Brazil Sep2020 General Observations
Comparison to Germany (my fatherland) and Thailand (where I spend a lot of time) and elsewhere in Asia. The problem with going to so many places is that there is always something better or worse than elsewhere, and I want all the good in one place!
Exchange rates: 1 EUR = 6.41 BRL (Brazilian real), 1 USD = 5.51 BRL, 1 BRL = 5.73 THB (25sep2020).
Some of what I write is exaggerated for humorous effect.
This article will be published on Boytoy and Sawatdeenetwork as well. https://sawatdeenetwork.com/v4/showthread.php?21607-Brazil-Sep2020-General-Observations-Part1
https://sawatdeenetwork.com/v4/showthread.php?21608-Brazil-Sep2020-General-Observations-Part2
https://www.boytoy.com/forums/topic/32604-brazil-sep2020-general-observations/
Cleanliness of public areas
There was more garbage lying in the streets and more people going through garbage looking for recyclables than in Thailand. I frequently noticed smell of pee or poo in the streets (in Paris in 2012, there was smell of pee only under the Seine bridges, in Thailand I didn’t notice smell of pee or poo, in some areas in Berlin there is a lot of dog poo).
On the other hand, I saw fewer rats and cockroaches than in Thailand. But there were pigeons picking in a heap of rubbish. Disgusting!
More homeless people than anywhere else I have been, most notably in groups or families (with babies and adolescents); whereas in Thailand mostly isolated individuals, and those who live near my room in Bangkok, not sound of mind.
There was graffiti everywhere, more than I have ever seen before. Graffiti, tattooing and piercing seem to be national pastimes.
Covid
In public transport and shops wearing a mask was compulsory, and most people wore their mask outside as well. Some places I wanted to go to closed for Covid. Temperature checks in some places, alcohol gel dispensers for hand disinfection in many places.
Flight to Brazil and back
My flights (Berlin via Paris to Sao Paulo with Air France, Rio de Janeiro via Amsterdam to Berlin with KLM) were at price (508 Euro return) and times as I think it would have been before Covid. Empty airports, no queues at check-in, security, passport control. Departure and arrival ahead of schedule. Full meal service on Air France, reduced service on KLM but still full meals. Brazilian immigration asked for my length of stay, so I showed my return flight.
The flights Berlin to Paris and Amsterdam to Berlin were ¼ full, the flights Paris to Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro to Amsterdam about 2/3 full.
Side note: this was my first flight with Air France, my first flight with KLM, and my first flight across the Atlantic.
My father asked what kind of airplane I flew with. I’m not familiar with the types, and it doesn’t make a difference to me, so all I can say is: it was a monoplane. (A joke, original in German: "Na so eins mit zwei Flügeln!" I have no interest in cars either, if someone asks me "What car did he drive?" - "I don't know. It was black. Oh, and it had four wheels!")
Hold luggage would have cost 40 EUR extra each way. So I took only hand luggage and bought additional clothes in Brazil and did laundry.
In the history of mankind, nobody has ever traveled that far with that little luggage.
Food
In Thailand I usually stay in hotels without breakfast, because I know Thai food and can get breakfast outside easily. But in Brazil, I would not want to start my day having to search for a place to eat and then decide what to eat. That applies to the rest of my meals, I stuck to food I know (pizza, pasta), or places with English menus as I’m not adventurous to try unknown food. Everything I had tasted good (whereas my memories of meals in Cambodia are negative) and was cheaper than in Germany, but more expensive than in Thailand. I’m sure knowing the local food will allow saving money.
I spotted a lot of cheese and vine in the supermarket and assume they are regionally produced and cheap (whereas in Thailand imported and expensive).
A lot of meat hanging in the butcher’s shop. I didn’t see any vegetarian restaurants (I have vegetarian friends who get along well in Thailand food-wise).
Globalization
When I was in Taiwan in 2018, I had a meal “Gyudon with 4 cheese” in a Japanese fast-food chain Sukiya that was delicious. By chance, I found the same chain Sukiya with the same dish at the same price and same taste in Bangkok, and now in Brazil!
That seems to apply to ATM fees as well. In Cambodia the fee is 5 USD (I tried once to see if my credit card works as a back-up), in Myanmar 6 USD (ditto), in Thailand around 6 USD, and in Brazil Banco24horas showed 24 BRL = 4.5 USD.
