Kalina Leiling
Stefanova
TRAVEL
Brazil- Land of the Carnival
Essay published in the internal magazine of Mobiltel- 05/2009
Author: Kalina Leiling
My exciting adventure in the “Land of the Carnival”, as the great Brazilian writer Jorji Amadu calls his country, lasted two weeks. For this short period of time I saw 3 emblematic cities- Bello Horizonte, Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro.
Bello Horizonte
The choice of the first destination- Bello Horizonte was predetermined almost one century ago, when my relatives immigrated to Brazil. They say that they have decided to stay and settle in, because they’ve felt, that this is a country for people with ideas. For me, personally, Brazil is heaven on earth, because the 22nd geographic parallel, called the Tropic of the Capricorn goes through it and the temperature is in the 30s (86 F) all year long. I noticed pretty soon that Brazilian people are hard working. At five in the morning the merchants in Bello Horizonte take their goods out and the city starts to wake up. The cheerful vendors generously offer to the tourists juicy slices of papaya and watermelon, seduce them, but don’t try to trick them and call them “gringo”.
The public transportation and the traffic on the streets of the city are an interesting phenomenon. The buses fly like ambulances and on the stops there is a crowd, three times bigger and more impatient than the one on the 94 bus stop in front of the National Palace of Culture (a bus stop in Sofia, famous for its huge crowds where all the students get on a bus to Student Town). You will smell no burnt gasoline on the street, as you will at home (in Bulgaria). The cars are on eco fuel- ethanol.
Brazilian people often go the church, something that made a very strong impression on me. Their religion tells me that these people respect family values a lot. 70% of the youth between 18 and 20 are in relationships and plan to get married in the near future.
Rio de Janeiro
The population of Rio and its suburbs is 15 million. This is what I learned from the taxi driver, who took us to the Corcovado Hill. This is where the majestic statue of Christ the Redeemer stands at 700 m (2297 feet) above sea level. I recommend you get there by car or taxi, not by bus. If we didn’t get on a taxi, which stops wherever you want, we would never take these pictures, because the more we climbed, the thicker the fog was until it surrounded us like a ring. When we reached the platform with the imposing 38 m (125 feet) statue, which weighs 635 tons, the impenetrable fog was already everywhere.
Looking down at Rio from the hill, I had the feeling that the mountain and the sea were connected in some mysterious way. They were both inaccessible. The waves looked so high that I was wondering if I wasn’t at Cocapacabana beach. Right next to it is located the other famous beach, which Jobim describes in his popular song “La garota de Ipanema” (“The Girl from Ipanema”). The third beach, glued to Ipanema, is Leblon. From all the three shores is revealed a magnificent view to the Urca Hill (Pao de Asucar- “the sugar bread”). It is the second most famous after Corcovado. At that hill throughout the whole year are held the rehearsals for the most spectacular Brazilian event, which gathers the world’s attention for a month and attracts huge crowds. This of course is the Rio de Janeiro Carnival, which takes place in February.
A typical dance for the Brazilians, besides samba, is suki. You can often see couples dancing in the parks. The ladies spin their heads vigorously, like in an ancient pagan ritual, until they get dizzy and their partners hold them along the waist so they don’t fall.
Contrasts in the “Land of the Carnivals” are striking. Homeless people sleep on the sidewalks while near them white poodles step with their slippers. The locals often say that they have at least one maid, but apparently this is true for the rich only.
Bulgarian banitsa has its Brazilian equivalent, named “pao de queso”- it is made of flour, eggs and yellow cheese. This delicious dough product is sold in every snack bar and is consumed by the masses. If you want to try delicious drinks, you have to point at some of the fruits hanging from the ceiling: passion fruit, mango or lemon. In the near cafeteria you can see local people sitting in front of the TV, commenting on a soccer game, while drinking beer, speaking vivaciously and laughing loudly. Brazilians transform every day in a holiday. They are light-hearted and high-spirited.
Sao Paulo
The streets of Sao Paulo- the 12 million economical capital of Brazil, represent a colorful megalopolis, in which you can see orthodox Jews, homosexual couples and Asian immigrants, who speak fluent Portuguese. Many Japanese also live here, settled in during the Great Depression in the 30s last century. The most impressive building in Sao Paulo is the skyscraper Banespa, the top of which reveals a marvelous panorama of the city.
These were my impressions from my 2-weeks in Brazil. I probably missed some things, but I would gladly share more observations with everyone who is interested in or adores the country of the endless sun and carnivals.
What Happens in Vegas, Stays in Vegas
Essay published in the internal magazine of Mobiltel- 12/2009
Author: Kalina Leiling
My first impression of Las Vegas was that its architectural mastodons look like the ones in Sunny Beach (a Bulgarian sea resort). It didn’t take me too long to see the differences though. The megalomania here doesn’t necessarily correspond with eclectics as it is at the Black Sea coast. In Vegas one hotel has approximately 3000 rooms, owns unique style and the imitation doesn’t poke your eyes. Maybe because the whole city is like a mini model of the world, like a peculiar museum of wax figures not people’s, but of the human made wonders- The Egyptian Pyramids, The Eiffel Tower, the Venetian Canals. Later on I would learn, that seventeen out of the twenty largest hotels in the USA are located in Vegas and that the Brooklyn Bridge in front of the New York-New York Hotel is one fifth of the size of the original. Besides, The Stratosphere Hotel with its 300 m (984 f) tall entertainment tower, from which top shoots the X-Scream roller coaster is the highest building in the USA.
