After three incredible months in Brazil, we entered Paraguay at the Ciudad del Este border crossing. The Brazilian-Paraguayan border at Ciudad del Este is one of the busiest border crossings in South America, with thousands of Brazilians crossing into Paraguay to buy cheap electronics and other goods.
Although refreshingly off the South America Gringo trail, the recently constructed Urbanian Hostel was a breath of fresh air and a nice way to ease into this chaotic and sometimes difficult country.
Paraguay is country of contrasts. It is has one of the highest income inequality rates in the world, worse than Rwanda or Papua New Guinea. The rich and poor live side by side as seen here. The Chacarita slum recently flooded, sending residents to set up shantytowns on the lawn of the presidential palace and surrounding plazas.
Tereré is the most popular drink in Paraguay. It is consumed in a gourd filled with mate tea leaves, a little lemon and mint, and mixed with ice cold water. It is sucked up through a metal straw and quickly refilled. Paraguayans of all ages and classes drink it from sunrise to sunset to counter the unrelenting heat.
Whatever ailment you have, there is always a solution at the sprawling Mercado 4 in Asuncion.
Panteón Nacional de los Héroes.
Asuncion, the capital of Paraguay, is filled with old world stores, where nothing much has changed in 50-100 years.
Guarani kids playing on the Rio Paraguay.
Concepcion, a few hundred miles up the Rio Paraguay, was once a wealthy port town which has fallen on harder times.
Riding the Dalma up the Rio Paraguay at sunset. To read more about our journey up the river, check out http://wearebreakingborders.com/2014/09/24/the-dalma-bums/
The Captain of the Dalma. The Captain showed me his text messages with his son who is studying and working in the United States, “he is living the American dream”.
Nick drinking tereré to keep cool in the boiling evening heat.
Hammocks are set up for the two nights on the Dalma.
Guarani Indians awaiting the arrival of the Dalma.
The Dalma being unloaded, delivering milk, grain, rice, and beer to remote communities.
Sunset over the Paraguayan Pantanal.
After spending three days on the Dalma, we arrived in the remote community of Puerto Casado. While waiting for the bus out of town, we were informed that the next one wouldn’t arrive for another week. One of the local men, Juan, invited us over to his house for some lunch. A few hours became a few days as we waited…and waited.
The second day of waiting, Juan and his friends took us out into the Chaco, which is a vast dry, woodland savannah covering Paraguay, Argentina and Bolivia.
Juan runs a logging operation in the middle of impenetrable woodland. Juan checks up on how the operation is going and if anyone is stealing wood.
Getting wild after an incredible afternoon in the Chaco. Guns, beer, and nature.
On the way back to town, I got into a deep discussion with one of Juans friends about guns and warfare. Somewhere along the way I mentioned my discontent with the American invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq. I asked Juan’s friend what he thought of it, he responded, “You gotta do what you gotta do, I see nothing wrong in war, it is a part of life, especially here in the Chaco, especially for us Guarani”. I realized in this moment that my liberal, anti-war philosophy was simply a result of my San Francisco, west coast surrounding. This mans philosophy was simply a representation of the harsh, vicious reality of the Chaco.
After another day of drinking tereré, Juan invited us to meet the congressmen of the state of Alto Paraguay, named Mini Adorno. In true Paraguayan fashion, Adorno threw an entire pig on the grill and the feast began.
After fours days of rumors about a potential truck that would take us towards Bolivia, we finally found Edward, a jolly truck driver who was more than happy to drive us half way across Paraguay. Leaving at 7pm, we finally left Puerto Casado and headed deep into the Chaco at night. Here we sat for an hour with an armed guard, waiting for more trucks to come so we could cross the Chaco at night in a convoy for security reasons.
Fires burning at night to clear the thick Chaco woodland. Edward, our driver, told us that he had once been stopped by a guy with a gun on this road at night, a plane landed on the dirt road, picked up some packages and flew off. The man with the gun told Edward, “you didn’t see anything, right?” Edward said this was one of the principle Narco-trafficking routes in Paraguay.
