I had great hopes of doing what I like best –talk to people, during my recent trip to Brazil. When I asked the receptionist on the first day morning which way I should walk from the hotel and what I should hope to see, she (of Taiwanese origin) sternly told me that I may not come back with my purse, passport or even person intact. I turned towards a co-host who had also flown in from Europe but extremely familiar with the location about what she was saying. ‘If you don’t know Portuguese and the ways of Sap Paulo, better not to venture out’. The goons know to spot the victims all too easily. I had hopes to talk about the yo-yo economy, evolving political situation, boisterous people, onslaught from Olympics, Samba dancers, may be even a petty thief to understand what drives them. My spirits stood punctured by their cautionary and sagely advice.
What follows is based on conversations with the car drivers, guest house keepers, hosts, hotel assistants, tourist guide in Rio and a few others. Unverified and you may believe it at your own risk and peril.

1          The road discipline is great. The BRT bus lanes are not barricaded or divided with dividers like in Indian cities – just a white line marker. Taxis with passengers and Ambulances also use the lane. But no others – pedestrian or vehicles get into those lanes. When the cars are crawling at an inch a minute speed, these busses whizz past at 60-70 kms. They know the risk I guess – if you get into it, the bus driver will have no choice but to hit you. He has no way of turning left (he is on the leftmost lane already) nor against the wall of vehicles on the other side. He has to hit them and drag along till the next signal since stopping will mean he himself will get hit by the buses behind.
Even on highways where there is 3 mile long queues there is no horn honking and they stand in one file. Just no one slips into the overtaking lane or side kerb. Extraordinary discipline one should say.
2        Portuguese gave Brazil (its original native name is Pindorama) its name after a tree which has the red/saffron colour of burning charcoal. Red dyes for cloths used to be manufactured out of it. Red colored cloths were very expensive in the 1800s in Europe and had to be ultimately banned. Nowadays the finest violin base is made from that tree.

The world’s largest football stadium is Maracana in Rio which was the venue of the recent Olympics opening ceremony. It’s the name of a bird like parrot which makes sound like the percussion instrument. At the main entrance is the statue of Bellini the captain of their team in 1958 and 62.

3         Brazil is the largest exporter of Cocoa, Beef (there is one ox for every Brazilian I was told), Coffee (largest producer for 150 years), Leather, Chicken, Pork, Orange, Sugar, Tobacco, Cashews, Pulp, Bikinis and as my guide cheekily remarked Football players.

Cashews (Cajus) come from Brazil. They gave it to India via Goa and took Mango and Jack from India. Jack is under attack now since some environmentalists believe it’s in quarrel with local species. There is Caju tree (single) in North East which covers an area of 8 Ha. (Wiki confirms this).

Brazil gets 3 crops of mangoes per annum. When during the pre flowering period the mango crop needs water the most, I understand they starve it and the starved tree starts flowering faster. When it does, they water it copiously and get a good crop. (need to understand this better). This way they induce 3 crops per annum. Apparently Brazilian mangoes are a craze in Japan to whom they export by Air. A solitary piece can cost as much as $ 50 in Japan, I was told.

4        Brazilians believe it’s not Wright Brothers but Santos Dumont of brazil who invented Airplanes. He did not register the patent or publicise it. WB used a catapult to get it up and glided down whereas SD used the engine to propel it up is their version. He is also billed as the inventor of wrist watches.

5       The largest contingent of Japanese outside Japan lives in Brazil. They started coming from 1901 and is a sizable community is Sao Paulo. There are more Lebanese in Brazil than in Lebanon. There is no quintessential or typical Brazilian. They come in all shapes and sizes, colours and textures. Only their skin tones, bone structures and facial features all look great and is one of the most beautiful people … all easy going and boisterous, irrespective of what… as good as the Greeks, Cyprus, Lebanese, Syria and middle east races.

6 Brazil
a.      In many prisons there are stationery bi-cycles which the inmates can cycle for health. They are connected to electrical generators and the electricity is sold and the proceeds are shared with the cyclers.

b.      Many (the guide said most) companies/offices in Brazil have made Yoga compulsory for 5-10 minutes at the start. They believe that it reduces work place tensions, stress and to lesser conflicts. Brazil has had to change its currency 10 times since 1942. Due to high inflation. Twice they had to knock off the last 3 digits of their currency. Looks like their inflation is as high spirited as their outlook towards life.

c.      It produces nearly 70% of its electricity from hydro sources and most of these are from dams in the plains.