Same for entry prices worldwide: Eiffel tower 25.90 EUR; Sugarloaf 116 BRL = 19 EUR, Royal Palace in Bangkok 500 THB = 14 EUR. The variation of entry price is much lower than the variation of GDP per capita for the countries quoted.
Health benefits
Nowadays I can’t imagine how I could endure German autumn and winter for over 30 years, and one of the reasons why I went to Brazil was to escape the weather.
I get cold hands and feet easily in Germany (all the time except in summer; a first-world problem). No part of my body feeling cold in Brazil, that alone was worth the trip. Update: my mother bought me a pair of furry slippers, at least I don’t have to suffer from cold feet now.
In Germany, I get tinnitus (probably low blood circulation, related to cold hands and feet) that quickly goes away when I’m in Thailand. In Brazil as well!
In Germany, I get dandruff and skin rash, but that quickly disappears in Thailand and Brazil. I think it’s because in Thailand and Brazil I shower every day and before and after sex, whereas in Germany only every other week.
In Germany, I get athlete’s foot (from wearing closed shoes all the time, see cold feet above), that quickly goes away in Thailand in flip-flops (flip-flops save a lot of time anyway, except for hiking and travel in air-conditioned bus or airplane, I wear them all the time).
In Brazil I didn't go to places where you have to take off your shoes (like temples in Thailand, I go to many and flip-flops are very convenient), so I didn't buy flip-flops, but next time I will.
Flip-flops with the picture of Christ the Redeemer. I this blasphemy?
In Germany, I gain weight (eat a lot, sedentary lifestyle); in Thailand, I lose weight (walk a lot). In Brazil, my weight was stable.
The only negative is sunburn. After two days in Sao Paulo without sun protection, my skin was red and I covered up to avoid a sunburn.
Health insurance
I took “Hanse-Merkur Jahres-AuslandsKrankenversicherung” at a cost of 17 EUR (valid for one year, each trip maximum 56 days). I asked them for a document that states the exact requirements of Brazilian immigration and got it the following day. My health insurance was requested at check-in and at Brazilian immigration.
Hotels
All hotels I stayed in (SP Hotel Moncloa in Rua Augusta, RJ Hotel Atlântico Rio and Augusto's Copacabana Hotel, both near metro Cantagalo) had breakfast included and a room safe and were reasonably priced and I would recommend them.
Hotel Atlântico Rio, booked for 80 BRL per night on agoda, was the best value for money I ever stayed in. They had a full breakfast buffet. Breakfast was busy with guests, always guests at reception or in lobby, and when I wanted to stay longer they were fully booked. Room safe was 6 digits which had to be entered twice (elsewhere 4 digits, enter once).
Early check-in (8 or 10 am) was not a problem in the two hotels I arrived early. Booking at reception competitive with agoda in two cases I extended my stay. Different to Thailand, Taiwan, Hong Kong, where receptionists told me they can't match the price on agoda and advised me to book on agoda to save money.
Reduced breakfast (individually packed and served due to Covid and low number of guests) and full breakfast buffet.
Language
National language of Brazil is Portuguese, with little English spoken outside hotels for tourists.
I can read French fluently as a foreign language, which allows me to understand half of written Portuguese (the laundry instructions in next article I understand completely). But understanding spoken Portuguese close to zero, same for writing or speaking.
In preparation of the trip, I had a look at Portuguese phrasebooks and videos on youtube and spend some hours. But after a few days in Brazil it became clear that I will not spend extended time in the future and I abandoned learning Portuguese.
German is spoken in Germany, Austria and most of Switzerland. English is spoken in UK, Ireland, USA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Why oh why do there have to be Portuguese and Spanish? It’s a nuisance like driving on the left or right side of the road, or different power plugs in different parts of the world, and creates a mental block in my brain.
Each language for itself is below the threshold worth of learning for me, but if they were one language I would learn it.
Laundry
I did not bring enough clothes for the entire trip. Washing my clothes in the bathroom sink was not convincing. Results could be improved by bringing a plug. Tip for drying: wrap clothes after washing in towel from hotel and wring it. Thus, the towel will absorb some water and the clothes will dry faster. Or use a hair dryer (during rainy season in Myanmar in 2018, that was the only way I could get my clothes dry).
