yes i´m still in goiania!!!

day 17 : 11 -11 -2008

Chico Buarque


notice that they pronounce the ´t´like ´ch´ it have been really difficult to me because i have spoken it like ´t´all the time

yup, still in goiania where now the tropical tempest is started. it´s raining liked 3 days in the row... but i really like the rain here. rain in here is cooling rain in Holland is freezing...hahaha. no, i´m not laughing at you (ahum). and it´s only short and heavy. Anyway, my bus leave to Alto Paraiso at 20.30 this evening. so now i kinda have the time to look for a rain poncho. and maybe this also would be my last update for now.. i´m going to stay in a pousada for 4 days, till Sunday and i don´t know if they have internet acces.

hmm good thing to let you know that backpaking is harder than it sound. here follow some tips for some of you if your planning to go backpacking (tips only for brasil)

1. follow the advise of the backpacking website.. bring a medium size bag (55 L max) and just few clothes. preferbly the fast drying ones. with my Lowe alpine travel trekker of 7o L, travelling with the onibus here in brasil is really unforgiving. they have a revolving door system to get through the seating area.. and the big bag tends to get easily stuck. and for clothes you could buy alot of clothes here cheaply.
2. don´t bring sun tan oil, lotions, soaps, any stuffs like that.. they sell those here for slighly cheapier prices. maybe good is insectrepellent.. i brought lot from home and didnt use it at all.which really add only more weights =/.

if I knew this, it´s gonna take alot of weights of my shoulders. Anyway, you could also say this is the downside of travelling. because if you have housed the big bag in a Guarda volumes or a hotel things are alot easier. but during the big movement, all the local will give you the `look´whick kinda irritating.

despited all of this i feel more homier now here in brasil.. i understand the language better and i tend to do things like the local. so I´ve survived the naturalization proces.

yesterday was also the first day i saw how people are actually poor here. if your going to a big shopping mall. you will see that prices of electronics and other stuffs are R$ 1000+. but the minimum salary of normal worker is like R$ 400 , - / month (amount that i´ve spent in like 5 days). thats why they give alot of credits and buy now, pay later. So actually behind that grandeur beautiful outside is a rotten inside like in Estados Unios. i really hope that brasil don´t collapse. because with the recently discovered oil source of around 80 billion gallon, (which make brasil one of the biggest oil producent) Brasil can lead the race of becoming the new economical power. That´s why i really support their idea of not joining the Opec (Saudi Arabia was proposing it), and rafine the oil by own power and sell the product.

Brasil overall is really good development country. Alot of University.. ooh i want to study here, climate is perfect, alot of facilities, lot of beautiful students.. but i maybe say that again if i visited the university of Buenos Aires =). and they spend alot of money in the scientific faculties ( physic, Chemistry, Biology). that´s result in the biggest producent of bio-ethanol in the world. and price of ethanol here is like E 0, 50 / L. benzine is E 0,80 / L. I hope they keep the staggering line and would defeat china in the race of world economy.

okay alot of big words.. hehe. but the 2 weeks i´ve spend here provided me with alot of information. and because i saw the daily life of the people here i gain more respect and my image of Brasil being poor country is totally vanished. I´ve never been more serene and could think so clear before, maybe because i have no stress.. anyhow step by step i´m heading closer to my goal.

one last final thing: different between Brasilian and Cuban.. erm not girls, but cigars.
yeah i know smoking is bad, but i want to try cigar at least once in my life. The story started when i was in SP. i found a cigarshop accidently, which sold brasilian cigars for R$1 -2. and cubanas R$ 10+. later that night i have smoked the first cigar in my live (brasilian). Caipirinha in one hand, cigar on the other.. that´s how we do. really fun because the dudes in the hostels smoke cigarettes and they didn´t believe that it was my first time. i could understand why people like to smoke. the feel of somethings on your hand and the ambience create by it is amazing. for the difference between Brasil and Cuba is: brasil is wild and heavy and bad after taste, cuban is sensual and high class and no/slight after taste. i have 2 more cigars in the back pack. Guantanamera and Romeo Y julia. save one for after Machu picchu and the other at the end of my trip. Althoughhh, i hope i could grab cheap cubans in Venezuela... (By the way I haven´t smoke any cigars last few days, it´s easier to handle because u dont inhale it and the nicotine doesn´t stay that long in your body; i´m not sure though)

Final thing they have already started the Christmas preparation here.. a picture from the rodoviaria / shopping mall



thank you very much for reading my stories and following my journey. it have been a great outlet for me and a good wqay to record my experience. although i know that sometimes (or maybe all the time..) the words not that great, but any suggestions are welcome. for receipes it´s kinda hard for me because so far i´ve only eaten in the restaurant.. maybe later on i will try to put some if i´m more settled. THANK YOU