Vacation

Greetings everyone, I have returned from my vacation in Brazil. It is winter down there so I have once again experienced the shortest day of the year on earth December 21 in the Northern Hemisphere and June 21in the southern Hemisphere. Fortunately, Sao Paulo winters are not as cold as Boston winters. The weather was mostly dry and overcast. However, the smog and the Traffic has gotten progressively worse. Sao Paulo is one of the top five largest mega cities in the world. Here is a link to wikipedia with more information: Sao Paulo Traffic in the city is so bad that the city government passed a law prohibiting cars with license plate numbers that are odd from being on the road during rush hours (8am-10am and 4pm-8pm) Monday, Wednesdays and Fridays. Cars with even numbers have a similar prohibition on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Most working people need to own two automobiles with different license plate numbers just so that they can drive to work 5 days a week. Of course there is always the bus and the subway…I have ridden on both during rush hour and it makes commuting in Boston seem easier. Riding the bus in Sao Paulo can physically challenging since the bus drivers drive very fast through the city’s narrow and twisting roadways. Pedestrians do not have the right of way on the city roads. So the Bostonian way of walking will get you killed or severely injured since motorists have the right of way. As for the subway during rush hour… the trains are packed and you need to literally push your way through people just to get out of the train because people will not step aside for you. So if you like having lots of personal space don’t ride the bus or the subway in Sao Paulo because you will be in very close proximity to strangers. Traveling hassles aside, I enjoyed spending time with my in-laws, who are very nice. I got quite the mental workout while I was there speaking and listening Brazilian Portuguese. I am glad to be back.