Didn´t Mark Twain say that or something similar to it? Anyway, this is a two part report. The cynics or realists can skip the second part.

I just got out of Solarium after being there on a Friday from around 5 to 9. There have been a lot of reports lately about the lack of quality material here in Rio. Last night I was at Luomos which did not impress me on my last, and first, trip to Rio. It was better last night although my blonde companion somehow managed to forget that we had a 40 minute cabine and not the hour suite that she put down for the bill. Moral of the story is to double check your bill. Costs, after a refund, were 50 entrance, 120 garota, and I forget the cabine but I think it was 50 or so.

Back to Solarium. There were around 30 garotas tonight and maybe 10 or so men. The women were not happy although they put their best faces, and butts, forward. It has been two years since I was last there with a lot of water under the bridge and too many dead brain cells to do a real comparison of prettiness. I think the 10s and 9s have departed but overall I felt the quality was good. I was happy and so was my dick. Costs were 50 entrance, 120 for the garota, and 50 for the cabine. 12.50 for three drinks.

OK, that´s the end of the of the ´hard´data. What follows is your usual loser/sucker story that most of you have experienced even if some do not like to admit it.

Last trip Solarium was my favorite due to one particular garota. She was super affectionate in every way. My frustration was that I wanted to talk with her but spoke no Portuguese and was stuck with speaking very slow Spanish. By the end of my trip I swore that the next time I returned to Rio I would be able to say at least a minimum of intelligent conversation.

First thing I did back home was to buy Pimsleur. In two years I have repeated it maybe 7 times. Nine months ago I began seeing a local Brazilian for an hour a week. I have reached the point, or so I thought anyway, of being able to butcher my way through a variety of subjects. Understanding what I hear from others is still a major problem.

The first 3 months of so of my studies I would nightly look at the pictures of my ´favorita´ as a stimulus to continue. Eventually she faded from my memory except as something to give me a smile when I realized that I was slowly, very slowly, opening the door to a new place.

So, here we are as I walk into the bar area at Solarium after two years. And guess who the very first person that I saw was? She recognized me, I smiled and said her name, and she just about melted into my arms. For the next 30 minutes of so she could barely conrol herself with kisses, careses, and just plain happiness that an old customer had returned and was looking for her. And to add whipped cream to the sundae, she is the first person in Rio who I actually can understand. It was a whole new level of contact which is what I had wanted so much on my first trip. I won´t go into all the details of what we talked about because that´s not really relevent. What counts is that a person two years ago affected me enough that I changed my life and have been trying to better understand another culture and its langauge.

I´ll be here for another 10 days of so which means I will see her again. And again. I have no idea where this will lead and if I am smart I will leave Rio with a kiss or two and no forwarding address.

It´s strange how some things come back around.

Hey, that's a sweet story. A lot of people assume that people who participate in sex tourism (guys AND garotas) are faceless, heartless people of a lesser sort. Your post goes to prove that we are just as human and caring as they come. I, frankly, prefer the company of prostitutes over most other casual aquaintances in my life.

If you're smart, you'll follow your heart while covering your ass/bases.

Good luck to you!


(Message edited by defconsul on June 10, 2005)

Man, I've been down this road. It HURTS... and I keep doing it... because I want to keep doing it.

Go ahead, Lose your heart, NOT your head. It is wonderful while it is happening and hurts like hell when it ends. It is supposed to hurt. Keep your eyes open for if she is gaming you. Do not call her on it, it is lose lose.

Enjoy the ride. It aint real, so fuckin what. Enjoy it. If you think it's real, it aint, enjoy it anyway. Treat her special. If two years later, it is still the same, well, just wait, do not let what you want to beleive make up your mind but be open to good people.

GFE sucks. I just can't get enough of it.

Tears are just dripping from my fawking eyes. What is this.....Romance Shit.....wake up...smell the coffee....

Opinions are like assholes; everyone's got one. I'll forego offering mine. Glad you're having a good trip, and I hope all continues to go well.

There's no real way to learn Portuguese well other than to listen to it and speak it. Tapes, CDs, and books can give you a jump-start, but you have to listen to and speak the language to get it. Good luck with that part of it. A Brasilian friend of mine told me that 90% of the people studying Portuguese are doing so because of an encounter with a brasiliera. He may have underestimated the real number...

