- Day #4 - Sao Paulo (IST Trip)
- Day #3 - Sao Paulo (Pre-IST Trip)
- Day #2 - Sao Paulo (Pre-IST Trip)
- Day #1 - Sao Paulo (Pre-IST Trip)
- Who's going
- Week 1 Itinerary .:. Brazil
Sunday, April 02, 2006
Day #4 - Sao Paulo (IST Trip)
March 20, 2006
"Meat Day"
According to Alex, "Monday is Meat Day," and I'm not one to argue with such an adventurous carnivore (more on that later.) Dressed in our least-wrinkled business attire (irons and ironing boards are unavailable at our hotel), we made our way to Butanta, a suburb twenty minutes away from Sao Paulo´s city center. Our first visit is to Perdigao, which is kind of like the "Foster Farms of Brazil." Its core business is in packaged meats and frozen foods. It's an interesting company to visit, because the food industry - agribusiness - is a huge part of the Brazilian economy, thanks to the country's ideal geography and climate. In terms of poultry, Brazil is the largest exporter in the world. With gross sales of US$3 billion in 2005, Perdigao has so much potential for growth - literally - since there remains so much untapped land in this massive country. This is a huge competitive advantage for Brazil, especially in the long run. One interesting fact about Perdigao´s business model is that it doesn´t actually raise the poultry itself. In fact, the company has seen double digit growth and increased profits since it began outsourcing its distribution to 5,900 self-owned, third-party distribution centers (i.e. farms).
Tastes Like Chicken
We arrived early for our meeting at Perdigao. Since promptness is not really a part of the Brazilian culture, I anticipate we´ll be spending a lot of time waiting around for our appointments in Brazil. After waiting in the lobby for fifteen minutes, we were shown to an empty room filled with only a conference table, chairs, a screen and a projector. A blue light eminated from the projector onto the screen. Within about 30 seconds, a spontaneous shadow-puppet performance began on the screen, starring Kevin and Alex's hands, which we were opposite the screen. We were all crying with laughter for about ten minutes straight and really hoped there weren´t any hidden cameras in the room to capture our performance. When our real meeting room was ready, we were greeted by our two presenters, the Director of Human Resources and the Investor Relations Manager. They were quite hospitable and presented us with pastries, beverages and what appeared to be chicken nuggets. We thought the packaging was cute with a little cartoon rooster named Chester. It wasn´t until later in the presentation, and with half a dozen nuggets in our belly, that we learned Chester was not actually chicken, but some kind of rooster, or "a poor man's turkey," as we were told. We're not exactly sure what animal it is, but in any case, the group consensus was that Chester "tastes like chicken."
Politics as Usual
Meat-O-Rama
"Meat Day"
According to Alex, "Monday is Meat Day," and I'm not one to argue with such an adventurous carnivore (more on that later.) Dressed in our least-wrinkled business attire (irons and ironing boards are unavailable at our hotel), we made our way to Butanta, a suburb twenty minutes away from Sao Paulo´s city center. Our first visit is to Perdigao, which is kind of like the "Foster Farms of Brazil." Its core business is in packaged meats and frozen foods. It's an interesting company to visit, because the food industry - agribusiness - is a huge part of the Brazilian economy, thanks to the country's ideal geography and climate. In terms of poultry, Brazil is the largest exporter in the world. With gross sales of US$3 billion in 2005, Perdigao has so much potential for growth - literally - since there remains so much untapped land in this massive country. This is a huge competitive advantage for Brazil, especially in the long run. One interesting fact about Perdigao´s business model is that it doesn´t actually raise the poultry itself. In fact, the company has seen double digit growth and increased profits since it began outsourcing its distribution to 5,900 self-owned, third-party distribution centers (i.e. farms).
Tastes Like Chicken
We arrived early for our meeting at Perdigao. Since promptness is not really a part of the Brazilian culture, I anticipate we´ll be spending a lot of time waiting around for our appointments in Brazil. After waiting in the lobby for fifteen minutes, we were shown to an empty room filled with only a conference table, chairs, a screen and a projector. A blue light eminated from the projector onto the screen. Within about 30 seconds, a spontaneous shadow-puppet performance began on the screen, starring Kevin and Alex's hands, which we were opposite the screen. We were all crying with laughter for about ten minutes straight and really hoped there weren´t any hidden cameras in the room to capture our performance. When our real meeting room was ready, we were greeted by our two presenters, the Director of Human Resources and the Investor Relations Manager. They were quite hospitable and presented us with pastries, beverages and what appeared to be chicken nuggets. We thought the packaging was cute with a little cartoon rooster named Chester. It wasn´t until later in the presentation, and with half a dozen nuggets in our belly, that we learned Chester was not actually chicken, but some kind of rooster, or "a poor man's turkey," as we were told. We're not exactly sure what animal it is, but in any case, the group consensus was that Chester "tastes like chicken."