Laundry at my hotel was outrageously expensive (for trousers/pants wash and iron 28 BRL; that means for 6 times wash and iron I can buy a new one!). A friend told me that laundry is expensive, and numbers I saw at laundry services in the street where high and there is the language barrier, so I decided to use a public laundry.
The closest (1 km away) to my hotel that I could find on google was Lavanderias Laundromat in Shopping dos Antiquários (open 24/7). Payment only cashless. I asked people, cannot pay with Riocard (whereas in Taiwan easycard can be used for everything), only with credit/debit card. My credit card (consorsbank Germany) is accepted! Else I would have had to ask other customers to pay cashless for me and give them cash in return; I was wearing my last set of fresh clothes.
Washing was 18 BRL which is not cheap. And had I known that drying costs the same, I would have taken my clothes home to dry in my room. Detergent and softener added automatically by the washing machine.
Thailand wins hands down (laundry available everywhere and cheap). In Myanmar I had similar problems (had to walk 1 km from my hotel to laundry service, not cheap compared to Thailand).
Money exchange and ATMs
10sep2020. In GRU (Sao Paulo international airport), go to ATM Banco24Horas (red). A fee of 24 BRL is shown, followed by an offer for DCC (Dynamic Currency Conversion with a very unfavorable rate) which I decline. Afterwards error message and card ejected.
Go to blue ATM24hs. A fee of 39.90 BRL is shown, followed by offer for DCC which I decline. Afterwards error message and card ejected.
Both attempts were with comdirect visa card (bank account in Euro in Germany, bank offers worldwide cash withdrawal without fees which worked well in SEAsia).
Go to money exchange booth (at least there I deal with people). Their exchange rate is 1 EUR = 5.44 BRL. But that does not include fees/taxes. For 100 EUR I get 520 BRL, a loss of 17% against xe.com 6.29, my worst money exchange ever. In SEAsia, I have it down to 0.5-1% loss against xe.com.
In Frei Caneca shopping mall, try again at Banco24horas: communication failure. Try at bradesco: card declined. (Upon returning to Germany, I find that my comdirect credit card has been cancelled by my bank because there was fraud attempt two days before I went to Brazil. The first time such thing happened to me, and that explains why my card was rejected.)
I have another visa card (consorsbank), Try at Banco24horas: communication failure. Try at bradesco, finally works and I get 1000 BRL from ATM. Processed at 1 EUR = 6.21 BRL, a loss of 2 % against xe.com 6.30.
At money exchange (“Confidence Cambio” blue on white) in Frei Caneca shopping mall get 575 BRL for 100 EUR (a loss of 9% against xe.com).
Both money exchanges did not have rates displayed, and it took the clerk at Confidence Cambio a while to calculate the effective rate (5.80 before, 5.75 after taxes/fees). In both exchanges, passport was required.
16sep2020. There is an ATM in my hotel lobby (Hotel Atlântico Rio near metro Cantagalo), how convenient! WRONG! This ATM offers up to 2200 BRL (others maximum 1000), I go for 1500 and decline DCC. Without any further communication, a fee of 193.89 BRL is shown and the transaction is processed. That is 11% of the withdrawn amount. Exchange rate was 6.14, a loss of 2% against xe.com 6.24.
There is a small chance that DCC was displayed in a way that is misleading/confusing and I pushed the wrong button and accepted. The take-home message is: avoid ATMs in airports and hotels, and when DCC is offered, rather press “cancel” on the keyboard than on screen.
For money exchange, SEAsia wins hands down over Brazil.
People
Brazil is a mixture of races like I have never seen before. There were White, Yellow, Red, Brown and Black; only an Eskimo would stick out of the crowd. That means everyone can blend in (whereas in SEAsia a White immediately sticks out as a foreigner). The downside is that everyone will approach you in Portuguese, and with mask they can’t see my helpless look because I don’t understand what they are saying.
Everyone I met was nice to me and tried to help, with or without speaking a common language.
Public transport
I took buses or metro wherever possible. Riocard is useful as it can be used on various public transport. Metro in Rio is 5 BRL, bus 4.05 BRL per trip (high inflation, on the internet you still find outdated cheaper prices).
