Here's a last blog entry before Hugo arrives tomorrow evening as otherwise there'll be a big gap. It's very exciting to think we're going to have our first visitor and I'm looking forward to seeing Brazil through a newcomer's eyes as I
think the novelty has inevitably worn
off for us now.
I've had quite a quiet week which is probably just as well as I've had a filthy cold and practically no voice as a result. As someone who doesn't reckon to get ill, I hope I've not been making too heavy weather of it.
Rio is gearing itself up for Rio+20 in a big way. We won't be here for the main part of it but I'll be watching with interest from the UK to see how they manage to get the large numbers of people they're expecting through the tunnels to Barra where the important meetings are being held. It'll be good practice for 2016 I suppose as that's where the Olympic site will be too.
The more interesting side of the Rio+20
gathering in my opinion as I'm not convinced the big boys will make any meaningful progress, is that there's a fringe event which is aimed at promoting favelas as sustainable models of community living. Depending on who you listen to, favelas are slums that need to be torn down or thriving self-help communities. It seems that
other developing nations like India are interested in the housing model and there are plans to get lots of visitors in to look round and see for themselves while they're in Rio as research shows that favelas get a bad press. They're certainly hard to ignore in the city. The move to pacify them continues, with varying degrees of success, again depending on who you speak to.
I've been meaning to jot down my thoughts about dogs in Rio. Firstly I think it would be a horrible place to be a dog as it's so hot and there's no grass and they're (luckily) not allowed on the beach.
There are lots of designer pooches that because it's cooler now, go out with coats on as well as frequently wearing
hair ribbons. Yuk - pampered little horrors so far as I'm concerned and indicative of a certain section of society here in Zona Sul...
I just feel sorry for the large number of panting labradors and retrievers you see being dragged round by dog-walkers. They must be status symbols I suppose. And in case you're wondering, people do pick up after them and there aren't too many stray dogs.
Now that we're in autumn/winter out here, the shops are full of winter clothes such as duvet jackets and Brazilian women have swapped havaiana flip-flops for leather boots. Interestingly, if you see shops selling jeans out here, all the jeans are displayed backwards in the shop windows as far as we're concerned since it's what your bottom looks like that counts!
Patrick's had a busy last 3 weeks with lots of BG big wigs visiting who he's taken out to show the university. We plan to take Hugo out one day while he's here. I'll be interested to hear what he thinks of this place his father has come half way across to world to work at. It's meant to be one of if not the best Unis in Rio but to say its appearance is unprepossessing is putting it politely.
Have fun with all the jubilee jollities this weekend, everybody!! We're steering clear of all that over here if we can...