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Brazil military occupies favelas in prep for Olympics/WC.

This just really makes me want to watch Fast Five...

...again...
 
Anyone on here ever been to Brazil?

Yup. Went for 3 weeks in 2008. The hostel I was at in Rio actually set up a trip to a favela. It cost $10-$15/person, which went to the favela. Pretty cool experience, though not exactly real. The favela realized they had to keep us safe to keep a steady income, but we still saw card tables stacked with money and coke. It was similar to a farmer's market here. Lots of guns, but nothing aggressive, just a different lifestyle.

Brazil was probably my least favorite country in South America though. Inflated prices and the largest disparity between rich and poor. You have some of the wealthiest people in South America living 5 blocks from absolute shantytowns. Lots of crime to the point that ATMs turned off after dark. Had to take taxis everywhere at night.
 
Yup. Went for 3 weeks in 2008. The hostel I was at in Rio actually set up a trip to a favela. It cost $10-$15/person, which went to the favela. Pretty cool experience, though not exactly real. The favela realized they had to keep us safe to keep a steady income, but we still saw card tables stacked with money and coke. It was similar to a farmer's market here. Lots of guns, but nothing aggressive, just a different lifestyle.

Brazil was probably my least favorite country in South America though. Inflated prices and the largest disparity between rich and poor. You have some of the wealthiest people in South America living 5 blocks from absolute shantytowns. Lots of crime to the point that ATMs turned off after dark. Had to take taxis everywhere at night.

What were your favorites?
 
What were your favorites?

Colombia was by far my favorite. Loved Argentina as well. To be honest I just love South America, I can't wait to get back there. Was looking at opening a business, but it'll have to wait awhile. I should also add that I speak spanish, so my experiences were far better in those countries which speak spanish than in Brazil where I would only understand 40-50% of what was said.
 
Yup. Went for 3 weeks in 2008. The hostel I was at in Rio actually set up a trip to a favela. It cost $10-$15/person, which went to the favela. Pretty cool experience, though not exactly real. The favela realized they had to keep us safe to keep a steady income, but we still saw card tables stacked with money and coke. It was similar to a farmer's market here. Lots of guns, but nothing aggressive, just a different lifestyle.

Brazil was probably my least favorite country in South America though. Inflated prices and the largest disparity between rich and poor. You have some of the wealthiest people in South America living 5 blocks from absolute shantytowns. Lots of crime to the point that ATMs turned off after dark. Had to take taxis everywhere at night.

Just checked out the Gini coefficient rankings, Brazil is 10th in the world (most unequal), but behind Paraguay and Bolivia. South America dominates the top of the list.
 
Just checked out the Gini coefficient rankings, Brazil is 10th in the world (most unequal), but behind Paraguay and Bolivia. South America dominates the top of the list.

I didn't make it to Paraguay. Bolivia is a little surprising as nowhere I went seemed to be rich. They definitely had the poorest neighborhoods I saw though.

I think the crime and development gets a bit overstated when it comes to international events though. Brazilians are going to be going crazy about the World Cup. They might have problems with crime in the country, but they also have huge pride about throwing a great party. There's normally crime during Carnival, but probably not too different from something like Mardi Gras.
 
And to the tagger, Brazilians are not normally considered latinos.
 
Colombia was by far my favorite. Loved Argentina as well. To be honest I just love South America, I can't wait to get back there. Was looking at opening a business, but it'll have to wait awhile. I should also add that I speak spanish, so my experiences were far better in those countries which speak spanish than in Brazil where I would only understand 40-50% of what was said.

Wouldn't mind getting a deployment/TDY to Colombia. Where in the country were you?

Have never been but just get an impression I'd like Argentina. Their political and monetary sitch always seems to be scary and sketchy though. Did you go to Chile or Peru? Those are two other places I think would be pretty cool, well at least Lima in Peru. Dunno about other parts of the country so much.

I speak a little pidgin Spanish and I'm sure could ramp that up to be conversational. Portuguese I know almost none.
 
Wouldn't mind getting a deployment/TDY to Colombia. Where in the country were you?

Have never been but just get an impression I'd like Argentina. Their political and monetary sitch always seems to be scary and sketchy though. Did you go to Chile or Peru? Those are two other places I think would be pretty cool, well at least Lima in Peru. Dunno about other parts of the country so much.

I speak a little pidgin Spanish and I'm sure could ramp that up to be conversational. Portuguese I know almost none.

