First day in Brazil

I arrived last night after a very very long trip. The trip was fine in itself though, no incidents, not even that much turbulence and no screaming babies either! When I arrived in Sao Paulo airport I went through immigration and bags and all that pretty fast. Then I had to start speaking portuguese right away as I needed to find out where to get the bus to the other airport. Thank God I can already speak a bit of portuguese because it makes life so much easier, and people assume you are Brazilian which I think is helpful. Even if they don't, it is still easier. I got on the bus and we drove through the city. It was pouring with rain, proper english weather and very hot and humid!! Margaret (Flavia's mum) came to meet me at Congonhas airport and then we drove home. The appartment block in which she lives is really nice. There is a pool, tennis courts, gardens, a gym, it even has a churrasca area(that I still have to discover). Their flat is on the 17th floor and so there is a good view of the surrounding buildings, main road, and all that. It gives you a good impression of how huge the city is.

This morning I got up and decided I was going to go into the city centre to have a look around and find an internet cafe. Flavia's mum said she would drive me to capoeira tonight as that is the only way she knows how to get there. That's really nice of her so I decided to not go to the academy during the day and wait. So I decided to go to town. I asked the doorman how to get to the centre and he explained it all, I wrote it down, got to the main road, and then chickened out and decided to turn back. At this point the strap to my bag broke anyway so I went back to the flat to sort that out and get my sunglasses. Attempt number two. I chickened out again. The thought of getting on the bus on my own to the centre freaked me out. What especially freaked me out was the thought of getting back to where I am staying on my own coz I might get lost and have no idea where it is. Attempt number three, I go back to the flat and ask the doorman where there is an internet cafe. And now here I am, in the internet cafe down the road from where I'm staying.

I'm not sure if I made the right choice by arriving directly in Sao Paulo. It is so huge, and very daunting to set out in all alone. Plus of course, you can't help but think about what you've heard about Brazil. Anyway, I think what I really need is to meet some people, so that I feel a bit more at home here and then I'll feel better knowing I'm going to meet people somewhere, people who know the city. That's why I'm glad I can go training here. Also, Horrivel, an Israeli guy from capoeira is also still here so I'll hopefully be able to meet him. That will be cool. I had planned on staying a week here but I might cut it short to go somewhere a bit more peaceful. We'll see.... I will keep you updated anyway. Don't forget to leave me replies and keep me posted on what you're doing back in Europe!

Emma