At dawn the entire hotels’ strip in Vegas shines like a convoy of missiles ready to take off. You will often see a passerby with a frosty 40 cm (1 foot long) Margarita in his hands. If you follow him, you will probably find yourself in a bar with many other Margaritas. The barman will start joggling with full bottles in front of your stunned eyes, will hop towards the guests at the bar to pour some cocktails in their throats and will come to you. You will open your mouth in anticipation and the barman will shoot with almost police seriousness: “Can I see you your ID, please”? This stone cold question finally sobers you: “This is not Bulgaria”. Moreover, here not just one, but all the waitresses are smiling.
You exit the bar a little dizzy (the lights and the 10-hour time difference are overwhelming) and get going to your hotel. At the entrance three Mexicans jump around you and try to tuck in some kind of brochures in your hands. You take one and go to the hotel’s front desk. From there you grab one more flier and slip it into your pocket. In the first picture a local girl has opened her arms and you don’t need to work at M-Tel (the largest cell phone company in Bulgaria) to interpret the meaning of the telephone number, landing on her bulging neckline. The other flier says: “Give yourself a magic wedding in the Paris Hotel with 30 guests, use the Wedding chapel for 30 min for $600. No blood tests”. Every day in Vegas are issued 300 marriage certificates on average. Holding the two brochures in your hands you conclude that the choice to go to a wedding or a peep bar depends on what button of the hotel’s elevator you will choose and how long you have been in Jack’s company. Don’t be ashamed of your choice. In both cases works the rule: “What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas”.
The next grand choice is not whether to play or not, but how much to risk. Thousands of fans of the hazard gamble all night like in the morning the slots will not be there. How big are the poker rooms? Imagine a hall with the size of the one where the M-Tel Christmas party took place in the Expo Center, in which on every square meter there is a slot. It is hard to distinguish day from night here. There are no windows, no clocks. Once you fall into the trap of gambling there is not an easy escape.
However, if you get way, I recommend you to refresh yourself under the drops of the lit Bellagio fountains and warm up with bouncing lava (artificial of course), coming from the volcanic show in front of the Mirage. Get in the Mirage so you see the exhibit of white tigers, go look at the aquarium with sharks in Mandalay Bay and the lions’ cage in the MGM. After that you will certainly want to attack the menu in the nearest restaurant as a predator. In this regard, there is no wrong choice. However, we recommend the Ceasear’s Palace and the Italian restaurant Maggiano in the Fashion Show Mall. Master Chefs famous for their cooking come here to prepare something delicious and beautiful. You are only wanted to eat everything.
In Vegas not only the chefs are famous. For a week you can see a concert of Cher, a performance of Celine Dion, a magic show of David Copperfield, a spectacle of the world famous Canadian Cirque du Soleil, and also Black Eyed Peas and Pussy Cat Dolls. Each of these shows costs you $150 on average.
Do you still have any doubts? 37.5 million tourists don’t hesitate and will visit Vegas in 2010. If I haven’t convinced you to visit the meadows (“vegas” in Spanish means meadows), go see the Canyon. It is only 3 hours away from here. I will not tell you how long ago it was formed, how old the rocks are and what types of sediments you can see. That’s what Google is for.
A trip to the West Rim by bus (from Vegas to the Grand Canyon and back) will cost you $100, which I think is worth it to enjoy two panoramic views- Guano and Eagle Point. You can stand on the edge if you are brave enough. There are no fences. It feels like it is high, but it is deep. Everybody describes this experience in different ways depending on what other sights he or she has seen. I can call the Canyon huge, but accessible at the same time. Although it is majestic, it can be approached, photographed, touched. When I climbed the Acropolis, I could hardly take a picture of Athens from the hill, because it was so congested with tourists. At the Corcovado Hill, there was such an impenetrable fog, that I couldn’t see the Statue of Christ the Redeemer or Rio. The Canyon is for everybody. There are sights that push you away with their inaccessibility. The Grand Canyon is not one of them. You can stand right on the edge of the cliff at your own responsibility, scoop up a handful of red soil and take it home, run on the rocks, shout and listen to your echo. Noone is going to stop you. But you will know that you have experienced the Grand Canyon.
Since the National Park Grand Canyon is an Indian property, you will be welcomed by Native Americans. They will dance with their colorful robes with feathers, then will “crow” that they want a tip for the picture that you took with them. Have you seen an Indian with a white apron who serves beans with chicken? Don’t lick your lips too long and go see the last bastion of the West Rim- authentic ranch in the prairie. There you will be welcomed by Indians again. Our redskin host, named Broken Sky greets us with the Indian “Guum u” (“Hello”). If you don’t hurry up to get on the bus, you might stay as a lonely guest of the desert and the starry sky may be your only company.
Let’s say that you got on the bus and that you even made it on the plane to Bulgaria. You start chatting with the woman sitting next to you, who turned out to be Bulgarian. She falls into philosophical thoughts: “Foreigners manage to transform their deserts in oasis and we, Bulgarians have so many picturesque places and we turn them into deserts”. The more we travel, the more we open our eyes. I hope I will at least make you look around.