Skip to content

Marginalia.

Short notes on ideas, books, language, technology, culture, and whatever refuses to remain in the background.

Notes

Fragments, observations, and thoughts that are not yet anything else.

  1. Draft

    On paying attention.

  2. Draft

    The things that refuse to stay separate.

  3. Draft

    Notes on what we choose to notice.

Currently

What is keeping me company right now.

Listening

Reading

Cover of The Turn of the Screw, Penguin Readers edition: a dark mansion seen through bare branches.

The Turn of the Screw

Henry James

There’s something unsettling about not knowing whether to trust what you’re seeing. In The Turn of the Screw, the ghosts seem to rise from everything that has been repressed, from desires and fears forced into silence until they begin to take on a life of their own. The horror is in what haunts the house, but also in what festers beneath its silence. It makes me want to look closer, even when I’m not sure I should.

Watching

Poster for The Invite: two couples talking around a dinner table in a softly lit living room, the title set in large black serif letters below.

The Invite

Olivia Wilde

I laughed, I cried, and felt slightly uncomfortable throughout this one.

The Invite is an awkward adult comedy about relationships, intimacy, and the strange ways people change over time.

What stayed with me was the idea that relationships don’t necessarily end because people stop loving each other. Sometimes they end because the people involved have become someone else.

But I also liked the possibility the film leaves us with: perhaps we can begin a new relationship within the one we already have. Not by going back to who we used to be, but by learning to meet each other again.

A surprisingly tender film beneath all the awkwardness.

The Edit

A personal selection of things worth your time.

Places worth visiting, things worth reading, meals worth remembering, and experiences I think deserve a place in your life.

Not a definitive guide or a collection of recommendations for everyone. Just things I’ve encountered, enjoyed, and believe are worth passing along.

Consider it a collection of personal endorsements, gathered along the way.

Around Copan

Places and discoveries within the Copan building.

  • Cuia’s open kitchen behind a long wooden counter, cooks at work beneath shelves of cookbooks and green pendant lamps, empty tables in the foreground.

    Food · Books

    Cuia + Livraria Megafauna

    Copan, São Paulo

    Cuia shares its space with Livraria Megafauna, inside the Copan building. The bookstore has an excellent selection, and the open layout lets you watch the kitchen at work while the shelves around you make the whole place feel cozy.

    I went for the food first and only later found out it holds a Bib Gourmand in the Michelin Guide.

    The combination of food, books, and an open kitchen makes it a particularly good place to spend some time.

    My pick

    Croqueta de costelinha com milho crioulo.

  • A hand holding Tem Umami’s pudim ice cream in an organic cornmeal cone, topped with a piece of pudim, a waffle crisp, crumble and salted caramel, each part labelled in Portuguese.

    Ice cream

    Tem Umami!

    Copan, São Paulo

    Still inside Copan, Umami is one of those places that actually lives up to the hype.

    I tried the sorvete de pudim and it was worth it. I was also told their ice creams are made with natural ingredients, which made it even more interesting.

    A lovely stop for something sweet while you explore the building.

    My pick

    Pudim.

  • The Copan building seen from below, its long curved façade rising against a clear blue sky.

    Market · Local design

    Sunday Market at Copan

    Copan, São Paulo

    If you’re around Copan on a Sunday, take some time to explore its market.

    There’s a little bit of everything: food stalls, vintage clothing, thrift shops, artisanal chocolates, and independent designers selling their own work. I especially like finding small jewelry brands and pieces made from leather.

    It’s the kind of place where you come across things you weren’t looking for in the first place.

    My recommendation

    Go with time to spare, and don’t limit yourself to one kind of stall.

Food & Drinks

Restaurants, food, and culinary experiences.

  • Segredos de Minas on the corner of Rua Bela Cintra: an old yellow house with a terracotta roof, its round yellow sign above the entrance, palms along the wall.

    Brazilian cuisine

    Segredos de Minas

    Bela Cintra, São Paulo

    A great lunch stop on Bela Cintra if you’re in the mood for food from Minas Gerais.

    Order the pastel de angu with a caipirinha. They’re a perfect match, and honestly, that’s reason enough for me to go back.

    A good way to take a lunch break with a little taste of Minas in the middle of São Paulo.

    My pick

    Pastel de angu + caipirinha.

After Hours

Places I like going with friends. Some are for catching up after a long week, others for music, dancing, drinks, or simply a good night out.

  • Cinnamon-sugar churros on Vaca Véia’s printed paper, with a small bowl of doce de leite for dipping.

    Comfort food · Drinks

    Vaca Véia

    This is usually where my friends and I start the night.

    I’m particularly fond of their caldo de feijão and brigadeiro de colher. Add a glass of wine to share, and that’s my ideal way to ease into an evening.

    Nothing elaborate. Just good food, wine, and familiar company.

    My order

    Caldo de feijão, brigadeiro de colher, and a glass of wine.

  • A crowd gathered outside Heavy House at night under strings of warm bulbs, a red neon heart glowing in the window behind them.

    House music

    Heavy House

    Pinheiros, São Paulo

    A cozy space, good house music, and a relaxed atmosphere.

