Sao Paulo was planned mostly as a stop off city- our gateway to South America, with cheap flights from the UK and good connections to the rest of the region. We filled three days well, and it felt like about the right amount of time to spend here.
The city is rough around the edges. Lots of tourist books describe it as ‘lived in’ or ‘authentic’. It’s rough around the middle too.
Just one block away from many of the main sights were streets we probably shouldn’t have been in, and a walk from one tourist spot to another took us ambling past dodgy scenes straight out of some sort of documentary about deprivation and drug use.
The locals were friendly though, and in spite of the language barrier (we came across a few people who spoke English in our three days, and our Portuguese is somewhat lacking), we got on just fine. People were patient and would go out of their way to help or understand the hand-signal dance we made as we tried to order food or find out way round.
Day 1- Visiting Sao Paulo Resistance Memorial
We started the day (having only slept on the plane journey over, and don’t even ask about washing or changing our clothes) with a walking tour around the historic city centre. There’s no central square or defined-feeling centre point; Sao Paulo is absolutely huge, with a population of over 20 million. The walking tour gave us our bearings and some ideas of spots to visit.
After a beer that was acceptable to be drinking UK time, but less so Sao Paulo time, we went to the Resistance Memorial, which outlined the resistance to the repression during the military dictatorship (1964–1985), which is seemingly still ongoing, as highlighted by a few exhibits in the memorial.
During the military dictatorship, freedom of speech, press and association were restricted. Human rights violations such as murder, torture and enforced disappearances were commonplace.
The walk to/from this memorial took us through some rather intense areas, the sort of streets where you keep your phone firmly in your pocket and look where you’re treading. It was a cultural experience.
Day 2- Sao Paulo Japanese District, Theatre Tour, Sky Sampa & Mosteiro de São Bento
Day 2 ended up being accidentally quite busy- we came across things to see and do as we walked about the city. We got plenty of steps in, began to get our bearings, and crossed through the many different faces of Sao Paulo.
We started the day by ambling towards the Japanese quarter, which was vibrant and bustling, and had a peaceful little Japanese garden to escape into, part way down the main street.
Next on to a tour of the theatre. Brazil has elections coming up and a right wing candidate had decided to organise a rally to coincide with our tour, we hopped inside and escaped the chants and ruckus to get a good view of the beautiful, grand building. Theatro Municipal de São Paulo was built in 1911 for the aristocracy who wanted to be as European as possible, copying Parisian theatres.
We meandered through the busy streets towards Mosteiro de São Bentoa, a monastery that sold cakes. The cakes weren’t the best part though- I think I audibly gasped as we walked in. We always nip into a church when passing, but the wood-heavy interior of this place was absolutely stunning.
It was time for lunch, so we headed to the market- Mercado Municipal de São Paulo, which was nearly as intense as the streets surrounding it, though somewhat cleaner. We’d read online that the upstairs food stands would be quieter and more relaxed. They were not. After squirrelling around, dodging locals, tourists and vendors who’d seemingly been trained in the souks of Morocco, we found an apparently famous sandwich stand and ate a decent (and great value for money) sandwich.
Making our way past street vendors selling tasers, we headed to Sky Sampa. We thought it was a simple viewpoint for looking down across the city. However, it was not simple- it was incredibly hard to find, which you’d think would be impossible for a skyscraper. The entrance was hidden within access to the apartments of the block. Nor was it just a viewpoint. There were glass boxes overhanging the edge of the tower, with staff ready to pinch our phones and force us to pose for photos. It was awkwardly entertaining.
We finished our evening by following the sound of music to a bar. It had begun to rain and the homelessness became even more apparent, as crowds hunched together under any shelter they could find.
Day 3- Cathedral Tour, Paulista Avenue & Beco Do Batman
The tour of Sé Metropolitan Cathedral was definitely one of the highlights of our time in Sao Paulo. It was in Portuguese- imagine how much we’d have enjoyed it if we spoke the language. We visited the crypt, bell tower and roof during a thunderstorm- we seemed to be the only ones dressed for the weather and outlasted the locals on the roof.
We explored Paulista Avenue (the financial district), which was cleaner and blander than the rest of the city. Then we finished up in Beco Do Batman- a street art (graffiti) alley that is trendy and hip. We had a nice beer with an Irish lad who explained it was usually more lively, Brazilians hide from the rain.
We had to be on our way anyway, towards the airport for a flight to Manaus, ‘gateway to the Amazon’.
