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São Paulo to Addis Ababa: A Revealing Journey

By Oliver Stuenkel

What a 12-hour flight tells us about the changing “Global South.”

Something was clearly different as I approached the gate on a recent Saturday night at São Paulo-Guarulhos, Latin America’s busiest airport. Few passengers brandished the shirts with supersized logos of polo players commonly sighted at check-in to Miami and Lisbon. Instead, I was struck by the remarkable diversity of passengers, with a considerable number of Chinese, African and Arab travelers waiting to board. Two Brazilian honeymooners ahead of me in the line perused their Thailand travel guide, surrounded by animated chatter in Cantonese, Farsi and Amharic.

This 12-hour, non-stop...

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