It is always nice to get off a long bus ride and know exactly how to get where you are going. Sampa has a subway metro right in the bus station, after a quick chat with the information office I was on my way. As with most of the hostels I have stayed at recently the rest of the occupants were sitting on their laptops, I picked the wrong hostel to meet people...
Luckily there is a staggering amount of stuff to see and do, first thing the next morning I set off to visit the $16,000,000 Brazilian football museum. Situated in the Estádio do Pacaembu, this massive museum is basically a shrine to Brazilian football and the evolution of the game, extremely impressive. After that I saw the Museu de Arte Brasileira and the Museu de Arte de São Paulo. After a heavy shower during the early morning of arrival it was clear skies and sunshine for the rest of my time here.
The next day I walked to Ibirapuera Park, 2sqm of grass, lakes, bikepaths right in the middle of the city, also housing several museums and the planetarium. A beautiful day to be walking around, it seemed like much of the city joined me, there was a constant stream of cyclists, rollerbladers and skateboarders, not to mention families strolling through the park. Not what I had expected when I came to Sao Paulo.
Another thing I didn´t expect in Sao Paulo? To be roped into playing a game of cricket on a Sunday afternoon. Daniel (who I met in Montevideo), myself and some others formed team "Rest of the World" battle it out against team "India and Pakistan". Twenty-five overs an innings and I was 8th down the line to come into bat. It was a hot day, but I was sweating more than usual.....
My first innings scorecard?
Balls faced Runs Scored Out
2 0 Stumped (after a huge airswing)
A duck! Not surprising, my time at the crease barely lasted a minute. It was a long, shameful walk back to the pavilion. With only 104 runs to our scorecard, we were quickly bested by the opposition who hit a 6 at least once an over. I dropped a hard catch, but saved a few boundaries. We still had some time left before dark so we played another quick 10 over innings.
My second innings scorecard?
Balls faced Runs Scored Out
2 1 Caught (sending the ball up and behind after a miss-hit)
My bowling was slightly better. After sending the first two balls wide I managed to get the next six right down off-side, at a decent pace given my lack of practice and ability, for one run.
Again we lost to the much better team, but I drowned my sorrows in cheap Brazilian beer, and semi-officially retired with a batter average of 0.5.
More photos here