Politics as Usual
Meat-O-Rama
Tuesday, March 21, 2006
Day #3 - Sao Paulo (Pre-IST Trip)
March 19, 2006
In the last two days, our trip transitioned from a leisurely vacation in Sao Paulo - including shopping, fine dining and sightseeing - into the official GSM International Study Trip. Our days are now filled with business briefings, business meetings and coordinating transportation logistics. The net effect is that I've been too busy to write! Therefore, I'll do my best to catch you up on what has transpired in the last 24 hours.
Relocation
To begin with, Stacey and I were saddened to leave our posh accommodations at the Renaissance for the more economical Blue Tree Hotel. Our new hotel is only six blocks from our old one, but they are six long blocks, and, well, Stacey has a lot of luggage. (There is no doubt that she is the best dressed one here, though!) Plus, there's the issue of theft and pick-pocketing, which we are told is prevalent in Sao Paulo. Not wanting to take any chances, we had our hotel valet summon a taxi for us. Of course, the taxi driver sees two tourists in the front of the hotel with their luggage, and he's thinking, "Sweet! Airport fare!" The valet kindly broke it to him in Portuguese that we weren't going to the airport; we were only going 5-6 blocks away. The driver reluctantly agreed to take us. (It's important to note that I had studied the map of the area thoroughly, and knew after about 8 blocks, that this guy was taking us for a ride - literally and figuratively!") So, I break out my map and start looking at street names to see which direction we are going. As I follow his route on the map, I realize he really is making up for not getting an airport fare, and I'm seriously annoyed. Nearly twenty minutes later, we pull into the new hotel's driveway, and I reluctantly hand him the fare - no tip. The taxi driver then tells the valet at our new hotel - to tell us in English that we owe him R$6 (about $3) for loading our luggage in the cab nearly twenty minutes earlier. Without skipping a beat, I whip out my large map of Sao Paulo, point to the driver and say, "You....!" and then I deliberately point to the map and draw an exaggeratingly large circle around the perimeter of the city, illustrating that I was well aware that he took the longest possible route to our hotel. I then turned on my heels, and began walking into the new hotel. Our new hotel valet then asked the taxi driver, in Portuguese, if the fare was squared away. The cab driver, realizing he'd messed with the wrong gringa, sheepishly slunk into his cab and sped away.
What Not to Wear
Most of our group arrived on Sunday, but not without incident. Cody made it to Sao Paulo, but unfortunately, his luggage decided not to join him; instead, his bags I assume are enjoying a nice holiday elsewhere. Cody only has with him the clothes on his back - sweatpants & a t-shirt - and his accounting books (neither of which will be appropriate to wear to our business meetings tomorrow.) Upon arrival to the hotel, Cody got directions to a grocery store a few blocks away so that he could purchase some water and toiletries. We thought he'd get some bottled water, deodorant and a toothbrush, at the very least. We were half right - he did get some water. (He also got a case of Brazilian beer.) In retrospect, I think this was actually a great strategic move
on his part. Beer just may be the most effective bartering tool, as he is sharing a room with Kevin and Alex. (Since it is now Sunday night, all of the stores are closed, and Cody is going to need to actually borrow somebody's clothes for dinner tonight.) I can hear the negotiations now... "Hey, I'll give you two beers for that button down shirt, and throw in another for some clean socks."
The only problem with this scenario, is that Kevin and Alex do not wear the same size as Cody. Poor Cody had to literally roll the pant waist over twice,
and his feet slid back and forth in the shoes with each step - they were at least two sizes too big. And wouldn't you know it - we were walking to a restaurant for dinner that night. To Cody's credit, in his baggy and borrowed duds, he
did a mean Charlie Chaplin impersonation.
