Tenancy company offering prizes for renewal of lease, instead of just doing their job

Two weeks ago, we got a letter from our tenancy company, Te Aro Tenancies:

"We are even holding a drawing for terrific PRIZES for those that sign up early!"

This coming from the tenancy company that has left our ventilation broken for months, allowing our house to fill with mould and condensation. The tenancy company whose buildings are all slums. The tenancy company that refuses to respond to emails unless the Tenancy Tribunal is brought up as a threat.

In my Te Aro Tenancies apartment, there are two openable windows, and they both open against a retaining wall. Another that I looked at had the windows welded shut.

Since moving in my health has taken a dive, with respiratory and skin issues popping up left and right.

I don't want prizes for renewing my lease--I want a habitable place to stay while I study. A place where I feel safe, where I won't suffer from unnecessary health issues.

Take your prizes and shove it, Te Aro Tenancies.

Why we should teach Te Reo in New Zealand schools: an internet comment

Every time New Zealand becoming bilingual comes up as a topic online, I find myself responding to the same arguments. The most recent time this happened I felt particularly inspired, so I wrote a really long comment responding to most of these points, which I will post here. I'm sure there are more points I've forgotten, so I'll continue to update this post with updates.

The comment I wrote is as follows:

Let me respond right now to every argument I see come up every time this issue is discussed:

1. "Children should be able to learn programming languages instead!"

Programming languages are something to be taught as part of computing and mathematics—not as a replacement for a spoken language. If you learn to use one foreign language then stop, that's pretty normal. If you learn to use one programming language then stop, then you're a terrible programmer who no one will ever hire.

2. "We should teach them a useful language, like Chinese!"

There are a couple of issues with this argument:

First of all, it's always suggested by people who are monolingual, who therefore don't understand that learning a language has an inherent value regardless of whether you can conduct trade in it.

And the language people suggest we learn instead always seems to be Chinese, ostensibly for trade reasons. Although it doesn't seem very practical to teach Chinese for trade when Chinese people already speak English--how do you think they've conducted trade until now? The languages of China are incredibly interesting, and they're part of the heritage of many New Zealanders--they're just not a practical choice when it comes to choosing a language to teach to every child from primary school.

The other problem with suggesting an international language be taught instead of New Zealand's national languages--assuming you can decide on one--is that it's expensive. When their services are in demand everywhere in the world, teachers of a language will be looking to teach somewhere with competitive wages. I'm not suggesting by any means that we should be underpaying our teachers--simply that New Zealand has an effective monopoly on demand for the services of teachers of our national languages, and as such we could pay regular teaching wages to language teachers.

3. "Let the kids pick a language!"

The discussion around languages in schools is always about whether it should be taught in primary school, as students already have the option in high school to choose the languages they learn.

Currently we do not allow primary school students to choose the subjects they learn at school, and I don't see why language should be any different (although a good argument could be made for allowing the choice of both Te Reo Maori and NZSL).

What's more is, as anyone who has ever learned a language beyond their native one will tell you, learning a second language makes it easier to learn a third, and a fourth, and so on. The more you learn about how languages work through learning another language, the better you will be at learning more of them. If students chose the language they learned in primary school, you'll end up with students starting from scratch with a language at every year level, never advancing very far. If the end goal is to have students learn the language of their choice, I think it would be far more effective to have them learn Te Reo, so they can use those skills to learn their third language with greater ease in high school.

4. "Why should we want to be multilingual anyway?"

Besides the cultural value of learning a language, and the enhanced job prospects that come with it, being multilingual is good for brain health: increasing brain functionality, helping to stave off Alzheimer's and dementia, improving memory, and improving your understanding of your native language (source: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationopinion/10126883/Why-learn-a-foreign-language-Benefits-of-bilingualism.html).

Learning a second language also helps with empathy and humility--being bad at a language can be a humbling experience, as being a smartass in a language you're not good in usually results in being put in your place. It also helps people who speak English as their second language feel more at ease around you--the person you're speaking to knows what it's like to be bad at their second language, so if you make mistakes, they'll understand.

That's all that comes to mind at the moment, but I'm sure there are more arguments that will come to mind later.

Things that are everywhere in São Paulo, Brazil

I spent three months in São Paulo, Brazil (which wasn't nearly enough time), and during that time I noticed some things that were far more ubiquitous than they are in New Zealand. Obviously some or all of these things may be everywhere else in Brazil--but who am I to speak for what you'll find in Rio de Janeiro, or Minas Gerais, or Acre? Nobody; that's who.

