I Like 24/7 Variety

I think I mentioned in my first post that when we made the decision that we would live outside the US for a while, my first choice was Europe. I found the idea of a small town with markets, bakeries and boutiques enchanting. I thought it would be so nice to get away from the hustle and bustle of (north) American life. To be in a place where stores were closed on Sunday and family life was respected.

Well, I may not be in Europe but I am experiencing some aspects of what I had wished for. While I still think, given the chance, I would enjoy living in parts of Europe much more than Brazil, I’ve definitely reevaluated my desire to live in a culture as I described above.

Oh, how I miss stores and businesses with early and late hours! A 24/7 brightly lit, giant Super Wal-Mart is even appealing to me right now!

Stores here open around 8:00 or 9:00am. They close at 6:00pm at the latest. There are a couple grocery stores and maybe the mall that are exceptions, but this is the basic rule.

For services like the post office or bank, you can just forget having the opportunity to go there if you work. We asked about bank hours when my husband was opening an account and they said they were open 11:00am to 4:00pm. Seriously?!!

While this might work for someone who is employed downtown, it is not an option for someone like my husband who works outside of the city. There is no way he’d be able to run errands or wait for apartment repair appointments and deliveries (we’ve had a lot). Lucky for us, I have the time during the day to get these things done.

So you might be wondering, what about the weekend? Oh, it gets better on the weekends. (That was a little sarcasm there.) On Saturday stores open about 9:00am and close at 1:00pm at the latest. On Sunday the city is a complete ghost town. The only thing open is the mall, but you can only go to the mall so much. Plus, the malls here are only filled with overpriced designer clothes, not really anything you would need on a daily basis.

The one store we’ve found that is open on Sunday is BIG. That is the actual name. It is basically a super Wal-mart and is, in fact, owned by Wal-Mart Brazil. It is on the outskirts of town though and everyone and their mother, sister, aunt, uncle go there on the weekends so it is definitely NOT a stress-free shopping experience.

So the one thing I once thought to be a negative in the fast paced culture I lived in prior to being here, is the one thing I am missing the most right now. I think fondly of my Sunday afternoons of leisurely strolling the aisles of Target, or the late night stops by wally world to pick up some groceries.

It isn’t the stuff or the name brands I need, it is the presence of options. This whole city seriously lacks them. I need options and variety in my life!