Kirk LaughlinIn the nearly three years since launching Nearshore Americas, our editorial team has traveled approximately 250,000 air-miles in and out of Latin America. We have jetted in and out of 18 countries. We have gone to heart-pounding concerts, soaked up spectacular natural scenery, met with Presidents, dined in unforgettable restaurants, made countless friends from all walks of life, and danced and laughed into the early morning hours in a few especially vibrant countries. (Ok, we confess: Mexico, Colombia, and Brazil.)
Although we spend most of our time reporting on business issues on these pages, we increasingly recognize that it is virtually impossible to only talk about business and commerce when the “social” aspects of the Latin Americas experience are really what can captivate a newcomer.
We asked our editorial team to close their laptops for a few minutes and contemplate what stirs their passion when it comes to Latin America. Here’s what they came up with:
Fascinated with the Rhythm
Nowhere else in the world has blessed us with so many different styles of music, such irresistible rhythms and infectious beats, and some truly pioneering musicians. Brazil’s bossa nova, samba, forró, and frevo, plus delicious fusions like samba-reggae, and distinct variations on jazz, funk, and rock – that’s only a small sampling of what Brazilians have given us. From the Caribbean: not just reggae but ska, dub, calypso and its irreverent cousin soca, Afro-Cuban jazz, and salsa. And then there’s Haiti, the poorest country in the region but certainly one of the richest on Earth musically speaking. Mexico? Not just mariachis, amigo; check out the foot-stomping tejana (aka Tex-Mex) style. All of these sounds will warm you up on a cold, dark winter’s day, and they’re pretty good on a hot summer’s night too. Here are just a few recommendations:
• Antonio Carlos Jobim: Listen to anything by the beloved genius who gave us “The Girl from Ipanema.” For your own sake, at least watch this performance of “The Waters of March.”
• Konbit. A great compilation of “the burning rhythms of Haiti.”
• Afro-Peruvian Classics. A “best of” collection assembled by David Byrne.
• Tom Zé: The Hips of Tradition. Eclectic proof that Brazil is a cultural blender.
• Chico O’Farrill: Carambola. Afro-Latin jazz at its finest.
• Ska Cubano: Ay Caramba! Can make even old white guys want to dance.
The Generous Smile
Latin America is all about diversity: of colors, of people, of spices, of feelings, of rhythms, of opportunities, of chances, of the future. All of that mixed with the same “happy way of life” that unites across the significant regional differences. No matter if you are in Mexico or Uruguay, Costa Rica or Brazil, people tend to be smiley somehow, without obligation. The combination of indigenous, black, and European cultures – all of them put together in different measures – makes it such a unique and happy group. – Filipe Pacheco
The Symbolism of ‘Salud’
Mexico is the only Latin American country I’ve had the pleasure of visiting so far, but what I love most is the feeling of pleasant surprise. Having never been to Mexico before this year, I expected (based on headlines) to see little but overwhelming poverty and corruption. What I found were modern, functioning cities, educated and sophisticated people, and an almost palpable drive to compete and succeed. One of my favorite places is the Centro Del Software business incubator in Guadalajara, where office after office of 20- and 30-somethings are out to change the world with the Next Cool Thing.
Next would be the almost European flair and charm of the people. Even in business dealings, you get the feeling that you are a person, and not just a business associate, to the other person. This comes through in everything from a stranger saying “salud” when you sneeze on the street to the extra effort the owner of your bed and breakfast takes to make sure you can find your way around. And even in a small neighborhood taqueria there a sense of elegance in how friends linger to talk and enjoy life.
