Journalled on Saturday, 5 October 2024 | Flamengo, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: 24°C, warm, sunny and slightly overcast.

Today I skipped my usual early-morning exercise in the park and chose something better suited to a Saturday: a long, wandering walk in Rio.

As usual, I began at the Portuguese bakery at 6 a.m. with two large coffees and my journal. After that, I went home, cut my hair with the clippers I have had for years, showered, changed clothes and headed back out.

Because it was Saturday morning, the shops and showrooms were open, so I walked to Marina da Glória to look at the new Triumph motorcycle dealership. During the seven months I spent in England, they built an impressive circular showroom, dealership and service centre in front of the marina. It sits between one of the piers and the underground car park, and it really does catch the eye.

It did not take me long to get there on foot. I have lost count of how many times I have made that walk, even back when I had the dogs, and we would wander up to Marina da Glória together.

When I arrived, motorcycles were parked around the circular building, and there seemed to be a presentation or client event taking place. That is common in Rio: dealerships often host Saturday breakfasts or brunches for customers and possible future ones.

I remember once going to a Harley-Davidson dealership in Recreio with Jacqueline on a Saturday morning because she wanted to take a test ride on one of Harley’s new bikes. When we arrived, they were holding an open day with breakfast, with everything laid on for clients, including test rides.

Back to the Triumph dealership. The bikes were lovely and, surprisingly, not as expensive as I expected.

Compared with prices in England, they seemed similar and in some cases even a little cheaper. I do not know how that works, because imported motorcycles and cars in Brazil usually face heavy duties and taxes. Still, it made me think that one day, whether in Brazil or England, I may buy either a Triumph or a Royal Enfield.

Triumph appeals to me because of its quality, beauty and tradition. Royal Enfield appeals because it offers good value for money. I spent about half an hour looking around before leaving. I crossed the Aterro, the main dual carriageway that connects Rio’s South Zone with the city centre, and caught a bus back. Instead of getting off near home, I stayed on until Rio Sul, the main shopping centre in the South Zone.

I am not a fan of shopping centres. Since Yasmin was born, I have not had much disposable income to spend casually in places like Rio Sul, which is considered one of the more exclusive malls in Rio and probably the most exclusive in the South Zone.

I entered through the main entrance, where there is a Taco clothing store on the right.

The brand was created decades ago with the idea of offering reasonably good-quality, good-looking basic clothes at fair prices. In the past, I did not like their jeans very much, but they have changed the cut, and now they are much better. At the moment, I am preferring dark, smart, more formal denim that works well for both work and going out in the evening.

I was not planning to buy jeans, but I did, and there were two reasons for this. First, I had not bought myself a pair for more than two or three years. Second, I could not remember the last time I walked into a decent clothes shop in Brazil and bought something for myself, simply because I liked it. I have done that for other people, but not for me. So today I treated myself.

While I was in England, I did treat myself a few times at ALDI, but ALDI does not really count. I mean a proper clothes shop, not a discount supermarket.

After buying the jeans, I wandered around the mall for a while and then walked to Urca through the back streets behind the shopping centre; it is a kind of shortcut. When I arrived in Urca, I bought a glass of wine and a portion of cold pork crackling with lemon to squeeze over it. It was wonderful.

There is something quietly perfect about sitting on the Mureta da Urca with a glass of wine, a portion of crackling in hand, Flamengo across the bay and the boats from the Yacht Club bobbing gently on the water. I journalled on the wall there, had another glass of wine, watched Rio doing what it does best, and then walked home.

I am feeling a little anxious at the moment about the possibility of moving into the new studio flat in Santo Cristo, hopefully within the next couple of weeks. Apart from that, everything is good. My life is not exactly how I would like it to be, but that is life itself.

Some days you plan to exercise, and instead you end up walking through the city, dreaming of motorbikes, buying jeans and drinking wine by the bay. There are worse Saturdays.