Yesterday I arrived in Rio de Janeiro for the IPTV Americas show. It took about 18 hours to fly here (along with a stop over and a plane delay), so you have to really want to come here. I was joking earlier today that I should use Skype to give my presentation next year–if Skype is good enough for CNN and Oprah it should suffice for conference organizers.

Early evening view from my hotel room
Anyway, the first step to coming to Rio is getting a visa. It seems like Brazil is one of the few South American countries that requires a visa from U.S. citizens. No big deal, really, but there are a lot of hoops to go through before you know you actually receive a visa. You probably shouldn’t buy that plane ticket yet, in case you’re denied the visa. And you probably don’t want to book your hotel either. Plan ahead!
In order to get a visa, you need to hand over your passport to the Brazilian consulate, and also give them supporting documents so they know you’re not going to Brazil to work.
Upon entering the Brazilian consulates’ office, I was reminded of waiting at the local DMV office. The consulate was just a big waiting room (with the requisite uncomfortable chairs), and protective windows where you can interact with the employees.
Once you take a number from the machine, just sit and wait for your number to be called. If you’re like me and got a number by pressing the wrong button (Brazilian citizens vs. tourist visas), you have to wait an extra long time. You might even be asked to get a new number and start waiting from the beginning. (I insisted on not having to do that.) Oh, and before all this, you have to make an “appointment” on the Brazilian consulate’s web site, which means you just come in and get a number and wait like everyone else.
After your number is called, things go a lot smoother. Handing over my passport to a complete stranger was an odd experience. But after 5 business days, I was told to come back and get my passport with visa.
So far, I’ve managed to pick up two words in Portuguese: Hello and “thank you” (obrigado). But since I speak Spanish, I can actually understand Portuguese if someone speaks slow. I estimate my comprehension level is about 70%. Although I try to use my simple Portuguese, I find that I always start speaking in Spanish initially.
It seems people here are really friendly about the language, which is really nice. I just wish I could remember to stop saying “Gracias” and say “Obrigado” instead.
So here I am. Rio. IPTV Americas. More to come, later.
P.S. It is winter here.
P.P.S. It gets dark at about 5pm.