I'm kind of surprised to hear Brazil would be more expensive than Canada for things. Then again, perhaps its being in a nicer neighborhood or buying "non-Brazilian" foodstuffs. Maybe I'll have to vacation there sometime to find out :)
As for different provinces you are absolutely right.
When I visit my mom in Saskatchewan they say that BC doesn't stand for British Columbia but it stands for the more apt abbreviation : Bring Cash. That's absolutely true for many things, especially housing. However, one thing I've learned ... if you know the right places to shop, the right times to shop, and the right items to shop for you can save a considerable amount of money.
High wages are great...but disciplined spending is almost more important.
Yes we need to be very disciplined in our expenses. But still one thing that still brazil is cheaper is buying vegetables/fruit. Here in canada is so expensive hehehhee
By the way that price of the pizza also surprised me. When I used to live in Brazil I used to go to restaurants much more than in here . But I think that 7 years is a lot to chance some habits, if I was still there probably I was going out for dinner much less than I used to go there. I remember going out for eating there every week!