Time: March 30, 2025, 3:37 PM
Location: Praça da Sé, Sé, São Paulo – SP, 01001-000
This was my fourth trip to São Paulo, Brazil, and I had never ventured to the iconic São Paulo Cathedral. Colleagues had always warned me about the dangers of the area, cautioning that it was a hotspot for robberies! So, naturally, I avoided it like the plague—until the afternoon of March 30, 2025. That day, a group of us found ourselves feeling restless and in desperate need of a change of scenery.
We started brainstorming destinations, and someone suggested, “Since we’re in São Paulo, why not visit the cathedral?”
I’d been to Brazil four times before, and despite hearing stories about São Paulo’s risks, I’d never personally encountered any trouble. Plus, this time, we were a group of four grown men—surely, safety wouldn’t be an issue, right? The plan was simple: three of us would meet up and take a taxi together, while another colleague joined us from a different location via his own cab.
We agreed to rendezvous at the cathedral entrance. The trio hopped into a taxi bound for Amigo Supermarket, then strolled leisurely toward the cathedral. As we approached, our solo friend arrived and pinged us on WeChat voice, asking, “Where exactly are you?”
“Right at the cathedral entrance,” I replied confidently. “Can you see the cathedral?”
“No, all I see is a small church. Did I get the wrong spot?” he countered, clearly puzzled.
“I’ll send you a video so you can pinpoint the cathedral,” I offered helpfully. Just as I raised my phone to record, one of my companions—a bit more cautious than the rest—suddenly turned around and noticed something unusual: *a teenager on a bicycle.*
As my friend glanced back to confirm what he saw, the teenager suddenly swiveled his bike and sped off in the opposite direction, muttering with a sly grin, “I’m just here to protect you.”
Little did we know, those words were laced with irony. In that very moment, as I held my phone aloft to video call our friend, the same teenager zipped up from behind and snatched it straight out of my hand!
“Damn it!” I blurted out instinctively, adrenaline surging through me. Without hesitation, I prepared to give chase—but to my astonishment, the thief abruptly dropped the phone onto the ground and bolted away on his bike!
Shaking off the shock, I quickly retrieved my phone and breathed a sigh of relief upon discovering minimal damage: only the screen protector had cracked. What could have been a disaster ended as nothing more than a close call.
In hindsight, this experience taught me a valuable lesson: when you’ve never faced danger firsthand, it’s easy to underestimate its potential. It takes living through such moments to truly grasp their gravity. Fortunately, this incident left no lasting harm—but it served as a powerful reminder nonetheless. To anyone planning a trip to Brazil, heed this advice: stay vigilant, always. Safety first, friends!
