I´m not kidding. They really are. The back of their jerseys says "skank" and everything. I spent the last two days in Gustavo´s home city of Curitiba - Paraná. It´s the city with one of the highest standards of living in Brazil and appears more like a European city than something reminiscent of Rio or Manaus. Sunday we went to the derby match between the city's two big teams: Atletico Paranaense x Coritiba. After a nice churrasco Gustavo's brother in law hooked us up with some great seats. It ended in a 0-0 draw, but during halftime there was a legit fight. The Coritiba folks were unscrewing chairs and throwing them at the Atlético crowd and both sides were tossing loud "bombas" (cherry bombs) at each other. The police had to come in a quarden off the area but they kept throwing the bombs right over (at?) the police. Maloucos.
The day before I also went to a COUNTRY MUSIC CLUB hahahahhah. Brazilian country (most people just call it Sertanega after the most famous band here) is really popular only in the south and the place was paaacked with cowpokes ready to boogey. But I think they genre needs some more bands b.c after hearing "Paga Pau" like EIGHT TIMES I think I could do without hearing an accordian for the next month and a half!
Today I arrived in a new country. Not really, but it looks and feels like it. It's hot.
Here's a mental exercise: blurt out the first crazy thing that comes to mind. Oh, I've got one: 1.5m person city in the middle of the freakin Amazon rainforest! Who the hell came up with that idea? (I think it was rubber planters and junta leaders, actually.) It's hot.
Unlike the cities of the south here--mouth open or closed--I am most definitely a gringooooo. This is a city with a bit more color than the European dominated south, but that's not to say that you can't run into a Indian-looking mother with a Barbie Blonde daughter (I did when I was getting a cup of juice earlier today. It's hot here.
Tomorrow I am off on my über-gringo adventure: 3-day boat trip 90km to a lake in the middle of the forest. It's a protected area and nobody is allowed to live there. It's very hot here.
I suppose I'll go out for a walk later today after this INCREDIBLE heat and humidity subsides a bit. Did I mention it's HOT HERE?!
Thursday night I come back and I'll do a bit of city exploration until whichever day it is that I leave (Sunday I think). As for now, I think I'll go lie down.
Abraço,
Andrew
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