After 10 bumpy hours of dust, Rammstein, terere and endless conversation about the genius of Sacha Baron Cohen, we arrived in Loma Plata, a community settled by Canadian Menonites in the 1920s. More on this topic later.
Paraguay is a country of contrasts. On the one hand, it is a rich country with the fastest growing economy in the Americas, yet there’s also a gaping divide between the rich and the poor, corruption runs rampant, and political stability remains rare. For a visitor, Paraguay may not have much in terms of sights, but this hardly matters when you are received so warmly by the Paraguayan people. Complete strangers will take you in, feed you, house you, and introduce you to their family (or maybe even a member of Congress). In most countries in South America, the relationship between locals and foreigners usually involves money. In Paraguay, that relationship doesn’t exist, it’s not about money, it’s about long conversations over ice cold beer and a nice steak.
Paraguay is somewhat of an oddity in South America. Due to a strong Jesuit influence it is the only country in the New World where European culture adapted to Native American culture, instead of the opposite. This means that Paraguay is the only country in Americas where over 90% of the population speaks an indigenous language (Guarani). Unlike in Bolivia, Peru or Guatemala, the indigenous language Guarani is spoken by non-ingenous people, the middle class, politicians, and even used in the media. While many people skip Paraguay for the ruins of Peru or the beaches of Brazil, Paraguay offers a different type of South America, a South America that is well of the beaten path and refreshingly real.
Downtown Blumenau, a southern Brazilian city with a distinctly German feel.
Rua XV de Novembro, the main street of downtown Blumenau. Blumenau has one of the highest standards of living in Brazil, on par with North America or Europe in terms of literacy rate, life expectancy and income.
Pomerode, a small village outside of Blumenau. is known as the most German city in Brazil. 97% of the residents still speak German today
Pomerode was settled by Germans from the Pomerianian part of Prussia in 1861. Even after years of suppression by the Brazilian government, the community of Pomerode has been able to preserve a unique dialect of German called Pomeranian (Pommersch). Klaus Granzow was a German writer who wrote extensivly about Pomeranian culture and histroy, his books can be found throught Pomerode.
Most of the books in the public library in Pomerode are in German, not Portuguese.
Gisele Bündchen, the Brazilian supermodel, may be the most famous face of German immigration to Brazil. Over 12 million people claim German ancestry in Brazil, making them one of the largest ethnic groups in the country. The vast majority of Germans settled in Southern Brazil, specifically in the states of Rio Grande do Sul, and Santa Catarina, where the standard of living today is drastically higher than that of the rest of the country. Illiteracy in Santa Catarina is 3.8%, while in many places in the northeast of Brazil, that rate is well over 22%.
After Brazil gained independence from Portugal in 1822, the new Brazilian government encouraged settlement to remote regions of the south in order to create a buffer between Brazil and the newly independent former Spanish colonies of Argentina and Paraguay. A second wave of Germans settled in southern Brazil in search of peace, land and religious freedom after a series of failed revolutions in Europe in 1848. Continued instability in Germany during the end of the 19th century and during both World Wars fueled further immigration.
Although the German language has made a comeback in recent decades, it was heavily suppressed during both World Wars in an attempt to integrate the isolated German colonies into the rest of of the county and squash any pro Nazi sentiments. Today German is still spoken in some communities in the south, but many are becoming increasingly Brazilian in culture, leaving behind their German roots. Some people living in the south have complained that the Germans harbor racist sentiments towards Brazilians, thinking of themselves as a superior race. Given that German immigration to Brazil has nearly come to a standstill, will German-Brazilians be able to hold on to their language and culture.
São Paulo was incredible city to photograph. For six weeks straight I found myself waking up, grabbing my camera, and hitting the streets of this fascinating, monster of a city. In this series of photographs I attempt to capture the beautiful, grittiness of São Paulo.
Avenida Paulista is the beating heart of São Paulo. As the sun sets and rush hour begins, artists line the street to sell their work, while musicians of all ages play for the teeming masses of businessmen. In one minute I witnessed a band play Creedence Clearwater while a separate group of Anarchists and Feminists blocked traffic while marching down the middle of the avenue.