A Toast to Sao Paulo
Our dinner restaurant is a trendy brasserie near our hotel called SPOT. It's just off Avenida Paulista, a very wide street that forms a plateau through the center of Sao Paulo. To the north lies the old city center and the Italian and Japanese neighborhoods, called Bela Vista and Liberdade, respectively. At one time Avenida Paulista was lined with coffee barons' mansions. Today, it's lined with towering buildings, mostly banks, and serves as the financial center of this
city of 17 million.
Since it is the group's first night in Sao Paulo, somebody (not to mention any names... Professor Naik) decided to order the traditional Brazilian drink called a caipirinha at dinner. It's an aperitif made with sugarcane alcohol called cachaca, limes and sugar. We learned that night that it also comes in raspberry, lemon, kiwi and many other fruity varieties. (Of course we had to sample them all!) It was determined after dinner that Cody would really stand out in our business meetings with his Charlie Chaplin outfit, and needed clothes that fit him better. The next morning, he looked real spiffy in Professor Naik's borrowed business attire.
-Tamara Olson
Sunday, March 19, 2006
Day #2 - Sao Paulo (Pre-IST Trip)
March 18, 2006
Brazilian Swimwear
Let's talk about men's bathing suits. They're less like Olympic swim-team speedos and more like fancy, bright colored tighty-whitey underwear. If you couple this with the Brazilian's propensity to stand very close, it can make a stand-offish American feel a tad bit uncomfortable. I thought about positioning myself opposite the pool - camera in hand - to document each "bathing suit" as it exited the pool area. I can see the Sacramento News and Review headline now... "Second Saturday Photograph Exhibit - featuring "BrazilianButtocks" by Tamara Olson.
Jobs by gender
Every time we enter a retail store in Sao Paulo
Sao Paulo Time
Well, it took us only one day to adapt to "Brazilian time;" we arrived thirty minutes late for our dinner reservation. (As expected, the restaurant didn't bat an eye.) Our culinary adventures began at 2pm with lunch at Galeto's - an Italian chain located throughout Sao Paulo
Culinary Fusion
At the suggestion of our hotel's concierge, we taxied to a restaurant called Shakra, which was housed in multi-level, adobe colored, open-aired structure with Indian decor. Inside, affluent and attractive paulistanos dined on an inventive menu juxtaposing Italian, French and Japanese cuisine. Diners have the choice of eating by candlelight at traditional tables, private U-shaped couches, or comfortable low beds surrounded by pillows. It looked like a swanky LA lounge, complete with warm summer night and plenty of people-watching. For starters, we ordered aromatic risotto balls and eggrolls with vegetables and exotic mushrooms. This was enjoyed with a very tasty 2004 Shiraz from South Africa
Boa Noite!
Day #1 - Sao Paulo (Pre-IST Trip)
Disclaimer: Tami Olson and Stacey Cole arrived in Sao Paolo three days before the IST trip officially begins. The first three posts are their personal observations of Brazil. The official IST blog will begin on March 20, 2006.
March 17, 2006
The flight
The trip to Brazil began rather slowly. We arrived for our departing flight from Sacramento International airport only to discover that our plane was delayed. After three hours, we finally boarded the plane to Atlanta. While Stacey enjoyed a lovely three-course meal in first class (with real silverware!) and a goody bag of fine toiletries and lotions, Tami dined on two crackers and a piece of cheese while seated in coach between a crying baby and a man who was a bit of a loud-talker. She swears he didn't take a breath for four hours straight! Despite the delay, we made our connection in Atlanta to Sao Paulo, and arrived in Brazil some 14 hours after their journey began. Stacey slept soundly in her fully-reclining seat in Business Class and Tami - well, her luck was a little better this flight. Her seatmate, a cute paulistano named Christiano wrote down his recommendations for what to do and see in his hometown of Sao Paulo (and he put his digits on the back.) Stacey also got a phone number from her seatmate, who was was very nice - in a grandfatherly kind of way.
First impressions
As you descend from the sky towards this city of 17 million, you really get a feel for how large and over-crowded Sao Paulo is. Any previous connotations of "sprawl" are thrown out the window. After breezing through customs, we spied two ATM machines at the airport. Perhaps we shouldn't admit this, but it took us about 12 tries to realize the machine on the right was out of order. So, we finally tried the one on the left and were able squeeze R$50 each out of the machine - enough for the R$75 taxi ride to the Renaissance Hotel in the heart of Sao Paulo. If you think Italian drivers are bad, you haven't seen anything yet! It's complete gridlock with no lane dividers on any road; it's a complete highway free-for-all! We only came to a complete screeching halt once, and narrowly avoided an accident. (This doesn't include the 7 pedestrians, 19 other cars and 4 motorcycles we nearly missed on the 30 minute drive from the airport.) Our hotel - the Renaissance - is located in the charming Jardins area, which is a combination of San Francisco hilly streets lined with mixed use resident/retail. In addition, you'll find concrete buildings and lush greenery on every block.
