I speak decent Spanish, which takes you a fair distance when trying to communicate with someone in Brazilian Portuguese… but not the whole distance. I think, in the end, that my “Portanyol” (speaking Spanish, tossing in some Portuguese words, and adopting the sing-song tones of the language here) leaves me comprehending about 70% of what I hear. Not bad, but it does leave some significant room for error. I say all of that as an explanation for what I’m about to say: Taxi drivers say some interesting things.
You see, in Rio, where the traffic is terrible, you can spend a lot of time in taxis. And taxi drivers who spend a lot of time in traffic often have a lot to say. So, here’s what I’ve learned so far from cabbies in Rio.
1. Brazil is “quente” (pronounced “KEHN-chuh”). Quente means hot. And sure, I knew that it would be hot here. But there’s something about the word quente when spoken by a Carioca that seems to better communicate the quality of the heat. It sticks to you much the same way the humidity does.
2. There are 11 women for every man in Rio. Or was it the other way around. Like I said, I’m only comprehending about 70%. But one taxi driver had a rather lengthy explanation about this supposed imbalance, so it must be true (though, oddly enough, I can’t seem to verify the claim from any of my trusted internet sources).
3. Brazilians are Catholic until 6 pm. This is my personal favorite and speaks to the unbounded joy with which so many Brazilians seem to approach life.
4. The Selecao will undoubtedly win the World Cup. Even if I can only understand 70%, they are 100% sure.