Anyway, here's the list:

Japanese restaurants

 

Japanese restaurants were everything I went in São Paulo and the cities around it. In malls, on the street, and you could even find it in buffets that did other kinds of food--Brazilians love Japanese food. And I can see why. Despite the warnings from friends to "not eat there", even the worst Japanese food I ate in São Paulo was edible, and the average chain restaurant stuff was what I'd consider really good. I lie awake at night dreaming about my favourite Japanese restaurant. The names of the food fade from my memory, but the flavours never fade from my heart.

The reason for the ubiquity probably has something to do with the large Japanese population in Brazil, which is the largest outside of Japan itself, with 1.4 to 1.5 million Brazilians of Japanese descent living in Brazil.

Yeah, "Japanese Food" is in English. Weird, right?

Side note: I once went to Liberdade, which is basically the Japantown of São Paulo (although that may be oversimplifying it). I went during the mid- to late-afternoon when the Japanese restaurants all close. So instead of eating Japanese food in the Japanese part of town, I ate Mexican food cooked and served by a pleasant Chilean couple.

Popcorn/chip stalls

 

Everywhere I went, I could find a street cart selling popcorn and potato chips (like, the kind that normally comes in a bag; not fries). They must all get their stuff from the same supplier, because with very exceptions, each cart was divided into three sections: one with regular popcorn, one with red candied popcorn, and one with potato chips. I only ever bought popcorn at one once, but it was a great way to tide me over until we found somewhere to eat.

Corn stalls

 

These ones are a little more rare. I basically only found them on Avenida Paulista and streets near it. They sell corn right off the cob.

The only time I ever bought from one of those stalls, the lady cut the corn off a couple of cobs and smothered it with salt and shitty margarine.

Next time I'm just going to ask for the cob.

Booze carts

 

Maybe it's disingenuous to describe them as "booze carts", as technically they did have other stuff on them. But nobody standing in line outside a club at 11 at night is going up to these guys to buy a bottle of water.

What they are are basically two wheeled carts with long handles for the owners to drag it along. They're filled up with ice and drinks of every variety. Water, energy drinks, soda, beer, flavoured vodka, alcoholic soda--basically anything you could want on a Friday night. Or a Tuesday night, whenever you happen to be out.

An example of something you might find on one of those carts. But not an example of one of the carts themselves, as I didn't take a picture of any of those.

Pharmacies

 

It was easier to find a pharmacy in São Paulo and the surrounding areas than it is to find a corner store where I live in New Zealand.

You'd think maybe Brazilians are just sick all the time (sick and tired of all this bureaucracy, hehehehe), but to be fair, pharmacies do have utility beyond just drugs. Gum, mints, condoms, and lube can all be found at Brazilian pharmacies. Some even have fridges with drinks and stuff in them.

Orelhões

Orelhão is Portuguese for "big ear", which is what these phone booths supposedly resemble.

I've never actually seen anyone use one, though. Maybe a analogy to made there somewhere? I don't know.


That's all that came to mind for this post. Did I forget something? Let me know! (Keeping in mind that nobody thinks you're clever if you answer "bandits" or "high taxes".)

Public Transport: Better in Brazil?

To start my travel blog off, I've decided to create a segment called Better in Brazil, where I compare things in Brazil to things in my country of origin, New Zealand, and maybe occasionally mention other places. As I travel more, the segment may take on a different name, like Cooler in Canada, or Mejor en México, depending on the place I'm writing about.


To kick off this segment, we'll be taking a look at public transport, and whether it's really Better in Brazil. All evidence is based on using public transport in the Wellington region of New Zealand, and the São Bernardo do Campo/São Paulo region of São Paulo, Brazil.

Price and payment

 

There's really no competition here when it comes to either of these things. Let me break it down for you.

Price

 

To travel one zone on a train or bus in the Wellington Region costs $2 in cash, which at the time of writing is 4.55 Brazilian Reais (exchange rate is 1NZD to 2.27592BRL as of writing this article), with each zone extra costing either $1.50 (R$3.41) or $1 (R$2.28). A trip of 5 zones, for example, would cost $6.50 ($R14.79).

To travel via subway or train in São Paulo costs R$3.50, which at the time of writing is 1.54 New Zealand dollars (exchange rate is 1BRL to 0.439383 as of writing this article). For that price, you can take as many trains and subways as you want, as long as you never leave the station. And if you do, you've just got to pay another R$3.50 ($1.54) to get back on.

