I lived in Fortaleza for a couple of years as a kid (1976-1978) while my father taught Geology at the local university.

We lived in a big house with two or three maids and an honest-to-god fountain in the front yard! We spent weekends at the country club (the Recreo) or the Beach, and during the week I ran wild in the streets with the local kids playing cops & robbers and setting fire to vacant lots.

I refused to wear a shirt or take a bath, so every once in a while the maids would corner me with a garden hose and scrub me down.