I was in Colombia for a couple months. Cartagena, Santa Marta, Parque Tyrona, Medellin, Bogota, Manizales, Salento, Pasto, and San Agustin.

Wasn't a huge fan of Bogota or Cartagena, but the rest were awesome.

Argentina is cool because the country has similar standard of living as Spain but at a third the costs. Transportation, housing, and food are all incredible. Argentineans are also more similar to Europeans than most of South America.
 
Argentina is cool because the country has similar standard of living as Spain but at a third the costs. Transportation, housing, and food are all incredible. Argentineans are also more similar to Europeans than most of South America.

This is a large part of why I think it would be a cool place to go. I could maybe do something like 5 months in Antarctica working, 7 months in Argentina doing fuck all. Buenos Aires seems like one of the most livable cities on the continent as well, and you mentioned the transport and food.

No Chile or Peru? Peru seems cheaper still than Buenos Aires and quite diverse. Also I know a couple of Peruvians that are now in the US. Chile the most economically stable of course, but I didn't know how interesting Santiago was or any of the coastal cities. I think Iquique would be interesting to visit just for the contrast, and the relatively warm water (I love the ocean lol).

Ever since I started reading about South America years ago, I've always had a feeling (admittedly founded on only what I've read) that I could live there, in spite of being very aware that the continent has its problems. Not gonna lie, cheaper living is part of the draw.
 
I've heard Argentinians are the snobs of South America, looking down on other South Americans.
 
No Chile or Peru? Peru seems cheaper still than Buenos Aires and quite diverse. Also I know a couple of Peruvians that are now in the US. Chile the most economically stable of course, but I didn't know how interesting Santiago was or any of the coastal cities. I think Iquique would be interesting to visit just for the contrast, and the relatively warm water (I love the ocean lol).

I loved traveling in Chile and Peru, but I don't know if I'd want to live there permanently.

Chile is probably the best country in SA for the outdoors. From the deserts and beaches up north to the vineyards in the center, the lake regions and the Andes, it has something for everyone. The only problem is it is extremely spread out. Santiago isn't as picturesque as a lot of other cities in SA. Iquique is a lot of fun as a surfing city, but it's pretty remote.

Lima is pretty drab most of the year. A fun city with great nightlife, but large parts of the city are pretty rundown. Arequipa is a beautiful city. If I was going to move to Peru it would be there or Cuzco.

I've heard Argentinians are the snobs of South America, looking down on other South Americans.

I could see why people might say that. Argentina was the economic powerhouse until the economy completely collapsed in 2001. Their currency gave them purchasing power all over the continent. A lot of Argentineans would vacation all over their neighboring countries. Once the economy collapsed their neighbors, especially Chile and Brazil, swooped in to take advantage of the reversal of fortunes. I could see how some Argentineans would have that old money mentality or jealousy when a former lawyer found himself driving Brazilians and Chileans around Buenos Aires in a taxi. It's hard to understand how badly Argentina got hit financially in 2001. So yeah, I would agree that they're not quite as warm and open as Colombia or Ecuador, but I wouldn't call it snobbery necessarily. There's also that leftover affect of living under a dictator in Argentina and Chile. I may have made it up in my head, but I found older people not as willing to talk to openly to a stranger because that could be a death sentence not so long ago.


I guess this thread could be moved to the Pit. It's taken a different turn than I planned, though I love talking about it.
 
There was a huge influx of European immigration to Argentina in the early 20th century. I think a lot of them see themselves as more cultured than other South Americans- I've heard them express this sentiment before and I've even had one tell me this. I've never been there though so I don't know. I've heard there are more psychoanalysts per person in Buenos Aires than any city in the world.
 
There was a huge influx of European immigration to Argentina in the early 20th century. I think a lot of them see themselves as more cultured than other South Americans- I've heard them express this sentiment before and I've even had one tell me this. I've never been there though so I don't know. I've heard there are more psychoanalysts per person in Buenos Aires than any city in the world.

This is a racial problem all over South America, though it is changing a lot in younger generations. Basically the lighter your skin, the better you are because you are more European rather than Native or African. And yeah, Argentina has very strong immigration ties to Italy, Spain and Germany.
 
Argentina is heaven for wing shooting and fly fishing; a dream destination for me. Some spectacular hunting opportunities for red stag, as well. A good friend of mine outfits trips to Argentina. I hope to go, sometime.
 
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