Photo of the Week: April 29th Rio de Janeiro

This week's Photo is a perspective from the Pao de Azucar (Sugarloaf Mountain) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The entire day was overcast, but as soon as we made it to this stop, the clouds opened up, seemingly for us, and we had the chance to witness the beauty of Rio de Janeiro. You can see the Corcovado (giant Jesus statue) in the distance to the left as well!

View a full size of the photo here.

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Ficar: Levels of Relationships in Brazil

In Portuguese the word ‘ficar’ has two meanings. In some contexts ‘ficar’ can mean the verb ‘to stay,’ e.g.“Quanto tempo você vai ficar na Bahia?”  Translation: “For how long are you going to stay in Bahia?” However, in some more complex situations (wink wink), ‘ficar’ can also be the verb ‘to hook up,’ or mean an extra friendly type of casual relationship.

The concept of ficar is interesting because it opens up the conversation of Brazilian romantic relationships in general (which I have discovered can be delightfully complicated!) Truthfully, I find the Canadian dating system to be a bit dull and limiting in terms of options. Typically, if you are a Canadian of my generation you will fall in one of two categories:

1) Chronically single or…

2) In a very serious long term relationship.

 

In Brazil there are six levels of romantic relationships:

1) Ficar - A one-time transaction that can vary between a dance floor make-out to a one night stand. The key phrase for this level is: ‘ONE Time!’ This distinction is very important and thus requires an example. Please repeat after me: “Uma vez eu fique com Gustavo.” Translation: ”One time I hooked up with Gustavo.”

2) Ficante - From ficar we move on to ficante, which is when you take your so-called ‘one time’ ficar and go back for seconds. (In this city, between the heat, the samba, the tight clothes, and the beach… something has got to give! Okay? So ne judge pas s’il vous plait, because acceptance is the road to understanding.)

3) Paquera - A frequent ficante who you realize (after the first few booty calls) is actually pretty cool and someone you gel with quite well. That is to say that this level is ‘booty with potential’… potential for what exactly has yet to be determined.

4) Namorado – This is your classic boyfriend/girlfriend label. The stage where holding hands, riding shot gun, watching movies with your family, and making things ‘official’ on facebook is the norm. (Awwwww!!)

5) Noivado - Now we start moving into serious territory with ‘noviazgo’, which is engagement. In Brazil they wear the engagement ring on their right hand and then switch the rings to their left hand when married.

6) Marido - If you see a ring on your left hand it means you have successfully climbed the hierarchy of Brazilian relationships! Parabéns! Now let’s cut the cake!

Photo Credits: textdating.ca

This post was written by Diana for Life Out of a Suitcase. You can read more about Diana’s experience in Salvador on her blog. Read more stories by 20 something woman expats and travelers at Life Out of a Suitcase.

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As I’ve noticed, the majority of people here are reasonably slim. What’s the secret? Well here’s what I believe are the Cariocas´ (people of Rio de Janeiro) secrets to keeping slim.

1. Beach 365 days of the year:

When you live in a climate where you can go tan and swim at the beach any day of the year, well that’s some good motivation to keep slim.

2. Make lunch your main meal:

Lunchtime here is fun. You get a 1-1.5 hours for lunch and you eat out. Then you have a snack at about 5 p.m. and a light dinner around 9 p.m. And you never skip breakfast. It’s easy to get a well-balanced meal at one of the many “Restaurantes por Kilo” or pay-by-weight buffet restaurants, with a large selection of salad, lean meat, fresh fruit, beans and rice.

3. Leisure time can be active time:

Cariocas like to spend lots of time on the beach, but they don’t just lie in the sun. They go swimming, surfing, windsurfing, kite surfing; play soccer, beach volleyball, go for jogs or bike rides along the walk beside the beach.

4. Dance the night away:

And after beach time, it’s time to go out and dance samba – a dance that burns lots of calories.

5. Espresso not lattes:

Cream, sugar, mochas, and lattes: they all can add extra calories. Cariocas have 1 coffee with milk in the morning followed by little espressos throughout the rest of the day.

