5:45 - wake up, start getting ready
6:00 - wake up Thiago, finish getting ready
6:15 - breakfast
6:25 - wash dishes, brush teeth, etc.
6:35 - go to work
7:15ish - arrive at work
4:30 - leave work
4:45 - get on bus
4:45 - get on bus
4:55 - get on another bus
5:20 - private English class
5:20 - private English class
7:00 - Finish class, meet up with Thiago to go home
8:00 - arrive home, check email, etc.
8:30 - shower
9:00 - dinner
9:30 - "go" to class or procrastinate and leave it for the weekend
11:00 - good night
This is my Thursday. It is my busiest day, but the other days have minimal differences. Thiago and I are doing everything we can to afford the flooring and cabinets in our apartment. Paulistanos are here to work. São Paulo is not centered around family, friends, fun, or anything else. You are here to work. Traffic is insane every morning. Working long hours is expected of you. My mother-in-law jokes about how she needs a bed at the office. But she really does. One day this week she left at 5:00am and got back around 9:30pm.I don't know how she does it. We work so hard to make it just so Saturday we can run all of our errands, take care of the house, and do our chores so that on Sunday we can rest and start everything over again on Monday
.
.
One of my friends gave me a ride home after work today (that is SUCH a blessing to me! Thank you SO much!) and we discussed the robberies, muggings, violence, etc. that is a daily occurrence here. This morning, before I got to work, someone got mugged on the street that I work on. It's a nice neighborhood. Seems safe. No. In São Paulo, there is no safe zone. You never feel safe. I don't use my phone when I'm anywhere outside or on a bus. Even at malls I'm careful. My mind is always switched "on". You have to be alert even in your car. Walking home, on the bus, at malls, wherever you are... you must stay alert. This past week alone I've heard many stories of people getting robbed in their own homes as they were pulling into their garage. Putting make up on while in your car before work is risky. You are never safe.
Pollution? You can literally see layers of it in the sky. Cost of living? Outrageous... on our honeymoon, people complained that the city, Gramado, was expensive. No... To us, everything seemed cheap.
Thiago tells me that if you can live in São Paulo, you can live anywhere. That doesn't mean that different places don't have their difficulties. It means that Paulistanos learn not to complain. They learn to take a deep breath, suck it up, and move on with life.
A few weeks ago I got mugged and I brushed it off. He took everything on me. I was going to meet Thiago at the pizzaria and then boom. Night ruined. We called banks, went to the police, got a new phone, etc. And moved on like nothing happened. When I told my friends, it was not a big deal. A common thing. Horrible, but common. That's when I realized how much Paulistanos, including myself, truly take a deep breath, suck it up and move on.
I don't like being used to this reality. I don't like having no time with my husband - and when we do get time together, we're too exhausted to have a decent conversation. I don't like living in a city when taking 30 minutes to get to work is amazing and unheard of. I don't like that getting mugged is a daily fear you live in. I don't like ruining my lungs by simply breathing. I don't like this life. But I will make the best of it, breathe in, suck it up, and move on.
Pollution? You can literally see layers of it in the sky. Cost of living? Outrageous... on our honeymoon, people complained that the city, Gramado, was expensive. No... To us, everything seemed cheap.
Thiago tells me that if you can live in São Paulo, you can live anywhere. That doesn't mean that different places don't have their difficulties. It means that Paulistanos learn not to complain. They learn to take a deep breath, suck it up, and move on with life.
A few weeks ago I got mugged and I brushed it off. He took everything on me. I was going to meet Thiago at the pizzaria and then boom. Night ruined. We called banks, went to the police, got a new phone, etc. And moved on like nothing happened. When I told my friends, it was not a big deal. A common thing. Horrible, but common. That's when I realized how much Paulistanos, including myself, truly take a deep breath, suck it up and move on.
I don't like being used to this reality. I don't like having no time with my husband - and when we do get time together, we're too exhausted to have a decent conversation. I don't like living in a city when taking 30 minutes to get to work is amazing and unheard of. I don't like that getting mugged is a daily fear you live in. I don't like ruining my lungs by simply breathing. I don't like this life. But I will make the best of it, breathe in, suck it up, and move on.
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