Advice for Expats
Pouco açúcar!
Not so long ago I was asked to contribute some advice for people moving to Rio. The first thing that popped into my head was “Remember to ask for pouco açúcar [just a little sugar] when ordering your caipirinhas”.
“No no”, they said, “It doesn’t have to be specific to Rio. But it does need to be proper, serious advice for expats” (clearly these guys have never suffered an over-sweet caipirinha if they thought that advice wasn’t ‘serious’).
OK, I thought, let’s try to think of something a bit more weighty. Something serious. I imagined someone relocating to a country they’d never seen before. Perhaps they’d heard mixed reports, including some issues with crime and bureaucracy and were feeling a bit nervous. What would be the best advice for someone like that?
My advice would be to make friends with a local (at least one!). As well as being generally nice people, locals are also incredibly useful – they can recommend bars and best places to eat; they can put you in touch with a decent builder; they can help you find a job and a place to live; they can explain those weird things that you don’t understand (remember this?) and a million other things on top. In fact pretty much everything of worth that I have achieved in Rio has been done with generous amounts of help from friendly Cariocas (thanks guys!).
OK, so that is my piece of proper advice (along with the obvious: learn the language!). 14 other bloggers also added their own pearls of wisdom to the final list.
The list-makers only wanted one suggestion per blogger, but I’ve got loads more that didn’t make the cut:
- Buy your own beach chair – it’ll pay for itself in just a few visits to the beach.
- If you don’t know what to order in a restaurant, ask the staff “O que sai mais aqui?” [what is the most popular dish here?].
- Never accept Tabasco – bars and restaurants almost always have some delicious home-made chilli oil behind the bar, but for some reason the waiters always try to give you the Tabasco first.
- During carnival, get up early and go to bed early so you don’t miss the best blocos! Most of the best fun is over by 4pm.
- Don’t eat those shrimp skewers at the beach – almost certain food poisoning awaits…
Did I miss anything?
Don’t do it! Seriously, don’t.
Actually, I have discovered you also have to ask for no sugar in fruit juices. It is amazing to watch a juice or smoothy being made and how much white sugar is added! I would say this is something visitors do need to know about :) The other more serious advice for expats is to find a reputable agency for dealing with visas. The benefits by far outweigh the strains and stresses and wasted money spent trying to do this alone and it does not have to cost as much as you may think.
Hi Simon – excellent points. I must say I often feel that I don’t really know much about many of the challenges that ‘real’ expats have to deal with because I married into a Brazilian family. This meant that my visa agency was very good value for money and gave all kinds of extra perks! :D
Good call about the juices Simon, Actually, I also ask for NO ICE , or to give ice on the side (gelo separado) , because if you don’t, you will end up with half a glass of juice and the rest is ice…
Tom, a brief Gritique of your suggestions.
– Unlike your preference for locals when it comes to seeking out advice I would say make friends with an expat, preferably from your native country, that has been residing in the country for a while, Make sure that he or she has adapted reasonably well to the city before asking for advice. I think this is better than asking a native since the filter getting in the way of all the negative things you should know, and all the things you want to ask but may seem offensive to some, is highly reduced
– You wrote “Never accept Tabasco – bars and restaurants almost always have some delicious home-made chilli oil behind the bar, but for some reason the waiters always try to give you the Tabasco first.”.
I disagree as this has not been my experience: I always ask for pimenta artesanal, and I´m usually not offered Tabasco but Brazilian mass produced pimentas – which are pretty bad for the most part. I say thank patrons that offer Tabasco, and those that are now making Heinz mustard and ketchup available to their clientes in hot dog stands and more popular venues.
– Regarding dining you recommend “If you don’t know what to order in a restaurant, ask the staff “O que sai mais aqui?” [what is the most popular dish here?].”
I prefer my version of the question (it´s just friendlier, and should only be concluded after a lingering smile lasting around 10 seconds): “O que sai mais aqui, o cliente?” .
Ok, perhaps that last one is a bit controversial but I find the following bit of advice very useful: complain when you don´t like something, and when you do – especially in the service sector – be sure to thank the person and point out the highlights of what made that experience worthwhile for you.
Hi Gritty – fair point regarding existing expats. They will certainly be able to give a new arrival advice that might not occur to a local. I guess my assumption is that expats will naturally make friends with other expats, so my point is really “Try to make friends with some locals too. Both groups will be useful”.
In Rio we often have to ask for pimenta and many times they plonk a bottle of Tabasco on the table. When we ask if they have real pimenta, they come back with the good stuff. I actually quite like Tabasco, but when there’s the home-made stuff on offer, I’d prefer to take that.
