Members SolaceSoul Posted January 25, 2016 Members Posted January 25, 2016 Yesterday afternoon, I saw a large older white man and a young pardo garotos sitting at the outdoor chair/table by Farme and Vuscinde. There was no conversation going on. The young guy obvious has a bored look on his face. First you complain that the sauna garotos' smiles and chit-chat with clients are all fake and just for money. Now you complain that a garoto looked too bored at a restaurant with an older man who may or may have not been a client. There's just no winning with you. mvan1 1 Quote
Members mvan1 Posted January 25, 2016 Author Members Posted January 25, 2016 First you complain that the sauna garotos' smiles and chit-chat with clients are all fake and just for money. Now you complain that a garoto looked too bored at a restaurant with an older man who may or may have not been a client. There's just no winning with you. - Funny! We never found out why he said he would never use American Airlines, United Airlines and Air Canada. The suspense and curiosity are growing. - SolaceSoul 1 Quote
Guest tomcal Posted January 25, 2016 Posted January 25, 2016 Scott general statements are dangerous because there are so many exceptions! There are at least 8 or more posters on this site who have been with me in brazil and can confirm there are no awkward silences with me and the guys and my Portuguese is limited! Just saying! Quote
Members mvan1 Posted January 25, 2016 Author Members Posted January 25, 2016 Scott general statements are dangerous because there are so many exceptions! There are at least 8 or more posters on this site who have been with me in Brazil and can confirm there are no awkward silences with me and the guys and my Portuguese is limited! Just saying! Scott said that he plans a 90-day stay in Brazil and should learn Portuguese. I am wondering if the "awkward moments" he mentioned were those of Scott, himself, because he does not feel comfortable with the garotos due to his inability to communicate in their language. What might be awkward for some may not be awkward for all. For example, I never have any so-called "awkward moments" while I am around or with Brazilian garotos. I am in Brazil at the present time and I spent most of today with a garoto that I met at Lagoa several trips ago. Among other things, we visited some local sites, watched the Bolivian Festa in Sao Paulo for a while, then went to dinner at a nice restaurant. There was nothing awkward about my day, nor did I experience any awkward moments. EDIT: One more thing. The garoto mentioned above is married and has a couple of children. He was one of the unfortunate Brazilians that lost his job due to the Brazilian economy. The garoto is happy that we met and does not express any "awkward moments". He left this evening around 9:00 p.m. When he arrived at his home, he text me to tell me that he had a great day and looks forward to our getting together again. Awkward? I think not. - Quote
Members Popular Post SolaceSoul Posted January 25, 2016 Members Popular Post Posted January 25, 2016 Yeah, I'm thinking a gay guy who knows no Portuguese and hates sauna culture is going to have an awful lot of moments of uncomfortable silence during a 90-day stay in Brazil. JunNJ, mvan1, JAYBLK and 2 others 5 Quote
Members scott456 Posted January 25, 2016 Members Posted January 25, 2016 Yesterday afternoon, I saw a large older white man and a young pardo garotos sitting at the outdoor chair/table by Farme and Vuscinde. There was no conversation going on. The young guy obvious has a bored look on his face. Sorry I offended many posters here. Axiom2020 1 Quote
Members firecat691614502759 Posted January 25, 2016 Members Posted January 25, 2016 No you are not! You showed up as a member and poster a couple of weeks ago and have professed to be an expert on everything. Yet with all your expertise , you managed to get yourself attacked something 99% of the members here have been able to avoid because of information given here. Maybe you should read a little more before your trips and post less with your limited knowledge. Badboy81 and SolaceSoul 2 Quote
Members SolaceSoul Posted January 25, 2016 Members Posted January 25, 2016 No you are not! You showed up as a member and poster a couple of weeks ago and have professed to be an expert on everything. Yet with all your expertise , you managed to get yourself attacked something 99% of the members here have been able to avoid because of information given here. Maybe you should read a little more before your trips and post less with your limited knowledge. Personally, I am a little skeptical about Scott's tale about being assaulted outside a nightclub near Lagoa. First, he trash-talked Lagoa because he didn't find the odd sex that he wanted. Then he says he was assaulted while leaving a relatively safe and busy neighborhood. Now he is complaining about saunas being all about guys wanting your money (yet he plans to return to Brazil for a 90-day stay).I know the area around Lagoa and the brief walk to the closest Metro. The area is relatively safe and very well-traveled with both car and foot traffic. I think he either may have concocted the story of his assault and robbery near Lagoa because he is a little bitter that he was not successful at hooking up with the kinds of garotos he prefers and the sort of sexual arrangements he likes there, and wanted to trash-talk the place. Or he may have approached the wrong person in a cruisy, dicey situation (he did state that he was into doing that before, even though he doesn't know how to communicate in Portuguese). paulsf 1 Quote
Members wncdemcub Posted January 26, 2016 Members Posted January 26, 2016 If you have trouble use a translator app. I was able to get by and have nice conversations with its assistance. And many saunas have wifi. Quote
