Perspective = Happiness + Gratefulness

A friend sent this "Happiness" talk as I'm an avid TED viewer and I think it's a lovely talk for putting "happiness" in perspective. I write this sitting in hospital with my 1.5 year old who had surgery yesterday. She had a splinter in her finger which got infected, and as we were getting read to come to the hospital yesterday morning split a cup of hot coffee on her foot. Thankfully that was just secondary but since we had a plastic surgeon (everyone has to have one here in Brazil) he multi-tasked while she went under. We are here for a week (I joke about Brazilians being excessive in everything, including medication but when it comes to your own child it's hard to argue) while she goes through her course of antibiotics.

With perspective I'm also very grateful. I have good friends here in Sao Paulo; who are bringing me lunch and wine!;  I have a fantastic empregada who is packing and cooking for the week and helping my husband look after my other daughter; the Brazilian doctors are over-cautious and protective but when it comes to my child I'm not complaining either!

I have to say the one thing I was happy for was the level of my portuguese. Being able to communicate with the doctors, nurses and know what exactly was going on gave me some peace of mind. I didn't have to rely on calling a Brazilian friend (which I would've had to do in my first year here in Brazil). If you need any motivation to learn Portuguese, this is it!!

That's her finger wrapped in bottom corner

It's a vicious circle!

I believe in being positive, and that creating positive energy brings you good things in life and when you put out negative energy into the universe, it comes straight back at you.

I hired an Assistant for my cupcake business a few months ago who I like alot and is really clued-on. I think she has great energy and is also very keen to learn. Today she didn't turn up for work, and after several missed phone calls from me, texted me back 2 hours later to tell me she had to go to a "Forum" as she had a problem with a cheque she had been issued. I was so mad, and it's a Monday morning as well, so I spent all morning formulating in Portuguese what I was going to say. I'm a pretty confrontational person (I found out after I left Asia my ex-colleagues use to call me Chairman Mao... ) but it's hard to be angry in Portuguese: all the words I know are happy ones! Otímo! Incrivél! Que bom! Que coisa! Adorei!!

I think she was pretty horrified (Are Brazilians ever angry in the office?). I told her I was her boss, not her friend. She should run her errands outside of work hours. I hate last minute changes, and I really hate being angry. I just don't understand why she would decide to tell me 2 hours after the fact rather than last Friday afternoon when she found out. She doesn't know either.

SO a giant cockroach paid me a visit tonight. I've posted before how much I hate them, they bring me to tears (and a pack of cigarettes.....). My two daughters watched me disintegrate, crying, this evening as I ran after this cockroach and emptied an entire can of spray. They laughed and clapped with glee as it curled up and died. Nice.

Extending tourist visa in Sao Paulo

My friend needed to extend her visa as her 2 months (on her Venezuelan passport) is about to expire this weekend. A tourist can extend their visa once for the same period they got when they entered. She prepared all her documents (see list below) and went this afternoon, and it took her 2 hours, including travel time, seriously!

There is no need to set an appointment, just turn up. Make sure you have all documents prepared below.

Required documents:
Passport, copy of front page plus relevant pages (i.e. your first Brazil entry visa)
Copy of Entry form that you fill in when you land in Brazil (disembarkation form)
Copy of credit card, front (she also took a recent statement to show that she has the finances to stay but they only needed the copy of the credit card)
Fill in payment form here, and pay for it at any bank R67. There is also a payment counter at Federal Police Lapa (Rua Hugo D'Antola, 95)
Flight out of Brazil on the date that you expect to be leaving with your new visa (very very important!)

Process
Check in at building reception and tell them that you are there to extend your tourist visa
They will direct you to another counter downstairs specifically for estrangeiros, and they give you an application form to fill out
Then they will send you upstairs to pay for your application (using the payment form that you filled online and printed out)
Then you go up to the 4th floor to submit all your documents and then wait until they call your name, where they return your passport with the new stamp in it!

I would take all originals plus extra copies, better to be safe than sorry! None of these need to be translated or cartorised.

