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Another interesting day.
The rooms in the hotel are apartment style. That is they come with a microwave, small refrigerator, dishes, etc. I decided the smart thing would be just to make breakfast in the room. So yesterday I went to the supermarket around the corner and bought some groceries. I expected to find good fruit at reasonable prices. Another wrong assumption. I picked up four tiny bananas for about double what we pay. All of the fruit and vegetables were more expensive and often of a lower quality. But I did pick up enough to have breakfast here. Much quicker and easier. The only thing missing is a coffee maker so I had to make do with a small packet of instant. It was the first instant I've found tolerable. We should import it.
This morning I went fives blocks down the hill (and it is definitely down) to Rua Oscar Friere, Sao Paulo's answer to Rodeo Dr. It seems that the stores were having a big sale so people were lining up several deep. Like much of Latin America times are "ish" so even though it was past the posted opening time of 10, very few of the stores were actually open. Some weren't even open by 11. Most of the sales were very good - 50 to 70% off- so the prices were down from horrendously expensive to just expensive. Needless to say nobody needs to expect any designer fashions.
I had planned on spending the afternoon at Ibirapuera Park, Sao Paulo's answer to Central Park in New York. Yesterday I had passed a official tourist information kiosk and the guy seemed to speak English so I asked how to get to the park via the Metro. I should have just googled it.
Today I followed his directions and I don't know where he thought I wanted to go but it was quite obvious upon leaving the station I wasn't near the park and I was in an area I really didn't belong. This is a city of extreme contrasts. From the designer shops on Oscar Friere to here was only a couple of miles but the contrast could not be more spectacular. Once I figured out where I was and where I was supposed to be (thank God for GPS and downloable maps) I decided on Plan B - The Liberdade district.
I plotted out the route by the Metro and was off. I was so grateful for this because I saw a side of the city that few tourists would get. Not only were the buildings ramshackle but this line was old and dirty. Nothing like the others I had used. This line catered to the working class not the tourists or those that lived or worked along Paulista. A few short miles but two very different worlds. But at no time did I feel in danger.
By this time I was getting tired and thought about just going back to the hotel to rest. But I talked myself out of it and boy I'm glad I did.
The Liberdade area is the Japanese section. There is a surprisingly large Japanese population in Brazil - the largest outside of Japan. Most are centered in Sao Paulo State.
They go back to the 1900's when large numbers immigrated to work the coffee plantations.
During the war most were forced to move - Canada isn't the only country that needs to be ashamed of our treatment of Japanese citizens that had been in the country for generations.
After the war they returned and in subsequent years other Asian groups have settled in the area.
On Saturdays a few of the streets are shut down and an outdoor market springs up. It didn't take long for the energy and vitality of the place to make me forget how tired I was. I had a great time wandering the area and browsing through the vendors. There were a number of food kiosks setup serving some very interesting things. Had I been hungry I might have broken one of the rules of traveling - don't buy food from street vendors.
Tonight I wandered along Paulista for a bit but it certainly wasn't as busy or lively as Friday night. But then, according to Google, the nightlife really doesn't get started until midnight. I'll take their word on that.
- comments
Dave Cross I can picture your adventures. Great reading, Stan
Jennie Sounds like a great place to be! Looking forward to hearing more.