ExPatNoBrasil · S1 Ep. 01
Mercadão
The big municipal market: the famous counters, unfamiliar fruit, and what a first visit costs.
Chapter 1 · The first chapter
Brasil
ExPatNoBrasil · Seasons 1–10
Watch the trailer · 1:53
An American in São Paulo. No postcards.
Watch on YouTube · Plays from YouTube when you press play.
About this chapter
The first chapter, filmed honestly.
After a career of flying in for client work, this is the first place I unpacked. ExPatNoBrasil follows the ordinary parts: markets, supermarkets, lunch breaks, bakeries, and the errand days in between.
Every chapter of Past Customs follows the same format: a series, the real costs, the basics, and what I would do differently.
The series
Ten seasons
Season 1Now showing
Season 2To come
Season 3To come
Season 4To come
Season 5To come
Season 6To come
Season 7To come
Season 8To come
Season 9To come
Season 10To come
Season 1
Episodes
ExPatNoBrasil · S1 Ep. 02
A Supermarket in Bela Vista
Aisle by aisle: what is cheap, what is imported, and what I gave up looking for.
ExPatNoBrasil · S1 Ep. 03
Lunch on Faria Lima
The business-district lunch. Plates, prices, and the office crowd at noon.
ExPatNoBrasil · S1 Ep. 04
Padaria Italianinha
An old-school bakery in Bixiga. Coffee at the counter, bread, and regulars.
More episodes
Further episodes will be added here as they are released.
Costs
What it actually costs to live here
Cost breakdowns for this chapter will be published from my own receipts, with the date, the currency, and the context attached. No borrowed averages and no rounded internet numbers.
Until then, here is the method: How to build an honest cost-of-living budget.
Basics
Getting set up, sorted
Getting around
Metro, buses, and rideshare. Learn the transit card or app first.
Paying
Cards are common, cash still matters, and local payment apps are everywhere. Watch what people use.
Phone
A local number unlocks deliveries, apps, and building access.
Housing
Furnished short lets exist. Ask about the deposit structure before you sign.
Language
Portuguese basics go a long way at the counter and the clinic.
Health
Private clinics are common. Keep records in one folder.
Looking back
What I'd do differently
- 1Rent short first. Pick the neighborhood after you have walked it, not before.
- 2Sort the phone number and banking access first.
- 3Learn food vocabulary before anything else.
- 4Keep every receipt. It is the only honest budget.
- 5Say yes to the neighborhood lunch spot early and often.