Good luck!

For the fish lover in you

I have found a peixeiria in the Mercado de Pinheiros that delivers fresh fish! I usually only buy fresh fish if I am hear Mercado Municipal or at the Vila Madalena feira and therefore don't get to eat it often, unless it's sushi. I hate buying the frozen fish here and the fish at the supermarkets look so sad!

Anyhow, I have used this place half a dozen times already and think it's fantstic quality. Last Thursday I ordered

1 kg of salmon, skinned and filleted (4 pieces)

1 kg of badejo already cut in chunks

2 tuna steaks which he individually packaged and are sitting in my freezer

8 large pink prawns (or shrimps, depending on where you're from) that had been shelled

Total was R180 including delivery

Enjoy!!

forgot to add the link: http://www.nsrfatima.com.br/

Some of the things I miss...

It's hard not to make comparisons when we are away from Brazil - things we love and things we hate. I was never the biggest fan of living in London but coming back always highlights all the things I do love about being here, much to the surprise of my husband.

Being in London has also been a good reality check. Sao Paulo is expensive but London still is!!

Old friends. It's so lovely catching up old friends - so many of them are as close to me as my own family and it is like coming home. After a day or even a few hours, it's like we haven't been apart. We have made fantastic friends in Sao Paulo and as it always in expat circles, you make those friendships strong and fast and share your deepest darkest secrets after your second or third week (nothing to do with pinga of course!). I just wish I could collect all my lovely friends up and put them all in the same city!

Shopping. I went a little crazy but to be fair, I don't do much shopping in Sao Paulo apart from the supermarket and have been really excited about some silly things like clingfilm in a box with a razor, cute kitchen shops, Peter Jones, Waitrose, Primark! We have 120kg to bring back so have a bit more shopping to do while we are in France though maybe some of that luggage allowance maybe taken up by some good old bottles of Sancerre.

Food. I love my rice and beans but I don't miss it like ... hmm, sausage rolls, frazzles, dairy milk, clotted cream and scones, chinese and thai takeaway... ok, basically junk food!

We are heading back to SP this weekend after being away for almost a month and looking forward to some warm weather, seeing all our NEW friends (and sadly, saying goodbye to some more) and having a pastel or 2!

Applying for RNE in Sao Paulo

So we are in the midst of getting our appointment with the Federal Police in Lapa and came across a really helpful thread on gringoes and wanted to copy it here as the more help you have, the more prepared you are and the easier (and less stressful) the process will be.  I will, of course, post a new blog on our personal experience when we finally have our RNE!! Wish us luck!


Note to self : never rely on cheap agents again!! We are currently photocopying all stamped passport pages to be notarised this morning and hopefully be back in Lapa this afternoon for our appointment.


This was originally posted on gringoes.com by user Molendinar:

Finally got my permanency on basis of marriage approved so a big thanks to everyone on here for all their help, in the end it was a relatively smooth process and has only taken 5 months from start to finish (I am in São Paulo).

My timeline was:

27-04-10 - handed in documents
17-06-10 - Police visit
09-08-10 - appears on MJ website - Aguadando Análise
24-09-10 - Proposta do Chefe - deferido
27-09-10 - Publicado no DOU

In order to get the page from the DOU I did two things.

First I went to the Imprensa Oficial in Mooca, Rua da Mooca 1921, São Paulo 03103-902. You go in the door past reception, go to the right and it's the second desk on the right. I asked for the DOU for that day but it hadn't arrived, this was about 3pm) so they gave me a phone number and said to phone the next day to check before coming (2799-9482, 2799-9797). I phoned the next day at 9am and it had arrived so I went back and they photocopied the page, reducing it to A4 and then stamped the back of it. I was charged R$2.

