Introduction

Welcome to the Gringoes.com email newsletter!
This newsletter pulls together some of the articles, photos, polls and other information that has been published on the Gringoes.com web site over the last week or so. Don't forget to visit the Gringoes.com site to checkout our article archive, useful information pages, classified adverts, services, forum and other pages. So read on and we hope you enjoy the newsletter. As always if you have any comments, such as what you'd like to see more or less of on the site or newsletter, don't hesitate to contact us at gringoes@gringoes.com.
Please note that although we are based in São Paulo, the site and newsletter are for the whole of Brazil. We are particularly interested in hearing from people outside of São Paulo city, specifically Rio de Janeiro and the Northeast, so if you would like to write about your experiences or any topic related to Brazil see our request for "Article Writers" below.
If you're interested to know the origin behind the site name, then read the "Dear Gringo" article here by Dr. G.


Christmas Vacation

Please note that there will be no email newsletter next week, and a reduced number of articles on the site over the next few days, because of the Christmas vacation/holidays. Gringoes.com wishes a happy holidays and "boas festas" for all those celebrating!


Brazil: São Paulo Entertainment Guide

This week's entertainment guide for São Paulo features a restaurant in the city centre, some Christmas activities, a recommended film, and a roundup of some other upcoming events.
If you have been to a restaurant, club, park, museum, or anywhere else in São Paulo that you would like to recommend to other readers in future Entertainment Guides then don‘t hesitate to contact us!
Also if you are a bar, restaurant, or night club owner (or hosting any other form of event that might be of interest to foreigners) that would like to be reviewed by Gringoes.com, as well as appearing in our entertainment guide, please contact us to arrange a visit. If you would like to submit an entertainment guide for your city we‘d be interested to hear from you also.
…click here to read the rest of the article>>


Brazil: The Grand Hyatt São Paulo's Christmas and New Year Programme

The Eau, Kinu and Grand Caffè restaurants are preparing special meals and menus to commemorate the new year, and the Upstairs Bar|Lounge will celebrate the arrival of 2007 with a big party, live band, DJ and open bar.
To commemorate Christmas and toast the arrival of 2007 the restaurants of the Grand Hyatt São Paulo - Eau, Kinu, Grand Caffé - and the upstairs Bar|Lounge will have a special programme for the end of year party. The hotel will prepare exclusive dinners, brunches, and menus, as well as a fun party at the turn of the year.
Below are the options for each of the restaurants and the bar of the Grand Hyatt for Christmas and the New Year.
…click here to read the rest of the article>>


São Paulo: Treasures of Jazz Concert

Jazz fans wanting to share a musical treasure, with jazz clarinetist and saxophonist Tito Martino, will want to go to the Memorial da América Latina this Thursday (December 21st).
Tito has recorded 8 LPs and 3 CDs, played in Jazz festivals in Europe and USA, and is one of the most renowed jazzmen in Brazil, with rave reviews in the New York Times and the Washington Post, by respected jazz critics.
The show this Thursday, Os Tesouros do Jazz (the Treasures of Jazz), will feature two different very talented groups: one the Tito Martino Jazz Band (pictured right) playing the classics of the Jazz Age, such as Louis Armstrong's Hello Dolly and What a Wonderful World; and the other group, the Swing Jazz Quintet will be improvising in the style celebrated by clarinetist Benny Goodman's quartet, with pianist Teddy Wilson (who has played with Tito), vibraphonist Lionel Hampton, and drummer Gene Krupa. If you don't know these names, you don't know what jazz is all about; maybe it's time to correct this by going to the concert!
…click here to read the rest of the article>>


Brazil: Dolly Moreno - A Great Sculptress of the Americas

By Sol Biderman
Dolly Moreno is a beautiful tough woman who makes beautiful tough sculptures with remarkable textures - textures that even the blind can appreciate. A few years ago scores of blind children and adults attended an exhibit of Dolly's sculpture and came out enraptured with eyes sparkling, ecstatic with the feel, the texture, the stunning rich form of her compositions in bronze and steel and other metals which she alone cuts using a blowtorch and wearing overalls and protecting her blond hair and blue eyes with a steelworker's mask.
Born in Egypt, Dolly studied art in Cairo and in Alexandria when both cities were rich cultural centers with influences of France, Britain and all parts of Asia and Africa, at a time when Lawrence Durrell wrote The Alexandria Quartet. Dolly led her family out of that country during one of its worst war crises, moved to Europe, then America, then Brazil, where she has been living and sculpting for 35 years. She is an American sculptor but there is nothing American about her. Her background is Egyptian and European and, despite dozens of individual and group exhibits in the USA, she has received special recognition in Europe.
…click here to read the rest of the article>>