To travel by bus is a little different. It usually costs either R$3.55 ($1.56) or R$5.05($2.22) to get off anywhere on the line, from one stop away, to the end of the line. I did once take a bus that, if I recall correctly, cost R$5.45 ($2.39), and went a lot further than my intended destination.

So in terms of cash payments, São Paulo comes out as cheapest.

Price winner: Brazil

Discounts and methods of payment

 

There are five kinds of public transport discounts: off-peak discounts, 10-trip discounts, discounts for use of a public transport card, discounts for children and students, and discounts for senior citizens (or senhor citizens in Brazil, am I right?).

The off-peak discounts only apply to Wellington, and only to trains. During regular hours, the price different between zones is either $1.50 (R$3.41) or $1 (R$2.28). However during off-peak hours the differences are $1 (R$2.28) or $0.50 (R$1.14), but for 11 zones or more, you must pay the full price.

Wellington is also the only competitor to offer 10-trip passes (again, for trains only), which range from $16.60 (R$37.78) for one zone ($1.66/R$3.78 per trip and per zone), and $144 (R$327.73) for 14 zones ($14.4/R$32.77 per trip, and $1.02/R$2.32 per zone). That one zone trip (that nobody would ever make, by the way) would have cost $2 (R$4.55), and that 14 zone trip would have cost $18 (R$40.97). A more typical 5 zone trip would cost $6.50 (R$14.79) normally, and $4.98 (R$11.33) using a 10-trip ticket ($49.80/R$113.34 for the ticket, $4.98/R$11.33 per trip, and $0.99/R$2.27 per zone).

Public transport cards in Wellington work like this: you apply for your card, either a Snapper or Smartcard (I've never seen a Smartcard before; they're just listed on the Metlink website), you top it up, and when you want to take the bus (and only the bus), you swipe your card on entrance to pay part of the fare, and on exit to pay the other part, that depends on how far you travelled. If you forget to swipe on exit, you will pay the maximum possible fare for that trip. You get a discount on your fare that is like buying a 10-trip ticket, except you don't have to buy 10 trips. So one zone would cost $1.66 (R$3.78), 14 would cost $14.40 (R$32.77), and a more typical 5 would cost $4.98 (R$11.33).

Public transport cards in Brazil are a little different. First of all, they're more difficult to obtain, because like most things in Brazil, you require a government-issued ID. Secondly, they work on both buses and trains/subways. Thirdly, there are more of them. The two that I'm aware of are Bilhete Único, and Bom. Bilhete Único works only within the city of São Paulo, and Bom works around a greater region of São Paulo (like having a card that works within Wellington itself, and then a card that works in Wellington and the Greater Wellington Region). Despite there being more than one kind of card for the region, there are still fewer cards per person in São Paulo, due to the fact that you can't use your Wellington bus card in Auckland and vice-versa, and that the population of São Paulo is almost five times that of the entirety of  New Zealand. There are no discounts for regular fares, however if you use a bus and train within a certain time period, you get a discount of R$1.55 ($0.68). So if you take a bus to the subway or train station, then take a train or subway, you'll get a discount.

In Wellington, if you are a child aged 5 to 15, or a student aged 16 to 19 in school uniform or with school ID, the cash price for the first zone is $1.50 (R$3.41), with all zones after costing either $1 (R$2.28) or $0.50 (R$1.14). Our example 5 zone trip would cost $3.50 (R$7.97). 10-trip passes are also cheaper, with it costing $12.40 (R$28.22) for one zone 10-trip ticket ($1.24/R$2.82 per trip and per zone). It costs exactly half as much ($144/R$327.73 versus $72/R$163.87) for a 14 zone ticket ($7.20/R$16.39 per trip, $0.51/R$1.16 per zone). Using your transport card on the bus works out the same per trip as buying a child 10-trip.

In São Paulo, if you have a student public transport card, you pay half fare.

Senior citizens in Wellington (and I believe the rest of the country) pay nothing for travel during off-peak hours when they display their senior citizens card, that you must be 65 or older to obtain. During normal hours, senior citizens pay the standard adult fare.

Senior citizens in São Paulo pay nothing for public transport if they are a man older than 65, or a woman older than 60.

Even without discounts, São Paulo's public transport is cheaper than Wellington's with discounts, so São Paulo wins.

Discounts winner: Brazil

Simplicity and ease of payment

 

Simply reading what I wrote up there is enough to give you a fair idea of where this one's going to go. Prices of Wellington public transportation depend not only on the bus or train you take, but how far you're going on each one; the transport card only works for buses and not trains; and the student discount isn't as simple as just "half-price".

