BZ Travel Diary - Brazil, It's been 'Rio'
This Thanksgiving, I went to Brazil for the first time. It is a half-work and half-travel kinda vacation. I spent a week there working remotely half of the time. The major difficulty is the language barrier, which makes the experience less fun but still, I tried my best to have the best of it.
Sao Paulo
Cathedral de Sao Paulo - I went there on a Sunday to go to Church. Got the bless and have a bite of the holy cake, There are a lot of people gathering outside of the cathedral. Most of them are homeless. It reminds me of the Civic centre area in SF at night. It is not dangerous though. I met a couple of social workers who are interviewing people there and try to provide them with basic things,
Second Half of the day, I went to the Modern Art of Sao Paulo (MASP). There was only floor open for showcases. The entire thing is a little small. Luckily there was a carnival/parade outside on the main street. You can feel free to join the dance groups, or site down listen to some nice singing from the street performers.
Rio De Janeiro
Christ The Redeemer - $18 train ticket. Make sure to get their early and have some partner to take photos for you. There will be people in every corner trying to take a perfect photo with this guy.
Sugarloaf - You can have a good view of the Sugarloaf from the mountain of Christ the Redeemer. You can also go to the top by using the gondola. There is a really nice restaurant in the sugarload region by the bay. You can get your drink and food then go to eat by the dock.
Escadaria de Selaron - This place reminds me a lot of Lisbon. All the tiles in this escadaira have their own stories. It is a short staircases but you can spendd a long time, looking for and embracing those stories.
Travel Tips:
Uber came to rescue again in a foreign county where English is not widely spoken. It is relatively cheap and easy for the commute.
Local beers are cheap and tasty. Order a beer and an appetizer, sitting by the patio, watching people passing by.
Google translate or get a translator on your phone, it will be handy.