Getting a "Permanent" Visa in Brazil

By Robert Eugene DiPaolo
You might think that the fastest and easiest way to get a permanent visa in Brazil would be to marry a Brazilian. However, there is actually a more efficient and convenient way to obtain permanent residency in Brazil. And one that does not require you to make a lifetime commitment, or an emotion-based decision undertaken in the throes of passion on the way to the airport on the day your tourist visa is set to expire.
In an apparent effort to attract individual investments in Brazil, Brazil‘s National Immigration Council, or the NIC, in October 2004, issued Resolution 60/04 regarding the issuance of permanent visas to individual foreign investors. This Resolution, which replaced Resolution 28 from November 1998, reduced the amount of money a foreign individual is required to invest in Brazil to obtain a permanent residency visa from US$200,000 to US$50,000, making this an affordable, efficient and convenient way to obtain permanent residency in Brazil.
…click here to read the rest of the article>>


Around Brazil: Cristo Redentor

By Ricky Skelton
It seems like from most places in Rio, Cristo looms above, waving at you to stop. You can‘t miss him, he even lights up at night, appearing suspended in the black sky like a Mediterranean David Copperfield if the stars are covered by high clouds. So how is he so difficult to find for yourself? Is it a Carioca conspiracy to ensure tourists use taxis? It works for me. I will definitely be doing it that way next time. A three hour journey is a little too much when it can probably be done in twenty minutes.
We set off from the edge of the laguna in Barra, with the directions fresh in at least three of our minds. We made it up the hill to the forest on top ok, but could never find our way to the correct road. A little puzzling when there are only two roads on top of the mountain. The low cloud didn‘t help. It wasn‘t until we‘d dropped below the level of it and could see the Maracana below us that we realised we were on the opposite side of the hill from where we started out, and so very, very lost. One person we stopped on the side of the road had told us we had 17km to drive to get to Cristo. How this happened, we don‘t know. Then we ended up at the bottom of the hill, arriving at dead-ends and train tracks, before finding a monkey forest with signposts for the top.
…click here to read the rest of the article>>


Understanding Brazil: Christmas and New Year's Traditions

By Mark Taylor Christmas time here in Brazil is a rather curious affair. For starters it has that odd air that Christmas in any equatorial or some southern hemispherical countries have... that is it's hot! That doesn't feel quite right for someone who's used to Jack Frost nipping at his nose. Because it's summertime here Christmas and New Year's are popular times for people to take a holiday, and often the cities end up feeling a little like a ghost town. Often beforehand though the traffic and chaos reaches a peak in what's usually summed as "Fim de Ano", literally the end of the year.
There's something quite strange about seeing shops, houses and apartments festooned in lights, Father Christmases, and ornaments, and even more so fake snow and icicles. Here in São Paulo at least many people will go to great effort to decorate their houses and apartment buildings. A competition is run in the city for the best decorated building and many try their best to win it. One of the most famous "houses" that does this is a colonial style mansion on Av. Paulista owned by Itau bank. The effort they go to is incredible, with weeks of preparation and construction. The end result this year includes Christmas carol singing mannequins, and even a fake snow storm every few minutes. These houses often attract many visitors.
…click here to read the rest of the article>>


Article Writers

Are you a "Gringo" (foreigner) living in or travelling around Brazil with experiences you would like to write about, or with advice to offer? Are you a Brazilian who would like to explain about Brazil to foreigners, and help give advice on what to do, and where to go? Perhaps you just write a frequent blog about Brazil, and would be interested in publishing some of this on our site. If you are interested in writing an article, or series of articles, or posting your blog content on Gringoes.com we are interested in hearing from you! Don't be shy! All we ask is that the articles are focused on Brazil, will be of interest to foreigners either travelling or living here, and are written in English.
We are particularly interested in hearing from people who want to write about areas other than São Paulo, specifically Rio de Janeiro and the Northeast, although other areas as well. If you are unsure about a topic then drop us an email or a draft article. Send your articles or any questions to gringoes@gringoes.com with "articles" in the subject.


