chair with a cat on a leash that it gets to me too much.

- They call the barrio of Recoleta the "Paris of South America". While it's nice, if that's what Paris is like, it's a disappointment. Maybe I didn't rub enough shoulders with the rich and famous that are supposed to frequent the area.

San Telmo

This night out went down last week. My connection is horrible in the hotel so going beyond email and facebook is more trouble than I really want to deal with most of the time. It's been nice to be separated from the modern "conveniences" these past couple weeks, but that might be a topic for another time down the road. I'm half way through my time in Buenos Aires, and have really enjoyed my experience here. I spend a lot of time walking around town, seeing the sites, experiencing new things, and just enjoying the time here. It's truly been a once in a life time trip, one which I will always be fortunate to have experienced. I have more stories and experiences to share, I just need to sit down and write them out one of these days.

We went to this old part of town called San Telmo. It's the oldest barrio of Buenos Aires, and full of old buildings, bars, shops and that kind of thing. I even found a place that sells vinyl records and I was told that the markets on the weekend have some vinyl to be found. I'm so there. Anyway, my friend and co-worker Sidney got in contact with an old friend, who has been Beuneos Aires for the past month. The friend, Vlad, wanted to take us to a part of town that Sidney wasn't all that familiar with.


They swing by my room and we catch a cab out in front. As I mentioned San Telmo is an old, artsy, former industrial part of town. It's kind of shady in the dark, but in a good sort of way. I had a good vibe of the area, but there was a lot of trash and graffiti, you know, the unsavory types of places back in the states. We get there, and Vlad from what I understand, has being staying in the area. He gives us a quick tour of the surrounding sites, showing us a plaza type of thing that is supposed to be happening on the weekends. It has singing and dancing and sell lots of things. From there we walk around and he shows us a couple of the nearest blocks. We then go into a small store that was selling beer and wine and I bought a liter of beer and they bottle a bottle of wine and we went over to the plaza, where you can just sit and drink. So we sat down and opened our drinks and I listened to Sidney and Vlad talk about their adventures.


Both Sidney and Vlad travel as much as they can. Sidney has been pretty much all over Europe and South America as the same with Vlad. I don't know how they do it, but I guess they work just long enough to go overseas, then they just travel around where ever they go to. For example Vlad has spent a good chunk of time (at least a year) in South America. He works a bit, then will go hike in Patagonia. He even lived six months in Bogota. I don't understand how they make money to do this, but they do. If I was younger and had a chance to do it over, I'd probably would do the same thing. I see the appeal of visiting other countries and cultures. Anyway, this Vlad guy was a pretty cool guy. Kind of a feisty, sneaky (and I mean that in a good way), and a survivalist. I sat and listened to Vlad and Sidney talk about some of their experiences traveling abroad, everything from animals fighting outside of Vlad's tent in the Patagonia while camping by himself, to getting robbed in Colombia, to Sidney collapsing on a hiking trip in the Andes, to his travels around Morocco. It's was really interesting to hear the stories, both of them could write books on their travels.


After Vlad valiantly defended their bottle of wine from a bum asking for a sip, we walked on to another old bar. There we walked in and had a liter of Heineken and bullshitted some more. After Sidney argued we had to get back to the room because of our early morning, he got talked (I was all for going to another bar) walking a few blocks down to the "Red Door" which was literally a bar, no sign, with a red door. They had these HUGE flight of stairs to get to this bar that had couches all over the place, with really cool American soul music playing. Funny thing though, I think I saw more Americans in there than I have anywhere else this whole trip. There was also some hot girls there that kept coming from the back of the bar. I don't know what was up with that, but it was interesting. Vlad latched on to some young cutie when we left him. We took a taxi back to the hotel to wrap up a entertaining evening....

More things I've learned while being in Buenos Aires

- If you go out to eat here, plan on it not being a quick thing. They are not in a hurry to get to you once you sit down, they are not in a hurry to get you out after you finished your email. Us busy Americanos will more than likely have to ask for the check, otherwise it could be an hour or more after eating.

- They just throw bags of garbage on the sidewalk, which a garbage truck comes and picks it up in the middle of the night. And people have no problem going through the garbage bags either. Not just homeless people or whatnot, but people that look like they don't need to be going through sacks of garbage.

- I think people have fun just coming up to me and rambling a bunch of stuff in Spanish to see my lost expression. I know some words and phrases, but they are usually speaking so fast, that I have no clue what was just said.

- Cheese, they love their cheese. Lunch has cheese involved in almost everything. That and beef.

- We are getting coke in glass bottles here. I'm tying to limit my soda intake, but since they don't have ice tea here (they look at me weird when I ask for it), I've had a couple. Coke is better here than it is back at home.

- In a disappointing turn of events, most of the beer here is imported stuff that can easily be found in America. Heinken,Guiness, Corona, and Budweiser have all shown up. The only Argentine beer I've had so far is this stuff called Quilmes Crystal (they have other varieties as well) , which tastes like a mellower Red Stripe. It's good, but I was hoping for more. That's one of the missions this weekend, to find some good Argentine beer.

- When walking on the sidewalk, don't do it too close to the edge, or a big ass bus will come by and clip you with one of it's mirrors.

- People on Motorcycles and mopeds have a death wish. They will go between cars, around them, through them, whatever it takes.

- Everyone is horn happy.

- There must be a lucrative career in the magazine business, there is a newsstand on every street corner. Seriously, every corner, and they have every type of magazine you could imagine. EVERY kind....

- They still stand on busy intersections and panhandle, but they have some creativity to it. One kid I saw, would busily rush out when cars stopped, dropped a bunch of envelopes on the cars windshield. I guess he would time it out, then he would rush back and collect the envelopes. I didn't see many people using the envelopes, but some people appreciated the effort. Another time, I see a guy do a juggling act out in the cross walk while cars were stopped at the light. He stopped in time to get money from people. Gotta like it....

- No one wears shorts. I mean no one.

- Not many people wear hats either. Of course I'm always wearing one and will continue to do so, but not often you someone wearing a hat.