Samba in Sampa
Since my last blog I haven’t actually left São Paulo, as I’m saving my (very few) remaining pennies for a two-week trip to the Northeast of Brazil at the end of the month. Despite not having left the city, I’ve made sure to keep myself busy by spending time discovering more of the endless things that São Paulo has to offer. This started a couple of weeks ago with the Festival Pinheiros, an annually-held food festival and market on Rua dos Pinheiros, one of the busiest streets in the area. The entire street was heaving with people and food and drink stalls of every kind lined the pavements. There were also some live music areas, as well as a market right at the end which sold all sorts of gifts and trinkets. It was a nice place to spend a couple of hours mooching through the stands, before we headed to Gabi’s house to have a long overdue catch up with her family over lunch.
Another day was spent at the Museum of Immigration, which is located in a building that was actually used to receive the influx of immigrants that began arriving over the course of the 1900s. The building was the first place that immigrants arriving in the nearby ports were taken, and most of them would stay here for up to a week before being sent off to work in the interior of the country. The museum’s permanent exhibitions include a room set out as a dormitory to show how the immigrants would have lived, various displays of items that belonged to those who passed through the building on their way to a better life, and several videos talking about the development of humanity and the impact of immigration. Most of the exhibitions are available in English as well as Portuguese and Spanish, although a few are only in Portuguese. When I was there, the museum was hosting a temporary exhibition on infant refugees, made up of a thought-provoking collection of photographs by Karine Garcez portraying refugee children from countries such as Syria living in their new realities. The photographs were very powerful and for me they really captured the strength that these children have to be able to keep leading their lives in the most normal way possible, despite the terrible struggles they have faced and the uncertainty that surrounds their futures. The Museum of Immigration is definitely something I would recommend, especially if you have an interest in how immigration has helped shape the Brazil we know today.
Last week, Will’s friend Vicky came to stay, and being in Brazil, Will insisted we take her to see some samba. There’s a bar in Vila Madalena called O do Borogodó which from the outside doesn’t look like anything special, but once inside the place is buzzing with the sounds of live samba and chatter. It’s relatively small and feels even smaller as everyone in there is dancing to the samba music, but it’s authentic and is a great place for a chilled night out. At the weekend, we went to see more samba at Samba do Sol, an excellent free event run every Sunday in a different location. Our friend Cesco was visiting from Florianópolis and we had all had a really good night, with locals taking it upon themselves to try and teach the gringos how to samba. I’m definitely not a future samba dancer, but it was fun to give it a go. On the same night, Lewis had a pretty scary experience on his way to meet us at the bar. He was walking down a dark side street when a police car with no lights on drove past him, and two minutes later a car screeched to a halt next to him and four policemen jumped out and pointed their guns at him. After searching him and checking his ID, they got back in the car and drove off, so what they were stopping him for I don’t know, but he arrived at Samba do Sol a little shaken up by the experience, understandably.
Yesterday I spent the afternoon at the Pinacoteca, which is one of the most important art museums in the whole of Brazil, as well as being the oldest museum in São Paulo. The museum is located in a grand old building in the centre of the city, hinting at the wealthy past of an area which has become quite run-down over the years. The museum is home to works of art which are primarily by Latin American artists, and with entry costing as little as 6 reais (£1.20) or 3 reais with a student card, it is worth the visit. On the ground floor of the building there is a small café which backs onto some gardens which are nice to take a stroll through, although it’s probably advisable to keep a close eye on your belongings whilst doing so, as these gardens are open to the general public without an entry fee.
I’ve also spent a fair bit of time doing things that don’t really warrant a full explanation, such as picnics in the park, afternoons reading in coffee shops, and cinema trips to see films including Bohemian Rhapsody, which I saw twice within two days, it’s that good. It’s less than two weeks until we go to the Northeast now, something I’m really excited for and can’t wait to tell you all about.
Beijos,
Lola
P.S. Click here to access my GoFundMe, if anyone can spare anything at all it would be hugely appreciated!
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| Sunset in São Paulo |
Another day was spent at the Museum of Immigration, which is located in a building that was actually used to receive the influx of immigrants that began arriving over the course of the 1900s. The building was the first place that immigrants arriving in the nearby ports were taken, and most of them would stay here for up to a week before being sent off to work in the interior of the country. The museum’s permanent exhibitions include a room set out as a dormitory to show how the immigrants would have lived, various displays of items that belonged to those who passed through the building on their way to a better life, and several videos talking about the development of humanity and the impact of immigration. Most of the exhibitions are available in English as well as Portuguese and Spanish, although a few are only in Portuguese. When I was there, the museum was hosting a temporary exhibition on infant refugees, made up of a thought-provoking collection of photographs by Karine Garcez portraying refugee children from countries such as Syria living in their new realities. The photographs were very powerful and for me they really captured the strength that these children have to be able to keep leading their lives in the most normal way possible, despite the terrible struggles they have faced and the uncertainty that surrounds their futures. The Museum of Immigration is definitely something I would recommend, especially if you have an interest in how immigration has helped shape the Brazil we know today.
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| Museum of Immigration |
Last week, Will’s friend Vicky came to stay, and being in Brazil, Will insisted we take her to see some samba. There’s a bar in Vila Madalena called O do Borogodó which from the outside doesn’t look like anything special, but once inside the place is buzzing with the sounds of live samba and chatter. It’s relatively small and feels even smaller as everyone in there is dancing to the samba music, but it’s authentic and is a great place for a chilled night out. At the weekend, we went to see more samba at Samba do Sol, an excellent free event run every Sunday in a different location. Our friend Cesco was visiting from Florianópolis and we had all had a really good night, with locals taking it upon themselves to try and teach the gringos how to samba. I’m definitely not a future samba dancer, but it was fun to give it a go. On the same night, Lewis had a pretty scary experience on his way to meet us at the bar. He was walking down a dark side street when a police car with no lights on drove past him, and two minutes later a car screeched to a halt next to him and four policemen jumped out and pointed their guns at him. After searching him and checking his ID, they got back in the car and drove off, so what they were stopping him for I don’t know, but he arrived at Samba do Sol a little shaken up by the experience, understandably.
Yesterday I spent the afternoon at the Pinacoteca, which is one of the most important art museums in the whole of Brazil, as well as being the oldest museum in São Paulo. The museum is located in a grand old building in the centre of the city, hinting at the wealthy past of an area which has become quite run-down over the years. The museum is home to works of art which are primarily by Latin American artists, and with entry costing as little as 6 reais (£1.20) or 3 reais with a student card, it is worth the visit. On the ground floor of the building there is a small café which backs onto some gardens which are nice to take a stroll through, although it’s probably advisable to keep a close eye on your belongings whilst doing so, as these gardens are open to the general public without an entry fee.
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| Will at the Pinacoteca |
I’ve also spent a fair bit of time doing things that don’t really warrant a full explanation, such as picnics in the park, afternoons reading in coffee shops, and cinema trips to see films including Bohemian Rhapsody, which I saw twice within two days, it’s that good. It’s less than two weeks until we go to the Northeast now, something I’m really excited for and can’t wait to tell you all about.
Beijos,
Lola
P.S. Click here to access my GoFundMe, if anyone can spare anything at all it would be hugely appreciated!
Lovely Lola as always. 'really love the idea of the samba clubs. The photos of the art museum are very thought provoking x
ReplyDeleteThank you so much! The samba clubs are really good fun! X
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