Post-Rio, Post-Olympics Culture

Top Ten Dos and Don’ts to Experience Brazil Like a Native

When you understand the culture of Brazil, you break out of the tourist bubble and connect with people in a way you never can when you just stand on the cultural sidelines. Brazilians are enormously friendly and warm people, but there are some rules you need to follow to insure that your visit will reward you with the incredible time you are hoping for. Here are the top ten cultural rules to follow when visiting Brazil:

1. Never use the U.S. “OK” circle, the thumb-to-forefinger hand gesture. In Brazil, this is very vulgar, and is definitely not OK!
2. Alternatively, that thumb-between-first-and-second finger gesture (“I got your nose!”) is called the figa in Brazil, and it means very good luck. You’ll even see it on necklaces as an amulet. It’s fine to use the figa as a gesture for OK.
3. When women and women meet (and when men and women who have already been introduced meet again), the handshake is often accompanied by three cheek-to-cheek “air kisses.” Men, you should never initiate this, but respond in kind if the woman initiates this with you.
4. Brazilians are very comfortable with physicality. While speaking, they might take your hand, or touch your shoulder, and they typically stand closer than most North Americans. Resist stepping back, don’t pull away, and enjoy the closeness!
5. A red light on most Brazilian streets is merely a suggestion. In fact, many Brazilian drivers speed up as the light is turning red in order to avoid having to stop. Always be very careful to look both ways when crossing, and never assume that the pedestrian has the right of way. Note also that many drivers turn their lights off at night (the complaint being that headlight glare is blinding), and drive with their lights on during the day!
6. The ubiquitous national Brazilian drink is the caipirinha, a delicious concoction of sugar, muddled fruit and cachaca (a liquor distilled from sugarcane). It goes down very easily … and so will you, so pace yourself! The toast is, “Saud!” (“sow-ooje”).
7. Remember, the language is Portuguese, not Spanish. However, if you don’t know Portuguese and do know some Spanish, you can probably switch to Spanish, but only after first starting out in English. Spanish-speakers can much more easily understand written Portuguese than spoken Portuguese, so ask your Brazilian colleagues to write it down for you.
8. Avoid wearing green and orange colored clothes together, unless you are attending a soccer (futebol) game (or an event at the Olympics). These are the colors of the Brazilian flag, and in day-to-day life on the street outside of the stadium, it looks odd to wear these colors together.
9. You’ve made that long journey to Brazil, so take some time, if you can, to get beyond Rio and see some of the other magnificent sites. Begin with the incredible megalopolis of Sao Paulo. Note that there is a sometimes not-so-gentle rivalry between Paulistanos and Paulistanas (the people of Sao Paulo) and Cariocas (the people of Rio de Janeiro). Paulistanos see Cariocas as too ready to drop work for a game of volleyball on the beach, and Cariocas see Paulistanas as sacrificing the easy pleasures of daily life for hard-earned money. The evidence is everywhere: Cariocas start work later, take longer lunches, and do, in fact, play volleyball on the beach whenever possible. In Sao Paulo, lunch is typically, well, noon to 1 pm. And there is no beach. Adjust your clock, and your attitude, accordingly, when you visit these two amazing cities.
10. Now that the rush of the Olympics is over, you’ll want to go back to fabulous Brazil, and most people think of Carnival when planning their return trip. However, although Carnival is the most explosive of all Brazilian celebrations, consider New Year’s Eve in Rio: it’s much easier to get that fantastic hotel room overlooking Ipanema, and if you do, you’ll be a participant in the wondrous festival of Imenja, where at midnight, thousands of believers dressed in white rush down to the shore to cast their wishes for the coming year to Imenja, goddess of the sea, accompanied by the throbbing beat of thousands of samba drums. The belief is that if the waves bring your wish back to you, it will come true.

Finally, when packing for your trip, remember; it’s winter down there now!