29.06 Sao Paulo

Sao Paulo is a big city, a very big city. As I landed, it dawned on me how small Buenos Aires is compared to this. Called the concrete jungle, it is a city within a city. According to my taxi driver, around 13 million people live in the centro, and in total, which includes greater Sao Paulo, the population amounts to approximately 25 million people.

The city is submerged by tall buildings, but as you walk, you notice that there are a lot of small streets with smaller houses of all colors. It is very green too.

But the main thing about Brasil is its people. Half of the pedestrians could be supermodels. You get the feeling that they love their sports and their arts. Music, paintings, art museums, graffiti, art is all over the place.

As I sat in the flea market near Vila Madalena, I was amazed at the contrast of people. I sat for 3 hours on the steps and just looked at them. You see whites, blacks, browns, Japanese…. all types of people! And as you sit, and other people join you, you notice that everyone speaks to everyone… it’s like one big family!

Unfortunately, whenever someone spoke to me, all I could say was “Nao falha portugues”…. :)

I think it’s the first time that I’m in a country where I have absolutely no notion of what people are saying and they have absolutely no notion of what I’m saying…