Interviews

Thanks to those who responded to our request for interviews. We've almost run out though, so if you would like to be in our Brazil Through Foreign Eyes, or Foreigners Through Brazilian Eyes series please send us an email. As you can see it doesn't matter if you're a foreigner to Brazil, or Brazilian, we're still interested to hear from you. The interview series is a fascinating look at how real people are enjoying Brazil, and equally how Brazilians really see foreigners. They also give various tips on what to see in Brazil, and how to survive here.
The interview itself is a set of around 15 easy-to-answer questions, and ideally we like a digital photo of you as well we can place with the interview.
So if you're interested, don't be shy, send a blank email to mark@gringoes.com with "Interview" in the subject. We will then send you the questions, and instructions on how to complete. We'd love to hear from you!

A gentle reminder to those who have been sent questions. Please don't forget to complete and return them!


Book Donations

If you are leaving Brazil and/or have any unwanted books, and are happy to donate them, then Gringoes.com would be glad to receive them! We are considering setting up a book club for Gringoes.com readers if we can get sufficient interest. For details of how to donate your books then please contact gringoes@gringoes.com with "Book Donation" in the subject.
A special request: we've had an offer of around 200 books from a Gringoes.com reader in Belo Horizonte, but we are unable to get the books to our office in São Paulo. If any readers are travelling between São Paulo and Belo Horizonte, and are able to help with transport, then please contact us at gringoes@gringoes.com


Gringoes Poll

This week's poll continues from last week, and is on what most influences your opinion about Brazil, whether you trust your own experiences, that you see in the general media e.g. newspapers, TV and Internet, or what you read in travel guides. So far it seems that you prefer to trust your own experiences with "personal experience" having 90% of the vote. In distant second is "friends" with 8%, and an even more distant third is "travel guides" with 2% of the vote. If you haven't yet voted go to our homepage and look for the poll in the left-hand column.
If you can't stand our poll ideas and have better ones, or are curious about some aspect of the Gringoes.com readers, then send your ideas to us at mark@gringoes.com with "Poll Idea" in the subject. If we choose your poll you will get a credit in the newsletter, as well as the satisfaction of seeing what the answers are!

Please send this email to anyone you think might find it interesting. If you have not yet registered with gringoes.com and would like to receive future newsletters click here. If you have mistakenly received this message, or would no longer like to receive mail from us, then please reply to this email with the word 'take out' in the subject line. If you are unsubscribing because the newsletter doesn't meet your needs then please let us know how we can improve it.

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Weekly Quiz

Last week's quiz question, from Karolina Wrona was: what are the three other names of a tropical Brazilian plant commonly known as known as "dumb cane" (or Comigo-ninguém-pode in Portuguese) and why was it sometimes given to Brazilian slaves (put into their mouth)? Congratulation to Don Spoelhof who was the first with the answer. Don gives four name for the plant: Dieffenbachia, King of Plants, Galatea, and Leopard Lily. The plant was given to slaves as punishment, as it caused pain and swelling which caused them to not be able to speak: that is why it is called Dumb Cane.
This week's quiz question from Jacques Allain (thanks Jacques!) is: what happened on Christmas Day in 1591 in Santos, involving an English explorer-adventurer? Send your answers to mark@gringoes.com with ‘Weekly Quiz’ in the subject line.
We've run out of quiz questions so a special request to readers to send in some more. Do you think you can stump the Gringoes.com readers, then please send them to mark@gringoes.com with ‘Weekly Quiz Ideas’ in the subject line. Don't forget to send the answer to the question also! Remember it needs to be relatively difficult, and not something that can be found from a simple Internet search.


