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Today we are going to talk about some Brazilian customs that are considered a bit weird for someone from another country. This lesson will help you better understand Brazilians and our customs.
This is the second video I have published on the subject. If you haven’t watched the first video yet, click here to check it out!
1 – Brazilians take several showers a day
Taking a shower a day is the bare minimum for a Brazilian. Of course, each person has different habits. But, in general, Brazilians have the habit of showering very regularly.
I’ve never heard of a Brazilian who hasn’t showered for a day. The concept of skipping the shower for a day because it’s cold or for any other reason does not exist in Brazil.
2 – The number of kisses varies from place to place
As I mentioned in the last video I made about Brazilian customs, we usually greet each other with kisses and hugs.
However, the number of kisses is not always the same. It depends on the place. This is confusing even for us Brazilians. If you travel from one city to another in Brazil, you never know how many kisses to give!
For example:
- In Florianópolis, in southern Brazil, people greet each other with three kisses on the cheek, alternating sides.
- In Rio de Janeiro, people greet each other with two kisses on the cheek, one on each side.
- In São Paulo, people greet each other with just one kiss on the cheek. I think people from São Paulo are always in a hurry, so they don’t have time to give two or three kisses!
Now, what to do when someone from São Paulo meets a friend from Rio? This situation is always funny, and we never know how many kisses to give.
3 – Brazilians eat pizza with a knife and fork
Of course, some people eat pizza with their hands, but it is much more common to eat pizza with a knife and fork. Some pizzas have too many toppings, and it’s impossible to eat them with your hands.
And have you ever had chocolate pizza? That’s right! In Brazil, it’s common! Brazilian pizzerias have a dessert menu with many options of sweet pizzas, such as chocolate with strawberry, banana with condensed milk, and many other flavors.
4 – The Brazilian hot dog has a lot of fillings
In the United States, a hot dog is just bread with sausage and a little mustard. That’s it! For us Brazilians, this is not a decent hot dog! There are many variations of hot dogs in Brazil, but they all have a lot of fillings.
The traditional hot dog is made with tomato sauce, onion, sausage, corn and potato sticks on top. Some places even put mashed potatoes inside the bun, and the hot dog gets huge.
5 – Brazilians eat avocado with sugar
Yes, you heard it correctly. In Brazil, we eat avocado in sweet recipes. For example, avocado smoothie with milk, avocado ice cream or popsicle. We also eat pure avocado with lime and sugar. It’s delicious!
Also, the avocado you find in Brazil is bigger and tastes a little different from the small avocado found in the United States.
6 – Credit or debit?
Why is it that when you go to pay for something with a card in Brazil, the cashier asks: is it credit or debit? Honestly, I can’t explain why.
I think that machines that take card payments require you to indicate whether you are using a credit or debit card. For this reason, cashiers always ask customers what type of card they are using.
7 – CPF na nota?
If you’ve been to Brazil, you’ve probably also heard this question when you were paying a bill. What does “CPF na nota” mean?
CPF stands for “Cadastro de Pessoa Física” (Individual Taxpayer Number). It is the national document used by the IRS to identify taxpayers. It is equivalent to the “Social Security Number” in the United States.
The “CPF na nota” is an initiative of some state governments to encourage the issuance of receipts in order to combat tax evasion. Consumers who ask for CPF in the receipt receive tax incentives and other benefits.
I find it interesting that here in the United States, citizens are advised not to give their SSN to anyone! They worry a lot about identity theft. On the other hand, in Brazil, we give our CPF to everyone! It’s completely normal.
That’s it, everyone! I hope you enjoyed learning more about Brazilian culture and our customs.
Até a próxima!
Your teacher,
Virginia