Vila Madalena is a trendy, residential neighborhood located southwest of Avenida Paulista. While there aren’t many specific sights to see, its the best place in all of São Paulo to eat and drink.
Sunday street market in Pinheiros.
Centro is the historic heart of the city. Most Paulistas dismiss the the neighborhood as dirty and crime ridden, but if you are able to see beyond its decay, it is a fascinating area full of pedestrianized streets, 400 year old churches, steep hills with narrow, bustling streets, open-air markets, neoclassical and art deco architecture, and enough energy to impress even a hardened New Yorker.
One of the most interesting aspects of Centro is its alternative edge. Most downtowns in North America are strictly about business, yet here in São Paulo, there are numerous alternative art galleries, and underground bars where skateboarders, weed smokers and anarchists rub shoulders with businessmen getting off of work.
Different eras of architecture blending seamlessly along the pedestrianized streets of Centro.
São Paulo’s artistic side emerges in unexpected places.
Rush hour at Estação da Luz, one of the busiest subway stations in Latin America.
Multileveled subway station at Estação Sé.
The area around 25 de Março is considered the largest commercial center in all of Latin America, and is one of the best places in the city to see São Paulo’s diversity.
Around 25 de Março, Chinese and Korean merchants sell electronic goods to Bolivians and Paraguayans, while Syrians, Iraqis, Palestinians and Lebanese folks sell clothes and produce to every other race under the sun. São Paulo has one of the largest populations of Muslims in Latin America, with many migrants coming from the Middle East since the Arab Spring.
Winter light during rush hour next to Catedral da Sé. — at Catedral Metropolitana da Sé.
Sea of buildings in Centro.
Korean shop owners in Bom Retiro, one of São Paulo’s most diverse neighborhoods.
Centro also has a dark side, as seen in Cracolândia, an area where crack is openly bought, sold and consumed. City officials, including the current mayor Fernando Haddad, have made progress in improving parts of the area with drug rehabilitation centers, but problems still remain.
Police officers ordering passengers off a city bus while searching for a criminal. While crime does exist in São Paulo, it does not feel worse than San Francisco, New York or any major American city.
Under the Elevado (the elevated freeway) in Santa Cecília.
São Paulo is a city of immigrants and that diversity can best be seen in Liberdade, a densely packed neighborhood of Japanese restaurants, Chinese markets, and narrow, hilly streets that light up beautifully at night. Brazil has the largest concentration of Japanese people outside of Japan, and the majority live in this neighborhood.
Aska, a cozy, Japanese ramen joint, that has super cheap prices (extremely unusual in this city), delicious food, as well as a long wait.
Barra Funda is an up and coming industrialized area northwest of downtown, characterized by art galleries and music venues of all types. This display was at Galeria Fortes Vilaça, which recently hosted an exhibition on the world famous São Paulo graffiti duo, Os Gemeos.
Sunrise from an apartment building in Vila Nova Conceição.
With 31.5 million people in the combined metropolitan area, São Paulo is an impossible city to describe in only a few short words. To call it the New York of Latin America wouldn’t do this megalopolis justice. Three times the size of Paris, this city would take several lifetimes to get to know. São Paulo is expensive and crowded, but any city this large will naturally have its negative aspects, but if one is prepared to look beyond these, the positives far outweigh the negatives. São Paulo is a city of distinct neighborhoods and diverse lifestyles intermingling everyday on the subway and in the crowded streets, at the numerous bookstores, bars, nightclubs and restaurants. Economically, Brazil is one the most unequal countries in the world, yet it is this exact inequality that makes São Paulo so complicated, yet so intriguing. The poorest and the richest of Brazil interact in close quarters, creating a complicated fabric from which emerges Brazil at its most creative and most intellectual. On par with New York and Paris, this is truly one of the world’s greatest and most captivating cities. Many people overlook São Paulo for the beaches of Rio, or the jungles of the Amazon, but they are missing out on a city that has the ability to humble even the most seasoned traveler.
#5 Barra Funda
Os Gemeos Exhibit at Galeria Fortes Vilaça.
