This morning I listened to a
CD that a
Brazilian friend of
mine gave me. It's
Antonio Brasileiro by
Antonio Carlos Jobim,
light and frothy
Bossa Nova and
Samba.
Só danço samba, vai, vai, vai, vai, vai
Looking at the sleeve notes with a
cheesy picture of
Ipanema beach
looking up to Dois Irmãos
brings back lots of memories of the time I was in
Rio de Janeiro,
a beautiful and vibrant place.
Of course there is violence bred from poverty and terrible pollution there too.
I can remember being stuck in one of the huge tunnels that cut through the
hills and inhaling this queasy alcoholic smell (the cars are fuelled
by alcohol). I also remember being pretty frightened one time when I was
downtown at night after listening to Mozart performed by a German choir.
On the bus going back we were stopped at a road-block and these guys
who looked like
bandits came onto the bus. They had cartridge belts draped over their shoulders
and they looked like they were dying to shoot someone. Anyhow, it turns out
they were police! Like police everywhere they seemed to be racists and they
searched this big black guy who was sitting next to me on the bus.
I had a lot of fun in Rio too, walking along the beaches at Ipanema and
Copacabana at night, buying this fantastic bread from the local bakery
with my halting Portuguese. Imagine a city that has a rain forest in its
centre. Heh! I want to go back.
Yesterday,
Tomorrow