Good humor and Carnival gave Rio de Janeiro the award of “happiest city in the world”, according to a survey published in the Forbes magazine (http://www.forbes.com/2009/09/02/worlds-happiest-cities-lifestyle-cities.html). The survey, conducted by policy advisor and market researcher Simon Anholt, from the institute GfK Custom Research North America, heard 10.000 people in 20 different countries.

“Brazil is associated with good humor, great life style and Carnival. Carnival is part of the classic image people have of Rio, and it is an image of happiness”, said the researcher Simon Anholt, responsible for the survey.

For Rachel Valença, researcher from Rio’s Casa de Rui Barbosa Institute and director of local Império Serrano samba school, Carnival does not only holds the image of happiness, but also one of “resistance against adversities”.

She points Portugal’s and Africa’s mix of influence as breeders of Rio’s “party culture”. “The portuguese court enjoyed parties. Religious holidays were an excuse for street parties. Black people came to Brazil in very difficult conditions, but they had in their origin the love for dancing and for street activities. The carioca – the one that is born in Rio – inherited this. The street is important to Rio.”

But according to psychologyst Phrygia Arruda, from Rio Federal University’s Psychology Institute, urban landscape is determinant for the “carioca way of like”.  “People leave the tunnel and see a lagoon [Rodrigo de Freitas]. The urban space makes you feel happy”, she adds.

Rachel agrees with Phrygia’s thesis, but remembers: “Suburban people live in decaying regions of town, which normally lack of attractive landscapes, but they also love their streets”.

Australian metropolis Sydney was ranked second, followed by Barcelona, Amsterdam and Melbourne. The best placed Latin American city after Rio de Janeiro was Buenos Aires, which ranked 10th.

published Friday, September 4th, 2009 in São Paulo’s Folha de São Paulo newspaper