First things first
Our pale, graduate school skin makes us stand out like albino tourists, so we check into the hotel, and immediately make our way to the pool. It's a humid 75 degrees, and there's nothing quite like sunbathing on the top floor of a hotel, in the middle of a concrete jungle. Afterwards, we take to the streets, and a mere 10 yards from the hotel, we get our first of many catcalls. Feeling like flattered teenagers, we make our way to Rua Oscar Freire, the Rodeo Drive of Sao Paulo - where Brazilian designer boutiques mix with interational brands and cozy cafes. Stacey's first purchase is a Brazilian bikini for a reasonable $30. The low price could have something to do with the lack of fabric. (And she insists, "no, it isn't a thong!") We check out a department store and stumble into the lingerie department. We've all seen padded bras, but we had to get a photo of the "padded butt inserts." Tami claims she no use for such a product. The retail employees we encountered ranged from nice and helpful - to slightly aggressive. When you ask, "Fala ingles?" (Do you speak English?) we discovered 10 times out of 10 - the answer is, "No." No matter, with broken Spanish, Italian and sign language, we somehow manage to communicate.
Run Forrest Run
So, before the trip, we're warned numerous times not to walk around at night. So how is it that we find ourselves over a mile from the hotel after dark - without a taxi stand in sight? With shopping bags in hand, we race up the streets uneventfully, to our hotel. Dinner reservations are at 8pm (the early seating) at the famous restaurant Figueira Rubaiyat, which has a gigantic fig tree in the middle of its outdoor terrace. The restaurant fills up by 9:30 p.m. and it appears we were the only Americans in the joint. Our first course was homemade cheese ravioli and fresh bread, followed by grilled halibut with spinach, tomatoes and hearts of palm. But nothing prepared us for dessert - a huge buffet of Brazilian, French and American delicacies. We enjoyed the best creme brulee we've ever had, delicious chocolate pate, grilled fruit and coconut flan, to name a few. The sugar high is the reason why we're still awake and writing this...
March 17, 2006
The flight
The trip to Brazil began rather slowly. We arrived for our departing flight from Sacramento International airport only to discover that our plane was delayed. After three hours, we finally boarded the plane to Atlanta. While Stacey enjoyed a lovely three-course meal in first class (with real silverware!) and a goody bag of fine toiletries and lotions, Tami dined on two crackers and a piece of cheese while seated in coach between a crying baby and a man who was a bit of a loud-talker. She swears he didn't take a breath for four hours straight! Despite the delay, we made our connection in Atlanta to Sao Paulo, and arrived in Brazil some 14 hours after their journey began. Stacey slept soundly in her fully-reclining seat in Business Class and Tami - well, her luck was a little better this flight. Her seatmate, a cute paulistano named Christiano wrote down his recommendations for what to do and see in his hometown of Sao Paulo (and he put his digits on the back.) Stacey also got a phone number from her seatmate, who was was very nice - in a grandfatherly kind of way.
First impressions
As you descend from the sky towards this city of 17 million, you really get a feel for how large and over-crowded Sao Paulo is. Any previous connotations of "sprawl" are thrown out the window. After breezing through customs, we spied two ATM machines at the airport. Perhaps we shouldn't admit this, but it took us about 12 tries to realize the machine on the right was out of order. So, we finally tried the one on the left and were able squeeze R$50 each out of the machine - enough for the R$75 taxi ride to the Renaissance Hotel in the heart of Sao Paulo. If you think Italian drivers are bad, you haven't seen anything yet! It's complete gridlock with no lane dividers on any road; it's a complete highway free-for-all! We only came to a complete screeching halt once, and narrowly avoided an accident. (This doesn't include the 7 pedestrians, 19 other cars and 4 motorcycles we nearly missed on the 30 minute drive from the airport.) Our hotel - the Renaissance - is located in the charming Jardins area, which is a combination of San Francisco hilly streets lined with mixed use resident/retail. In addition, you'll find concrete buildings and lush greenery on every block.
