Rio's 'smoking ban'
It surely says something about the success (or lack of) of a city's smoking ban when many smokers living in the city are blissfully unaware that such a ban is in place. Cariocas love their nicotine, and step inside any bar or nightclub and you'll see the place is full of people enthusiastically puffing away. For several years a ban has been in place banning smoking in enclosed public spaces, but the ban was largely ignored, and earlier this year a new, supposedly stricter ban was introduced. From May 31 posters declaring 'proibido de fumar' sprang up across the city's restaurants, cafes and bars, and on the day of the ban people could be spotted obediently trotting outside with their cigarettes. It didn't last very long. Just days later, those very same smokers were back inside the bars, smoking away under the very noses of the bar tenders. The attitude here seems to be just to turn a blind eye to the smoking - amusingly, many bar staff will refuse to give smokers an ashtray, thereby convincing themselves that they are not encouraging the illicit smoking. Of course all this leads to is mountains of ash on the floor as smokers puff away regardless.
To be fair, some establishments are actually taking the ban quite seriously - upscale restaurants, bars and concert venues are pretty diligent. Head to any local bar or corner cafe, however, and you'd be forgiven for thinking smoking was actively encouraged.