São Paulo - Brazil

Diving into a Different World

A new backpacking journey begins, this time with only carry-on luggage. Despite that, our backpacks still weigh around 10 kg. That's almost too much again, so you probably shouldn't take us as an example. 11 hours of flight time later, we reached our destination, where it's a warm 30 degrees! Thank goodness for the Uber app here in Brazil, making it quite easy and affordable for us to get from A to B. 

Poverty

Already on the drive towards the city center, the total contrast between the Google images and reality became visible. On traffic islands, pedestrian paths, and under bridges, you could see tents of various colors set up, where homeless people live. 

In one tent, even a child between the ages of 3 and 5 looked out. Their skin was lightly tanned and covered by a white, spacious undershirt. A few meters away sat an old man with tousled hair, a long beard, and torn, dirt-covered feet. He wore a piece of cardboard attached with a thick string as shoes. It's not uncommon to see people here lying randomly on the ground, wrapped in house carpets or completely covered with gray felt blankets. 

In between, a few chickens walked around with their chicks. Occasionally, you'd also see a shaggy dog, and all of this was surrounded by old rags, scraps of garbage, and a few shopping carts. I don't want to know how long it would take for someone to notice that there might be a dead body under one of the carpets or blankets. Just a creepy thought! In the background stood huge skyscrapers covered in graffiti, and old trucks drove on the streets, swirling the smell of gasoline into the air.

Five years ago, São Paulo looked completely different. The extreme poverty is due to the economic crisis, and of course, Corona hasn't made things any better!

Shopping and Eating

Here in São Paulo, you'll find one store after another. There's nothing you can't buy, and everything here is packed in 10 extra bags. REALLY EVERYTHING! They even wanted to put our 5-liter canister in a bag (I highly doubt it would have held).

Moreover, there are restaurants or bars on every corner. And I love the restaurants here! Almost everywhere, you can get a buffet meal with freshly grilled meat, cooked vegetables, fresh salad, typical Brazilian dumplings, and much more. The currency in Brazil is the "Brazilian Real" (1 Euro -> 6.33 Real). An all-you-can-eat buffet costs approximately 4.50 Euros per person. Alternatively, there's also the option to be charged per 100 grams of plate weight, which is even cheaper and usually totally sufficient. Overall, I would say that everything here is about half as expensive as in Germany. For some dishes, even 3 or 4 times as cheap. I also especially love the freshly squeezed juices! And FINALLY, there are ACAI berries here again, just like in Australia and New Zealand. The berries are mixed here and garnished with sweet treats like honey, coconut flakes, and oatmeal.

People:

Next, I want to tell you a little bit about the people here. Often, they have a broad smile on their face and are also extremely helpful and hospitable!Unfortunately, they are also quite anxious, which is understandable given the high crime rate.

Within the first two days, we were alerted by 5 different locals to be very cautious. Using a phone in the city? Better not here! While in Germany, it's normal to look at your smartphone all day, here it's rather rare. Even in the car, we were strongly advised against using the phone. In the car?? Unimaginable.

Many windows are tinted. On the passenger side as well as on the driver's side. A local, about the same age as us, told us about her horror story. Strangers broke her car window twice while she was on her way to the city center. They stole the navigation system and other valuables.

Tips from the locals:

In the evening, it's best to avoid being in the middle of the city. Especially not alone. Valuables should be made as invisible as possible (we always have our thin waist bag, worn under the t-shirt) and only safe means of transportation should be used (Uber!).

A little stroll around the city

Today we visited a typical flea market. Just like in Germany, there was a lot of odds and ends to buy here. But what you might see less often is the sale of little kittens and puppies amidst the hustle and bustle. After that, we checked out the famous graffiti area. There we found artfully crafted walls (and people), lots of little food stalls, and even some live music. Suddenly, everything felt beautiful, familiar, and safe again. And all of this just a 15-minute drive from the city center. In the evening, we went to a bar with a Brazilian friend of mine. I know him because we lived together in Braunschweig for a month before he returned to his home country.

In the bars of Brazil, there's only cold beer. Or rather, "ice-cold beer"! The refrigerators are set to -4 degrees Celsius, and on top of that, they serve the beer in an ice-filled bucket. Brazilians take this very seriously due to the very warm/hot weather conditions and despise lukewarm beer. So if the drink doesn't arrive at the right temperature, it's sent back! The most common cocktail here is the Caipirinha, which tastes very fruity and sweet! Also, small snacks on the side are quite normal here. We ate fried "Mandiocas" (a kind of root vegetable) and dumplings filled with cheese and meat. After that, there was plenty of traditional samba dancing!

A brief summary of São Paulo:

We've often been asked what impression we have of São Paulo. It's a mix of shocking and fascinating.

The food there is sooo delicious, the people are lovely, the nightlife endless, and the sights extremely impressive. But here in São Paulo, you experience two sides. The carefree life, but also a lot of suffering and neediness.

P.S.: I would advise against solo traveling here! Especially at the moment, due to the Corona situation, it's difficult to make contact with other backpackers because there simply aren't any, and you shouldn't take the current crime rate lightly.

Good to know:

Upon entry into Brazil, you need a complete vaccination certificate, a health form, a current PCR test, and of course, your other documents (travel health insurance, passport, standard vaccinations...)!

Upon entry from Brazil to Paraguay, you'll need a Yellow Fever vaccination!Just one vaccination ensures lifelong protection!

Currently, in almost EVERY COUNTRY (except Peru), a PCR- Test PCR test is required. The test costs approximately 60 Euros!Many border crossings are still closed. The circumstances aren't easy for us, so we'll need to rearrange some plans and probably won't be able to visit as many countries as planned.

Now, we're flying on to Paraguay!