Santa Claus at 30 degrees C
18.12.2011
30 °C
I gathered some more information about paulistanos, as inhabitants of sao paulo call themselves. People from portugal, italy, spain, germany, greece(!), france, african countries, japan, syria, lebenon, china, korea have emigrated to sao paulo to “bleach” the black population of the city. What a mix! They have a distinctive italian touch to their portugese. This must be because majority of these immigrants were from italy.
Now I know a little more about their common traits. They shop till they drop and then shop some more. Whatever spare time they have from shopping, they use it up by eating. Today was sunday. Streets were full of people (by full, I mean again masses that take over the roads from cars) shopping and eating. Not even the sudden rain could stop them. They squeezed themselves under the tiny eaves of food stalls and waited for their turns to buy food. I had japanese dumplings under the rain along with MANY other things I had today, including juice of something that looks like a melon, fried shrimps on a stick, warm sandwich with ham and cheese, french fries, açai juice, caipirinha, dried peas dipped in wasabi, fried fish cake...
“No smoking” is taken very seriously here. You can not smoke indoors anywhere, but you are also not allowed to smoke at the tables of a bar, coffeshop, restaurant outside on the pavement. You are asked to stand up, take one step to reach the end of the pavement where it meets the road, stand there and smoke.
Nobody speaks english. I love it. My miming skills are improving.
I had to walk paulista avenue (the avenue from yesterday) again today. I walked on the road, not the pavement. The pavement is good if you are going on a stroll with your family to see and photograph each and every building that has been decorated with a christmas tree, snow flakes, weird and huge puppets, santa claus and the reindeer, light shows, illuminated tunnels, huge “feliz natal” (merry christmas) signs and along with the people came the street sellers with their corn on the cob, popcorn, crisps, fruit juices, water, and various toys for kids. If you are actually trying to get somewhere, you don’t belong to the pavement. You risk dear life and hit the road.
I am glad I will leave this city not only because of its urine smelling streets and homeless people (sometimes families with kids) living at the gates of skyscrapers but also because of its non-smoking people obsessed with consuming.
P.S. please remind me not to be in rio de janeiro during the carnival. I had an overdose of people. I am good for a year or so.
