8 Things I Love about Brazil

My mom doesn’t get it. My sister Nina doesn’t get it. I’m not sure my friend Sean gets it, but after a few pictures and stories, I think maybe he’s beginning to.

Why did I move to some “third-world” country?

Brazil, while certainly not perfect, has a lot going for it. I don’t love everything about this country, but there are many things I do love. In no particular order, here is a Top 8 list.

1. The beaches. Brazil has over 4,500 of miles of coastline, plus a multitude of islands peppering the seas offshore. Some of its beaches, like Ipanema and Copacabana in Rio, are well known. Others, like Campeche in Florianopolis, are the retreats of Brazilians almost exclusively. There is a beach for every taste: sandy, rocky, sprawling, tiny, crowded, secluded – whatever type you desire, Brazil has it. As a matter of fact, while a Brit or American might say, “It’s not my cup of tea,” a Brazilian would say, “Não é minha praia” – “It’s not my beach.”

A day at the beach here in Rio, my current home, is much different from going to the beach in the US. For one thing, you take almost nothing to the beach. The reason for this is that everything – and I mean everything – you might conceivably need or want is available there. Why lug a beach umbrella and chairs when you can rent them for a few reais, and your friendly concierge will set them up for you? Once you are seated under your umbrella with a cold Antartica or Brahma beer in your hand, relax and wait for the procession of vendors. On offer almost any day will be: beer, water, ice cream and popsicles, beer, sunscreen, statues of Christ, açaí, sundresses and bikinis, beer, Globo “air biscuits” (sort of a munchie meringue made of egg whites and air), henna tattoos, portraits of you drawn on the spot, sandwiches, shrimp (avoid these), beer, empadas (flaky pastries filled with meat), newspapers (on Sunday), earrings, and beer. Oh, yes, and beer.

Something else you’ll notice right away is that the beach in Rio, and throughout much of Brazil, is a much more active place than the beach back home. You’ll see all kinds of sports here, from volleyball to futvollei (volleyball played without hands, if you can imagine it), alto (like hackysack with a soccer ball – training for soccer and futvollei), frescoball (paddleball), and, of course, soccer (or football, as you prefer).

Depending on the waves, you may see surfers or boogieboarders or bodysurfers. If the waves aren’t suitable, beachgoers will content themselves simply with diving over the lower waves and under the higher ones.

One of the most appealing things about the beaches in Brazil is that they are so egalitarian. Monday through Friday you might be a bank manager or a doorman, but on the beach, it doesn’t matter. Everyone is equal.

2. The bikinis. Yeah, you knew this had to be on the list. Yes, sure, I admit it. I love the ladies in bikinis here.

But, contrary to what you saw in the movie Blame it on Rio, the women do NOT go topless here. In all my trips to the beach here, I have seen topless women exactly twice.

But don’t be disappointed, guys. The skimpy bikinis, the smallest of which are termed fio dental, meaning “dental floss”, to me are even better. They leave just a bit to the imagination. And if you really want to go native, there are a few nudist beaches scattered about (although I am told they are populated primarily by aging gay men).

By the way, guys, do not make the mistake of interpreting a skimpy bikini as an invitation for crass comments or unwelcome advances. It’s just the style here. Brazilians, like many Europeans, are more comfortable with their bodies than are Americans.

Ladies, lest you are feeling left out of the conversation, yes, there are plenty of beautiful guys for you to look at also, available in both surfer shorts or Speedos, as you prefer.

3. Food. First, Brazilian food is not at all like Mexican food. No tacos, burritos, or chili com carne. Think more Cuban. The basic diet is rice and black beans, chicken, beef, with a minimum of spicing (salt, onions, garlic).

However, there are also por kilo (pay by weight) restaurants. Larger por kilos offer a wonderful array of foods, including a much larger selection of salads than you will find back home, if you are wanting to eat light.

If you are feeling carnivorous, check out a rodizio restaurant. Rodizio is the Brazilian spin on barbecue. If you read my post about my first time in Brazil, you know that at these places, they basically bring you meat until you pass out. Those catering to tourists, like Porcão (translation: “Big Pig”), are pricey. But ask some locals and you’ll find reasonable deals.

A full breakfast in Brazil is a delight. Hotels generally serve up scrambled eggs and cold cereals for the gringos, but I suggest: Coffee (strong with milk and sugar), juice (orange or watermelon), paõzinhos (little loaves of French bread) split and loaded with presunto ham and requeijão (a creamy, spreadable white cheese). And try a slice or two of mamão (papaya)! Gostosa! (Tasty! Like our girl in the bikini.)

Don’t be afraid to try the local food. Really. It is almost certainly fresher and less loaded with crap than what you eat back home. If you eat where the locals eat, you’ll find prices quite inexpensive and portions often enormous. Oh, yes: At fancier dinner spots, meals are intended to be shared by two! Ask first or risk being inundated by food that you can’t possibly eat!

4. Music. It is an unfortunate fact that, for most North Americans, if music isn’t in English, it might as well not exist. So sad, because Brazil has an incredibly rich musical scene. From sleepy samba to lively Bahiana axé, from campy farro (a corruption of English “for all” – the history for another post) to raunchy favela funk, you can find it all here.

