SOUTHEAST BRAZIL - Brazil - page 144

SHOPPING IN SÃO PAULO

S hopping in São Paulo is like

districts of Jardins, Pacaembu,
and Vila Madalena are bursting
with smart little fancy boutiques.
Many others can be found in the
city's numerous opulent malls,
which are large, air-conditioned,
and filled with restaurants, enter-
tainment areas, and shops hous-
ing international brands and
leading Brazilian designers. The
city's other good buys, including CDs,
books, coffee, and cachaça can be
bought from malls. High-quality house-
hold items can be found on Rua Gabriel
Monteiro Silva in Jardins.

shopping in a large North
American city. It is largely
mall- and boutique-based and
the best items to buy are high-
end luxury goods. However,
more interesting are markets and
fairs that take place around town
on weekends, selling traditional
goods. Unlike many big cities in
South America, São Paulo has no exclu-
sive craft markets or traditional artisan-
ware of note, but there are a few arts
and craft specialist shops. São Paulo is
Latin America's fashion capital and the

Cachaça bottles
on display

Such shops are to be found in
many of the larger malls but
the best in the city is probably
FNAC , which also stocks
an excellent selection of
Brazilian DVDs. Its selections
of Latin American arthouse
films are particularly strong.
Grandes Galerias or
the Galeria do Rock has a
large choice of rock CDs
and DVDs. This arcade has
around 100 different small
shops selling every manner
of CD and DVD. However,
only a few stores offer the
desirable option of listening
before buying.

Designer shops lining Rua Oscar Freire

SHOPPING HOURS particularly strong on dresses

and evening wear. More
established names can be
found here too. Rosa Chá
stocks the world's sexiest
and most fashionable
bikinis (by Amir Slama).
Other designers, such as
rising star Santa Paciência ,
celebrated for her elegant
and original use of light,
flowing fabrics, are based in
Pacaembu, a short taxi drive
away from central São Paulo.

Shops in São Paulo are open
from 8am to 6pm. Street
shops tend to open from 8 or
10am to 6pm. They are closed
on Brazilian public holidays.
Most shopping centers and
malls are open from 10am to
10pm and on weekends
(including Sunday) from 10am
to 8pm. They often do not
close on public holidays.

BEVERAGES

The raw ingredient for the
caipirinha cocktail, Brazilian
cachaça or sugar cane rum
is sometimes difficult to find
outside of Brazil. But in São
Paulo, bottles are on sale in
any corner shop at a reason-
able price. The Cachaçaria
Paulista , however, is a bar
and shop for connoisseurs,
selling more than 300 diffe-
rent cachaças , the best of
which are said to be from
Minas Gerais.
Very fine coffee beans
and grounds can be
bought here. Santo Grão
in Jardins and boutiques
in the various malls
have shops selling
gourmet and quality
blends. Some of the
very best are to be
found in the shop of
the Museu do Café
in Santos (see p168) .

FASHION

MUSIC & FILM

The domestic fashion market
in Brazil is flourishing, with
almost all Brazilian labels
coming from São Paulo. The
market is strongest for
women's clothing and the
best place to begin a browse
is in Jardins. Here hundreds
of tasteful little shops sell
colorful, beautifully cut
clothes. Many of the latest
generation of young
Paulistana designers, such as
Adriana Barra and Cris Barros ,
have their showrooms in
Jardins. These labels are

Bossa nova, samba, frevo,
forró, axé, choro - it is
difficult to think of a country
with as many homegrown
musical genres as Brazil.
São Paulo is the best
place in the country
either to begin an
acquaintance with this
diversity or to explore
its variety.
Many of the larger
stores give customers
the chance to listen to
CDs before buying.

Brazilian
music CDs