Gone Shopping in the Saara

That's not a misspelling. I haven't been to the desert in Africa, but to a Mecca for shoppers in downtown Rio. The rather tongue-in-cheek acronym stands for Sociedade dos Amigos das Adjacências da Rua da Alfândega, an association of wholesalers, retailers, and restaurant owners, between Avenida Presidente Vargas and Praça Tiradentes. Originally, shop owners were Middle Eastern immigrants (in fact, people still go there to eat what Brazilians call "Arab" food): Lebanese, Palestinians, Syrians, Iraqis, and Jews. In fact, it's one of the few places on Earth, if not the only spot, where Christians, Muslims, and Jews are perfectly happy to work and live, do business and observe religious feasts side by side, in great harmony. These days, there's been an influx of newcomers from the Far East and the addition of one holiday; the Chinese New Year is now celebrated, along with Yom Kippur and Ramadan, and St. George, who's probably more popular here than in England!

Anyway, the Saara should be your destination for party articles and inexpensive carnaval costumes and masks; spices, perfumes, essences, and aromatic oils; dried flowers; dates and nuts; costume jewelry and fashionable (but throw away and disposable!) accessories; jeans at a fraction of what they cost in the shopping malls, and gorgeous fabrics. When Rio sizzles (like right now), it's best to go early in the morning on a weekday, but avoid Fridays like the plague.


Downtown Rio, or as it's affectionately known, "the city," is also the place to go to feed your soul. If it's a bit run-down and rough around the edges, due to years of neglect by the previous administration, it's still a treasure trove of museums, art galleries, and cultural spaces, and a great favorite of mine. Yesterday afternoon, I saw a fantastic exhibition called "Brasil Brasileiro" at the Centro Cultural Banco do Brasil. I thought it was very clever to divide the paintings into themes or modules: Our Land, Our People, Our Dreams, Our Struggles, and give each one a soundtrack, since the title of the show is borrowed from "Aquarela do Brasil" by Ary Barroso. And, as "there'll be music" is a given in this most musical of cities, why not end the day in company with two of its most charming and talented performers? Pictured here are the duo Nilze Carvalho and Marcos Sacramento, who brought the house down at the CCBB last night and, as usual, made me wish I didn't have to leave.

The traditional Brazilian fabrics called chitão were photographed at Casa Turunas in the Saara. They are being made into pillow covers for my new home in the U.S.

Here's a link to the Saturday evening performance on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uuE-viltvHs&feature=related

"No Tempo do Nice" photo credit: Maria Braga