I like your last point – I think that can be applied to everyone in all walks of life. Complain when something is no good; praise/recommend/reward when something is great.
Gritty`s suggestion to make friends with a fellow expat is a good one. One of the many things I have noticed about Brazilians is they tend to have bit of a chip on their shoulder, when interacting with an expat (ESPECIALLY someone from North America), and the subject is anything to do with comparing of Brazil and the USA or Canada. For example, I know a professional lady in Rio (she is my bank account manager). She and her family never fail to go to the USA for their vacations. So one day I ask her, if she had the totally free ability to choose, would she choose instead to live in the USA. She emphatically said definitely no, and expanded her response with maybe 10 reasons why Brazil was SO much better than the USA. My (Brazilian, Carioca) wife has a separate relationship, more like a friendship, with this same lady. Some time later, I was telling my wife what the lady had told me, how Brazil was SO much better than the USA and she would NEVER want to move to the USA. My wife told me that the lady had on more than one occasion told HER that if she had the choice, she would relocate permanently to the USA (Orlando, Florida) in a second. Te difference is I am a North American Gringo, and my wife is Carioca. Many Brazilians don`t like to admit to a gringo that there is ANYTHING wrong with Brazil, yet they will dish the dirt quite eagerly to a fellow countryman. I have experienced that same kind of thing with Brazilians from many different states. That is one reason why having fellow expats as friends can be so valuable, because they don`t tend to run everything they say through that filter of national pride.
My suggestion is purely a practical one. Buy as much of your food as possible at feiras, especially fruits and vegetables and legumes and pastas and cheeses and meats and fish. The prices are dramatically lower than in the supermercados. I just hit my favorite feira this morning for my usual weeks supply of most of the aforementioned items. I spent 29 reals. At Carrefour it would have been 50% percent more expensive I am sure. Who does not want their money supply to go as far as possible?
Good one Carlos! I love the feiras here – definitely cheaper and I find the produce is fresher and lasts a lot longer too. Win-win! :)
Tom,
Two things I always tell people (ok, not food related) are:
1. Get a CPF (Cadastro de pessoa Fisica) as soon as you arrive… You’ll need it to activate your mobile phone chip card…
2. Learn Portuguese… You’ll find it a lot easier to connect with the locals :)
And of course all other practical stuff they need to know as a new expat in Rio is on AngoINFO Rio de Janeiro (http://riodejaneiro.angloinfo.com)
Cheers
Raf
Hey Raf – thanks for that :) I think the CPF is a nice way to start with documentation here in Brazil – as I recall it was one of the most painless documents to get and not even expensive! If only the same could be said for all the others! ;)
The tips on that site are oriented toward moving to England. A rather different experience altogether from moving to Rio. While many of the suggestions do apply to living in Brasil, the element of personal safety is my first topic when someone asks about moving to Brasil, and especially Rio.
I would agree with Gritty, finding a resident xpat is often easier than making friends with a local, especially while still learning the language, and a resident xpat usually has close to the same point of reference as you might. Where to find a resident xpat? Inevitably, they gravitate to certain Zona Sul bars in Rio, shouldn’t take long to figure out where those are. Also, don’t believe everything you hear from everyone, otherwise you are likely to be back at the airport within hours.
The first advise I give visiting friends is about personal safety. Pedestrians are targets in Rio, doesn’t matter if you are “in the right”, people end up in the hospital while “in the right”. Crosswalks are merely convenient places for motorcycle drivers and vehicles to target pedestrians. Always look both ways, twice, and then once more, before crossing a street. Never assume a red light for vehicle traffic means “safe to cross” for pedestrians, it is just a colorful decoration to many drivers who regard red lights, especially at night (when it was once legal to disregard red lights) as of no significance whatsoever.
Definitely do not eat the shrimp on the beach, even more so the oysters. Unless you believe that is a good way to meet a doctor who practices intestinal medicine in the emergency room of a local hospital. If you do experience the need to seek medical treatment, emergency rooms generally have someone who speaks English though not so much with respect to other foreign languages. Medical treatment here is not as outrageously priced as in the US, so if you need medical care do not let that hold you back.
Beware the street kids. Most street crimes in Rio are committed by youngsters. One approaches from the front, asking for a few coins, then two or three surprise you from behind. And, most important, (and I do hate to say this but it is sound advice) DO NOT RESIST when you are being robbed. Thieves here will shoot or stab you, even off duty police die every month resisting a street crime. They want your necklace (leave it at home!), your cell phone and/or your watch. If you give those up, you live. If you fight back, you may not. Check out the website, http://ondefuiroubado.com.br/rio-de-janeiro/RJ , which is a site for posting street crimes in Rio. There are areas where street crime is more frequent, obviously those should be avoided. Never dress “up” in Rio, only dress “down”. Anything that makes you stand out from the crowd increases your chance of being assaulted and robbed.
