"Who am I to give advice? " a São Paulo Travel Page by Lady_Disdain

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Why bother?

Is what most people in Brazil would ask if someone was to say they wanted to visit São Paulo. Or just think it was a business trip.

Yes, São Paulo is Brazil's business center. No, that does not mean there is nothing to do in São Paulo.

As everyone has said before, São Paulo has wonderful nightlife, top notch gastronomy, theater, movie theaters and anything else you can imagine.

But what do we do during the day? We go to parks, bike, roller skate, run or just sit around listening to music or reading. We have museums, ethnical neighbourhoods, historical centers, shops (couture or alternative and everything imaginable).

Or we hop in the car for a quick day trip (bate-e-volta) or weekend get away!

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São Paulo during the day

I'm sure everyone already knows what to do at night - bar hopping, dancing, theater or just good food. So I'll tell you what to see during the day.

Parks are a wonderful ideia on a sunny weekend. Everyone goes to one - wether it is the huge Ibirapuera park when there is a fair or event, to run in Água Branca or watch the dogs playing in Trianon. There are peoople sun bathing, playing soccer or practicing sports, food vendors - Ibirapuera even has a museum and a huge event hall (where the Bieannual Modern Art exhibit happens).

Street fairs are also common. From farmer's markets (great fruits!) where housewives do the weekly food shopping to antigue fairs (with original documents from the Empire - Brazil was an empire after its Independence!- and sketches from top modernist artists) and plenty of crafts fairs. They are fun, filled with people and interesting vendors.

Of course there is plenty more, so check out the tips!

A long weekend is just the ticket to leave São Paulo - all the locals will go to Campos de Jordão, Itatiai, Ilha Bela or any of dozens of small towns, either on the beach or in the mountains.

And a sunny Sunday just screams for a quick hop to Guarujá or Santos, less than two hours away, to lounge on the beach or have a drink in one of the bars.

The traffic back can be deadly, though.

I'll upload pictures shortly!