With all of this, travel in Mexico gives me a sense of hope that there is an entire region of the world, with a lot of smart and warm people, who are ready to take their proper place in the global economy. – Bob Scheier
A Literary Affair
I love the Peruvian author Mario Vargas Llosa, who is in my opinion one of the best authors of Latin America. (He won the 2010 Nobel Prize in Literature.) Known for his literary talent and political activism, Llosa is one of the great names of magical realism, along with Colombia’s Gabriel García Márquez. He has written more than 30 books and some of them are very delicious to read because of his attractive style and the way he weaves historical events with fantasy and imagination. His best work includes The Feast of the Goat, The Dream of The Celt, and The War of the End of The World. This latter book was written in Brazil, my home country. Llosa reports on the conflict of the Canudos War, which happened in Bahia state and was related by Brazilian author Euclides da Cunha in a book called Os Sertões. – Edileuza Soares
Count on Liveliness
No matter where you go there will always be a lively little place ready to serve you up a nice cold glass of local beer. My personal favorite is Nicaragua’s Toña. The stuff tastes like a true god’s brew. If you ever have the opportunity to travel for business to Managua, make sure to extend your trip by at least three days and head down to San Juan del Sur. You can stay at one of the fancy resorts overlooking the cove, but I strongly suggest “roughing” it a bit and hunkering down at one of the perfectly nice hotels right in town, right on the water. Walk about 20 feet to the main strip running along the beach and find the pizza place owned by an Italian family – can’t remember the name but it’s right between the Iguana Bar and Restaurante El Timon. I’m not kidding when I say that it serves the best brick-oven pizza – ever. Get a seat on the veranda overlooking the beach and have a Toña for me, and watch the sun set and tide roll in. – Luke Bujarski
Diversity from Coast to Coast
The most amazing thing about Latin America is its diversity. Each country is so different from the next, and the regions, people, customs, food, topography, culture, and history within countries vary widely. For example, Colombia – where I have lived for three incredible years – offers the Pacific and Atlantic coasts, the lush coffee growing region, huge cities, pristine beaches, small historic towns, the Andes mountains, high plains plateaus, deserts marshes, the Amazon, vast cowboy country, and eight UNESCO World Heritage sites.
Visitors can enjoy all the benefits of a modern and sophisticated city like the capital Bogota, which sits in the Andes at 8,612 feet, or the historic charm of the oceanside city Cartagena, the incredible nature found in the Coffee Triangle, the crystal clear waters of San Andres, a trek to the Lost City, the iridescence of the Crystal Canyons, the moon-like landscape of the Tatacoa desert, or the unspoiled Pacific coast. This is just a sampling of the vast treasures Colombia has to offer.
Each Latin American country boasts such a huge variety of offerings that one could come back time and again and never see the same thing twice! – Patrick Haller
The Weight of the Personal Connection
I’m a latecomer to the Latin American experience. I spent the early part of my professional career living in Asia and studying Asian languages. Latin America was in my own backyard, but I was not paying much attention. That all changed of course when we launched Nearshore Americas, and I started boarding a lot of southbound flights out of my home in Connecticut.
The part that probably fascinates me the most about Latin America is the focus people put on the social encounter and the willingness to warmly engage strangers. I grew up in probably the chilliest of social environments in all of the U.S (New England), where suspicion of outsiders is a palpable societal undercurrent, clearly influenced by the European settlers of our region – persecuted and insular Puritans.
In the case of Latin America, the opposite holds true. By and large, outsiders are embraced. There is an ingrained pattern of openness to others – could be an old friend, or a new associate. It doesn’t matter. What is important is to cultivate a vibe, a connection. The effort placed on creating that bond seldom seems to include an underlying motive. Sharing a laugh or a quick story trumps the need to be on time for the next meeting.
Things definitely move more slowly in Latin America – and that remains a big adjustment coming from the hyper-accelerated Northeast United States. But the fact of the matter is, Latin Americans are not willing to sacrifice the gestures of kindness or welcoming banter that is increasingly disappearing from the landscape of contemporary America. Getting in sync with someone – that’s what really matters. For a guy who comes from a culture that is constantly told by its leaders that “we’re number one / and the greatest of all nations,” I can’t help but recognize that such proclamations are empty if the “reward” is the breathless and all-encompassing pursuit of material and economic gain – for the individual.
Latin America culture is stubbornly holding tight to simple kindness and being present and connected to another human being. Is that desirable? You be the judge.
– Kirk Laughlin
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