Photo of the Week

The photo of the week is São Paulo Kitty and was taken by Lawrence Rincon in São Paulo. Click here to see the photo.
Thanks to all those who've sent in photos based on our request, but we can always do with more. So if you have a funny or unusual photo depicting life in Brazil please send it to gringoes@gringoes.com with ‘Photo of the Week’ in the subject line. Ideally we are after photos that are of something a little different, not traditional shots of beaches and sunsets. Please send relatively high resolution images (0.5 Megapixel / 640 x 480 or bigger), and let us know where you took the photo and if you have a title for it.


Tip of the Week

We've run out of tips, so a special request to Gringoes.com readers for more! Is there something you wish you had known while travelling, or something that makes life easier while living here in Brazil? Then share it, and let our readers know. Don't worry about the subject, it can be either a big or small piece of useful information. Send your tips to mark@gringoes.com with ‘Tip of the Week’ in the subject line.


Darfur - Brazil´s African Side Show

By John Fitzpatrick
President Luis Inacio Lula da Silva has made Africa an important part of his foreign policy. He claims that Brazil owes a lot to Africa as much of the country´s wealth was created by black slaves. Lula has visited Africa several times over the last four years. He has reiterated Brazil´s connections and stated that he wants to see African countries get a better deal from the developed world. However, recent events have shown that while Lula is always ready to condemn the West for its treatment of Africans, his condemnation stops short of upsetting African governments which mistreat their own people. Brazil joined undemocratic countries like Cuba, China and various African and Arab states in refusing to support a United Nations resolution condemning the Sudanese government for its policy in the Darfur region where the UN says some 200,000 people have died since 2003. The mainly Arab government has supported militias which have been terrifying the mainly black Christian and animist population in a long-running war against rebels demanding greater autonomy. In this case, Lula has conveniently forgotten Brazil´s debt to the African people and turned his back on Darfur, a region described by the UN as "the scene of hundreds of thousands of civilian deaths, mass rape, massive forced displacement and other abuses during the past three years."
…click here to read the rest of the article>>


Brazil Through Foreign Eyes

Meet John Milan, from the USA, who has travelled to and works in Brazil, although resides in the USA. Read the following interview where he tells us about some of his most memorable experiences from Brazil and gives some useful advice to newcomers.
1. Tell us a little about yourself, where are you from, what do you do etc.?
I'm American, originally from Pennsylvania, but I've spent the past 15 years living and working in a number of cities in Spain, Brazil and the United States. I used to be a professor of economics, but I'm currently running a translation business.
2. When did you arrive in Brazil and what brought you here?
I first visited Brazil in 1993 on vacation and loved it. I had a Brazilian girlfriend at the time (things didn't work out) who encouraged me to pursue a research grant in the country, which led to my spending 6 months in Brazil studying an economic-development project in 1995, before moving full-time in 1996 to Sao Paulo, where I started teaching economics at a local university (FAAP).
…click here to read the rest of the article>>


Brazil: Weekly News Roundup

91% Pay Rise for Senators
Senators have awarded themselves a 91% pay rise, amid protest from both some politicians and the public. This takes the monthly salary from R$12,847 to R$24,500. Aside from a R$15,000 monthly payment for incidental expenses. Compared with the minimum wage for the rest of the population of around R$300.
"Sanguessugas" Report Complete
A report into the "sanguessugas" (blood suckers), so called due to corruption in purchases of ambulances, has been completed. The report was signed off by several people, including the president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Ten people have been highlighted for charges relating to the report.
Further Flight Delays
Brazil's beleaguered air passengers were again subject to problems this week when a power failure shut down ATC in Curitiba. Power was restored after one hour but it created a backlog of delays. This week two airlines have warned their pilots to fly defensively in Brazilian airspace. President Lula told reporters, during a trip to Bolivia, that there would be sufficient resources in place by the peak holiday season to assure there would be no problems.
…click here to read the rest of the article>>


