Fitting in: Rio
Rio is probably the first place I've visited where I felt I needed to buy new clothes immediately upon arrival. The primary reason is actually safety, always top of mind in this city, since you don't want to stick out like a tourist. On top of this, carioca (people of Rio) men have a very limited wardrobe set, so it's very easy to stick out. (By the way, people have told me that as long as I keep my mouth shut, I look like I'm from Sao Paulo where there are a lot of Asians.)
Tops
T-shirts only. Unless they're dressed up for business, people here do not have buttons on their shirts, or collars usually.
Bottoms
Two options:
1. board shorts
2. jeans. Not just any jeans - loose fitting jeans. I went to Zara to look for some jeans since I didn't bring mine, and the only styles they had were Regular Fit and Straight Fit. At Armani Exchange, 90% of the shelves were Easy Fit and Boot Cut. I had to look on a special rack for the slim cut jeans.
Shoes
Two options:
1. flip flops. No Tevas. The flip flop brand that a lot of people wear here is Havaianas.
2. sneakers. I don't mean the colorful limited edition Nikes or classic Adidas. I mean cross trainers, basketball shoes, running shoes. Often with those little visible shock absorbers on the bottom.
Since my only T-shirt is sort of my XL "around the hotel room" shirt, my only pair of shorts sort of passes as board shorts but I didn't really want to wear them every single day for 2 weeks, and I only have Tevas, I went ahead and did some shopping. Luckily, there are still end of summer sales here, so I got pretty good deals on stuff.
And if you're wondering, this men's uniform is not just around town, but going out too. I went to a club where pretty much 99% of everyone was wearing loose fitting jeans and those white athletic shoes. I was about to leave for it in my new Havaianas and my B&B host stopped me, "Put on some sneakers, otherwise you might not be able to get in!"