Because of the delay at the Imprensa Oficial I also printed a copy myself of the relevant page from the Internet (http://portal.in.gov.br/in select Pesquisa nos Jornais then "Leitura Completa dos Jornais and then put in the publication and the date) and took it to a cartório to get authenticated. They refused to do this initially but I insisted the only copy available was from the Internet and the boss agreed so they authenticated it and stamped it with "Esta AUTENTICAÇÃO não dispensa consulta à internet para verificação da validade". This was the copy I gave to the Policia Federal in the end and was accepted with no problems.

I then took all the documents to the Policia Federal in Lapa and joined the queue for RNE. I was then given a form to complete and a blank "declaração de desembarque" statement as well as a list of the documents necessary. I was also told I needed to make an appointment, luckily I was able to do it the same day, but I needed to go back to the ground floor and register at the first window on the left after you come through the metal detector. It was about 11am by this time.

After getting a number I had to then fill out the form, and the declaration then join the queue again.

I was asked for the following documents:

• RNE application form, which will be given to you at the DPF office when you arrive. You fill it in there and submit with the other documents. Only fill in the part in the red box, only sign it on the back - you sign the front in the presence of the police officer)
• Two (02) recent colour photographs, size 3cm x 4cm with a white background, no date on photos
• valid passport, plus authenticated copy from a cartório of ALL the pages except for the blank ones i.e. photo page plus every page that has a stamp in it
• autenticated copy of marriage certificate
•authenticated copy of page from the DOU reduced to A4, with no pen marks (if yo have been published more than once then you need to bring all of them)
• original protocol (this was a stamp in my passport)
• declaração de desembarque (fill in the blanks in the statement about when you arrived in Brazil)
• recpeipts for the payment of the two fees. Go to the web site https://www2.dpf.gov.br/gru/gru?nac=1 from which you need to print out vouchers for: Code 140082 (REGISTRO DE ESTRANGEIROS/RESTABELECIMENTO DE REGISTRO) R$64.58 and Code 140120 (CARTEIRA DE ESTRANGEIRO DE PRIMEIRA VIA)  R$124.23. Pay these at a bank before you go to the DPF office.

I was not asked for  a Consular Certificate.

Here's the paper I was given (he asked my nationality, when I said British he ticked the boxes):



Once I handed all this in I was told I had to come back at 15h00 to get my passport back and receive the protcolo. However, he never told me I would be called for fingerprinting, but luckily I decided to wait. After 20 minuted I was called to do the now digital fingerprints where they scan your fingers and take your photo. The woman there then told me I didn't have to come back till 15h30.

I decided to wait, not a lot of things to do in Lapa and by this point it was 13h00 and I'd brought a book to read.

At 14h30 they started shouting out people's names, it was very hard to make out what the names were, some of the police offices used a microphone and speakers while others just shouted the names. You really needed to pay attention. They do this every 10 minutes. Anyway, 15h30 came and went and finally at 16h15 my name was called and I was given my passport back and my protocolo.

I asked about getting a certificate to prove I was awaiting the RNE and was told to come back in 3 weeks by which time my name should be in the system and I could then request a certificate.

Hope all this helps someone.

Internations

Last night we popped by our first Internations event. We took Sophie with us as we haven't quite sorted ourselves out a baba (babysitter). We tested one out the night before but we don't have space for her to stay over in our tiny flat so she could only stay until 11pm. Kinda pointless when the nightlife here starts at 11pm!

Internations is an online network for expats and for locals who have lived abroad. They have monthly drinks (last weekend of each month) where members that are in the area can attend. There were a great range of people to meet and we only managed to met a handful before Little Miss Sophie woke up.

To give you an idea of the different types of people:

- the Paulistana's who organise the SP drinks run their own expat company. One of them has spent time in France.

- An American who has lived here for 3 years with his Brazilian wife

- A Brazilian born in London

- An English couple who have just moved down from New York

- A Venezuelan who lives in HK but travels to Brazil for work

- A Brazilian who has just returned from Milan after finishing her MBA

- An English guy who is at the end of his 2 year tenure here

- A Brazilian who use to work for an American company in Illinois

I think we will try and attend a few more of these. It's a great way to meet people and I love that it's not just expats but Brazilians as well.