🇧🇷 Life in Brazil through the eyes of an expat: personal experience

Last updated Feb 28, 2025

Football, coffee, TV series and carnival. These four words are a typical set of associations with Brazil, which is so distant but at the same time close to us. In the age of globalization, you can find “your people” even on such a distant continent. Alina has been living there for six months and is ready to tell you why the largest country in South America is attractive and at the same time dangerous, and why it is better to travel there by plane.

— Our move to Brazil took place because of work. My husband and I flew to Sao Paulo in December. It was like a jump from winter to summer. Since our city is located in the south, even in the hottest month – December – the temperature is very comfortable – 30, 35 degrees maximum. But, interestingly, unlike the usual heat, when I didn’t want to do anything, here it’s the opposite – a surge of energy! By the way, in comparison with the northern part of Brazil, we are lucky – there, when leaving the plane, you can immediately unscrew your T-shirt. So much humidity. Now that we are in winter, the thermometer stays at 27-29 degrees. It's funny to hear locals complain about the cold.

True, in the evening it becomes really noticeably chilly. Due to the short daylight hours – at any time of the year it does not exceed 12 hours – at 18:00 it can already be very dark outside, and since there is no heating in the apartments, it is also cold. For example, now we sleep under several blankets at once.

For a tourist, there is definitely no better time to go to Brazil. You just need to keep in mind that in conventional December, when it is summer here, it is equally warm both in the south and in the north. In addition, in resort villages there are more places for recreation, bars, and restaurants.

— Tell us about the city in which you live.

— Sao Paulo is the most populous city in Brazil. About 24 million people live here. A metropolis, the center of business, culture and economy throughout Latin America. This city is not exactly about tourism. Shopping, excellent service – yes, but if you want the colorfulness of Brazil, you should choose other states.

Sao Paulo is very green. Despite the abundance of high-rise buildings (a kind of unique Brazilian New York), it’s nice that the city government cares about the environment, caring for parks and constantly planting new plants. It even comes to the point that when planning the construction of a building, the trees in this place are not cut down, but dug up! Then they are simply transplanted to another place.

Advertising is prohibited in Sao Paulo. It's hard to believe, but there is not a single banner with an announcement in the city. Local advertisers have found a way out. During busy traffic, when the traffic lights turn red for cars, they stand at the crossing and unfold their advertisement in their hands. Green – they are gone!

Sao Paulo is considered the business capital of Brazil. But in many areas, if you look up, you will see a real web of wires. Not to say that this is a hindrance, but walking under a wire that is shorting is not very pleasant.

— What about the favelas?

— There are them in Sao Paulo too. True, I only saw them while passing through. I used to have a prejudice that all poor people from favelas were dangerous. Of course this is not true. There are poor people who will never take what belongs to others, but there is another category. Tourists are better off staying in more expensive areas. But this still will not protect you 100% from robbers – the streets are not guarded 24/7. It's just luck.

– It’s so unusual to hear the word robbers…

– What can I say – a couple of days ago I saw a real chase! Just like in the movies! The robber was riding a motorcycle, and two policemen were rushing after him. You don't have to watch TV series in Brazil! Here they are life itself. My husband and I try not to go out in the evenings, not to travel by public transport. Despite the fact that the local metro and buses are very comfortable, there can be robbers there. Walking onto a bus, pulling out a gun and threatening them with it until passengers hand over their bags is a very real phenomenon. Local taxis and Uber are the most suitable means of transportation.

Here you can’t just go out and go for a walk. A thief can, for example, snatch a bag on a bike at speed. So if my husband and I want to go for a walk somewhere, we go to the park. Of course, you shouldn’t live 24/7 with the thought that you might get robbed. Many of my friends travel freely by public transport and feel great. Maybe I need a little more time to get used to it.

Concluding the topic with the robbers, it is worth mentioning what a disservice they did to the people. If a person becomes ill on the street, there is a chance that they will not help him. There have been cases where scammers pretended to be like this. People approached, and accomplices ran out from around the corner and robbed the person.

— How to get to Brazil?

If you have a visa, then it, of course, makes the journey much easier: there are more options for how to get there faster and more comfortably.

Don't be afraid of the flight: it's long, but very comfortable. Personally, I like flying over the ocean for 14 hours even more. They fed you, gave you something to drink – beauty!

Visitors from some countries can stay in Brazil for 90 days without a visa. At the same time, you can stay in the country for the same period, but you will need to go through a commission and fill out documents. By the way, no vaccinations are needed. They can only be done if you plan to visit the Amazon.

