São Paulo Series - Liberdade

Liberdade, according to some posts on TripAdvisor, is "Little Tokyo". This kind of gross exaggeration bordering on ignorance makes me lose confidence in the content of this web site. Liberdade is dirty, unkempt, full of tacky shops - nothing like Tokyo at all.

There was but one shop near the market stalls that sells genuine Japanese articles, the rest are just tourist tack mostly mimicking Japanese products. It's a crying shame that Japanese culture is being parodied in this unsympathetic manner. 

The first thing that looks decidedly out of place is the use of Torii gate in a commercial area. In Japanese tradition, a torii gate is most commonly found at the entrance or within a Shinto shrine, marking the transition from the profane to the sacred. The Liberdade community has other thoughts on exploiting this recognizable symbol of Japan.

A Torii gate at Liberdade

It was Saturday and there were market stalls selling food, jewelry, plants, clothes - all the usual suspects at a market. Here I found the second thing that looks distinctly non Japanese: the variety of food being sold from market stalls, all of them adapted for local taste. The gyozas were four times the size of a gyoza in Japan; there were even grilled shrimps in their shells - something I did not see at Japan. Really, the Japanese descendants could do better.

Japanese food?

Local version of bonsai

The third thing that looks out of place is the street vendor trading from the pavement. This cannot be Japanese at all. China, may be. Worse still, there were many traders selling copy videos some of which are clearly pornography.

Pavement traders

There were a number of Chinese provision stores / supermarkets and there, I saw vegetables that I am familiar with - they were the staple diet during my childhood in Hong Kong. There were also many Chinese food stuffs, including the egg rolls that I used to love until I realized the amount of calories in them.

Chinese vegetables

Liberdade was very busy during the weekend. Tourists flock to this place. I was hoping to find proper sushi, sashimi, ramen noodles, tonkatsu, etc. to revive my taste buds,but I only found faux sushi made only with salmon. What a disappointment.

Busy weekend, Liberdade

And now, to something definitely not Japanese: mural art. But this is São Paulo, so why not? Or maybe I should research a little bit on Japanese sci-fi art?

Mural, Liberdade

São Paulo Series - Ibirapeura Park

Ibirapeura Park is about 800m from the hotel, so within walking distance. Every morning on my way to work, I see many joggers using this park to keep fit. During the weekend, the place is thronged with people who visit the park to relax, to play sports, and generally to enjoy the outdoors.

The first thing I noticed at the Park are the vendors who sell snacks, cold drinks and ice cream. My favourite drink is Coco Verde - coconut water in their shell, for 5 BRL. Some vendors even offer chairs for their customers. Hot foot is available only at restaurants. I tried The Green, rated favourably by TripAdvisor, but the buffet turned out to be so mediocre that it was not worth a second visit.

Vendors of food and drink at Ibirapeura Park

At one of my visits, I watched a bunch of young kids practicing acrobatics. They were budding artists and their dedication was laudable. Usually older Brazilians would ask me: where are you from? But young people are less interested in strangers and they continued to practice to the music.

One more time

In early spring, there was a profusion of cherry blossoms, a variety that blossomed in a ball-shaped cluster.This beautiful tree, so celebrated by the Japanese, seem much less appreciated by the Brazilians. I have since learnt that there is a cherry blossom festival at Parque de Carmo, but alas I missed the event.

Ethereal cherry blossoms

São Paulo is noted for her murals. There are a few interesting murals within the Park, but due to my ignorance, I am not able to identify the artists. I particularly like the colourful ones. Here, a young girl with broken teeth beamed at the onlookers. 

A colourful mural

Everywhere in the park, people found a spot for themselves to pursue their own activities, whether to sit and talk, read, snuggle up to their loved ones, or many other things within the realms of human possibilities.

A quiet moment with the dogs

Playing basketball

Photo shoot of a pregnant girl

And finally to man's best friend. Dog owners gather at specific parts of the park, enjoying each other's company and allowing their dogs to enjoy their canine company. Here is a little one, named Joey, parading in his baseball cap. Since most of the people live in apartments at São Paulo,there are unsurprisingly a large number of small dogs. And judging from the number of pet shops, the Brazilians at São Paulo really do love their dogs. 

