Back to Brazil and sustainable Curitiba

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Back to Brazil and the sustainable Curitiba

For our last day in Puerto Iguazu, we decide to take the local yellow bus El Practico to Iguazu Falls National Park. Having such a close and personal look at the falls on Wednesday we decide to forgo the steep price to take a second look and just have a relaxing walk. There are a myriad of colorful butterflies here at the park. So many so that they are pesky and seem to love the taste of tourist sweat. The garbage is a popular spot for a large S American striped mammal and the park also has a few playful monkeys. We get off the bus later in the afternoon at an empanada stand and then hike back to our cabin. So far no rain but it is incredibly humid. One last dip in the pool and check out and we're on our way by taxi to the bus station in Brazil. Lots of people are dragging enormous bags to be stored in the belly of a bus headed somewhere. Later we find they were likely cheap and fake goods from Paraguay. The overnight bus to Curitiba is packed as usual. This one is not a Leito (sleeper) bus so the ride is more cramped than our outbound bus. With as much sleep as we could muster, we arrive in rainy Curitiba almost an hour late. Wandering around the station we find a friendly face in Couchsurfer Angelica. With the typical hug and kiss on the cheek we follow her to a four door silver Renault. Angelica's 7 year old daughter Julia is still in bed but greets us with a sleepy smile and a good morning in her limited English. Currently they are living in her parents old house which is next to their current house and close to one of her sisters. Angelica considers herself "camping" and longs for her spacious apartment as she accommodates a leaky roof . Angelica has a simple room with private bathroom and two single beds ready for us. The house is older and the amenities sparse. We're used to cold showers since Iguazu, so we adapt quickly.
After freshening up it's off to do a little sightseeing. Being Saturday, Angelica has time and energy to show us her city. We visit the Botanical Gardens, and then the Central Market, which like Sao Paulo is large and in a great old building. Vendor stalls fill the main floor with produce, meats, fish, spices, nuts, pet stores, crafts and delicacies. The second floor has a variety of restaurants food court style and live entertainment. Being Saturday Angelica and Julia are eager to share Curitiba's version of Fejuada the national dish. This is a smaller version of what we had in Sao Paulo. Our pots are delivered to the table and include a black bean and meat "stew"', white steamed rice, cooked shredded greens and small cups of oranges, salsa, and hot sauce. Lunch is followed by a visit to the Curitiba museum which features contemporary art. The building is of modern design by Brazilian architect Neimeyer who favors no sharp edges and rather flowing curves. The main exhibit is photographs of emerging popular Brazilian artist Vik Muntz who uses everyday materials to create everyday and pop culture images. He creates portraits of Caribbean natives in sand, a portrait of Elizabeth Taylor in diamonds, captures the Mona Lisa in peanut butter and then jam. His pieces range from 4 X 5 inch canvases to huge excavations from dirt and discarded computer parts. The exhibit was interesting and well worth the look. Keith offers to cook dinner, so we stop by the market. It's a treat since Angelica has had little success with cooking and avoids it at all costs. She and Julia eat processed food or bread for breakfast and dinner and many meals out. As in the US, food can be cheap and plentiful here and fast food restaurants abound. Brazil has McDonalds and Burger King. There is no fast food Wendy but her bigger Arab cousin Habib can be found everywhere. With offerings of burgers, pizza and ice cream, it is Julia's favorite. Especially with a Habib playland complete with mosque like spires on the slide. Keith jokes (badly) the happy meals have a choice of Jihad warriors. Not fast food fans, but we'll have to try Habib's before leaving Brazil.
Next morning Angelica drops us off at the train station and we take a scenic 4 hour journey to the coastal city of Paranagua through lush jungle and cloud forests. The inaugural train took to the rails in 1885. This popular version was resurrected in 2002. The train is full and our car has a large group of lively and loud Brazilian women who hoot and holler their way through dark tunnels, incredible scenery and two male "mooners" standing in one of the abandoned train stations along the route. Being Sunday, most of Paranagua is closed down. One of our very few choices for lunch is a Chinese buffet, Brazilian style. In other words it has black beans and rice along with a variety of Asian dishes and surprisingly tasty meat. Our destination is rather small and industrial, so we take the next bus back to Curitiba. With Angelica's instructions and some helpful locals we manage to get all the right public buses to within a couple of blocks of our "home". The Curitiba bus system is a true showpiece in a city of remarkable sustainable practices. For around 1.50 (half that on Sunday) you can ride a series of buses from a triple accordion orange to a 24 seat yellow. The stops are space age in style and most of the major routes have their own designated lanes. Embarkation and disembarkation are smooth and each stop for the orange line has an attendant with change and helpful advice.
Arriving back before our hosts, Keith makes dinner and afterwards we watch a Brazilian romantic comedy on DVD. Bawdy and hilarious, the name translates to "The Normals", and as with most foreign films, it brings a slice of a different culture but relates to our global sense of humor.

