So far every city I have visited in Brasil feels like another continent.
Rio stands up to it´s dreamy reputation, beaches, mountains, and all the mod cons what more could you want? The Cariocas are a bit different from everyone else, they have a really strange sense of humor. For example, everyday someone would yell at me: LIFE IS BEAUTIFUL!!! I had such an amazing time, and made a lot of new friends. Carioca cab drivers are especially chatty, they love tourists and want to hear all about Manaus and Toronto. Whereas, in Manaus the Manauaras are less interested in trying to decipher my broken Portuguese. Did I mention the steak-cheese-pineapple sandwhiches!?
Petropolis is a very worthwile bus trip one hour outside of Rio. The bus ride alone is on par with driving through the Rockey Mountains on Glacier Parkway, the mountains outside Rio are just spectacular. Petropolis has a lot of historical colonial sites such as the Imperial Museum. I had a fun time getting lost on a local bus in the mountains! Petropolis feels like being in a sleepy town in the midlands of England, the pace is slower, and there are lots of older people doing funny outdoor exercises.
Sao Paulo is a monster of a city, I thought I could handle it but I was wrong. I lasted about 4 minutes on Rua 25 Marco, which is the big shopping street. In the downtown centro part there are so many people you can´t see your own nose, it is very overwhelming. Sampa feels like the most dangerous city so far, I am not sure why. Maybe it is because the streets are not lit very well, and everything is located in private space. Sao Paulo feels closed, everything is behind a door or in a random place so you need to know precisely where you are going. I am so lucky to have some wonderful friends here, otherwise I would be totally lost in this massive jungle.
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