BD-I couldn't agree more. I have started taking 2 hour private lessons three times per week and average 5 hours of homework per class. My Portuguese has improved dramatically over the past 45 days (and I even advanced on my lessons while on a 30 day haitus in Panama and CTG with sweetmesquite...without a dictionary,PC or teacher). I am actually beginning to understand most things people are saying to me; can conjugate most verbs (although the irregulars are a real bitch) and am feeling much more comfortable attempting to take care of my own business without assistance.....mostly.

If you are here for an extended stay, I highly recommend some private lessons 2-3 times per week. You will be amazed at how quickly you begin to pick up on things. If you are here frequently for 7-15 day periods, same recommendation.

For those of you who are fluent in several languages, you know exactly what I am talking about.

It goes in plateaus. Just when you think you are catching on, someone throws something at you that totally blows your mind.

I am actually asking/imploring people to correct me when I am wrong.

What a difference!

It can be costly but so can ignorance!
"Ignorance can be taught, stupidity can't" Wish I knew who said that?

Sandman

I thought it was "ignorance can be cured, stupidity can't."

And the bitch of the bitch, Sandman, is that the most commonly used verbs are irregular, and of the "idiosyncratically irregular" variety. Fortunately there are only 8 of these. What I still struggle with is the use of the subjunctive tense, especially on the fly in conversations. It's gonna be years before I master this. Guess I need to stay longer and come more often...

Tight_fit:
Man I am AMAZED at you. Have you really done Pimsleur lessons 1-90 SEVEN times? Holy shit! Talk about discipline! I'm sure your current trip will be LEAPS and BOUNDS better than the first.

One thing though? All of these girls have VERY messed up lives, and the more you understand portugues, the more they will want to share their 'novelas' or soap opera lives with you. Uhhhggggg....

I'm on Pimsleur II, around lesson 40 or so. But after spending much of the past 9 months in Brazil, my spoken portuguese is probably much further along. The problem I have with Pimsleur is that my bootleg copy came with no written text, and I am a visual learner.

To correct the problem, I have enlisted the assistance of a local brazilian buddy. Our study methods? We're perusing the Brazilian online personals, and I'm writing to the girls. My buddy and I only speak portugues when we do so. We meet 2-3x/week at a bar for drinks/dinner and use my laptop w/cellular internet. Very cool way to study that fits into my lifestyle.

So far I am developing some wonderful relationships with well-educated women considerably younger than myself. And the motivation to continue in these studies has never been higher. Plus my buddy is patiently explaining the cultural nuances of dating to me, from the standpoint of a brazilian man. The results have been astounding.

Enjoy the remainder of your trip Tight-Fit.

DG

Deeg,

If they're hanging with a degenerate, dirty safado like you, they can't be that fucking well-educated. Well lubricated, sure, but I have my doubts on the education front

Totally agree about the language thing. I've been using Rosetta Stone for Spanish for the past two months and between that and insisting that a couple of work colleagues only speak to me in Spanish, I'm seeing an improvement.

Don Gringo - if you're a visual guy this is perfect for you - it's all multiple choice images onscreen.

Such a good thing to have, a second or third language.

Pimsleur has definitely enhaced my Brazilian experiences. Along with a couple of other demented travelers i also Have a Saturday AM aula with a Profesora Brazileira. Been through all 90 many times unfortunately it still leaves you with a very limited vocabulary. The garotas seem to appreciate it, and at times I believe it gives me a slight advantage in how I'm treated.
Key phrase is still chupa sem camisinha (sp?) during the interview process....whether in a terma, help, terraco or barbarella.

I've been through Pimsleur several times too, but my ability to speak leaped ahead with a month of hour-a-day lessons in Rio. I'm fluent within the limited Pimsleur vocabulary. Like you, TF, I have a lot of trouble UNDERSTANDING what they are saying, especially when you throw in the differing accents in Salvador, Nordeste, Minas Gerais, and probably more that I didn't encounter (or identify).

I'm thrilled to be developing the ability to converse in another language, and learning more about the culture. I just got Pimsleur Thai....

Thanks bwana for "curing my ignorance". Know who said it?

You do need to cum more often....

