sao paulo
A dreadful flight. Not because of turbelence or anything but some Brazilians decided unilaterally to change a whole series of seats with the result that I got a really sh*t seat sitting beside some man-mountain. I suppose I was too polite to protest although I should have. I was quitely enraged. It felt just like those pushy seat changing Isreali's I encountered in Cambodia.
At least when I got through arrivals the bloke at the tourist information both was really helpful. My Portugese is simply laughable and he sorted me out with a hotel. Quite a relief as few people speak English. A quick bus trip and I was in Sao Paulo. I wasn't exactly in the nice part of town. It was dimly lit and many shadowy characters lurked about. I had been warned about the city. Crime is rampant. Thankfully nothing of note happened. I try to carry a 'don't mess with me' deportment when I walk around.
I stayed in the old town partly as hotel rates are cheaper but it isn't very nice to be around after dark. But the main sights are there so it suited me. The old town is dirty and neglected. Tramps and beggars abound. It seems like the pavements were primarily set aside for the homeless. Sad really for what is one of the worlds wealthiest country's. It boasts one of the tallest buildings in the region and I went up and had a look. The thing that really amazed me was to see over a dozen helicopters buzzing over the city. Presumably ferrying the businessman from meeting to meeting. Understandable in a way as the traffic below is impassable.
The new town is all spick and span. It is here that the wealthy live in their gated communities. Patrolled by security and nursed by maids. The new town is all high rise buildings. The historic buildings giving way to the gaudy, modernist. Apart from that there is little else to see. I found the one Irish pub here. I met some of the locals and ended up debating the stark inequality of the city. And it is stark.
The metro system allowed me to get around this megapolis fairly easily. But in truth there isn't a lot to see or do in all the city. It isn't really a tourist magnet but interesting to see if for nothing else than being home to over 29 million people. The second largest city on earth.
At least when I got through arrivals the bloke at the tourist information both was really helpful. My Portugese is simply laughable and he sorted me out with a hotel. Quite a relief as few people speak English. A quick bus trip and I was in Sao Paulo. I wasn't exactly in the nice part of town. It was dimly lit and many shadowy characters lurked about. I had been warned about the city. Crime is rampant. Thankfully nothing of note happened. I try to carry a 'don't mess with me' deportment when I walk around.
I stayed in the old town partly as hotel rates are cheaper but it isn't very nice to be around after dark. But the main sights are there so it suited me. The old town is dirty and neglected. Tramps and beggars abound. It seems like the pavements were primarily set aside for the homeless. Sad really for what is one of the worlds wealthiest country's. It boasts one of the tallest buildings in the region and I went up and had a look. The thing that really amazed me was to see over a dozen helicopters buzzing over the city. Presumably ferrying the businessman from meeting to meeting. Understandable in a way as the traffic below is impassable.
The new town is all spick and span. It is here that the wealthy live in their gated communities. Patrolled by security and nursed by maids. The new town is all high rise buildings. The historic buildings giving way to the gaudy, modernist. Apart from that there is little else to see. I found the one Irish pub here. I met some of the locals and ended up debating the stark inequality of the city. And it is stark.
The metro system allowed me to get around this megapolis fairly easily. But in truth there isn't a lot to see or do in all the city. It isn't really a tourist magnet but interesting to see if for nothing else than being home to over 29 million people. The second largest city on earth.
posted by Ciarán at 5:50 p.m.
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