A wide-ranging genre is MPB (musica popular brasileira). It tends to be upbeat and danceable, but can be laid back as well. A very popular star here is Ivete Sangalo. She is revered like Madonna mixed with the Virgin Mary. My good buddy and frequent visitor to Rio Greg actually bumped into her in Porcão. True to her reputation as being super-nice, she let Greg take a picture with her. Unfortunately, he only had his cell phone available, but he was happy nonetheless.

My favorite singer her is probably Marisa Monte. On one of my first visits to Brasil, my host, Rogério, took me to a music store and bought me her CD, Mais (More). There is not a bad cut on this disc, which follows a minimalist approach. Some songs are just an acoustic guitar and her beautifully rich and ranging voice. You should pick up a copy of Mais while you are here. The first cut, Beija eu (Kiss me) is one of the most beautiful little tunes I’ve ever heard. Maybe you could think of Marisa as a Brasilian version of Norah Jones.

It’s such a shame that Americans only listen to music in English. They are cheating themselves.

5. Weather. I’ll let you in on a little secret: It actually does get cold in the South of Brazil. You thought that Brazil was all tropical? Much of it is, but bear in mind that Brazil is as large as the Lower 48 States, so naturally the climate is going to vary a bit.

But by and large, there’s lots of sun. And though Brasil has thousands of miles of coastline, it does not receive hurricanes – a real bonus if like me you’ve lived through four of them. You also won’t find tornados (which are largely confined to central North America) and no earthquakes, like Peru to the west.

In Natal, in the northeast, one of my favorite spots, the only problem is the dreadful monotony of one perfect cloudless day after another…

6. Friendly people. Ok, forget the mind-numbingly stupid Anaconda and the embarrassingly bad Turistas (which at least featured Olivia Wilde). Brasilians overall are a very friendly, polite, and welcoming people. Unlike, say, the snobby French, perched atop their sinking ship of a language, Brasilians will work with you when you try to speak their language. Which, by the way, is NOT Spanish, but Portuguese. Yes, they are similar, and Spanish will help you, but please buy a Portuguese/English dictionary and try to learn at least a few basic phrases.

Brasilians place a high value on getting along. They are tolerant. They are helpful. When I first moved to Rio, I was forever asking, “Excuse me, where is this street? Where is that building?” Never once – NOT ONCE – did anyone ignore me or give me the brush off. WITHOUT EXCEPTION, whomever I asked would stop and tell me. If the guy I asked didn’t know, he would stop someone else to help me. Really, sometimes it was almost embarrassing, getting this star treatment on a street corner.

Brasilians are curious and welcoming, especially if you are a foreigner. If you get outside of Rio and to the smaller places, you will really experience what I am saying. If you happen to be seated alone, the folks at the next table may well invite you to join them.

Brasilians are also easygoing as a rule. In all my time in Brazil (16 visits plus a year and a half living here), I have seen exactly one fight. That despite having been in many Carnival parades which were packed, to say the least, and where pretty much everyone had a buzz on. In the US, that would be a formula for fighting.

There is classism in Brazil, if much less outright racism. Fortunately for you as a visitor here, you will probably be welcomed openly, the assumption being that you are relatively educated and wealthy. Plus, as mentioned, Brazilians tend to be very curious about foreigners, particularly Americans, and like talking to them.

7. The future is bright. Since my first visit to Brasil, I’ve been saying: Once this place gets its act together, it is going to really be something.

That time is now. While the northern hemisphere tries to recover from easy credit and the resulting debacle, Brasil continues to march along. Brasil has everything it needs in terms of natural resources: arable land, water, bauxite, trees, and sizable reserves of petroleum and natural gas. True, they have to establish what their policies toward the Amazon will be, but believe it or not, Brasil is pretty forward-looking, and recycling and conservation efforts are on the increase. And, importantly, Brasilians never did and still don’t produce NEARLY the amount of trash per person as do more developed nations.

Brasilians, despite the image you may have in your head, are not lazy. They do understand the need to balance work and play, and they think North Americans are money-obsessed (anyone care to argue that point?), but they are not afraid of work. What they want are opportunities. Less governmental bureaucracy and stepping steps to encourage foreign investment would help to unleash Brasil’s economic potential.

Brasil is finally taking its deserved place in the world, and not simply as an economic power. Brasil wants to be a player in world politics and debates. It sees itself as a potential negotiator and peacemaker, a country which can help resolve disputes without the use of force. Brasil is being to develop its own voice, and to raise that voice.

8. Natural beauty of the country. But what I love most about Brazil has nothing to do with its people, or its cultures (for there are many), or its potential. It is simply that Brazil was blessed with an incredible array of beauty, from the waterfalls of Iguaçu to the beaches of Rio and Salvador to the sand dunes of Rio Grande do Norte to the rainforest of the Amazon. The beauty is often staggering. And you can still find areas that are not yet overdeveloped – although, alas, these are disappearing here as everywhere else.

I’ve seen a lot of Brasil, but there are still lots of places yet to discover, notably the Amazon. I am making plans to take more trips this year. Come on back and see more of Brasil, vicariously.

And if you would like to come experience Brazil firsthand, write to me at: John@JohnInBrazilOrg@gmail.com. I’ll help you set up an itinerary.

Um abraço (a hug),

John

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