So! Week 8! We are two months in! Where is the time going?!
The topic for this two month anniversary is nightlife and partying because the majority/most of the audience who watch or read this site are university students and so there is of course the curiousity! So I have decided to enlighten you guys on what is on offer in terms of nightlife in Floripa!
For the types and categories to choose from on a night out or in, watch my video.
Otherwise, I thought I'd blog about the approach to alcohol and drinking here:
First of all, the drinking attitude is totally different here. The only time I've ever seen obviously drunk people here is when we've been to an event with international students or travelers! Brazilians do not drink to get drunk! They get drunk on life! (Or so I've noticed so far).
Generally, Brazilians drink before they go out and they drink slowly. They share bottle of beer (as in you buy a large bottle and share it with about four people, using half pint glasses) in bars, and you'll rarely find spirit mixes because they find them too strong. The general bar drink is beer or caipirinhas, although there are of course the other options of mojitos, cocktails etc. No cider!
When out at an event, I have never seen a Brazilian girl being carried out or home. You don't really see them alone either, they'll be with at least one other girlfriend or in a mixed group. One of the reasons for this of course is that it is dangerous, for girls to be out and alone in the middle of a Brazilian city at night. Therefore they need to have their wits about them as although it is improving at a very fast rate, Brazil is still a developing country. But I would say that both girls and guys must still be so careful when out after hours!
Traffic lights are turned off after 11pm in Rio de Janeiro and I'm pretty sure a similar system is in place here after a certain time, as all the traffic lights were simultaneously flashing the same colour and the same spot at 3am the other night. (We were in a taxi coming back from Lagoa).
Personally, I actually feel very safe here and I think that the locals do worry a little too much. As long as you're responsible and have a sensible head on your shoulders: you're fine! When you hear of muggings it's usually because the person has had their bag casually over one shoulder, had their iPhone in their hand or, I cannot believe this, had their laptop open while walking home! It's all common sense! One girl apparently lost everything in a club (that's passport, credit cards, iPhone, camera, everything!) because she left her bag on a table to go dancing... *Face palm!*
When you go out, leave everything of value: AT. HOME! When we go out I literally take about R$50-100 (around £20-30) for event entrance, one drink, taxi home and a bit of emergency money just in case. The essentials that I take are: cash (I leave all cards at home), my phone (and that's my Nokia brick), my apartment key and my camera. That. is. all! It's a bag with a proper zip and a flap over the top and I still keep one hand on it all the time with the zip facing the front. I've only worried about my stuff once and that was at the parade last week because I was expecting a Notting Hill Carnival scenario (a big carnival in London on the August Bank Holiday weekend). It's not that I'm paranoid, it's just common sense!
The only time when I was really let down by a night out was the first UFSC party we went to. It was a party and not the Congresso because it was literally a couple of makeshift bars, a DJ gazebo and a bunch of food and drink stalls dotted around a small space. There was no dance area but instead the whole space was made up of groups of friends who weren't all that too willing to talk to you unless you knew them, or you were a friend of a friend of a friend. (You get my drift).
UFSC parties are actually not allowed, but because of the lack of on-campus security they happen anyway. But I'm not going to lie, I was massively dissappointed by these supposedly (quote) "epic" events. The music choice was boring and people were a bit closed.
But never mind! Check out the video link for more on nightlife in Floripa!! Highlights make up almost half of this video. Enjoy! :D
The topic for this two month anniversary is nightlife and partying because the majority/most of the audience who watch or read this site are university students and so there is of course the curiousity! So I have decided to enlighten you guys on what is on offer in terms of nightlife in Floripa!
For the types and categories to choose from on a night out or in, watch my video.
Otherwise, I thought I'd blog about the approach to alcohol and drinking here:
First of all, the drinking attitude is totally different here. The only time I've ever seen obviously drunk people here is when we've been to an event with international students or travelers! Brazilians do not drink to get drunk! They get drunk on life! (Or so I've noticed so far).
Generally, Brazilians drink before they go out and they drink slowly. They share bottle of beer (as in you buy a large bottle and share it with about four people, using half pint glasses) in bars, and you'll rarely find spirit mixes because they find them too strong. The general bar drink is beer or caipirinhas, although there are of course the other options of mojitos, cocktails etc. No cider!
When out at an event, I have never seen a Brazilian girl being carried out or home. You don't really see them alone either, they'll be with at least one other girlfriend or in a mixed group. One of the reasons for this of course is that it is dangerous, for girls to be out and alone in the middle of a Brazilian city at night. Therefore they need to have their wits about them as although it is improving at a very fast rate, Brazil is still a developing country. But I would say that both girls and guys must still be so careful when out after hours!
Traffic lights are turned off after 11pm in Rio de Janeiro and I'm pretty sure a similar system is in place here after a certain time, as all the traffic lights were simultaneously flashing the same colour and the same spot at 3am the other night. (We were in a taxi coming back from Lagoa).
Personally, I actually feel very safe here and I think that the locals do worry a little too much. As long as you're responsible and have a sensible head on your shoulders: you're fine! When you hear of muggings it's usually because the person has had their bag casually over one shoulder, had their iPhone in their hand or, I cannot believe this, had their laptop open while walking home! It's all common sense! One girl apparently lost everything in a club (that's passport, credit cards, iPhone, camera, everything!) because she left her bag on a table to go dancing... *Face palm!*
When you go out, leave everything of value: AT. HOME! When we go out I literally take about R$50-100 (around £20-30) for event entrance, one drink, taxi home and a bit of emergency money just in case. The essentials that I take are: cash (I leave all cards at home), my phone (and that's my Nokia brick), my apartment key and my camera. That. is. all! It's a bag with a proper zip and a flap over the top and I still keep one hand on it all the time with the zip facing the front. I've only worried about my stuff once and that was at the parade last week because I was expecting a Notting Hill Carnival scenario (a big carnival in London on the August Bank Holiday weekend). It's not that I'm paranoid, it's just common sense!
The only time when I was really let down by a night out was the first UFSC party we went to. It was a party and not the Congresso because it was literally a couple of makeshift bars, a DJ gazebo and a bunch of food and drink stalls dotted around a small space. There was no dance area but instead the whole space was made up of groups of friends who weren't all that too willing to talk to you unless you knew them, or you were a friend of a friend of a friend. (You get my drift).
UFSC parties are actually not allowed, but because of the lack of on-campus security they happen anyway. But I'm not going to lie, I was massively dissappointed by these supposedly (quote) "epic" events. The music choice was boring and people were a bit closed.
But never mind! Check out the video link for more on nightlife in Floripa!! Highlights make up almost half of this video. Enjoy! :D