Next stop: Brazil - 5 customs beyond strangers of our land
If you follow Mega Curioso, you may have come across practices and customs beyond strangers who are part of the culture and history of the most varied countries. From exotic foods and unusual habits at special times to renting girlfriends and exaggerated jokes, cultural differences can give us a rather shocking impression of certain places - and that's not just true for Russia.
Leaving any hypocrisy aside, the fact is that all countries have their own characteristics that can cause strangeness to those who cannot identify with their population. Thinking about it, the Curious Mega begins its new section, the "Next Stop", where we will periodically gather the most peculiar curiosities of each nation.
And since the idea is just to show that every place has its weirdness, nothing better than starting by looking at our own belly button. Famous for its ethnic, economic and social diversity, Brazil is a country in which there is no shortage of habits that cause discomfort even for those who are Brazilian. Following are some of the most curious points about our beloved Tupiniquim nation.
5 - Here we talk like this
It is natural that a country as large and with such concentrated population centers as Brazil will eventually develop regional peculiarities in its speech. There is no shortage of examples of how each region has developed its own terms and meanings for words, and often the meanings seem so random that they simply sound bizarre to someone else.
In the state of Espirito Santo, for example, especially in the coastal towns of Guarapari and Anchieta, it is common for inhabitants to use the word “toxo” to respond negatively to someone else's statement. Locals say it all started when a local man changed the word toxic to the reduced version, which turned out to be a joke that caught and spread.
Another example whose meaning is a mystery is the expression “aidento”, used in Teresina, Piauí. Formed by the junction of the words “there” and “inside”, neologism has gained a pejorative meaning whose origin no inhabitant explains, but which offends everyone - especially the elders.
4 - Popular Mistakes
Anyone who has played a cordless phone knows the effects of oral communication on a person-to-person phrase. This fact is so real that it has affected even the most popular sayings and proverbs circulating throughout our country, even completely changing their meaning.
The phrase “who has a mouth goes to Rome”, which implies that a person who communicates well can get anywhere, originally was said “who has a mouth booing Rome”, meaning that anyone can criticize something that does not know well. A stark example, the phrase "donkey color on the run" is used to describe a color, which makes much less sense than the original "donkey on the run".
One of the most eschatological sayings in Brazil, “spit and spit” originated from the expression “carved in carrara”, which means that one person is so similar to another that it appears to have been made with the same marble mold. As Brazilians were not used to the name of the mineral, they confused it with the verb "spit", and then changing "carved" for "spit" was a simple matter of logic - even if it fails.
3 - Tupã sent
As much as one of the most striking features of the Brazilian people is their mix of populations from the remotest corners of the world, it is a fact that we have also received many influences from indigenous communities who have lived here since time immemorial. Examples can be seen in the names of places, monuments and even states, such as the Tietê river, the Maracanã stadium and the Amapá region.
Totaling 6 million Indians in Brazil when the country was discovered, today the native population has been reduced to about 300, 000 people, divided among 215 tribes - 55 of whom remain out of touch with “civilization”. And it is in these groups that we can see some of the most shocking practices and rituals for those outside the Aboriginal culture.
The Amazonian Satere-Mawe tribe, for example, is a practitioner of what is considered one of the most painful rites of passage in the world. The ceremony consists of wearing two gloves made of leaves, charcoal and 30 special ants, known to cause 24 hours of mind-blowing pain, vomiting, nausea and cardiac arrhythmia with just one bite. After going through the ritual and enduring a few days with the consequences, the "victim" is considered a true warrior.
2 - Milk with mango
As much as education, science, and technology go on and on and on in our lives, certain popular beliefs persist as part of our culture even after being denied. Let the first stone throw who never heard that mixing milk with mango is bad and can even kill.
No matter what city or region you live in, Brazilian beliefs are tied with steel shackles in the consciousness of the population. Whether it is crossing a knife that has fallen to the floor three times before getting up, untying the slipper for your mother not to die or not cursing near a toilet not to summon the blonde from the bathroom, we've all done something like that.
Many fishermen who make their living from the northeastern rivers, for example, still keep the habit of throwing a bottle of cachaça in the waters every time they go to work. For them, this serves to satisfy the Blackwater, a man with the hands and feet of a duck who turns the canoes of those who refuse to make their offerings.
1 - Pure Merit
As much as beliefs, speech habits, and exotic rituals sound strange to those who do not know or understand us, it is undeniable that there are elements of our culture that can shock anyone, even though they are already part of our daily lives. When asked what the country's biggest problems are, any self-respecting Brazilian thinks about the corruption of our politicians - and it is much worse than it seems.
As if the countless cases of millionaire coups, vote-buying kickback schemes and various scandals were not enough, the problems of unethical behavior in the Brazilian capital are even greater than most people know. To get a better idea, just compare the salaries of some employees in Brasilia with those in highly specialized positions in other sectors.
Although the exact numbers are not disclosed, it is known that, for example, a lift attendant from the Brazilian Senate lifts has a higher monthly salary than an Air Force Mirage fighter pilot. Similarly, a third-level deputy advisor who takes care of the politician's correspondence receives more than one researcher from the Oswaldo Cruz Institute Foundation, responsible for developing cures and vaccines against diseases.
It is noteworthy that all places in the world - and this includes each of the Brazilian states - have their own peculiarities, so it would never be possible to include everything in one text. Remember some strange custom or belief in your place? Have you visited any unusual habit states? Leave your opinion in the comments.
