Baby Steps

This week I learned how to crawl through the city on my own. I even took my first baby steps on the metro. Soon I´ll be running circles round this cidade - atleast that´s the idea.

Getting from point A to point B in Sao Paulo is not the simplest thing in the world. If you don´t have a car, the metro is the easiest and quickest way to get around. If the metro won´t take you where you want to go, then there is always the bus. I haven´t quite figured out the whole bus thing yet. You see, there aren´t any maps that show where the buses actually go. You´re just supposed to know where they go. I´ll save that adventure for next week.

I spent several hours walking around this week just to get a feel for the place and noticed a few things. First of all, nearly every main road has the same type of stores bracketing it. Shoe store, drug store, cafe, auto shop. Shoe store, drug store, cafe, auto shop. Didn´t I just walk down this block?

Secondly, there is no such thing as a straight, flat road in this city. Hiking boots are not out of the question for some of these sidewalks, and if you ever look at a map of Sao Paulo´s roads...well, let´s just say I´ve seen better organized ant farms.

Lastly, it´s a good idea to bring your umbrella because it rains off and on most days. And just so you know, don´t breathe through your nose. Air pollution doesn´t exactly smell like roses.

I feel a bit sorry for the people that try to speak to me on the street and around the apartment - although I´m sure they can tell I´m not from around here. At this point, they might as well be talking to a street lamp. I did, however, pick-up on the vocalizations of a boy that was following me on the street the other day. (He probably wanted something, but I have no idea what.) Something about baquete (i.e. basketball). Now, HE was talking my language.

On Wednesday, I took the metro to Avenida Paulista to catch a glimpse of the hotel I´ll be staying at the next four days as part of orientation. (I posted a picture of the place at the top of this post.) I am definitely looking forward to my stay at the Ceasar Business Hotel. Not only because I´ll finally get to meet some people, but also because I like fancy elevators.

With luck, I´ll be able to catch the Colts radio broadcast on the Internet tomorrow. A 4:30 kickoff in Indy means a 7:30 kickoff in Sao Paulo. My optimism goes as far as Bob Sander´s knee. Tchau.