Good Movie Week

For those who know me, I am notorious for bad taste in two different things: movies and men.  No offense to any ex of mine reading this - I have dated one or two attractive and good men here and there... but back to the movie part.  I'm known by my friends for being obsessed with romantic comedies, not enjoying movies where you have to "think," too much to watch them, and those big epic movies (Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, etc.) - I fall asleep through those.  

Since living in Brazil, I have met and been hanging out with some people who have extremely "good," taste in movies, and therefore, have been somewhat forced to watch good movies since I haven't made friends who have as horrible taste in film as I do.  This past week was a great example.  I watched many movies, actually.  Good movies.  And I now have a newfound appreciation for them.  

I watched Into the Wild, a couple of weeks ago, actually, with my friend Gi, who downloaded it for us (oh yeah, downloading movies and bootleg DVD's are where it's at in Brazil since they're so expensive here).  This movie, directed by Sean Penn.  I then watched on Sunday with Paty, Todo Sobre Mi Madre, an Almodóvar masterpiece; Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind, a Gondry film; and then guiltily watched A Cinderella Story - yes, the Hillary Duff one... I loved every minute of it).  

Tuesday, I forgot my wallet at work, as well as a number of other things.   It was one of those days that was a "if my head wasn't attached to my neck..." type deal.  So I went home with Paty and our friend Renato, two cine-holics, and we watched Fargo, a Coen Brothers movie, and one of Renato's favorites.  

Thursday night, exhausted, I curled up under my covers, opened my laptop, and watched another Gi downloaded movie, Vicky Cristina Barcelona, Woody Allen's newest movie which won a Globe, didn't it?  That same night, Eugenia's friend who is moving to a new and smaller apartment, asked us if we wouldn't mind keeping his collection of 100+ DVD's at our apartment, in our huge entertainment center piece of furniture which was empty.  We didn't think twice and are now proud "owners" of a DVD library.  My friend Tiago, another movie expert was here last night and told me there are some really good movies there.    

Today, I went to the movies with Renato to watch The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, a David Fincher movie, inspired by F. Scott Fitzgerald's short story, and starring (*sigh) Brad Pitt.

Where am I going with this post?  Nowhere, really.  I just wanted to proclaim to the world that I think I'm starting to like good movies.  Finally.  Maybe my taste for movies has become more mature, or I'm finally in a state of mind to appreciate movies that talk about real love, the value of life, and dark comedy.  Or maybe I'm starting to find value in cinematography, lighting, scenery, etc.  I still have a long way to go, however.  I think I need to learn to choose the so-called good movies on my own because not gonna lie, I raided our new library and am watching The Nanny Diaries right now as opposed to any of the good movies Tiago recommended.  Needless to say, I think my movie cultured friends in Brazil have been a good influence on me, and I highly recommend watching all of the above (but especially Todo Sobre Mi Madre, Fargo, and Benjamin Button).  Does anyone have any recommendations for me?  

Now if only someone would influence me to ameliorate my taste in men...                                                                               

Fun Activities Around SP in a Week!

I'm so sorry it's been a while, but I have wonderful excuses.  Besides workin' like crazy this past week, I also had a crazy social life.  I literally went out every night this past week and didn't have my computer for a few days since I lent it to my friend Denise to cover SPFW for our blog, São Paulo City. 

So here's the rundown for my past week, and I'll elaborate later in posts on São Paulo City.  I'll have a number of parallel posts there and here from now on.  Only here I'll talk more about my experiences and there will be more about the actual places I've been.  Make sense much? 

 

Monday - I went to Posto 6, a bar a few blocks away from my apartment with a new friend.  It was a GORGEOUS night out, so I made it a point to sit outside on the sidewalk.  It's a corner bar known for it's meat appetizers that are served on a mini grill they bring to the table.  We took full advantage and ordered one with 6 different meats and veggies... mmm.   

