We are coming up on living in Sao Paulo a year. Well we have two months left, but I and the boys are escaping to, I mean visiting the good old USA for the winter, well summer, well whatever. The season differences have really thrown us off. It is June here and winter. While my mind wants me to wear T's and flip flops, my body says "Hold on a minute there lady, are you crazy? It's like 50 degrees!" That is not the only thing that has thrown us though. Driving, taxis, traffic, pollution, food, freedoms. You name it, you need to adjust. So I have decided to make a Sao Paulo Survival List for those who want to live through, I mean enjoy their experience here.
Driving:
Depending on the time of day and the amount of traffic, you can actually make your own lane or drive in two lanes if you want. You can also take about one mile to change lanes and you don't need to use your turn signal to do this. If you find that you are in the right lane but need to turn left, just stick you hand out your window and give the thumbs up to the driver next to you and they will let you turn. You actually don't need to do all that, you really can just turn in front of everybody. But watch out, the person in the left lane is most likely doing the same thing but in the opposite direction while the person in the middle just wants to go straight. Or there can be any combination of this at any given time. If you miss your turn, it is perfectly okay to stop, reverse and get to where you want to go. Buses like to cut in front of you for no reason at all. And taxis will miss your car by a few inches to get around you because you are not driving fast enough for them.
Food:
Dinner here starts, at the earliest, 7 pm. This is difficult if you want to go to a restaurant and your children still want to go to bed at 7:30, or need to in the case of my children. We are still used to eating at 5:30. I have not been able to stretch it farther than 6pm at home. Brazilians think this is crazy. "What, you are eating again at 5:30? But lunch was just over at 2:30. How can you be hungry again?" Our food clock must be set in stone. We get up at 6 am, which is crazy to a Brazilian also, eat breakfast and are hungry at lunchtime, which for every sane person is noon. Sometimes I can give the boys a big snack after school to hold them over, and sometimes they have two dinners. No wonder they are growing so big!
The food here is different, but very delicious. You need to watch out though because it can be very salty or very sweet. My maid ate a meatloaf I made a liked it, but she said there was not much taste to it. So she proceeded to cover it with salt until the ENTIRE PIECE was white. True story. You can find a lot of substitutes for food you eat in your home country, with the exception of JIF Peanut Butter and Cheerios. Those are one of a kind. You can buy expensive imports if you want, though. I have bought a $10 jar of dill pickles, $5 package of taco seasoning, and $5 bags of goldfish. I will not buy the $12 bag of Campfire marshmallows though. I draw the line there.
And I am still not used to cooking with gas and Celsius. Or my oven is not calibrated correctly. I am burning everything. I need to pick up and oven thermometer while away. I think that will help.
School:
Depending on where your children go, international, British or American, you will get slightly different experiences. We are at a British school. You do not get a class list. There is usually a child of someone famous in the class. But you do not know who, nor does it matter to you. Usually because you personally did not know that this was a famous person. Your child could also be asked to travel with a friend's family on their private jet for a weekend in Aspen. True story, not for us though. At a British school, for an American, you need to learn new spelling. The letter U tends to show up in words that are not supposed to have them. But do not tell your children that it is because the British can't spell. That will come back at you fast. Oops! Or better yet, your eight year old can come home and ask for a rubber. What do you want? Ah, in British English a rubber is an eraser. Got it.
Fashion:
This is hard because you cannot look like a comfy American mom while out and about. You will look like the homeless people here. Or if you think you are dressy, usually you look like the maids coming into work or leaving. They are snazzy dressers. No you have to be top notch all the time - hair done, makeup on, skin tight jeans or Brady Bunch length skirts/dresses. Oh and sky-high heels. Most of the time this is not me. I think the doormen do not understand how I can live here with the way I dress. Jeans and a T is my wardrobe. Doesn't fly too often. We had a changeover of our complex security company while we were away at Christmas time. I had to convince the new guys that yes, I actually did live here. As I write this I am in jeans, my hot pink penguin T, lime green socks, slipper mules, and a grey hoodie. My hair is not done, nor do I have on makeup. It will take me about two hours to look Brazilian presentable today. Yeah, don't think so.
Another part to this, I figure, is sexuality. The bikinis are tiny, and you will see interesting lingerie in the windows of stores. My boys love that I think. And you will see butts or boobs on TV. it is not a big deal here, so we try not to make it a big deal either. That does not mean that my boys will walk into a Victoria's Secret with me ever again. But it is a good way to teach them respect for their body and for other people's as well.
Freedoms:
This is the hardest to get used to. Heck, In the US you can drive with your windows down. Here if you do you run the risk of someone pulling a gun through your window to demand your car or wallet. And still I forget sometimes to the frustration of my husband. So remember these please: Do not walk out of your house with all of your money in your purse. Hide some in other places so that if you get mugged at gun point, they don't take everything you have. You can also bargain with the mugger if you want to risk it. You can ask for your documents and keys, or ask to just hand over all the cash. They don't want your ID anyway. Do not wear a watch or jewelry. I put on a nice necklace once I am in a restaurant, but never before. And I take it off before I get to the valet. Always valet your car. Every restaurant and bakery has a valet. If you can, valet. Don't speak anything but Portuguese on the streets out loud. If you need to speak English, speak low or whisper (it is better inside a mall, but still be careful). Do not use your cell phone on the street, you are just asking for someone to steal it. Do not speak a lot of English in a taxi. Yes, they are your driver, but that does not mean they do not want to make an extra buck. Have a code with your family if you are under duress.
Pollution:
June is the month of being sick. The colder weather and cloudy skies trap the pollution. So hello coughing! If you leave SP, you will get sick on the way back in because you cleaned your lungs out and then they get refilled with the guck. A true statistic for you: Paulistas on average live three years less due to the pollution in the air and water. Sometimes you can actually taste it. And with the smell of the river you can grind it in your teeth and savor it. Yummo!
With all of this we actually enjoy living here and experiencing Sao Paulo. We are meeting some of the nicest people ever, and we are making great friends that we can keep when we go where ever next. I am looking forward to home though. I need my Target fix and my Macy's fix.
Now I am off to the store looking like trash to get dinner for tonight that I will most likely burn. Good thing the frozen pizzas here are delicious!
No comments:
Post a Comment