iPods for iRio

Well, I didn't get up to the Bronx after all to see Annette teach. :( I really wanted to, but, though I've been calling American every day, no luck on changing my ticket. So it really looks like I'll have to leave on Thursday. Rats. So, today, instead of the Bronx I had to do a big shopping binge for my friends in Rio (scouting expedition today, consult with them Tuesday, further shopping Wednesday - it is a complicated endeavour). I'd promised them I could bring them some stuff from the US.

I'd written one friend in particular to ask what she wanted, and got this reply:

"oooooo let's see ! I think one of the red ipod nanos, or do you think I should get a shuffle? and my friend would really like either a silver or white nano ipod. And an ipod adaptor. And, I think, an ipod car adaptor so it can play on the radio? I would really like to get a macbook but perhaps I cannot afford that - oo I get so excited when I see the prices on the Apple website, I go a little crazy. Do you think maybe one other ipod? video? or one of the sound systems that connects to an ipod?"

Her entire shopping list was all Apple products! Poor Brazilians, I feel for them - Brazil slaps a whopping 100% import tariff on all imported electronics, including those coveted ipods. So of course there is a booming black market in smuggled ipods.

I was a little worried that the Brazilian customs guys might raise an eyebrow at my own brand-new macbook and video ipod, along with two or three other ipods that are gifts for those friends. Here's the deal: I checked with a friend who has some, ahem, "experience" bringing "gift" ipods to Brazil, and here's the deal, as of 2006: You're allowed to bring in your own personal electronics, no problem, and no limit, as long as they are clearly your own personal stuff. So as long as my macbook & video ipod are obviously my own personal items - i.e. not in original packaging any more, and loaded with my files - I can bring those in. Beyond that, you're also allowed to bring in an additional $500 worth of new electronics (i.e. still in their packaging).

So in theory, for example, I could bring in my new macbook, my own video ipod, my own nano ipod too, and my own shuffle ipod, as long as they all have my own files on it and I can convincingly demonstrate that they are my own; and up to $500 worth of other new ipods too (that's two 4-gig nanos and a shuffle).

This is all without even getting into the "but what if it gets stolen" aspect of bringing anything to Brazil. That's really a mental game of learning to not mind if you lose everything, and then you're pleasantly surprised if you don't. In my case I have to bring a laptop because of my work; I am a writer and will be working from Rio. My advice, if you are in the same situation, is to keep your laptop in a really ragged looking backpack so that it doesn't look like anything - not in a snappy looking shoulder bag. Arrange to be met by a reliable cabbie (any friend in Rio can recommend someone) and take it straight to your hotel or a secure apartment. Bring blank cds, & mail backups of the key stuff home to yourself now and then. It's not really such a big deal.... I took my laptop all over Brazil and to about 8 different hostels with no trouble. The trick is to truly not mind if it gets stolen.

Most robberies that I've heard of, or have had happen, have all been on buses, or theft of stuff sent through the mail. The long-distance bus robberies are the worst since you have all your stuff with you and they can get it all. For the mail.... do not have your friends send ANYTHING electronic through the mail - camera, sound recorders, - the package simply will not reach you. This happens so consistently, and with such a precise distinction between packages that have electronics and those that don't, that I think the Brazilian customs or post office guys must x-ray the packages to pick out the best ones to take. A Christmas package that never reached me last year made me so sad when it didn't arrive, that for months I would get weepy whenever I thought of it - because it was the only package from home all year (I had been alone for all the holidays, too) and it had become very symbolic of the fact that somebody, somewhere, still knew and cared that I was alive.

Don't ever let yourself get that attached to any object. The person still loves you; it doesn't really matter if the thing they sent you gets stolen.

Once you get into the swing of it, you realize it really doesn't matter if you lose absolutely everything. Each day of sunshine, with food to eat, and a place to sleep at night, music to dance to, and friends to talk to - that is all you really need.

HOWEVER, that said, those ipods sure are fun!