Tuesday - It was my friend Rogério's birthday and going away.  He left for NY this past week, and this next week is embarking on a 40 day trip through Europe (jealous!).  He chose Exquisito to celebrate, and this is one of my favorite bars yet in São Paulo!  In Portuguese, Esquisito means something that's strange, but in Spanish, and with the spelling the bar uses, it means... well, Exquisite.  It's a fusion bar that mixes everything Latin America, from Guatemalan appetizers to Chilean empanadas, to Cuban mojitos, you can find the best of Latin America there and I could literally sit there all night just enjoying the eclectic tunes, looking at all the different posters and pictures on the walls, and watching the PEOPLE there.  If you like people watching, Exquisito is your spot!  I met a lot of cool new people there that night, friends of Rogérios, which wasn't surprising because he's wonderful, so it was definitely a well-worth Tuesday night out.  You must check out the Exquisito website so you can see how much fun the bar is!

 Wednesday - I went to my first Samba School Rehearsal at Camisa Verde e Branco, which was SO much fun!  I've included a video I uploaded on  YouTube in this post so you can get a sneak peak.  Please watch the whole thing so you can see the little girl who appears with the gorgeous mulattas I hope to look like when I grow up.  She's the cutest thing EVER.  My friends and I liked it so much we're going to another school's rehearsal this week! :-) 

Thursday - Coffee at Starbucks because it was "cold" out (i.e., about 60 degrees fahrenheit, lol - I'm getting really Brazilian) :-) Nothing too exciting.  

Friday - I left work and went to the closing events of São Paulo Fashion Week (SPFW) with my friend Rosangela from work.  It was packed since it was the last night, and we got to watch the last runway show on a big screen outside the actual show, watching the balloons that were in the middle drop with "Alegria, Alegria," playing in the background and went into some of the sponsors' lounges.  I'll be translating Denise's coverage from São Paulo City to English and let you know once that's up too!  She got to watch a couple of shows and seemed to have had a lot of fun spending 3 days at SPFW!  This season's SPFW celebrated Carmen Miranda's 100th birthday, and since she was my inspiration for this blog, it was quite exciting, so look forward to a post on that this week.  I then went to meet up with some friends for Empanadas at a bar named Empanadas near my house.  And then passed out on my bed... 

Saturday was laid back.  At night, I went to my friend Zé's house outside the city for a cookout and ended up sleeping over.  I hung out with some friends I hadn't seen in a while, so it was definitely nice to see them all again!  

Sunday morning, I participated in the São Paulo Bike Tour for the city's 455th Birthday!  Paty and I were invited to cover it by Vivo, a cell phone operator here, for our blog, and we were given the bikes everyone else got and VIP press passes to go to a special lounge before and after the event!!  We rode 10 km through the city and 5,000 people participated, so it was really quite spectacular.  I'll post more pictures from that soon, since Paty used her camera this time for our coverage. :-) 

Needless to say, I'm exhausted and plan on staying in a LOT this week. 

That means I'll have more time to dedicate to you and blogging! 

beijoossss and here's the video I promised:                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                

                               

São Paulo City - Events, Places, Excitment in Sampa City

Okay, okay, so plugs are annoying... 

but this one's fun!

My friend and I, Paty (who also has a great blog in Portuguese if you want to check it out - Tudo um Pouco) decided to start a new blog on São Paulo.  The two of us, along with some other friends, love to roam the city, discover new restaurants and bars, go to fun shows and innovative artsy events and overall explore São Paulo, as you've seen me talk a lot about in my blog. 

And so São Paulo City, or Sampa City or City Sampa, or whatever you want to call our new blog, was born.  We're going to be doing a lot of our own writing, but also will have a number of guest contributors to talk about things we're less versed in, but would like to include in the blog.  So far, we have done a few restaurant and bar reviews, my post on malls in São Paulo was reproduced and translated into Portuguese.  Paty has talked about the poetry of one of our favorite neighborhoods (which just so happens to be home to yours truly), and this week, get ready for something super exciting on the blog... 

We were able to pull some strings, and Paty's sister, a fashion designer and architecture student at USP is going to be covering São Paulo Fashion Week for us and the Oi Acontece blog! Very exciting, isn't it?! We're also going to be having photography by Paty herself, and Aline Lata, and look out for a music review and preview on Los Hermanos by our very talented musician friend, PH.  

