Ups and downs

Inevitably, the same with anywhere in the world there are things here that I like, and there are things that take me longer to adapt to. So as my 20^th post on this blog I decided to write 20 things I like about living in Brazil, and 20 things that may "take me longer to adapt to" (if they were on a report card they'd be called "development areas"). These are based on my experiences in the 3 months so far (not scientific fact). Here they are.

1 - THUMBS UP. It’s always hot.

THUMBS DOWN. It’s always hot.

2 - THUMBS UP. People you know (friends and family) are amazing.

THUMBS DOWN. People you don’t know will run in front of you to beat you to the door and let it shut in your face when you're carrying a huge sofa.

3 - THUMBS UP. The beer is exceptionally chilled.

THUMBS DOWN. The red wine is exceptionally chilled.

4 - THUMBS UP. Beer is cheap.

THUMBS DOWN. It doesn’t make that delicious “TSSSsssshh” sound when you open the can.

5 - THUMBS UP. You can visit anyone at any time and be warmly received.

THUMBS DOWN. They expect the same at your house.

6 - THUMBS UP. Spectacular storms, beautiful blue skies, starry nights, lightning shows

THUMBS DOWN. Infrastructure can’t cope with the storms

Espetinho

7 - THUMBS UP. Barbeques and espetinhos.

THUMBS DOWN. Rice and beans.

8 - THUMBS UP. Ice cream is everywhere.

THUMBS DOWN. Rice and beans are everywhere.

9 - THUMBS UP. Lunch in a restaurant is good value and good variety.

THUMBS DOWN. There is nothing left by 1pm.

10 - THUMBS UP. I finally found sun dried tomatoes and mushrooms.

THUMBS DOWN. They cost the equivalent of an hours salary for a small jar and don't taste "the same".

11 - THUMBS UP. Huge variety of fruit and good value.

THUMBS DOWN. Very few vegetables.

12 - THUMBS UP. We live in a condominium with a porter, electronic gates and security.

THUMBS DOWN. None of the staff know what to do in an emergency (eg the regular power cuts).

13 - THUMBS UP. The beaches and the lake and the friends with swimming pools.

THUMBS DOWN. 10 minutes in the sun and you are raisinised.

14 - THUMBS UP. 2 hour lunch break.

THUMBS DOWN. Driving back to work and scolding your back as it touches the seat.

15 - THUMBS UP. We have a car

THUMBS DOWN. We need 2 cars.

16 - THUMBS UP. The ‘rush hour’ only lasts 10 mins.

THUMBS DOWN. There are 4 rush hours per day.

17 - THUMBS UP. We have seat belts in the back seats.

THUMBS DOWN. People only use them when I refuse to move until they are belted in.

18 - THUMBS UP. Once in a while other drivers use their indicators

THUMBS DOWN You can’t trust them to be using them accurately, so you ignore them.

19 - THUMBS UP. Rent and house prices are low

THUMBS DOWN. Salaries are lower.

20 - THUMBS DOWN. Calling and texting is complex and expensive.

THUMBS UP. Everyone has Whatsapp

THUMBS DOWN. Whatsapp groups.

TV

The first time I turned on the TV after I arrived I was treated to a close up of a breast feeding woman. Since then it’s been mostly violence and scantily clad dancers (Google "Brazilian TV" for an idea). We only get a half decent reception on one channel, and in my opinion it doesn’t seem to offer much diversity

A rather popular scene from a recent Novella

I used to think football was the national pastime, until I heard that televised football matches kick off at 10pm as ‘novellas’ (soaps) have prime time. Brazilian novellas are hugely popular here and a successful export to the rest of the Portuguese speaking world. For someone who doesn’t pay much attention to them, they seem to contain only arguments and crying, both at a similar pitch. I still haven’t decided if it’s better to watch with or without sound – with sound you suffer the wailing and whining; without sound I notice the poor acting even more.

The news is full of violent events, usually with graphic images, regardless of the time of day. It also frequently has interviews with silhouetted victims or witnesses where their voices are altered digitally to avoid identification. While I appreciate the need for discretion, I wish they’d just dub over with someone else’s voice – the constant digital Tellytubby voices are like nails down a blackboard! Surely in an economy that values job creation where jobs don’t exist they can dub the voices.

The entertainment shows have the presenters advertising products in the middle of the show. There is a lot of very amateur magic and singing, and the audience is always convinced and impressed, and easily fooled.

The presenters are almost always young, white and pretty. I was surprised to see a black weathergirl, but she was young and pretty, so they’d obviously made an exception.

A conspiracy theorist may suggest that it's all a plan. The banal TV pacifies the population rather than educate them with documentaries. The exposure to daily violence and corruption anaesthetises the population so that it becomes accepted as normal rather than something to protest against.

TV is also inescapable. Almost all bars and cafes have the TV on, loud. If you want to go out for a meal and escape the TV, forget it - even nice restaurants often show novellas, news or football matches. UFC is often played, despite the fact that kids of all ages always accompany the parents to the restaurants so sit watching the late night violence. Public buildings, supermarkets and many shops have the TV on, ostensibly for customers but actually for the staff.

Sadly I can’t access iPlayer or 4 on Demand here so have no access to UK TV. However, I’m grateful to have been blessed with a habit of not watching much TV. If I was of a different disposition I think I’d struggle.

(As always, these are my impressions only, based on my experience in one city in one state of Brazil. They do not necessarily represent the nation)