What's more is that they make it easy to actually pay in Brazil. Train and bus stations have places for you to top up your cards, and places for you to buy tickets if you're paying in cash. I once found a machine to top up my Snapper card at Wellington train station, but it was completely useless because it was no-cash, no-credit. That meant I would have had to bring my debit card along with me just to top it up. I had look for a dairy (a kind of corner store, for non-New Zealanders) in order to top up.

Most buses in São Paulo, but not all, have a dedicated person there to accept payment. That way you get on, the bus goes, and you pay while travelling. The dude or chick can dedicate his or her full attention to receiving payment and giving you change. In the meantime, you're actually getting somewhere. Even when there is no dedicated person, the bus moves on, and the driver accepts payment as s/he drives.

Meanwhile in Wellington, you either pay with a Snapper card, or the bus driver gives you a look that could kill when you pay with a $20 note (the smallest, and usually only, note you can get out of an ATM) for your fare. In the meantime, you're holding everyone up because the bus is stopped while you pay.

Getting on subways and trains is a lot simply in São Paulo. You simply use your card or ticket to get onto the station, and go anywhere from there.

In Wellington, depending on the train, you either buy your ticket at the station and somebody comes around on the train and clips it, or you buy your ticket on the train. Completely stupid, and awfully scalable. If anybody actually took public transport, it would be a complete nightmare getting to everyone. Plus in São Paulo, you know everybody on the train or subway has paid. In Wellington you've got to kick people off for non-payment, and then you've still given them a free ride to the next station.

Brazil loses just one point in this section, and it's that most bus fares end with R$0.05. I carry around R$1 worth of 5-centavo coins with me just for the bus, which is 20 coins, and a pain in the ass. If I do a segment on money, I'll cover this issue more.

Simplicity and ease of payment winner: Brazil
Price and payment overall winner: Brazil

The public transport experience

 

Timetables

 

Taking a bus in Wellington is a pain in the ass. They're supposed to come every half hour or so, which is already terrible, but it seems like they actually just come whenever they feel like it. The printed signs disagree with the digital signs which disagree with the website. I've never been on-time to any appointment that I've had to get to via bus, regardless of when I've showed up to wait for the bus. Not only because they show up infrequently and seemingly at random, but because they take forever to get where they're going.

On the contrary, São Paulo buses don't appear to have any sort of timetable, but you don't care because they show up frequently enough for it not to be a problem. That, and there are usually multiple buses going to where you're going, as long as you're not heading anywhere too obscure. Even when I've been "late" I've still made it to my destination at a reasonable

Wellington trains are infrequent (about every 40 minutes or so), but they usually show on time, barring some sort of accident. The digital signs at the stations are accurate to within a couple of minutes. However, the trains take a long time to get to their destination.

São Paulo subways come within minutes of each other, so a timetable isn't necessary. I don't have as much experience with trains as I do subways, but my experience with trains has been good.

I could wait here looking around for hours. Except I didn't have to.

In many cases, public transport is faster than driving. One study revealed that 63% of subway users own cars.

Timetables winner: Brazil

Accommodating for users

Buses and trains/subways in both Wellington and São Paulo offer preferential seating for the elderly, crippled, pregnant, or parents with babies. São Paulo goes one step further with seating for the obese.

A seat for an obese person, or a couple

Another point for Brazil is the "no music" sign next to the "no smoking" sign on São Paulo buses. As you can see, São Paulo's public transport is less accommodating of people suffering from the disability known as "being an asshole".

Subways in São Paulo have bi-lingual signs in both Portuguese and English, however they get only half a point, as, in typical Brazilian fashion, the English is often bad. Wellington and New Zealand get no points, as they don't have as many signs, and they're all in English, despite the language spoken by New Zealanders only vaguely resembling English. I'd also like to point out that even as somebody who can barely speak Portuguese, the voice on the subway is perfectly clear and understandable to me.

Trains in Wellington and subways in São Paulo both announce the next stop (although in Wellington it depends on the age of the train), but São Paulo gets extra credit for telling you which side to get off on, and also what other lines connect at that station. You're probably thinking "But Wellington doesn't have other lines to connect to!", so Wellington loses points for having a train system that only goes north or south.

An arrow telling you which door will open next

Subways in São Paulo have a tone to tell you when the door is about to close. Wellington trains do not, so points to Brazil.

Subways and some buses in São Paulo have security cameras, so I give points to Brazil. New Zealand could really use security cameras on public transport so when we want to watch videos of bus racists we don't have to watch ones that were shot vertically.