I know this post was very commercial, and I promise not to do this much, but I'm VERY excited about the blog, and hope you, as my readers, will be too!! Oh, and did I mention the blog is in Portuguese and English? Yes, we're that good :-)

Also, if you're on Twitter, we'll be putting up constant updates of ongoings in the city, so if you're in São Paulo, I highly encourage following us @sampacity.  I, myself am on Twitter too if you'd like to follow me!! @_polyana 

Thanks for putting up with my publicity post full of fun links, and I'll be in touch soon! 

beijoossss. 

Paulistanos: The Americans of Brazil?

I feel my blog has been lacking some humor as of late.  And since my friends are convinced I'm not funny as hard as I try to convince myself I am, I feel I can do funny by using others' creativity.  

One thing I say time and again is that Paulistanos think they're at the center of the universe.  At one point last week, I said something "Mineiro," and my friend turns and goes, "Polyana voltou toda mineira, tem que falar paulistano!"  Of course I came back mineira, I was in the first place, and it's this city that's making me lose my cute mineirísses.  So I retorted with "Why?  So the rest of the country can hate me?" 

And this leads me to my comparison between Paulistanos and Americans.  My theory is the following: 

Paulistanos:Brazil as United States (Americans):The World. 

Remember that from SAT's? Was there an "as" in there?

Everyone has seen the famous American Map of the World, right? 

Well, look what the Paulistano brought in to compete!!  (btw, it was the same friend who told me to talk Paulistano who told me about the map...) 

Here's a brief explanation as to why these categories:

- Não Existe - doesn't exist - Nobody here really know what state that is... (I'll plead ignorance, neither do I)

- Só Mato - Just Woods -  These are a series of states that have very rich natural resources - i.e., the Amazon, a number of cattle raising is in this area, etc. 

- Bahia - Many paulistanos are bitter that masses of people from the northeast of the country have migrated to SP in search for a better life and taken all their jobs/brought violence to the city (for those outside Brazil - ring a bell???)

- Duplas Sertanejas - Country Duos/ets - These duos of musicians are pretty popular here in Brazil, known to be from Goias, and they're semi-country.  Okay, really country. 

- Queijo - Cheese - I TOLD YOU Minas is known for its cheese!! 

- Sem Importância - Unimportant - Espirito Santo is a state that to some Brazilians, doesn't have much to offer culturally, economically, or touristy.  Which I would say is untrue, being that a number of my family members from Minas travel there often for the beaches! 

- Argentina Brasileira - Brazilian Argentina - Long story short... South Americans tend to dislike Argentines and Paulistanos tend to dislike Cariocas (people from Rio)

- Santos - is a coastal town in São Paulo state.  If someone says they're going to the beach for the weekend, it's assumed they're going to Santos.  

- Gostosas - Hot Women - Santa Catarina and Parana breed top models.  Hence, gostosas. 

- Bichas - A Not so Nice word for gay men - Porto Alegre, the capital of Rio Grande do Sul, the southern-most state in Brazil, is known to have a high population of gay men.  

It's stereotypical, but come on... you have to admit it's kind of funny, just like the American World Map, no? 

:-) 

beijos! 

-poly 

ps - shoutout to momma and papa dukes (my parents) who are completing 26 years of marital bliss the 15th of january (tomorrow or today depending on your time zone).  and by wedding bliss, i mean, as i told my mother on the phone just now, "You have to go out and celebrate for putting up with each other for that long!" to which she replied, "Now there's something to pat myself on the back for..." talk about comic relief! *sigh. i miss my parents. 

Goval City.

As promised... Governador Valadares.

 My lovely hometown with a population of appx. 300,000 is known for 3 main things: 

- Having a high rate of human capital exported to every corner of the world (hence, my parents' move to the U.S.) - and by this I mean mostly illegal immigration to take on "immigrant," jobs abroad, but exporting human capital sounds much nicer, no? 

- Handgliding @ Ibituruna peak, which is 1,123 meters above sea level, and holds international handgliding competitions all year.  Some claim it's the best location for handgliding in the world.  But it is definitely the top spot for it in Brazil. 

- To go along with the gringoes who handglide at Ibituruna, GV is also, unfortunately, quite popular for its sexual tourism :0/.

The weather there ranges from hot to infernal, humidity 80% and wind @ 0 mph all year round (hence, the handgliding preference).  

