My memories are like a good old wine...as longer I let them mature as better they get :). So, I guess nearly 2 month after staying in Sao Paulo and visiting the incredibles waterfalls of Iguazu at the boarder of Argentina Brazil and Paraguay I think it's time now to remember the best moments.
Coming out of the deepest Amazonas at the end of January, surving the city jungle of Sao Paulo was my easiest task.Only difficulty for me was to get there - and since I had to catch a flight at night and lot's of you know that I am famous for my sleepiness - so, the probability was quite high that less sleep in the night before I fly might occur some obstacles on my trip. And so it came...After my farewell dinner at my last night in Manaus with my 3 jungle travel mates Ikumi, Maeri and Steven I arrived at night at 1 a.m. punctual at the airport to get my flight to Sao Paulo at 3 a.m.. I did the Check-In, walked a bit around, read a bit in my book and abruptely 20min before boarding I got incredibly sleepy I hardly could keep my eyes open. So, clever me, I set my alarm clock, as always, for making a quick power naps, but according to Murphy's law, I don't know how, I set my alarm wrong and woke up just in the same moment when my flight ought to departure. My first view went on the montitor showing "Last call" and a sudden andrenaline rush made me run to my gate - only my legs didn't stimulus to move, so they stayed asleep and I falled on a older man's lap just 2 metres in front of me..the others around had a good laugh and I felt a bit sheepish..Ooops! I jumped the queue to get to my plane and luckily the stewardesses were still waiting for me ... ufff, what a relief!...Again, I love the brazilian easygoing lifestyle..."Leaving 10mins earlier or later, who cares!".
Sao Paulo (SP) was a huge surprise for me. Since every backpacker was telling me Sao Paulo is not worth to see I prepared myself for the worst - dirty huge city with about 20million! inhabitants, filled up with favelas, lot's of traffic and everything coloured in a grey layer. But then I got positively surprised. The mayority of the city is pretty modern, f.e. strolling down the Avenida Paulista, the business district of the town, a large avenue surrounded by high skyscrapers. But somehow this modernity match really well with the old old buildings in town ...architecturally a really refreshing mixture of styles. So the 4-5 days I stayed in town I used for cultural sightseeing since it was raining every day...I visit one of the best art museums in Brazil, the MACBI and the PINACOTECA for Contemporary Art, furthermore a museum for Portugese language where you could attend in an interactive session about Portuguese poetry - but the little downer hereby was - although you understand the worlds of the poems the real meaning their emotional and metaphoric meaning you can't capture with only medium language skills ;(. And since SP is the Bussiness centre of Brazil a visit of it's stock-market incl. a lecture of it's communication director why should I invest in Brazilian companies to strenghen the economy and therefore ensure my own working place, of course, was another "Must-Be" for me. Unfornutately in time of digitalization there aren't any crowds of brokers anymore screaming and fighting for the best bid...boring!!!
SP is also famous for his nightlife and outstanding gastronomy , so a obligation for me to try it out as well. So, I enjoyed the possibility meet me up again with people I got to know during my trip. So, Ale (with whose family I spent last Christmas in Porto de Galhinas) and his friends took me out for dinner to a Terimaki place - this is a kind a portuguese-japanese fusion of super Sushi bag in a form of a cone stuffed with watever you like like salom and almonds etc. Let's say it's a kind of elaborated sushi burger, but healthy, which you won't find in any place in Japan. This reminds me also at the chocolate pizza (a pizza dough covered with a thick chocolate layer sprinkled with cashew nuts and banana for example) - another Brazilian invention you wiill never find in Italy. With over 2 millions Japanese people in Brazil (the biggest japanese community outside of Japan) and many Chinese as well, the Asians also mounted their own "China Town" in SP - the best place in Brazil to eat very cheap sushi. But in general the Brasilians like to mix up every food and drinks . So have you ever drunken a "Saquerinha" with red fruits?...Delicious! 
Another night I went with Marlene (my hostal roomate from Jericoacoara) to a birthday party of a friend of her in a posh pub where you could order a mix of beer and red wine....that was also too strange for me. And finally I also joined a Couchsurfing RODIZIO - a kind of All-you-can-eat MEAT buffet, where you pay a fixed price before and aside from a huge buffet they offer a waiter pass continiously your table which huge sticks of differents roasted meat where you can choose from. "Picanha" (the best cut of the beef) is said to be the most tasty and also expensive one, which they normally bring more to the end when everyone is already filled up with food. 
Another proof for that Brazil never sleep I got on a Wednesday night when we went to a bit shappy but really comfy Indie club, calles "Milos", with cool rock music which got filled up not before 2 a.m.. the backyard walls were covered by graffities and lots of "tags" and Ale wanted to blanch me that a Brazilian invention as well....I am doubting...still pending for approval ;)!! This place was nice contrast to see some "normal" people who are not dressed up and having simply fun, in comparison to the Avenida Paulista Style with it's white collar guys and black umbrellas where you might get a trace of complexes having the impression that everyone looks strangely at you becauce you are wearing an inappropiate Beach-Flip-Flops-Style. In this sense I got a first feeling that the rich South of Brazil will be different from the north given that the Brazil's industrial centre is situated here and many Europeans immigrated in this area in former times. Suddenly you get the feeling you are back in Europe ...well dressed people, also with blond hair and blue eyes.Unfortunately my camera got broken during my stay in SP, so little pictures ;(...but SP ...was a love on the first sight...I hope we see us again on day!