sao paulo in 16 degrees and a whole lot of humidity
okay so i just landed in sao paulo and the first thing i notice is that it's barely 16°c but feels like a damp towel on your face. not complaining, just saying. i'm here with a backpack full of merch and a head full of caffeine, trying to figure out if this city ever sleeps or if it just naps in bursts. i heard from a guy at the hostel that the nightlife here is like a caffeine-fueled rave that starts at 2am and ends when the sun's already mocking you. apparently that's normal. great.
anyway, i checked the weather and it's 16.08°c with 91% humidity. yeah, that's a thing. i just checked and it's muggy as hell right now, hope you like that kind of thing. if you're into breathable air, maybe don't come in april. just saying.
i wandered into a cafe that smelled like burnt sugar and espresso. the barista, a dude with a septum ring and tired eyes, told me the best thing to do here is get lost in the graffiti tunnels near vila madalena. he said it's like walking through someone's fever dream. i believed him. also, someone told me that the metro at rush hour is a contact sport. wear deodorant. and maybe a helmet.
i tried to find a quiet spot to write this and ended up in a bookstore that also sells taxidermied owls. don't ask. the guy behind the counter said it's a local thing. sure. i bought a book about brazilian cocktails i'll never make and left. later, i overheard two tourists arguing about whether the museum of art is worth it. one said it's "peak tourist trap." the other said it's "peak life-changing." i'm still deciding.
if you get bored, rio and curitiba are just a short drive away. or so i'm told. i haven't tried it yet because i'm still figuring out how to cross the street here without dying.
anyway, here's what i've learned so far: sao paulo doesn't care about your comfort. it's loud, it's crowded, and it's got more layers than a baklava. but it's also got heart. you just gotta dig for it. or get lost until you find it. either way, wear good shoes.
and yeah, i'll probably write about this again after i've had more coffee and less sleep. maybe tomorrow. or maybe never. we'll see.
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