6. Lighter beer:

Beer with lower alcohol content reduces the calorie count.

7. Local meats, fruits and vegetables:

Grass-fed local meat. A great variety of local fruits and vegetables. And then there’s the magical açai berry that you can get cheaply and in large delicious portions as a sweet, slushy, refreshing, icy, solid drink that you eat with a spoon. Apparently this has a lot of calories but it is really good for you.

8. Drink 8 glasses of water a day:

In this heat, this is a necessity.

9. Bland food:

Rio is known for its bland food. And the blander the food is, perhaps the smaller the appetite becomes. Or at least it has for me. Up north in Bahia the food is spicier. In Minas Gerais, the food is greasier (thus also yummier). São Paulo has a decent variety of international cuisine.

10. Stress less:

Cariocas know how to relax. And a relaxed culture makes for less cortisol in the system and a higher metabolism.

This post was written by Andrea for Life Out of a Suitcase. Read more stories from 20 something women expats and travelers at Life Out of a Suitcase.

You can read more about Andrea’s experience in Rio on her blog.

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This photo of the week was taken on the Alamfi Coast in Italy. I was lucky enough to get to stop in Capri, Italy on my first cruise. We took a gondola up to the top of this giant hill and you could look out on the town from one side and this was part of the view on the other side.

It just feels like the edge of the world! I took this picture because I  could not believe how beautiful the lookout was. I have always loved the sea (quelle surprise for a land-lubber from the prairies) and other large bodies of water; the immensity of it is often breathtaking.

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This photo was contributed by Elaine for Life Out of a Suitcase.

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Lost Amongst the Canals in Venezia, Italy

Find the origial post here.

I traveled through Venice, Italy, and uncover a place that was vivacious, vigorous and easy to fall in love with. The train came at approximately 8pm and upon wanting to find the bus to where I'd booked Hotel Primavera in Venice Mestra; I had a little worry. The bus system was a bit unknown to try and figure out. I needed to get to the outskirts of the city across the river, but the system wasn't impossible. 

Venice itself is just magnificent. The bus got me to a relatively central bus station, Piazzale Roma where there were compact caravans selling fresh Panini, good for a morning break. Following some signs, I walked over to the main area of Venice to find a myriad of tiny streets, cobbled roads and a number of  smaller coffee shops. Prepared with my traveler's map I set off in the path of Basilica di San Marco at the Piazza, and then head back in the direction I'd come from on one of the ferries down the Grand Canal. I failed wretchedly.

There are so many munificent small canals in Venice but when you  you can just cross one on a footbridge you end up getting completely lost in the process. There's certainly no point making an attempt to read a map, I tried time and time again to get to a selected location with the map and failed epically each time! In Venice you've just got to follow the canals, tiny paths and like getting lost. If you want to get somewhere there are some signs that point out Piazza San Marco and Rialto Bridge and have directions to public toilets as well. This, I figured out by the second day was the best way to do Venice.

What is completely awesome is to spend half an hour on the Rialto Bridge just seeing the afternoon go by, shopping in the stalls nearby and having an espresso at a little coffee shop. The canal gondolas seem quite high priced to rent, but if you're a couple wanting an hour of soothingness in the otherwise congested streets, this might be a good way to go. My other favourite place in Venice is the main Piazza San Marco. Take the time to go through the Basilica di San Marco  and sit in a corner of the square with a book, a awesome way to spend time.

I did treat myself a touch and went to a slightly overpriced and short show of the old Venetian Carnivale. It was certainly put on for tourists but did give you a bit of history and perspective into Venetian life. Do pick up the Church and Cathedral guide and use that as a base to get around, they are absolutely lovely inside and in trying to find them you get to see a couple awesome squares: the  San Giacomo dall'Orio, where one of the oldest churches is.

One of my tips for Venice: if you see something you like or a photo you want to take, buy it or take it then and there, trust me you'll have such problems getting back to that exact spot!

Written by Kay for Life Out of a Suitcase. Find more stories by 20 something women expats & travelers at Life Out of a Suitcase.

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