I don't know why I expected to see Halloween here. Maybe because it is so ingrained in me as an American or maybe because of the witch costume hanging in the closet of my guestroom. I found out that they do dress up here in costume here for parties, not for Halloween. At least they do Christmas in a big way here, although I will be in Italy with Eric at the time. Perhaps this is good because not having Halloween and spending Christmas in shorts might be too much culture shock for me this early in my trip :)
The Capital City of Brasilia:
The city was entirely planned before this site was anything more than fields and trees. Shaped like an airplane, the three branches of government occupy the cockpit, the government ministries form the body, and the wings are the commercial and residential sectors. The whole city is incredibly uniform and divided into very simple to understand quadrants. The plan of the city shown above is misleading as to the size; the city is big. The buildings are far apart and cars are the preferred transportation, even though there is a metro and bus system.
Postive reactions: A beautiful singular city. Easy to find your way. Streets have numbers rather than names. The consistent layout is reassuring when venturing into new areas. The climate is great year round.
Negative reactions: The city is not at all geared for tourism. It is not a good walking city with few crosswalks and great distances between things. The bus system is completly baffling and not signed or labeled in any self explanatory way--and no maps or schedules. The sameness of the designs tends to be impersonal with no neighborhoods standing out as unique. Overall, the city is dsigned for government workers and few others.
I am staying at Patricia's parents to the left of the cockpit, across the lake. The nightime view is very nice sitting on the veranda with a glass of wine, looking over the pool and across the lake at the illuminated capital. They have servants that wash my clothes everyday, make my bed, make all the meals...I am liking Brasil.