First things first
Our pale, graduate school skin makes us stand out like albino tourists, so we check into the hotel, and immediately make our way to the pool. It's a humid 75 degrees, and there's nothing quite like sunbathing on the top floor of a hotel, in the middle of a concrete jungle. Afterwards, we take to the streets, and a mere 10 yards from the hotel, we get our first of many catcalls. Feeling like flattered teenagers, we make our way to Rua Oscar Freire, the Rodeo Drive of Sao Paulo - where Brazilian designer boutiques mix with interational brands and cozy cafes. Stacey's first purchase is a Brazilian bikini for a reasonable $30. The low price could have something to do with the lack of fabric. (And she insists, "no, it isn't a thong!") We check out a department store and stumble into the lingerie department. We've all seen padded bras, but we had to get a photo of the "padded butt inserts." Tami claims she no use for such a product. The retail employees we encountered ranged from nice and helpful - to slightly aggressive. When you ask, "Fala ingles?" (Do you speak English?) we discovered 10 times out of 10 - the answer is, "No." No matter, with broken Spanish, Italian and sign language, we somehow manage to communicate.
Run Forrest Run
So, before the trip, we're warned numerous times not to walk around at night. So how is it that we find ourselves over a mile from the hotel after dark - without a taxi stand in sight? With shopping bags in hand, we race up the streets uneventfully, to our hotel. Dinner reservations are at 8pm (the early seating) at the famous restaurant Figueira Rubaiyat, which has a gigantic fig tree in the middle of its outdoor terrace. The restaurant fills up by 9:30 p.m. and it appears we were the only Americans in the joint. Our first course was homemade cheese ravioli and fresh bread, followed by grilled halibut with spinach, tomatoes and hearts of palm. But nothing prepared us for dessert - a huge buffet of Brazilian, French and American delicacies. We enjoyed the best creme brulee we've ever had, delicious chocolate pate, grilled fruit and coconut flan, to name a few. The sugar high is the reason why we're still awake and writing this...
Saturday, March 18, 2006
Who's going
Just for general reference, I wanted to post a list of who's on the trip. So here it is: Aimee Waldman; Alexander J. Morris; Anderson Oba; John Kirkley; Josaphine Tuchel; Joseph Greiner; Kevin DeLury; Loren Bishop; Mac Clemmens; Paige Marino; Prasad Naik; Robert Carroll; Stacey L. Cole; Tamara Olson.
At this moment, everyone is in the air or has safely arrived in Sao Paulo. Except me--I'm the last one to head out of Davis for S. America (and believe me, I'm ready to get outta here!)
Thanks for reading and I'll be talkin' to you later.
At this moment, everyone is in the air or has safely arrived in Sao Paulo. Except me--I'm the last one to head out of Davis for S. America (and believe me, I'm ready to get outta here!)
Thanks for reading and I'll be talkin' to you later.
Week 1 Itinerary .:. Brazil
SUNDAY 3/19/2006
AM Arrive Blue Tree Towers-Paulista
2:30PM Meet at hotel lobby for soccer game
4:00PM Soccer Game
9:00PM Meet in Lobby Dinner
-Discuss plan for the next day
Blue Tree Towers-Paulista
MONDAY 3/20/2006
9:00AM Meet with Mr. Fernando Lima, Perdigão SA
5:00PM Meet with Mr. Arnaldo Madeira, State Secretary for Government Strategy
Blue Tree Towers-Paulista
TUESDAY 3/21/2006
AM Tour Escola de Administração de Empresas de São Paulo
11:00AM Meet with Professor Alkimar Moura, Business School
2:00PM Meet with Mr. Pacheco, Agnelo Pacheco
Blue Tree Towers-Paulista
WEDNESDAY 3/22/2006
AM Sightseeing
2:00PM Natura
Blue Tree Towers-Paulista
THURSDAY 3/23/2006
AM Itau Bank
2:00PM Microsoft
7:31PM Flight to Curitiba
8:00PM Flight to Curitiba
Blue Tree-St. Michel
FRIDAY 3/24/2006
9:00AM Mr. Ari Fischer, Alltech (presentation at the hotel)
2:00PM Amadeu Busnardo Filho, Assistant to the Director for Economic Development
Overnight bus to Foz Do Iguacu
SATURDAY 3/25/2006
AM Arrive at Mercure Grand Hotel International Foz
Free Day
Mercure Grand Hotel International Foz
SUNDAY 3/26/2006
Free Day
PM Flight to Buenos Aires