I spotted these devices in the metro: rent a power bank, rent an umbrella, free condoms (size 52, too small for many of the dicks I saw in the saunas)
Quarantine in Germany
During my trip to
Brazil, a 14-day-quarantine for people coming from risk areas was
introduced. That does not affect me much, as I don’t work and spend most
of the day home anyway. Now I have to keep a diary and measure my
temperature twice per day, and health officers call me every day to ask
how I’m feeling. Since my birth, I haven’t gotten that much attention!
Safety
My biggest concern was safety. Warnings and stories about muggings and robberies are plentiful on the internet, and this video is appalling.
From: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k4x23ie9hNc Thieves stealing a phone on a walkway in the centre of São Paulo look The speed of these Jan 24, 2017
There is a saying "The finger is worth more than the ring" meaning a robber will cut off your finger to get the ring if you don't surrender it.
To
be on the safe side, I left my good mobile phone in room and took only
my old phone (bought in 2016) outside. I left my main wallet with cards
in my room and carried money on two places on my body (a habit I have
been following for years, everywhere). The only thing I did not have
backed-up was my camera. In SEAsia I carry it on my neck all the time. I
got advice not to carry my camera around my neck, and I didn’t see
anyone in Brazil carrying a camera around his neck, so I put mine in my
pocket and took a second camera (bought in 2009, doesn’t work any more)
as a decoy. Thank god I didn’t need any of these back-ups and decoys!
While
there are signs of increased safety measures (compared to Europe or
SEAsia) like money transport cars look like tanks, presence of police in
bulletproof vests and carrying rifles, most properties walled or
fenced, with barbed wire / razor wire or electric fence on top, entrance via a (lock chamber? what would you call it in English? In German "Schleuse" like the lock (water navigation)); I never felt insecure (and I did
plenty of walking around town SP and RJ at day or night).
People I observed behaved just like anywhere else I have been (i.e. wear wristwatches, use their phone in public, carry backpacks or tote bags).
On my first trip to Cambodia in 2014 I almost had my mobile phone stolen. I was standing at the road and holding it high and away from my body to get GPS when two men on a mocy drove past and tried to grab it but failed. Since then, I stand on a wall or on a post when using my phone in public.
SIM-card
Couldn’t find the TIM shop closest (by google maps) to my hotel. But I spotted Claro in Frei Caneca shopping mall. Go there and with help of google translate get a SIM-card (10 BRL for prepaid SIM-card and 40 BRL for 4 GB data within two weeks, the card will be valid for 3 months).
Tap water
I drank liters of tap water in SP and RJ without negative effect. Now I can add these to my long list of cities where I drank tap water (Bangkok, Pattaya, Chiang Mai, Phuket; Vientiane, Vang Vieng, Pakse; Hanoi, Danang, Saigon; Yangon, Mandalay; Phnom Penh, Siem Reap; Taipei, Taizhong, Kaohsiung). Wile hiking in the mountains, I drank water from a stream.
Uber
I prefer walking and public transport over taxi. Everything under 5 km I rather walk, everything over 10 km I rather take public transport. I used uber only twice during two weeks.
What I did not consider was that you either have to verify your identity with a CPF (individual taxpayer registry identification, which I don’t have) or submit your credit card information (my credit card was in my room, and the paper where I wrote down the numbers were in my room, and I don’t know them by heart), so my first trip I wanted to make failed and I had to walk.
Weather/Climate
Most of my trip, weather was great. Only my last days in Rio gave an outlook of what their next months will be: rainy. I didn’t have big plans, so staying in all day because it was raining all day was not a problem for me.
Rainy season in Thailand usually one short and heavy downpour in the evening. But I had travel plans spoiled by rain in Thailand.
Climate has a strong influence on my travel. With rainy and hot summers in SP and RJ, I rather go to SEAsia where it’s dry and cold (by local standards).
Yellow fever
No vaccination against yellow fever required for SP and RJ. I checked in Germany and it would cost me 160 EUR and I would have to go to Berlin to get a vaccination. A friend from the USA said it would cost him 450 USD there (doctors and the pharmaceutical industry are holding the entire USA hostage!), whereas in Brazil it’s free for everyone. In hindsight, I should have gotten a vaccination this trip (for possible future trips in Latin America), and will do next trip.
Copyright 2020 ChristianPFC