Guest tomcal Posted January 26, 2016 Posted January 26, 2016 If you have trouble use a translator app. I was able to get by and have nice conversations with its assistance. And many saunas have wifi. great point! I have IPhone and I use ISpeak Portuguese app. and it is very good, and easy to go back and forth between English and Portuguese and most of the boys know how to use it....or at least all the guys I go with! lol btw, tip make friends with the bartender, tip him $10R and he will give you the wifi password for the saunas who don't have public wifi!! Quote
Members trzinko Posted January 26, 2016 Members Posted January 26, 2016 tomcal, is this application working offline? i use google translator, which is fine as long as you have wifi. however it does not work offline. Quote
floridarob Posted January 26, 2016 Posted January 26, 2016 T-Mobile..... I still don't understand how ANYONE that travels doesn't use them, cheaper plans, free texting back to USA, Free unlimited 3G data roaming in over 100 countries, in Mex & Canada free calls within those countries and to USA..... their CEO is insane (in a good way).... I follow him on Twitter and he loves shaking things up.... Quote
Members firecat691614502759 Posted January 26, 2016 Members Posted January 26, 2016 Agreed , I switched from ATT and love Tmobile. Instant service in every country I have been in . 3G is good and calls are free in country and calls to other countries are at the most 20Cents per minute vs. $2 with the crooks at ATT. I have friends even worse with Verizon which is a total joke with no service in many of the countries we have visited. floridarob 1 Quote
Members torogen Posted January 27, 2016 Members Posted January 27, 2016 I'm assuming that since people are talking about using translation apps that at least some people are taking their phones to the saunas. I am guessing that you keep them in hand or lock them up. I had seen a recommendation on another thread to avoid taking ANYTHING to the beach, and I was actually wondering about that, because I can see how the translation apps would be useful to have on the beach. I'm curious...do most people keep their phone with them, or do you really leave it at the hotel? Quote
Members wncdemcub Posted January 27, 2016 Members Posted January 27, 2016 I'm assuming that since people are talking about using translation apps that at least some people are taking their phones to the saunas. I am guessing that you keep them in hand or lock them up. I had seen a recommendation on another thread to avoid taking ANYTHING to the beach, and I was actually wondering about that, because I can see how the translation apps would be useful to have on the beach. I'm curious...do most people keep their phone with them, or do you really leave it at the hotel? If you have it I would suggest bringing an old phone to take out with you in Brazil. I have an old 4S (wiped clean) that I used rather than my newer iPhone. That way if it got stolen it wouldn't be the end of the world. I also got a sim card from TIM. It was the easiest to set up as an american there as they have instructions in english and english operators to help set up your phone. That gave me interest access (not the fastest in the world but ran google maps, my google translator app, and whatsapp). Almost all the saunas have wifi, get to know one of the boys and buy him a drink and he will most likely give you the password. In terms of the beach. I did bring my phone but I was lounging and people watching more than getting in the water so it was fine keeping it on me. Quote
Guest tomcal Posted January 27, 2016 Posted January 27, 2016 I take my iPhone everywhere, especially the sauna, as I want photos and videos! I have been taking cameras and when smart phones came out since I started going in 2001, never lost one or had one stolen, but if I do i have the insurance so not a big loss, and with the cloud, my photos on the phone are auto uploaded so even if i lose the phone i still have the pics! the phone i can replace... the pics I can't! lol Quote
Axiom2020 Posted January 27, 2016 Posted January 27, 2016 Brazilians speak Portuguese. Unless you want to come across as an "Ugly American", it should be your responsibility to try to speak the native tongue of Brazil when you are a guest in the country -- not vice versa. SolaceSoul, thanks for writing this. When I read Scott’s comment, it really bothered me. When one travels outside of his own country, he should at least learn and use some basic words of the country and/or countries to which he’s traveling. SolaceSoul and Badboy81 2 Quote
Axiom2020 Posted January 27, 2016 Posted January 27, 2016 Sorry I offended many posters here. Scott, as I tell myself as well as my students: “Think before you speak!” “Think before you write and/or act!" Quote
Guest parisrio2000 Posted February 13, 2016 Posted February 13, 2016 I haven't been to SP since around 2013 but I should say that my experiences were the same as the other poster in this thread who found it a let-down. It was around Carnaval, which is not the best time to be in SP I hear. Nevertheless, I had exactly the same experience. It was all old, out of shape guys. The cab driver who worked there and had long been associated with Lagoa told me though that this was not a one-off, and that the quality of the boys at Lagoa had seriously declined since the owner got sick and management was replaced. Apparently he used to scout the south for very attractive guys, and now it was mostly locals who were not nearly as attractive. I went in with high hopes but never hired anyone from there. Also I remember at the time some other posters were saying the same thing that it was "great." Nevertheless, I will try it again if I'm in SP, but I found it to be quite bad. Quote
