Mythbusters

So it's time for some mythbusting. These are the things that I hear from a lot of people in North America in the types of comments that they make to me. It's very interesting how there are some perceptions about Brazil that are the exact opposite of reality.

I was starting to get the idea that you all think that I'm down here laying at the beach, living high on the horse, being fanned by a super tanned, hot Brazilian man who speaks perfect English to me, while I laugh about how I got out of working for six months.

Not so. (I wish). Here's a start at the first 5 myths that I have encountered the most.

1) Things are cheap in Brazil.
Actually, it's ridiculously expensive here. Things that are particularly expensive are cars, furniture and household items etc. Clothing is also pretty expensive (shoes slightly more affordable, thank god). And, going out for dinner and drinking is on par with NYC. So, i'm not getting any USD discounts by any stretch! (As a side, note, services tend to be quite cheap - for example to have a nanny for your child or someone to clean your house).


2) Everyone here is UBER hot.
Not only does everyone seem to think that if you are Brazilian you are smoking hot, skinny model material, but also, that there is some image of all these exotic, darkly tanned people and me sticking out like a sore thumb as the obvious foreigner. Sure, you can find these hot people. They probably work out and lay at the beach in Rio everyday and aren't part of the working majority. In fact, its the complete opposite. All our colleagues are very regular looking people who haven't turned down numerous modelling contracts (sorry guys, it's true!). And I blend right in with this more pasty indoor crew that spend the majority of their lives inside the office (see #3).

3) It's Laid Back.
No, I am not chillaxing by the pool every day. Actually I haven't seen a pool since I've been here and have only seen the beach on my Carnaval trip. Most people are working 10-12 hour days. Granted I have some ongoing commentary on the general productiveness of this lengthy time span in the office. But overall, my general opinion is that Paulistas do work hard and I am not always loving the long hours that usually eat into a lot of my evening time.

4) It's Hot and Sunny.
And now, further to it not being laid back, it's also not hot and sunny all the time. In fact, when I arrived it rained for 45 STRAIGHT DAYS. Seriously. And, involved absolutely torrential downpours. Granted, 45 bibilical days and nights was a bit more drastic than the usual summer rains, thanks to a crazy wet season all across the continent, but afternoon showers each day in the late summer (ie now) are very common. We finally have had a couple days of sun the last few days and its a first. Finally! I had been starting to feel like I was back in Vancouver with all the clouds and non-stop rain.

5) Everyone speaks English.
Actually, barely a soul in the 'real world' in Brazil speaks English. I say the real world, because within SAP (or any big other international company here), most people speak and write very competent English. In the real world (ie, taxis, stores, restaurants, bars, etc), its a rare find. Hence my major focus on studying Portuguese (and of course, my extensive lamentations about trying to get by at work in meetings conducted in Portuguese...luckily my comprehension is increasing rapidly). So start studying your "Bom dia" and "Obrigado/a" 's.

[Side note: I'm not even going to touch the common error that people assume Brazilians speak SPANISH. More than a few (nameless) people have make this comment to me but its just too glaring of an error to bear writing about]

And on a last, more hilarious note on this topic, when discussing the myths about Brazil with a colleague, she described an episode of the Simpsons that REALLY pissed her off where they come here and there is a barrage of false beliefs about Brazil that they run through in fast sequence. She was particularly irritated about the monkeys (no, we don't have pet monkey's). Worth checking out online if you are a Simpson's fan. The Episode is called "Blame it on Lisa". - linked here for your convenience (laziness).