Don’t use the free showers on the beach. They have been tested and found to contain fecal coliform (human excrement, raw sewage). Same goes for the ocean water on some days, it is tested weekly but you have to look for the test results online as signs are either not posted or are taken down before a “clean” retest. Millions of gallons of raw sewage are dumped into the ocean not so far off Sao Conrado every minute of every day. Usually the currents carry it off into the sea, but sometimes not.
Hey PT! I agree with all of these – a couple of friends braved the oysters at a street market a few months ago and they were violently sick for days afterwards… :(
You’re spot-on with the advice regarding street crime too – never resist and never take anything you can’t bare to give up. I’ve only been robbed once in Rio and I was all dressed up to go to a fancy party – I basically made myself look like a really juicy target (they must have been very disappointed when they opened up the bag they stole!). When I take my camera out I put it in a really crappy, beaten up old rucksack. I also dress as scruffily as possible and it seems to do the trick!
Tom you missed beachware. Is it mandatory to wear budgie smugglers (speedos) on the beach in Rio?
Ha ha! Budgie-smugglers/speedos/sungas are non-mandatory though certainly can’t do any harm if you want to blend in (assuming you’re not whiter than white like many visitors!). Board shorts are also commonly worn.
One big no-no when going to the beach is a towel – leave it at home, it’s a dead give-away! :) And Mrs Eat Rio’s pet peeve: wandering around with a 2 litre bottle of water under your arm. Gringo alert!
I’ve gotta say I’ve never encountered an over-sweet caipirinha. Maybe they add more sugar in tourist spots, or maybe I’m just such a sugar-addict that I never notice.
I have never been one to search out fellow foreigners here in Brazil, and I still have no desire to do so. I also married into a Brazilian family and found that socialising so much with locals helped me settle. Having said that, my one piece of advice would be “have patience and give it time”. People expect to be fluent in the language within months, to know everything and to have settled and to never feel homesick. Moving to a new country (especially one that is so culturally different) is a big adjustment and it can take a long time to settle in. But that’s part of the fun. Enjoy it.
As a side-note, I can’t stand the word expat. In the UK the daily mail never complains about Polish ‘expats’ stealing our jobs, does it? But when I move to another country I get this nice,cosy term to make myself feel better.
You’ve never had an over-sweet caipirinha?! You’re lucky man, maybe it’s a Rio thing then – you’re in Minas aren’t you? Actually it seems to be the fancy tourist places that use less sugar – when you buy them from some bloke on the street, that’s when the spoon stands up!
I’m also not a huge fan of the word expat – I’ve had the discussion a few times on this and other blogs. However, I guess people find these terms useful shorthand to distinguish between rich and poor immigrants without actually saying so. When I hear “expat” I think of a middle-class, middle-aged English guy called Nigel, living in a massive apartment in Ipanema and working for an oil company. To some, the word “immigrant” suggests a person who was struggling financially where they were and so decided to move for economic reasons.
I’m very happy to be referred to as an immigrant – firstly because I am one and secondly because one of the reasons I left London was because I couldn’t afford to buy a house there, so in some ways I fit both definitions. :)
Wow, there is quite a good discussion around here about making friends. As a carioca girl, I would say, make friends with expats but make friends to locals too. Expats are passing through the same situation as you and they may have lived experiences locals might never had. But making friends to locals I think it is as important, locals can advise you to be away of some tricky situations an expat might not have lived yet. : )
Well put Cristina :) I think the consensus is that
expatsimmigrants and locals can be very useful in different ways.No. I will only make friends with locals and immigrants.
Sorry Nigel.
Happy now?! Nigel is sulking in the corner… ;)
Had to throw in my tuppence worth,
Get both local and Expat immigrant gringo friends. Don’t be afraid to ask people to meet. When I first hit the road, the idea of talking to a stranger was tough, the suggestion that you could meet up again sometime was even stranger.
Use your foreign status to your advantage when you can, I find speaking a little Portuguese, smiling a lot and remaining calm gets me great results in almost all situations (restaurants, Military police, taxis, airports, beach vendors)
I still get stumped sometimes but watching local friends suffer the same ignominy makes it all seem a little bit brighter and more about the other person’s shortcomings than mine.
Don’t rely on a GPS. learn your way around before driving.
Good point about not being afraid to ask people to meet. My English diffidence made that quite hard for me at first (“What, I just ask a stranger if they want to meet for a drink?”) but it’s pretty much essential if you don’t want to spend your life sitting about on your own.
Barra on Tuesday then Tom?
You’re on! :)