d.      Divorce was legalised only in 1972. And the current rate as people felt would be 20-30%. But even middle class people are shying away from marriage due to financial reasons. They live as friends but feel raising children as very expensive and unaffordable due to rentals and costs of education etc. Sad to see even people in 40s say it.

e.      Sao Paulo can easily be rated the Graffiti capital of the world. Most of them are elaborate, colourful and cover the entire wall in a single theme. Must be taking 2-3 people a week to do them.

f.      Voting is compulsory is Brazil. Between 16-18 it is optional but from 18 its compulsory. If you don’t vote you can’t get your passport renewed or apply for any Visa or get social security. But i believe the fines are a paltry $ 5 (=ent). But you have to run from pillar to post in the Registrar’s office and waste the better part of the day besides the traffic time in reaching their office… that in itself seems to be a deterrent.
g. Earth’s magnetic potency is solely waning in Brazil, i was told. (this seems to be confirmed by Internet).

7      Rio De Janeiro (River of January) is one of the finest urban living places. It has 49 km of fine white sand beaches, a forest (botanical garden of 38 sq km) right in the middle of the city, rocky hills, and a beautiful lagoon. The small strip of land between the lagoon and sea is one of the costliest places on earth to own your residence.
Ipanema, Copacabana, and Prainha are some of the most crowded sun bathing spaces. Fine white sand but not as wide as the Marina or Elliots in Chennai – just may be 1/10th to 1/5th the width and goes into the seas fairly steeply except in small stretches in Copacabana and at one end of Ipanema. But that does not deflate the spirits of the revellers, who play beach volleyball, and other sports with gay abandon. It seems as crowded as the VT station (some exaggeration there).
The city airport is a risky affair. (see the photo taken while approaching it – I am at right angles at a distance of 3-4 kms from landing). It’s in a narrow triangle of sorts jutting out into the sea. Not even space for fencing at either end. At one end is the Sugar Loaf rock some 750 meters tall with the seas hardly 3-4 km separating it from the take off point. And at the other end are hills and the 14 km long bridge over the sea running right across – again hardly 4-5 kms away. The aircrafts can only approach it at right angles and take a steep turn at such a short distance and land knowing full well that there is very little margin for error. On takeoff he is turning almost at right angles even before vertically out of airstrip.
Even the other airports don’t seem to be fenced like in India. There is a football ground very close to the main runway in their Guarulhos International airport. A good kicker can easily kick it over the 4-5 ft high fence right into the main runway. The city airport in Sao is on a raised table and if one misses take off can straight plunge into the thick residential colony. But then their Pilots seem as confident as their football forwards.

8      Crime
A gram (or whatever) of cocaine costs $ 265 in Australia i was told but just $ 9 in Sao Paulo. Most crimes are drug related or young people trying to finance their habits. In my trip to Rio raised the topic re crime with the Guide. He outright dismissed it blaming it on the media. Crime is always there in cities. He did take us out for the first time on the base of Christ Statue, Maracana and then again in Copacabana where we took some pictures. We had earlier been advised… ‘if you want to get out at the beach make sure you don’t wear watches, don’t carry your camera or cell phone. They hunt in packs … one to engage you, another to distract your attention and they are experts in identifying their victims and quickly sizing them’. We did nothing of these when we got down 3-4 times but lucky the Guides words weren’t belied.
My driver from Sao Paulo city centre on the way back opined that the crime is largely prevalent in poorer sections and areas and controlled by mafia. In business and office areas the influence is less to non-existent but 30-40% of the area is under their control. But in Rio it is they who rule. They just don’t carry knives, pistols or revolvers but Rifles. Bullet proof cars are no protection.
People under 18 can’t be put in prison in Brazil. The drug mafia uses delinquent children as fronts and establish their control. He opined unless this is changed, controlling crime may be a pipe dream.

It was nice to see everyone from the door keeper to the driver, car driver to the chairman, flight and hotel attendants, exhibit self dignity and more importantly respect others for whatever function others were performing.

3 thoughts on “Brazi-Logue

  1. Interesting observations. The magnetic power is waning ??? That’s difficult to believe !

    We see road discipline (and that’s just a proxy for general discipline) in every country bar India. This is a unique disease for us.

    The crime situation I am sure is overstated. There’s crime everywhere to some degree or the other. The usual precautions and we should be OK. I have never been to Brazil, but I simply cannot believe its as bad as its made out to be. You should have gone on that walk – the only problem is that without Portuguese, you couldn’t have conversed with anybody.


  2. I did venture out a little bit on the last day into business district. and to the shopping mall.
    but then given my mugging in shanghai, there is always the phobia in the background.


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