Curitiba and Sao Paulo, Brazil

I joined a startup called Pipefy a little over a month ago and got the chance to visit the Brazil office recently.

A few of the things that attracted me most to Pipefy were (1) the unique origin story and culture (at least by Silicon Valley standards) and (2) the opportunity to make an impact at a global scale.

I didn’t quite know what to expect when I arrived in Curitiba, Brazil, but when I got there, I was blown away. Everyone was so welcoming and friendly. The energy and spirit was amazing and contagious. I fell in love with the culture.

Maybe it was because I was being welcomed into the company or some other reason, but I definitely felt the love. If anything, I learned that Brazilians know how to party and they know how to barbeque.

Brazilian barbeques felt like the quintessential activity. Pretty much every house has a barbeque grill oven built into the side of it, and when you host a barbeque, you just invite over your friends, play some music, throw endless amounts of amazing meat on the grill, have some drinks.

You just can’t help but have a good time.

My weeklong trip had a little bit of everything:

• A day trip to a cute town called Morretes where they are known for a stewed beef dish called barreado.
• Played futbol with the Pipefy crew. Brazilians are good at soccer fyi.
• A trip to a beautiful beach
• Happy hours with cachaca and caipirinhas
• Learning the lyrics and dances to some popular songs
• Lots of steak

Unfortunately my trip back home didn’t go so smoothly. As a frequent flyer, I encountered one of the worst scenarios when we my plane was about to take off from Sao Paulo.

As we were accelerating on the runway, there was a small explosion in the right wing engine. I was seated on just a few rows ahead in the middle of the plane and saw it all: the boom and the orange flash of fire. Luckily, the fire went out right away and we slowed down.

The flight got cancelled and on the bright side of things, I got to unexpectedly spend a day in Sao Paulo. It was Easter Sunday, and I walked all around the city, exploring Avenida Paulista (the huge main street in the city which is closed to traffic on Sundays), Ibirapuera Park, and Liberdade (SP’s Japantown). It was a great little walking tour.

At night, I flew out without any issues this time. I had a blast in Brazil and hope to visit again soon.

Good vibes only.