The heat expands to the people.  As mineiros, everyone I've met there is very warm, friendly, and knew everything about my life before I could even open my mouth to introduce myself.  I guess this is because my grandmother knows so many people and talks so much about her family that people tell her to run for office. She would totally win too... 

The city is run on tourism, commerce, and dollars.  aka - it's in a tight spot right now with the world financial crisis inhibiting the transfer of USD's and other foreign currencies and tourism, which in turn affects commerce...  A lot of the other cities in the area (the East of Minas) have industries which provide jobs for most of the city-dwellers, but GV was an exception because of the opportunities it already had in employment with the expansion due to the mass number of peope emigrating from the city abroad and sending money back to help the city grow. 

My one tiff with GV is that people there got lazy.  They're so used to receiving money and donations from abroad that it's became a major consumer bubble in the middle of Minas, and nothing's been done to attract investment to the city.  People leave, build mansions in the middle of town, and come back only to find no work for themselves.  Granted, some people built themselves restaurants, bakeries, bars, stores, etc. with money made abroad, but no real investment's been made.  Everyone talks about GV as being "Governador Valedolares," and meanwhile my grandma's street hasn't been paved since my parents left 20 years ago.  I don't know if the city just doesn't have money or it's not administered well, but it is quite sad to see the city's condition when visiting... there's so much potential there (despite the unbearing heat). 

The good news is, Aracruz is planning on building a factory in GV in the next few years, which is going to generate all sorts of jobs!  This'll help people who are leaving "the developed world," to come back to good ol' GV.  Adam, from Eyes on Brazil has a great post on this if you want to check it out.  

Ok, so this post was more of a ramble than anything, but I find it important to talk about my hometown because these sorts of things highlight my preference on coming to SP and not staying in GV with my family when I chose to return to Brazil.  It's also something that's important to note when talking about trying to get a visa to go anywhere.  For me, with a "born in Governador Valadares," on ALL of my documents, it's 10 times harder ot get a visa than for anyone born anywhere else.  So if I go to any US Consulate to try for a visa, they're going to be quite suspicious just by looking at my birthplace...  We'll talk about my opinions on how this sort of discrimination fuels illegal immigration in the first place in another post :-) 

next post will be more São Paulo and current occurences, I promise!! 

beijos! 

ps - I need to put a plug in here and will every once in a while until I get a steady following there.  A friend of mine has an online magazine where there are articles about funny relationship stories and I write for them occasionally, so I suggest you all go and check it out!! You'll know who I am right away in the author list ;-) http://spillyourself.com - Enjoy!

Comidinha de Minas... Can't Be Beat!

I promised I'd write about the best cuisine in Brazil.  And this isn't even my subjective and suspect opinion.  Ask any Brazilian with a pallete and they'll tell you the best food comes from Minas? 

Why?  There's nothing so special about it... it's quite simple.  So what makes it so delicious?  Is it the seasoning and ingredients used?  Is it the homey feeling you get when you savor every last bite?  Is it the hospitality you get with the meal?  Or is it just the magic found in the rolling hills of the countryside of Minas Gerais? 

Okay, so maybe I was just lacking a home cooked meal since moving out of my aunt's house in October, and maybe any grandmother's food is the bestest, or even maybe it's just because Minas has such distinct dishes and since I've grown up on them, I think they're the best ever. 

Needless to say, I got my share of all of my pregnant woman-esque desires for food from Minas... which included the following: 

- Frango Caipira com Quiabo - This is farm fresh chicken with okra in a soupy concoction that is probably one of my favorite meals, and which my aunt here in SP isn't keen on making because her picky Paulistano sons and husband don't like quiabo... frescos.  I'd also like to note that my grandmother and uncle killed a chicken just to make this dish for me.  As unsettling as that sounds, I found it quite flattering, actually. 

- Angu - My frango com quiabo was also served with angu!  This is really just a corn meal type paste, sometimes seasoned, but it takes strategy to perfect it... trust me, I've tried endless times to make angu... 

                           

- Tutu - This is sort of like refried beans, but more... unexplainably delicious - and then sometimes there's this sauce over them with bacon, sausage, eggs and everything my cholestorol desires. 

