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Published: February 23rd 2010
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The Ritz
The room was not as bad as it could have been Porto Alegre - Day 28
I was originally going to include this entry at the bottom of my Uruguay blog, because I was only here for a couple of nights and didn’t think it required its own review. I arrived on the morning of the 8th Feb, in the poring rain, with no accommodation booked and no real knowledge of the city. The tourist information office at the bus station gave me the name of a hotel, which she assured me was cheap and located close to the centre of town. I was familiar with the name of the hotel, but seriously suspect it is not part of the chain…The Ritz…not quite! Oh well, it is cheap, it is centrally located and is more than sufficient for my needs over the next couple of nights before flying onto Salvador.
I first started writing this entry on the afternoon of my first day, lying on my single bed with the fan on, window open and trying to get some air circulating in what can only be described as a little cell, no bigger than 7ft square. Below in italic are my thoughts for that first day, which I must admit
The Ritz
...finding out how to get a better tan were in complete contrast to my feelings the following day.
On advice from the Rough Guide, I walked into town in search of a vegetarian restaurant that is recommended in the book. Not my usual choice of cuisine but a nice change from the meat overload that is South America. I filled my plate twice and left sufficiently full, having taken advantage of the buffet option…not bad for £3.30. I wandered around town for the next couple of hours and I must say that there isn’t a great deal here to inspire anyone. The town centre was set out in an easy to navigate grid system and didn’t take too long to walk around. It was really busy - not sure why people were not in work - and every shop appeared to have a promotion…imagine a smaller version of Oxford Street full of budget clothes shops - certainly no designer boutiques here. The locals seem different too, not as friendly and not as good looking as I had become accustomed. I get the impression that this is a poor part of the country, with a lot of destitute and homeless people. I am writing this next part
from the departure gate in Sau Paulo (which flying into is an amazing experience, giving an epic scope of the size of the city, approaching the runway level with the local high rises) on the 10th Feb and have a changed opinion of Porto Alegre - it’s amazing what a bit of sunshine can do to a place. I left the hotel around midday and went for a walk in the opposite direction to my first day. Having not eaten I was keen to fill the belly and happened upon another all you can eat buffet - enter Danny - leaving an hour later after 3 plates of a very balanced lunch, with more than my 5-a-day covered!
I had no destination in mind for my afternoon walk and ended up heading in what the guide book calls the more upmarket part of town. I didn’t get as far as the suburb in question, but it was obvious I was going in the right direction - the quality of life improved with every step, with a lot of nice houses and what looked like nice restaurants from the outside - shame I had already eaten. There wasn’t much of anything of real interest, it was just a pleasant walk and on my way back towards the hotel, I came across a park which had some nice walkways and a large water feature in the centre. I took the opportunity to take the weight off my feet and got horizontal on a bench for about an hour to give my eyes a rest. It probably wasn’t an ideal place to fall asleep, but considering my attire, I blended in pretty well with the homeless community and many other locals.
For the second night in a row, I took myself down a street near to the hotel lined with bars and restaurants, sitting in a bar with a couple of ‘light ales’ and watched the evening of Porto Alegre unfold. It’s funny sitting there alone, watching families eat together, couples flirt with each other and different age groups socialising in much the same way as we do back home. Even though I couldn’t join in, it was nice to sit back and observe others, something I have done a lot over the last 4 weeks and what this trip is really about, taking in the local cultures and understanding how societies function in different places around the world. From what I have seen so far, alcohol seems to be a common denominator, which for me, is very encouraging sign!
It’s at this point that I need to say a special thanks to HSBC, who not for the first time this trip have come to my rescue. When all other options have been exhausted, and no cash in my pocket (though my understanding of the Portuguese meaning for “unlucky chap, your card is not accepted here” rapidly improving) I always seem to turn a corner to see the 4 letters of the worlds local bank - never has it been more true!
So I left Porto Alegre with mixed feelings. I don’t think it’s a place I’ll hurry back to but am glad I have seen it and gave it a second chance. You certainly don’t need more than 2 days there, but is an ideal place to break up the long distances between major tourist destinations. My next episode will be after carnival, so I apologise in advance for what will be written. There is every chance that it may not be as literate, legible or informative as previous entries, but spending a week with Nathan and Dean will do that to a person. I am confident that they will have a negative affect on my liver, my body and general state of health, but this is a party that was booked 6 months ago and I plan to make the most of it. I absolutely cannot wait to see them both, in the place that is said to be the best in the world to experience carnival!
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