My Eternal Love GuruMy Eternal Love Garu

It's back to work week for our host, so Keith and I are given a key and make our way around the city on our own. Angelica has told us about a government run restaurant that serves a healthy lunch Monday through Friday for just one riel (about 55 cents US). The restaurant is located near the center square and has long lines. I'm anxious to check this place out as it sounds similar to One World. We manage to find the line, which has about a hundred people when we arrive. The people appear to be from all walks of life, just like One World. The restaurant is called Restaurante Popular and was started in Aug 2007. Sergio had told us that Curitiba is a city used by the government to try new programs. Our line moved fast and soon we were at the cashier and under the television monitor displaying a countdown which appeared to start at 2000. Once inside the building which also housed a market, our line wound around and up a concrete ramp to the restaurant itself which seats about 250. Beyond the turnstiles are sinks to wash your hands. The food is served cafeteria style and today's offerings are white steamed rice, black beans, a meaty type of chili without beans, cabbage and beet slaw, partially pureed broccoli and a fresh peach. Tables are shared and we bus our own plates to the dishwashing station. Very One World.
After our tasty meal we check out the market offerings. Tired of being without the time of day I see a funky Chinawawa watch with a strange Chinese mouse character and text which reads funny love...a funny lovestory of a tomby pucca and her eternal love garu. Too funny. That's Keith and I dontcha think? So with the correct time my eternal love guru and I stroll through the center of the city eventually coming to an outside patio bar and with a couple of cold cervezas we people watch while taking shelter from the hot sun.
Having a much, better grasp on the public bus system, we make our way back with our fill of local beer and without problems. Angelica returns from work around seven and after a shower we all head out to the public central park and do what Curitibans do, take a sunset stroll. It's a beautiful park full of local walkers, bikers and to our amazement a herd of super size rodents of all sizes including some babies. The city brings in these animals for grass control. Julia is anxious for us to fulfill our promise to visit Habib's, her favorite. Habib's as it turns out is a very unique hybrid of a fast food burger joint and a middle Eastern restaurant. There is a playland, drive through window, fries and happy meals but also table side service, hummus, kibes, and a sandwich called a Beirut. The dessert menu is vast and they serve beer, cipirinha (the local liquor drink with lime we sampled in Sao Paulo) and vodka. Angelica suggests the cipirinha since it comes with a show. The Habib's employee in his Habib's uniform brings a fresh lime, a metal shaker and a wide Portugese smile. He proceeds to pulverize the lime, add sugar and liquor to the shaker with ice and with some hip action and a generous shaking, we have our Brazilian drinks. This chain appears to have an identity crisis, but the food is good, prices reasonable, and ambience not so great. Maybe delivery would be the way to go.
The ride home reveals the night side of Curitiba. Christmas lights brighten the dark, city employees are hard at work with garbage pick up and favella residents walk the streets picking up trash by horse drawn or people powered carts. Three young women struggle with their cart piled high with recyclables as they are in danger of their wooden wheeled contraption overtaking them on a steep hill. The city trades equal weights of food for recyclable items.
It's our last day in Curitiba. I awake to Angelica and her daughter singing Happy Birthday to Keith in Portugese. Julia has handmade a card and the table has several small gifts including dried fruit, wine and candy. For our last morning we take go down to Riu Barbosa square in the center of town. There is a Christmas craft festival on and we buy a couple of gifts for our hosts. For lunch we choose what looks like a popular local place over the more elaborate restaurants on the main level. We are rewarded with a lovely view over the historic center. It's called Bella Vista and is a buffet por quillo and just as it sounds. At this restaurant we choose from an array of food and we pay according to its weight. Fabulous idea and the food is outstanding. We were hoping to fit in a visit to the free University of the Environment, but we've run out of time. Our 14 hour bus ride is ahead for us and Angelica looks forward to a couple from South Africa who will be couchsurfing with her in a couple of weeks. When Julia is older, our host has promised to travel to the US and stay with us. Next stop Rio.

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