                                    

- Feijão Tropeiro - Speaking of cholesterol.  Another bean dish: 

                                Need I say more? 

- Salpicão - A salad of sorts with chicken, apples, tomatoe, raisins, mayonaise, carrots, ham, onion, etc... all mixed in home fried potatoe sticks. 

                                                                        

- Pão de Queijo - The famous coffee combination.  Literally cheese bread.  As a roommate of mine from DC said when I made pão de queijo once at the house, she said, "I love bread. and I love cheese.  This is a perfect combination."  I ditto that. 

                                       

- Cheese, cheese and more cheese - Minas is famous for its cheese.  Pasteurized, non-pasteurized, white cheese, bitter cheese, and above all - farm fresh cheese!! Again, I love cheese.  Which was usually served with coffee. And another famous Mineiro past time is to eat cheese with sweet pastes and jellies - I had the pleasure of having banana and guava paste with my cheese :-)

                                                                          

- Cachaça - Okay, so it's not food.  But I couldn't help but toot my home state's horn a little, especially for my cachaça appreciators out there.  Everyone knows the best cachaça comes from Minas.  And I had that confirmed when one of our friends from the farm community, Cumpade Genário, had me try some of his home made cachaça... one sip and I was won over.  I convinced him to bottle it up for me to bring back to São Paulo and share with the good cachaça deprived paulistanos. Pictured - an alambique - where cachaça (which is sugar cane liquor) is made. 

                                           

Okay, just writing this is making me hungry.  I guess I'll go make some ramen noodles now, *sigh.  Next time I go to Minas, I want all the goodies "winter" brings - canjicão, canjiquinha, pé de moleque... 

Tomorrow, Governador Valadares!  And then I'll be done with my Minas trip and on to more current and interesting things I've been brewing up!! 

beijos! 

-poly. 

 

 

A Mineiro Christmas.

As promised, my rendition of this year's A Christmas Carol, à la mineirinha.  

Since most of  my family is in Governador Valadares, Minas Gerais (GV, MG), 1.000 km away from São Paulo, SP - and that's where I trekked to for the holidays, my last few days of 2008 and beginning of 2009 were overwhelmed with family, family, and more family.  

Let me help you understand what I mean by a large dosage of familia. 

My mother has 5 siblings.  Three in Brazil - all in GV.  And, thankfully, my maternal grandmother is alive and active.  This also includes 5 cousins (3 cousins in the U.S.). 

My father has 11 siblings.  1 in São Paulo, 9 in GV (one just came back from the U.S. on New Year's Eve!).  My paternal grandmother is also more active than I'll ever be and in GV.  First cousins?  15 in GV (2 in SP, none in the U.S.).

So who were my holidays spent with? 

2 grandmothers, 12 aunts/uncles, and 20 cousins. 

ufá... It was strange spending my first Christmas away from my parents, but it was also fun to finally see what it feels like to have a huge family.  I've always known my family was enormous, but I'd never had a Christmas meal with 20 relatives in the same house.  It was always usually with my small family in the U.S. and friends of the family (who actually sort of became family with time).  And since I've always been very family oriented and since my family is everything wonderful, I immersed myself in my "new" family and spent as much time as possible with all of them.  A few nights with the  maternal side here and a few nights with the paternal side there.

And since this was my first holiday season spent here in Brazil since I was TWO, I was endlessly spoiled.  One grandmother trying to outdo the other satisfying my cravings for comidinha mineira (food from Minas - I'll post more about that next!), one uncle wanting to drive me here, another aunt wanting to have me come over, and hanging out with cousins... galore!  

My family is also very religious, and I've always been very content with my Catholic upbringing, especially since my parents, grandparents, and greater family, have shown me that it's possible to be Catholic and open minded at the same time, contrary to popular belief.  So a lot of my time in GV was spent praying and going to church.  And something I have missed here in São Paulo is people constantly saying things like, Se Deus Quiser (God Willing), Vai/Fica Com Deus (Go/Stay With God), Santa/o Rita, Expedito, Ave Maria, Nossa Senhora... and my grandmother's classic, Sangueee de Jesus when she hears something shocking.  Little things like that, and my little cousins' willingness to attend mass (even *shock* without there parents), make me kind of wish I was still living that sort of culture for more motivation and overall spirituality... especially since I've kind of shyed away from attending mass since being in SP.  But who knows? Maybe that's something I can work on in 2009!