— How is English in the land of the sun?

— To feel comfortable here, it’s better to learn a few phrases in Port Gali before your trip. Even in hotels and restaurants, staff will not always be able to answer correctly in English; you have to resort to an online translator.

I started learning Portuguese so I could communicate with the locals. As a student at MSLU, my third language was Spanish. Knowing it now helps a lot in learning Portuguese, since they are similar to each other. Now I can order my own coffee in coffee shops, make an appointment with a doctor and solve everyday problems. This, of course, makes life in Brazil much easier. Although many locals themselves make mistakes in the language, despite the fact that Portuguese here is lightweight.

—What should you be prepared for when traveling to Brazil?

— The Internet works everywhere here! It even catches 5G!

Local people are very noisy.

You need to get used to the fact that being 15 minutes late is normal. I once waited 40 minutes at the clinic for my appointment. Nobody even apologized. So 15 minutes is not considered late at all.

I was surprised how local street vendors are treated here. I remember when I was sitting at the manicure, a woman came in and started offering handmade sweets. Perhaps we would treat this gesture with distrust, but in Brazil this is a normal phenomenon. So don't be afraid to buy something second-hand on the street.

Brazil is a holiday country! Locals come up with different reasons every day to celebrate something.

— What can you say about traveling around the country?

— In Brazil, land transport is not very developed. There are restrictions on any highway here. So it can take an insanely long time to travel even a relatively short distance. The railway is more suitable for freight transport. It is cheaper and easier to travel within the country by plane. There are no low-cost airlines here, but for a short distance the price for a round-trip ticket will average $100.

Brazil is a country of helicopters. Sometimes the same 60 km from Sao Paulo to the ocean can take 5 hours, so many people get there by helicopter. I know a girl who lives near the ocean. If, for example, she needs to go somewhere on business, she calls a helicopter. It's much faster than by car. By the way, the local Uber here has the option of calling a motorcycle taxi, which is also quite convenient.

During my six-month stay I was able to get to know Brazil a little. So, for example, my husband and I lived for a whole month on the ocean in the state of Santa Catarina in the town of São Francisco do Sul. Colonial Portuguese architecture, tranquility, delicious seafood – what could be better? Nearby was the small town of Joinville. There you could take a walk in the Atlantic Forest and look at the monkeys in their natural habitat.

A two-hour drive from Sao Paulo is Brazilian Switzerland, the town of Campos do Jordão. Being there, it’s hard to believe that you are geographically in Brazil.

In general, we have big plans for exploring the country. I would also like to see Rio, go to a resort in the south where football stars vacation, and walk through the Amazon forests.

In addition, my dreams also include traveling across the continent. For example, we recently returned from Buenos Aires. I remember a situation when, during dinner, on one of the most popular streets of the capital, a gypsy woman came up and simply took meat from the plate. South America is so colorful!

BLITZ

— What should you bring with you from Brazil?

– Coffee! You can also buy some local clothes – they are bright, colorful and very beautiful. I would advise girls to take a closer look at local skincare products, which are really good.

— What food should you definitely try?

— We need to go to Rodizio. This is a whole gastronomic ritual! A tasting dinner, during which a freshly prepared dish (mostly meat) is carried around the tables non-stop. Everything there is incredibly delicious!

Of course, it is worth trying the local cooked seafood – octopus, shrimp and the popular shimeji mushrooms.

BUT! All Brazilians, no matter how full they are, will definitely take dessert and espresso after their main meal! Always! In general, they only drink Americano and espresso coffee. As a latte drinker, it was difficult for me at first. Instead, the coffee shop once made cocoa, and the restaurant brought espresso with foam. So, if you love cappuccino and lattes, then these types of coffee will not be easy to find when traveling.

For drinks, I would also recommend coconut water. It is sold in regular bottles in the store, and can also be drunk with a coconut straw.

— What words would a trip to the country not be complete without?

— Locals always take a long time to say hello. First comes the informal Olá! Then – a greeting depending on the time of day. Good morning – Bom dia. Good afternoon – Boa tarde. Good evening/Good night – Boa noite. At the end, the standard question “how are you?” – Tudo bem? It's like “What's up?” in English, that is, it is not necessary to answer. The end of the conversation is also quite long. They always wish you a good week, a good weekend and, in general, all the best. If you learn this standard greeting, you will already get the sympathy of a Brazilian.