Barra Funda is an up and coming industrialized area northwest of downtown, characterized by art galleries and music venues of all types. The slightly rundown streets exude a type of Williamsburg-before-it-was-cool vibe. In 5 minutes, you can walk from D-Edge, one of São Paulo’s trendiest night clubs to Boteco Pratododia, where an alternative crowd dances to Caribbean salsa and other Latin beats late into the night . Not only is Barra Funda filled with an insane array of nightlife options, it is also a center for up and coming artists. Many of the industrialized warehouses are becoming independent studios such as Galeria Fortes Vilaça, which recently hosted an exhibition on the world famous São Paulo graffiti duo, Os Gemeos. Make sure to see what’s on display and check it out.
#4 Liberdade
Aska Ramen Restaurant in Liberdade.
São Paulo is a city of immigrants and that diversity can best be seen in Liberdade, a densely packed neighborhood of Japanese restaurants, Chinese markets, and narrow, hilly streets that light up beautifully at night. Brazil has the largest concentration of Japanese people outside of Japan, and the majority live in this neighborhood. The best way to discover Liberdade is to attend the wonderful Sunday street market, where you can buy the Japanese delicacy, takoyaki, a ball of octopus, shrimp, tempura flakes, green onion and ginger fried in fresh cream. No one should leave São Paulo without having a meal at Aska, a cozy, Japanese ramen joint, that has super cheap prices (extremely unusual in this city), delicious food, as well as a long wait. A São Paulo must!
#3 Centro
Centro is the historic heart of the city. Most Paulistas dismiss the the neighborhood as dirty and crime ridden, but if you are able to see beyond its decay, it is a fascinating area full of pedestrianized streets, 400 year old churches, steep hills with narrow, bustling streets, open-air markets, neoclassical and art deco architecture, and enough energy to impress even a hardened New Yorker. One of the most interesting aspects of Centro is its alternative edge. Most downtowns in North America are strictly about business, yet here in São Paulo, there are numerous alternative art galleries, and underground bars where skateboarders, weed smokers and anarchists rub shoulders with businessmen getting off of work. Be sure to check out Galeria do Rock, a five story mini mall dedicated to punk and skater shops, tattoo parlors and musky record stores.
Praça Roosevelt.
The area around 25 de Março is considered the largest commercial center in all of Latin America, and is one of the best places in the city to see São Paulo’s diversity. Chinese and Korean merchants sell electronic goods to Bolivians and Paraguayans, while Syrians, Iraqis, Palestinians and Lebanese folks sell clothes and produce to every other race under the sun. One location that perfectly encapsulates the alternative-meets-business feel of Centro is a bar called Papo, Pinga e Petisco, a bohemian joint that wouldn’t be out of place in the most intellectual corner of Greenwich Village. Take a seat in the back behind the pool table, where the smell of African incense and marijuana mix with the aroma of dusty vinyls, books and dark Paulistânia beer.
#2 Vila Madalena/Pinheiros
Local artists in Beco do Batman
Vila Madalena and Pinheiros are two trendy, residential neighborhoods adjacent to each other, located southwest of Avenida Paulista. While there aren’t many specific sights to see, its the best place in all of São Paulo to eat and drink. The coolness factor in these two hoods is unmatched anywhere in Brazil, and is on par with the the most hip neighborhoods of New York, Paris and London. Take a stroll down Beco do Batman, an old alleyway that has been converted into a space highlighting local graffiti artists. You won’t go wrong pulling up a chair at any bar in Vila Madalena/Pinheiros, but be sure to start with Mercearia São Pedro, which is part bar, part restaurant, part bookstore and part video store; definitely one of the coolest places in this city. Another great bar is Empório Sagarana, a perfect place to sample every type of cachaça imaginable.
Empório Sagarana.
For food, be sure to eat at Meats, an American style diner serving incredible burgers such as the Big Apple, a juicy patty topped with crisp green apples and a honey-wasabi glaze. Wash down your meal with a Guinness and Jack Daniels milkshake. For a slightly lighter meal, check out Kebab Paris, one of the best kebab places this side of the Atlantic. You also won’t go wrong at Feed Food, a stylish organic restaurant serving all types of world food in a greenhouse setting. For coffee, check out Coffee Lab, where baristas in lab coats serve aeropressed coffee for maximum flavor and kick.