    One of our favorite places to catch up after a long week. We go for the music, but also to sit down, talk about everything that happened, and enjoy each other’s company without rushing anywhere.

    Sometimes a good night out is simply good music and a long conversation.

    Worth going for

    The music, the atmosphere, and an evening with friends.

  • Tokyo’s rooftop deck at night, red neon along the bar and lit office towers of the city centre beyond the railing.

    Nightlife · Music · Karaoke

    Tokyo

    Vila Buarque, São Paulo

    My advice: get there early, around 7 PM, to avoid the queue at the entrance.

    Tokyo has several floors, usually each playing a different kind of music, and one of the things I enjoy most is moving between them whenever I want a change of scene. There’s also a restaurant inside, which makes the whole thing feel like more than a night at a club.

    I’m especially fond of the karaoke. Singing with friends is always a good time, and I love the chance of meeting people who share my taste in music.

    It’s a place where the night can go in different directions without much planning.

    My recommendation

    Arrive early, explore the different floors, and don’t skip the karaoke.

  • The bar at Iccarus bathed in red light, neon lines curling across the ceiling around a round light like a sun, bartenders working behind rows of glasses.

    Rooftop · Cocktails

    Iccarus

    Centro, São Paulo

    A rooftop on the 43rd floor, with a cocktail menu inspired by the myth of Icarus: each drink tells part of his journey towards the sun and his fall.

    I tend to prefer stronger drinks, so my choice is The Drop, whiskey with palo santo.

    I love it when a cocktail menu goes beyond mixing ingredients and gives each drink its own story. Here, the concept is what makes the experience.

    My pick

    The Drop, especially if you like a stronger drink.

Music & Culture

Concerts, records, and musical experiences.

  • The entrance to Augusta Discos under its orange sign, a narrow aisle lined floor to ceiling with CDs and records, a golden statue by the door.

    Music · Records

    Augusta Discos

    Rua Augusta, São Paulo

    For anyone who loves music.

    Augusta Discos has an extensive collection of older CDs, DVDs, and vinyl records, covering an impressive range of bands and artists. It’s the kind of shop where you can spend a long time browsing without knowing what you’ll find.

    I’ve already found CDs from my favorite band for an absolute bargain. That’s part of the fun: you never know what might be waiting on the shelves.

    Whether you collect records or just love discovering music, it’s worth the visit.

    My recommendation

    Take your time, browse the shelves, and don’t overlook the CDs.

  • The orchestra on stage at Sala São Paulo, seen from the audience: tall columns, a coffered wooden ceiling, and a full hall.

    Classical music

    Sunday matinée at Sala São Paulo

    Osesp

    A lovely way to spend a Sunday: a free morning concert at Sala São Paulo.

    If you’ve been curious about hearing a symphony orchestra but haven’t known where to start, this is a good way in. The Sunday concerts make for a different kind of weekend and make classical music feel more accessible.

    For anyone who enjoys music, architecture, or simply doing something outside their usual routine.

    My recommendation

    Keep an eye on the Sunday programme. The free tickets are released a few days before each concert.

  • A blues band playing on the Bourbon Street Music Club stage, guitars and bass in warm light against a brick wall and the club’s banner.

    Jazz · Food

    Bourbon Street Music Club

    Moema, São Paulo

    One of my favorite places for a musical lunch in São Paulo.

    On Saturdays and Sundays, Bourbon Street serves lunch with live jazz. There’s something particularly lovely about a good meal and a glass of wine with jazz playing in the background.

    The club has a long history of welcoming important names from jazz and blues, which makes it even more special if you love the music.

    It’s the kind of afternoon I’d happily spend without looking at the clock.

    My recommendation

    Go for the weekend musical lunch.

Markets & Finds

Antique fairs, independent designers, vintage, and unexpected discoveries.

  • A stall at the Bixiga fair under a white canopy: painted porcelain plates, teacups, figurines, and trays of costume jewelry and old watches, with people browsing behind.

    Vintage · Antiques

    Feira de Antiguidades do Bixiga

    Bixiga, São Paulo

    A relaxed stroll through Bixiga, with a little bit of everything to discover.

    What I enjoyed most when I went was the mix of people browsing the stalls: older gentlemen looking for marble pieces for their gardens, next to younger visitors hunting for the one vintage find to complete their wardrobe.

    You’ll find antiques, vintage pieces, decorative objects, and all sorts of unexpected things.

    An easygoing way to spend part of the day, with a bonus: you can always finish with lunch at one of the neighborhood’s traditional Italian restaurants.

    My recommendation

    Go without a shopping list. The fun is in seeing what you come across.

Essays

Longer pieces, written slowly.

  1. Nostalgia (opens in a new tab)

    On nostalgia for lives never lived, the idealization of the past, and the distance between imagination and experience.

  2. My figs will not rot… for I am the tree (opens in a new tab)

  3. Essa vida é péssima de metrificar (opens in a new tab)

    On the tendency to measure life through goals and achievements, and the things we miss when everything becomes a metric.

  4. Essay · Draft · Portuguese

    Sentir com a barriga

    An essay about the cost of rationalizing desire until it becomes difficult to recognize what one actually wants.

More on Medium ↗ (opens in a new tab)