One of the things that we found out pretty quickly after arriving in Brazil was that everything in the grocery store had a Portuguese label on it. Imagine that. Considering we do not speak or read a lot of Portuguese, this has created some memorable moments.
Annie and I were in the Supermercado down the block from our apartment. It is bigger than a convenience store but smaller than a full size grocery store. It has a Mom & Pop’s feel to it.
“Why don’t you go get some cheese?”
I wandered over to the dairy aisle and quickly found a pack of sliced, white cheese. “That is the perfect size for sandwiches or cheese toast,” I thought. Mission accomplished!
I showed my find to Annie, happy with the ease with which I had maneuvered through unfamiliar territory, and put it in the shopping cart.
“Let’s buy some soup,” she said.
“Great idea!”
Campbell’s is an international brand, right? Wrong. We searched every aisle. “They must not like soup here.”
Then Annie made a discovery! She found a small container, about the size of a soup can that had a picture of onions, garlic, and some other vegetables on it. The name even sounded like soup. “Completo.” “They are probably saying that it is a “complete meal,” I thought.
“Good job!” I said. We both agreed that this had to be a soup mix. Just add water, and, boom, have a bowl of soup! “Completo!”
To be continued…
Here is the link if you would like to help financially while we are here in Brazil. Obrigado! (Thank you!)