A dog's life

Athens series - Out and about

There was not much time to explore Athens. We came across some events and passed some neighbourhoods that will remind us of this city that was the cradle of democracy.

It was October 28th, the day when the Greeks commemorated Ochi Day, the anniversary of General Ioannis Metaxas's refusal to allow the Axis's forces free passage to invade Greece. Instead, the Greeks seized the offensive and drove the Italians back through most of Albania. Syntagma Square was closed closed off on the day, to allow the parade to pass through Parliament. Our hotel was right in front of Syntagma Square so we were able to approach the barricades to watch the parade. Endless streams of school children, youths, boy scouts & girl guides marched by. It soon got very tedious. The event was closely watched by the military, the police and plenty of shady men in civilian clothes with earpieces screening every person approaching the barricades. It soon became clear that they were not tourists but men with a mission. As soon as they realized that we were not there to mean harm to the parade, they relaxed and let us approach the barricades.

Ochi Day Parade in front of the Parliament

Everywhere we went in Athens, we came across small Byzantine chapels that were built in the 11th and 12th century, the golden ages of Athenian Byzantine art. These tiny Byzantine chapels with their red-tiled domes are antique gems set among the modern concrete buildings of the urban metropolis. We are so used to the spaciousness of Catholic and Protestant churches that these small dingy chapels feel claustrophobic, enlivened only by the gold and silver icons inside.

A man sweeping outside a Byzantine chapel

Nestled among the bustling old town of Plaka, a tourist trap in every description, are labyrinthine streets that present a charming side of Athens. Here we spotted a tortoise-shell cat among the bougainvillea, pastel and ochre-coloured walls, oblivious to the world around.

Typical street at Plaka, Athens

And now Plaka. One can love it or hate it.The tourist shops are crammed full of stuff, mostly junk. Most of the shops seem to buy their merchandise from the same factory or distribution outlets. If you dare stand next to a jewelry shop window, you will be pounced on by by eager shop assistants, literally dragging you inside. One shop was asking €22K for a 18 carat gold bracelet, which the shop owner declared would come with certificate to attest to its origin. A few hundred metres away the same article was €8K,also with certificate. 

Plaka,tourist trap

A shop in Plaka adorned with tourist tack

Right in the middle of Syntagma Square was this recycle bank sponsored by Ikea. I was rather intrigued that recycling, which is the responsibility of the municipal administration, has been used to promote private enterprise or was it the other way round? 

Integrated recycling centre, Syntagma Square

Athens Series - Byzantine & Christian Museum

We saw the most fabulous Byzantine mosaic at the Kariye Museum, Istanbul and was expecting to see something similar at the Byzantine & Christian Museum. What we saw was an endless parade of icons, the kind of two dimensional art that least attracts me. 

The Byzantine & Christian Museum, Athens

A statement modern sculpture, entirely out of place

Icon of St Catherine

Icon of Christ, note the skin colour

Icon of Virgin Hodegetria & Child

Yet another icon of Madonna & Child

Towards the end of the visit, we were nearly blinded by the surfeit of gold, the stylized long pointed fingers, and the abundance of halos.

An ornate altar piece

Byzantine wall painting in Attica

Note to self: I have enough of icons for a lifetime.

Athens Series - National Archaeological Museum

To me, a visit to Athens would not be complete with visiting the National Archaeological Museum. It has the reputation of being one of the greatest museums in the world, containing the richest collection of artifacts from Greek antiquity world. 

The imposing neo-classical entrance to the National Archaeological Museum

The day we visited the museum happened to be a public holiday so entrance was free. We used the service of a local guide for an hour and she enthralled us with her mastery of the English language and her grasp of the artifacts from the Mycenaean and classical periods.

The Artemision Bronze

Without a doubt, my most favourite piece was the Artemision Bronze. Here, the figure (was it Zeus or Poseidon?) literally packed a punch, with a perfect six pack and a perfectly honed physique. Lots of tourists posed in front of the statue, and had to be tempered by a guard. I noted that all the guards in the museum were females, and most of them rather attractive.