In terms of public transport users who wish not be murdered, you're out of luck in all but a few cases. If your Wellington bus driver doesn't murder you for paying with a $20 note, s/he'll murder you with her/his driving. In São Paulo the R$20 you paid with isn't an issue, but I'd advise holding on tight, even if you're sitting down.

Trains in both countries are pretty rough, so hold on tight. The exception would be the linha amarela (yellow line), which is driven by a computer, which will only murder us once Skynet comes online. Until then, it's smooth riding.

(A quick note on the yellow line: it's a privately run and owned subway, and is probably the best example of how to do private ownership right. It's on-time, nicer than most subways, and doesn't cost anything extra to get on. You just buy your ticket and get onto the station. From there you can take it like any other train or subway.)

While I'm discussing falling over on the bus, I'd like to apologise to that one dude on the subway who probably thought I was laughing at him when he almost fell. I was laughing at my own lack of balance, but it probably looked like I was laughing at you. Don't worry bro, it's not you. I laugh during earthquakes as well.

Accommodating for users winner: Brazil
Public transport experience overall winner: Brazil

Websites

 

Public transport websites in both countries are operated by the government, and that entails exactly what you'd expect.

Winner: Nobody. We all lose.

Your fellow passengers

 

I would just give the award to Brazil, due to Brazilian trains and buses being full of Brazilians, and New Zealand trains and buses being full of New Zealanders; but I have to at least pretend to be fair, so here goes.

I mentioned the preferential seats before, and Brazilians respect those seats. I've even seen people stand in order to avoid using them, despite the fact that there was nobody else who could have sat there. I don't know if the same would happen in Wellington, since public transport is never full enough for anybody to need to resort to sitting in a preferential seat.

Paulistas like to get up before their stop so they can get off immediately. Wellingtonians like to wait until the bus or train has stopped before they even think about collecting their stuff so they can get off and not hold everybody up. One point for Brazil.

Another courtesy of Brazilians taking public transport is that they all stand to the right on escalators, so those of us who have somewhere to be can overtake them. There are no escalators in Wellington stations of any kind, because Wellington public transport is sad and small. One point for Brazil.

I'll admit, São Paulo's transport can get kind of crowded at times. But it's crowded with (mostly) beautiful people, so I'll give this one a pass.

Unfortunately, there are some less beautiful people who are just there to sell you stolen chocolate bars. Please ignore them, or they'll think it's okay, and keep shouting on the subway.

Winner: Brazil

Art

 

In São Paulo, subway and train stations aren't just places for you to take public transport; they're a place for expression. In subway stations around São Paulo, you'll find paintings, photos, sculptures, poetry, and--in Sacomã--even a piano that's free for members of the public to play on. And somehow only good players ever make it to the piano.

An art piece in one of São Paulo's subway stations

They even have vending machines that sell books--for whatever you're willing to pay.

A book vending machine. There was another directly opposite this one.

Some stations in Wellington look okay, but that's usually only because they renovated it to deter crime. There's more creativity in São Paulo subway stations than the entirety of New Zealand.

Winner: Brazil

 

An example of photography in a São Paulo subway station.

Miscellanous

 

Subway and train stations in São Paulo go as far as to have incredibly specific recycling stations in additional to the regular trash cans, whereas Wellington stations can barely manage even a single trash can.

A recycling station in a subway station in São Paulo

Subway stations in São Paulo often have stores where you can buy anything from hot food, to pre-packaged food, to sandals and cellphones, as opposed to train stations in Wellington that can't even manage a vending machine most of the time. São Paulo stations have vending machines, too. Ones that sell food and drink; not just books.

Those aren't dollars. R$3.50 is around 1.54 New Zealand Dollars.

Jeez, at this point I'm just beating up on New Zealand.

Winner: Brazil, duh.

An example of the one trash can that is needed to keep Wellington train stations not filthy.

Conclusion

 

Based on my limited experience with one region in one country, and a smaller (relative to the size of the country) region of another country, I judge that public transport is indeed, Better in Brazil.

Maybe I'll try out Auckland's public transport one day, to get a better idea of the entire country, but then Auckland would lose points for being full of Aucklanders, and New Zealand would lose points for being a country of just 4.4 million and having more than one kind of public transport card.

Join me next week (read: whenever I feel like it) for the next instalment of Better in Brazil!

Sources

http://www.brasilpost.com.br/2015/06/13/metro-63-dos-usuarios-diz_n_7575644.html (August 5)

http://www.metlink.org.nz/tickets-and-fares/ (August 5)

Experience on public transport in Brazil and New Zealand

A Brazilian friend when I wasn't sure about something