Universities in Brazil and the USA: A Comparison

By Mr. Trend
People in the US generally think they have a good notion of what universities entail: a main campus (with perhaps branches spread throughout the state in smaller cities); diverse buildings that reflect the area's history and culture (the adobe-assault at the University of New Mexico providing a particularly strong example); and a well-thought-out use of space and complementarity within campuses.
For this reason, Brazil provides a remarkable contrast, as I've recently had the chance to see first-hand. One of the most remarkable things (to me) about universities in Brazil is how spread out they are. There is no "main campus"; rather, different organizational units harbor different parts of the city, spread hither and thither with not much rhyme or reason. The Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro offers perhaps the most obvious example. The engineering and natural sciences are located in the very north of the city, by the International Airport (which is itself barely inside the city limits). However, the social sciences and philosophy are located in an entirely different building in the heart of Rio's downtown, while the communications school is located in the far south in the neighborhood of Urca (where the famous Sugarloaf Mountain is). There is no sense of unity within a single campus. Some may blame this on the UFRJ's hasty founding (in 1921 or 1930, depending on who you ask, the creation of UFRJ was just the consolidation of pre-existing schools of medicine, law, and engineering). However, the Universidade Federal Fluminense (UFF) in Niterói (just across Guanabara bay from Rio), established and built in the 1960s, is no different. While the social sciences/history/humanities are in one part of the city, the natural sciences are in a totally different (and not-too-close) part of Niterói. Thus, students can spend their entire university career without even seeing half of the campus where they attend school.
…click here to read the rest of the article>>


Brazil Blog: Visas and Marriage Part 2

By Gringo Blogger
Here is part 2 of the Gringo Blogger‘s blog about visas and getting married in Brazil. To read part 1 click the relevant link at the bottom of the article.
By way of introduction I'm a foreigner who's lived in São Paulo city for a few years. I came here for romantic reasons with the hopes of finding a job, like many gringos (only to find out that getting work in Brazil is a near impossible task). So I'm not your typical wealthy gringo. Thankfully I am now working part time in a great job, but am still on the Holy Grail-like quest of finding full time work. I married my girlfriend early last year, so have some idea of the highs and lows of a multicultural relationship.
In my blog I'm just documenting some of the day-to-day events that happen to me, amusing or not, to give an impression of what it's like for a gringo living in the bustling metropolis of São Paulo, and Brazil in general. It's at times also meant as a tongue in cheek look at gringo life, so shouldn't be taken too seriously.
Staying Illegally
Just prior to the exit date expiring I made a return trip to the UK while my wife was away on business. It seemed like it might be the last chance for a while to visit my family, at least for me to visit them, although the trip ended up being very stressful. For starters it was right at the end of my exit date, I had one week left before it expired. My wife checked with the Federal Police, and they said that the week would be usable for any return, that is I could leave the country and return at any point in the next 6 months or so for one week. That reassured me that I‘d at least get back into the country, but when I left Brazil and was going through passport control the Federal Policeman on duty inspected my passport and congratulated me, in English, on being sensible enough to leave while I was still there legally. This worried me, and I became unsure that the first advice we‘d received from the Federal Police would be correct, something that‘s not that unusual genearlly speaking. I then managed to catch the flu while in the UK, so spent two weeks nursing this and worrying about whether I‘d be let back into Brazil.
…click here to read the rest of the article>>


Discussion Forum

If you've not had a chance yet then pop over to our web forum, register, and start joining in the discussion about Brazil. There are many forum areas such as Living in Brazil, Teaching English, Visas and Documentation, and even a place to Vent Your Frustrations! There's also a forum which allows you to comment on Gringoes.com, either with your views about past articles, areas of the site, or to make suggestions for future articles and content.
Each week in the newsletter we will choose a Post of the Week to give you some idea of what's happening in the forum, and a good thread to visit and read. This week we recommend the post "World Cup 2014 in Brazil" started by the user Sean Patrick in our "Living in Brazil" forum. The post is discussing the possibilities of Brazil hosting the 2014 World Cup.
If you have a recommendation for the best Post of the Week then send an email to mark@gringoes.com with "Post of the Week" in the subject.
On a serious note, foul language and abusive posts made in the forum will not be tolerated. The forum is intended to be a constructive and lighthearted place for discussion about Brazil.

Forex

Despite a dip earlier in the week the US dollar has remained fairly static and is unchanged over the week, at R$2.15. The Euro has shown the same trend but and is also unchanged over the week, at R$2.84. There's been a similar trend with the British Pound although it is up slightly, currently R$4.24, against R$4.21 a week ago.