Jockey of Artemision

Found at the same shipwreck off Cape Artemision as the Artemision Bronze was this fine equestrian statue. One can almost hear the gallop of the horse and feel the intensity of the race, with a small boy riding bareback.

Gold covering the body of an infant, Mycenaean period, 16th century BC 

For me, the most impressive artefacts were the findings from the archaeological excavation at the site of Mycenae, donated to the Greek nation by the German archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann. Among the objects he unearthed was a series of gold death masks, including the gold coverings of a dead child.

There were so many fabulous pieces; here are just a few that I love.

Gold headdress

Wall frescoes from Santorini

Cycladic female sculptures

Ivory comb

Aphrodite

A funerary stele

Augustus

Athens Series - The Agora

What attracted us to the Agora was the fact that it was the centre of political and public life in Athens in ancient times, and I wanted to see the Temple of Hephaestus. We went in the evening, passing endless restaurants where waitresses and waiters were eagerly pounding on passers-by, almost like pray mantis springing on their preys. This was an aspect that I really disliked about Athens. When I was looking at jewelry shops, I was almost dragged into them a couple of times until I finally gave up looking at shop windows.

Restaurants lined the path to the Agora

Once passed the hordes of restaurants, we could see the restored Stoa of Attalos, resplendent in the remnants of daylight. We climbed to the first floor and had saw the Temple of Hephaestus in the distance. Even in the quietness of the evening, I almost could hear the noise of days gone by when merchants gathered here to sell their goods and artists came here to display their artwork. Today, the Stoa is but an empty shell, displaying some marble statues. But we welcomed the relief from the hustle and bustle of the tourist crowd. 

The restored Stoa of Attalos, Athens

Ionic columns inside the Stoa

In the fading daylight, we went up the hill to see the Temple of Hephaestus. Up close, the building, constructed of Pentelic marble, is less impressive than it is from a distance. Everywhere we go these days, tourist attractions are swamped by visitors taking selfies, and this place was no exception. Eventually, a local attendant told us that the place was closing and it was time to go. At a distance, the lights of the Acropolis shone in the dusk.

Temple of Hephaestus, Athens

View of Athens from the Temple of Hephaestus

Stoa of Attalos, seen from Temple of Hephaestus

The Acropolis, seen from Temple of Hephaestus

I end this blog with one of the beautiful sculptures from the Stoa. The handsome face of a young man, with smiling and intelligent eyes, surpassed all those heads of senators, generals, and philosophers that litter the museums.

Athens Series - Benaki Museum

There are a number of noteworthy museums at Athens that I was determined not to miss. The trick however is that strolling among the museum exhibits is exhausting, particularly in the rarefied atmosphere inside the museum. I remember the time when I had to lie down for a while at the Prado Museum just from sheer exhaustion. So much to see, so little time, and not much fresh air.

The Benaki Museum is one of those private museums established and endowed by a fabulously wealthy family, in this case the Benakis. Over 3 floors, the museum showcased gold, funerary steles, arms, wood carvings, ceramics, pottery, glasswork and textiles focusing mainly on Greece through all ages of Greek culture and history. It is a museum rich with variety but lacking in statement pieces. However, the complete freedom of movement within the  museum where visitors are expected to respect the place and the objects on display was entirely refreshing. There was not a single attendant admonishing visitors not to do this or that.

The neoclassical entrance to Benaki Museum, Athens

Foyer, Benaki Museum

One of the exhibition rooms. Notice the folk costumes, part of a huge collection

Part of an extensive collection of gold jewelry

Incense burners and religious objects

One of the fabulous altarpieces

A watercolour of the Acropolis

Byzantine art: an icon of Christ. Note the skin colour.

What I missed was a good audio guide to learn more about the exhibits. The museum assumes that the descriptions are enough, but they are not because I for one would like to learn more about this vast collection amassed over the years and spanning thousands of centuries from pre-historic time to the 20th century.