So nothing SUPER eventful happened.  Like I said, a lot of my time was spent TLCing with the familia.  Oh, and staying away from the heat!! Imagine 90 degree fahrenheit weather with NO wind/breeze EVERYDAY... ouch, right?  But to not make this post too long, I promise I will write in my next post, however, about food from Minas and how I gained 5 lbs in the 12 days I was there :-)  And then I'll write more about good 'ol Governador Valadares (famous, really... more than you can imagine!) 

beijos!

The Simple Life

10 days is a long time away from the craziness that is São Paulo and I'll go into full detail of my adventures in Minas Gerais for the holidays, but now that I'm back in SP, have my laptop and am not being attacked by mosquitos, I could not go any longer without posting briefly about my experience in Soares, the farm community where my grandmother has a small house and some land which lies between Coroaci and Virgolandia, two small towns in the east of MG. 

                                                          

I was blown away by my two days there for a number of reasons. 

First of all, the people and the simplicity of the peoples' way of life there. Never in my life have I met people who were so humble and had so much faith and truly live a simple life in the middle

 of nowhere. My father and his family lived here for a number of years and everyone there is a "compadre" or "comadre" to everyone in my family - meaning my grandparents, aunts, uncles, and my father, have either baptized their children or have participated in their weddings. With the country accent, it was pronounced more like, "Coom-pah-gi," and "Cu-mah-gi." "Compadres," are like family in Brazil (or at least for my family), so needless to say, I was treating... like family. Every home I went to, I was greeted as, "a filha do Expedito," "you look just like your father," "is your dad still as handsome as when he left [20 years ago]?," "minha filha (my daughter)," etc. One of the couples, Cumpade Genário and Cumade Maria had my grandmother, uncle, and I over for lunch, serving fresh grains and fruits cooked on their fogão de lenha and Genário giving me a wonderful little gift - a bottle of fresh cachaça he had made! Anyone who knows cachaça knows the best comes from Minas!

And the fooooddd. I couldn't step in a house without being bombarded with coffee, home made cookies, cheese, bread, juice, and lunch (rice, beans, meat, veggies). I also had a cold while I was there, so my grandmother made me a number of teas from plants right outside her door and everyone would offer me tea or some other miraculous medicinal plant for my horrendous cough.

And finally - mother nature. Never have I seen so much GREEN and springs everywhere, and... mud (my feet got a nice mud mask). There are flowers and animals chillin' in my grandma's front yard (poor things have no idea they're going to be eaten anytime soon - and people know whose chickens are whose!), springs all over the highway on the way there, vegetables and fruits galore. The best part is, all of mother nature is taken advantage of by the people in Soares but at the same time restored and taken care of. 

                                                           

Needless to say, I had a wonderful time there and got to relax and learn to have a fresh take on life... except for one thing. Mosquitoes + allergy to bites + lack of reppelent = bad news. Ahh, guess you can't have everything :-) I'm going to go back to my novela and scatching my mosquito bites on my leg now.

For more pictures from Soares - visit my Picasa:

Soares

 

beijos!

Hiatus from the Internet & Feliz 2009

So I know I said I'd post before the New Year, but I haven't had the opportunity to because I've been busy eating, sleeping, praying and visiting family too much (and it doesn't help that not everyone here has internet access at home!)... plus, when you do it for a living, it's always great to not sit in front of a computer for 10 days.

But stay tuunneeddd to hear all my adventures in Minas Gerais for the holidays. Se Deus quiser, I'll be back in São Paulo Saturday night.

In the meantime, I just wanted to wish you, my reader a FELIZ ANO NOVO and HAPPY NEW YEAR :-)

Thank you all for enjoying my blog these past 10 months, and I look forward to entertaining you with my silliness and rants even more so in 2009!

Now, I must go for the daily afternoon coffee, cheese, juice and cookies (talk about working out in the new year...).

beijjoosss, com muito carinho,
-poly.