#1 Bela Vista/Paulista
A Dupla da Paulista performing on Avenida Paulista.
Avenida Paulista is the beating heart of São Paulo. While some might disregard the area because of its endless sea of skyscrapers, you only need to pause for a moment to observe the chaotic energy unmatched anywhere else in Brazil. As the sun sets and rush hour begins, artists line the street to sell their work, while musicians of all ages play for the teeming masses of businessmen. In one minute I witnessed a band play Creedence Clearwater while a separate group of Anarchists and Feminists blocked traffic while marching down the middle of the street. Along Avenida Paulista, relax in a bean bag at Livraria Cultura, the largest bookstore in Brazil.
Avenida Augusta.
Adjacent to Avenida Paulista is Bela Vista, whose main thoroughfare, Avenida Augusta, is full of bars, restaurants, movie theaters, comedy clubs and music venues. The neighborhood was once inhabited by punks, skinheads, lesbians, gays and hippies, but today vestiges of the old neighborhood are mingling with business folks who trickle off Ave Paulista in search of drinks, dinner, and more. The contrast between the alternative original nature of Augusta and the recent wave of gentrification is a fascinating. When in Bela Vista/Augusta, be sure to check out Chicano Taqueria, a new California style taqueria serving up mean burritos, tacos, quesadillas and San Francisco’s finest, Anchor Steam beer. Afterwards, hit up Caos Bar, an eclectic biker bar sporting Americana kitsch and serving up great drinks while you lounge on antique couches.
Gallery of photos from our week long expedition to Goiás, a rural, arid land of cattle, cowboys, Sertanejo (Brazilian country music) and the most hospitable people in all of Brazil.
The state of Goiás is characterized by a landscape of rolling woodland savanna plateaus, reminding us of the golden California hills.
We took a day trip to Pirenópolis, a colonial town famous for its waterfalls and alternative community.
After a day spent lounging at various waterfalls, we got some coffee at Pireneus Cafe in the center of town. The smooth jazz and art contrasted starkly with the country side full of cowboys.
Once a year, Goianians travel for hundreds of miles to attend the Cavalgada De Campo Limpo, a crazy Brazilian country celebration featuring a parade of horses and bulls, live Sertanejo music, dancing and plenty of alcohol
The streets were lined with people enjoying the festivities as the parade passed by.
There was live Sertanejo and lots of dancing.
Brasília, the capital of Brazil, was created in 1960 from scratch by architect Oscar Niemeyer and former president Juscelino Kubitschek.
The idea of Brasília was to create a utopian city with wide boulevards and open spaces. This idea was in response to the chaos and disorganization of many cities around the world following World War II. For better or for worse, the city is an interesting clash between 1960s idealism and todays urban reality
The Catedral de Brasília was designed by Oscar Niemeyer (a socialist and atheist) who wanted to “connect the people to the sky, where their Lord’s paradise is.”
Niemeyer’s Congresso Nacional was designed to represent openness to all political ideologies. It was taken over four years later by the Brazilian military dictatorship who subsequently banned all political parties for the next 21 years.
Santuário Dom Bosco.
Our journey to Goiás actually begins in Rio. We were happily taking in the beautiful scenery, sunshine and surf, until Moreno got crushed by a wave. He was helped up by a friendly Brazilian named Bruna who spoke excellent English. We ended up spending the rest of the day with her and her dad, chowing down on Picanha, a popular brazilian cut of beef and sipping Caipirinhas in Lapa, late into the night. Before parting ways we promised to go visit her in Goiás.
One of best parts of traveling is meeting new people, travelers and locals alike. Only while traveling can you get crushed by a wave, hangout with someone you just met for an entire night and then spend a week living with her family. We had never planned on going to Goiás, but because of this chance meeting we were able to experience brazil far off the beaten path with a multitude of friendly and interesting people.
