Vila Zelina; the neighbourhood you should have heard of by now but haven't

Residents of Vila Zelina

São Paulo is known worldwide as one of the major destinations for immigrants during the early 20th century. It's said to be home to the largest population of Italian, Japanese and Lebanese ancestry out of each of these home countries.

But while Bixiga is well known for its cantinas and Liberdade is famous for its sushi and karaoke, a small neighborhood in South Eastern São Paulo called "Vila Zelina" gets very little attention.

For the last 80 years, it's been the home of Russian, Lithuanian, Ukranian and other Eastern European families that came to São Paulo to flee WWI and the Bolshevik revolution in Russia. Despite living in fear of repression during the Brazilian military dictatorship, the community is alive and well and making efforts to revive its home culture through popular dishes, music, costumes and festivities.

You would be excused for thinking this scene was far from São Paulo

Just as the large Jewish and Arab communities in São Paulo get on relatively well, despite recent conflicts between Ukraine and Russia, local residents in Vila Zelina get along very well. Visitors to the neighborhood can find peace and quiet is the middle of this bustling metropolis, shop for Matryoshkas (traditional Russian dolls) or even try Varenykys, smoked herring and other Eastern European dishes.

An insight into low rider culture in Brazil

Riding the streets of São Paulo

Ethnicity and identity are fluid concepts. Much more fluid than you might think and with a reach that goes beyond borders.

Even though the Latin American interpretation would be more indigenous, think Cholo and, if you´re from the US, you will conjure up ideas of baggy khaki shorts, white wife-beaters and tattoos with Catholic imagery all rolled up in a Latino gangster or pseudo-gangster look. Now, not all Cholos are low riders but more importantly when you think of low riders you think Mexican in LA, you certainly don’t think Brazilian living in São Paulo. But subcultures sometimes move fast and move far and, believe it or not, in São Paulo there is a small but growing group of self-styled Brazilian cholos on oversize handlebar bikes or custom-made low-riders.

More fascinating still, is that the subculture has not leaked down the continent, as you might expect, from Mexican-Americans to Portuguese speaking latinos, it went via Japan. The current street culture in São Paulo can be traced back to Japanese immigrants in the 1990s who came to join the already huge Japanese community in São Paulo and introduced low rider culture.

Car-hopping in São Paulo

South American Cholo is a documentary that takes a look at São Paulo's low rider culture and in it Sergio Hideo Yoshinaga, 43, the owner of a garage in São Paulo where many retro cars are turned into low rider monsters, explains how he was one of the Japanese pioneers of the movement admiring the aesthetics of the Japanese low rider offshoots and taking the concept to São Paulo. The Brazilian interpretation is just that, an interpretation, adapted to São Paulo, not just an imitation of Mexican-American street culture. As such it provides insights about how fashion spreads, the meaning of identity for both the low rider himself and for São Paulo, his city.

Here is the trailer to the documentary:

The film will be released in two versions: English and Portuguese

Lunch in São Paulo's Little Korea

I recently travelled to South Korea and, knowing little about what I should expect, I was pleasantly suprised by what I found there. So much so that I now hunt down Korean restaurants wherever I happen to be.

Lucky then, that Brazil has the largest Korean population in Latin America and that cosmopolitan São Paulo is home to most of them. Back in the day emigration was encouraged to reduce unemployment and population growth in South Korea. This population has been boosted by some less official arrivals from the porous border with neighbouring Paraguay peaking somewhere between 50,000 and 100,000, 90% of which were in São Paulo. This has since dropped due to the South Korean economic "miracle" and the "reverse migration" phenomenon it produced.

Still there are 3 neighbourhoods in São Paulo with significant Korean population: Bom Retiro which is shared by many other immigrants and is home to the Korean embassy, Aclimação a middle to upperclass area and Bras, famous locally for its cheap clothes (it's no coincidence that most Koreans work in the textile business, one of South Korea's trademark industries)

Here are some pictures from my lunch last month on the back streets of the Bom Retiro district:

A typical Korean meal in Bom Retiro, São Paulo

Spicy sashimi salad

Hard to order tea if you don't speak Korean!

I still have to hit up on Bras and Aclimação which I've heard has some superb restaurants. To be continued...