You are right on about those irregulars. I have most of them written on flash cards (present, past and future), choose one or more per day and practice using it in conversations. Still a bitch even when it is right in front of my eyes.

OK-here is a trivia question for the board (and i do not know the answer).

what is the genesis of the term "programma" girl. On the program; do you want to program tonight?;

On the learning front, while I was in Panama and Colombia, my professora had me write out all the Pimsleur L-1 words and phrases. I didn't have my dictionary or laptop with me and got a surprisingly large percentage of the words and phrases correct. It was quite a task but well worth the effort and is becoming an excellent visual aid. Speaking this language is one thing. Reading it and writing it is another but mandatory for becoming fluent in any language.

Last little bit of Port. lessons for the day;

Most books tell us there are only 23 letters in the Br. Port. language. Well, that is not exactly correct. There are 26 but only 23 are actually used (K,W and Y being excluded). They just don't have any words except peoples names, scientific, business and legal terms (and those that are adopted like karaoke, Kiwi etc). Ask a Brasilian to repeat the alphabet and they will say the K,W and Y. Kids sing the familiar ABC song and those letters are there.....

Okay, back to the Colombia trip report.

P.S. This is the 10th straight day in a row of absolutely gorgeous weather here. Very few tourists in town. Last night at Help maybe half the normal crowd for a Sat. night. Great ratio, maybe 3:1 or more and girls begging for clients. Managed several new numbers for future festa prospects and will make a closer inspection before they make the cut.....

Sandman

Tight_fit

I have the same situation as you. I met a sweetheart on my last trip and I was really frustrated by not being able to have an intellectual conversation with this girl. I guess some will argue that I can’t even do that in English. I call her every other week or so and the conversation is still fairly slow.

The point being, I also caught the bug and came home and found a local teacher for private classes. She’s a teacher from Rio now living in my hometown. I also purchased a cd set off the internet that came with a workbook with exercises that was $40, it turns out it’s as good as Pimsleur for fraction the price. I found that when in Brazil I picked up on the language so much faster than here at home. I’ll be back in Sept to try my hand at it and hopefully I’m understanding when the locals are screwing me for the $ before it happens…lol

I agree with defconsul, not all of us do treat these girls as faceless, although when you do meet one that you click with it is fun to stick it out and see what happens, specially if your single like me and don’t have anything to loose. Just my 2 cents worth!

Tight_Fit,

The long term relationships that have developed for me over the past few years in SP and BA have been the absolute best. Keep it fun, open, and enjoy the ride. It is one of the best you can experience.

Enjoy the life,

Moondog

The most difficult thing about "relationships" with garotas is that they are simultaneously real and a game. I think the affection is often genuine, that's why its so believable and addictive. The problem is if they sense you are vulnerable or you let yourself become vulnerable they will take advantage of you. So I find myself in the situation where I have strong feelings for a person I can't trust, which is a highly conflicted state of mind.

"the situation where I have strong feelings for a person I can't trust, which is a highly conflicted state of mind."

Throw in a couple of drinks and a Woody. It becomes total chaos....

The Girls know this.

HL

(Message edited by hotluck on June 30, 2005)

so tightfit, how did things work out?



(Message edited by gr8ter on July 09, 2005)

common you know we just want to poke her eyes out and skull fuck her...what do you mean faceless?

also keep in mind; there are different levels of portuguese. if for example you are being taught by someone of lower class, than your portuguese will be as such.

Things never progressed beyond the terma. We talked about maybe doing something together on her day off but I left too soon. She did give me her address which is the longest one I have ever seen. I showed it to Sandman who told me he didn't recognize the area. That may be a negative or a positive. I have halfway thought of creating a losing situation by sending her a letter with a picture of me so she can put a face to a name. I would also include a picture I took of her which came out fantastic. I wish I wasn't so darn "nice" as I would love to post the photo to see what numbers it would rate.

Ixtoc - That is maybe the most eloquent summary of this hobby I've read or heard. Did you make that shit up, or is it divine?

My conflicts can get real bad, but I've found an antidote. Ask them to phuck you for free.

Puts a whole new spin on the "vulnerability" thing. Of course, if they agree, you've got another set of issues, but at least you don't worry as much about being taken advantage of.