Healing of deaf girl

Well, I realise that it's been a while since I've written. I've actually met a young lady by the name of Marcele that I've started seeing and hence have extended my stay here in Rio. I've been getting involved in helping at a local favela through a church that I've become involved with and doing some volunteer work like teaching English.

I have something quite amazing to share that just happened earlier this evening. I was walking on the streets of Rio with Marcele when we bumped into a friend of hers who was with two other women, one of which had her twelve year old daughter with her. The girl was deaf since the age of one and a half years old.

Marcele told the girl's mother that Jesus could heal her of this deafness and commenced praying for her in the name of Jesus. After praying for her for a few minutes, she (while still praying) hugged the girl. As she was doing this tears game into the girl's eyes. Marcele started speaking with the girl and she responded - she could hear! Marcele asked her various questions to which she responded (she couldn't do this when we met her fifteen minutes earlier). I also talked with the girl. Afterwards Marcele walked behind the girl (so that she was out of sight) and called her, she heard and responded by turning her head and smiling - Glory to the Lord Jesus!

Favelas


As the favelas are high up, they often come with very good views!




One thing that makes Rio so beautiful are the mountains the city has. This allows for such famous spots as the where the "Christ the Redeemer" statue is located. From spots such as these the views are spectacular. Unless you go flying, it's not really possible to get the same sort of views of Sydney because it simply doesn't have the mountains for you to get that high.

The hills and mountains are also where the favelas (Brazilian Portuguese for slum) are built. This is illegal housing where a lot of the poorer people live. For many years the Brazilian government didn't acknowledge the favelas and many are ruled by druglords. Although things are apparently better now than they used to be.

In my first week in Rio I went on a favela tour. Some people find these a bit controversial as they seem it as exploiting the poor. But having been on the tour I see it as a good way to bring awareness to how people are living and bring some tourism money into the community. While we were allowed to take photos on the tour we were asked to take pictures focusing on buildings and scenery, not people. In part out of respect for the poor and in part because the druglords (who tend to have guns) don't particularly want their pictures being taken. While poor, I think the favelas I've seen here are better off than the equivalent I've seen in the Philippines. The bigger ones are fully blown communities with shops and banks (I'm told the banks have never been robbed) etc.

Since I've had more free time in Rio (no official Portuguese classes), I looked for somewhere where I might be able to do some volunteer work. I found this http://www.projectbrasil.com - a Christian organisation that is partnered with a church here to help in a relatively small favela called Morro Azul.

I will take a moment to share a sad story that shows how serious things can be. This happened a couple of weeks before I arrived. There was a young man in the favela who (despite the advise of friends) got into selling drugs. After a few arrests by the police he changed his mind and decided he didn't want to sell drugs any more. However he was told that he had to pay back the money he owed the druglords by a certain date or he'd be killed. He didn't have the money, but the church got involved and was able to help him personally and with the finances. The debt was paid and the church was helping him get his life back on track. However shortly afterwards he was shot dead anyway. As it turns out, the guy collecting the money told his superior that he didn't pay up and kept the money for himself, so sadly he was killed despite having paid the debt. The debt collector was also killed once his superior found out what really happened. The only good thing about this story is that the man who was trying to get his life back on track gave his life to the Lord Jesus before he was killed.

The above gives an idea of what things can be like. Although generally the druglords don't want any trouble from police, so as long as you respect them apparently things are pretty safe. In the particular favela I've been getting involved with they're cleaning things up and are actually looking to build a police station there.

Back where it all began

Rio de Janeiro!


Lívia, Aaron and Alessandra


Milla, Aaron and Alessandra

It seems hard to believe, but it's almost a year since I came here to Rio de Janeiro. It was on Satuday 29th August 2009 that I came here with my good friends Max and Monique. That was for a trip just short of three weeks. On now on my second visit to Brazil and have been here five months this time, and yes I'm now back in Rio de Janeiro!

Last time I was here, as much as I enjoyed it, I wasn't really "allowed" to go anywhere by myself because I was told everything was dangerous for a gringo such as myself. This time around, I've made a point of getting familiar with the public transport - particularly the subway system - so that I can have a bit of a look around myself.

I've caught up with some good friends, particularly Livia and Milla - friend's of Monique - who I met here last time. But this time around they're pretty busy during the week so I've been keep myself occupied. During my first week, I caught up with a friend Eirik who I met back in Floripa. He's from Norway and was here for a holiday. So I did some of the touristy things that I did last time but are well worth doing again such as visiting the Sugar Loaf and Christ the Redeemer statue which is one of the New Seven Wonders of the World (although there seem to be a way to many "seven wonders of the world" variations these days).


This is my first extended stay at a place where I'm not doing any official Portuguese study. But apart from talking with people - which is probably the best way to practise - I've found some other ways. I bought some 'classic' books, kids version (probably designed for 8-10 years old), about 70 pages each - all in Portuguese. The kind of stories I liked when I was a kid and still do now. I've nearly finished Robin Hood and plan to read King Arthur next! I don't understand everything, but enough to follow what's going on. Likewise I bought myself a Portuguese "modern language" Bible. I've been reading about Joseph in the book of Genesis. I was happy because I understood more than I thought I would. Being already familiar with what happens does help.

I've also been looking to do some volunteer work while I'm here. I might be able to help in one of the favelas. I intend to write more about this in my next blog.

Mogi das Cruzes, São Paulo

left: Priscila's step-dad, sister Deborah and her husband.
Right: Priscila's step-sister Thais, me and another friend (also called Priscila)




I spent a week in Mogi das Cruzes in the house of the family of my friend Priscila Romeiro - not to be confused with the other Priscila's in Brasilia. Priscila lives in Sydney at the moment, but her family were very hospitable. Her brother Bruno met me at the bus station when I arrived from Curitiba and showed me around over the weekend. Her step-sister Thais is really cool and had some time off during the week which she used to show me around São Paulo. Likewise were sister Deborah and step-father were very friendly. I really liked mum who insisted that I return.

Mogi das Cruzes is a city in the state of São Paulo about an hour or three (depending on traffic) outside of the city of São Paulo - the biggest city in Brazil and one of the biggest in the world. In Australia you rarely get more then 3 lanes of traffic going in the same direction. In São Paulo I once counted 11.

So I spend some time getting somewhat cultured and visiting various museums and parks in São Paulo. I was under the impression that Sydney was second only to San Francisco in having the biggest annual gay event of the world. But it turns out that São Paulo has an even bigger one. It commenced in 1997, but now has overtaken even San Francisco in annual attendance. Amongst other events, São Paulo has a big annual "March for Jesus" day, which is also quite famous.

It was good to have some time to check out Brazil's biggest city and be overwhelmed with the crazy amount of traffic. I have a couple of friends in São Paulo who unfortunately were out of town when I was there, so I may return.

A big thanks to Priscila for letting me stay at her family's place. On Friday I took the 6 hour bus ride to the city where it all began for me - Rio de Janeiro.



Priscila's mum and I


Museum

Curitiba

My host Claudio and I



View from the train




Well, I've had a great time in Curitiba. I don't have a room to myself in this house, but my host Claudio and his mum have been extremely friendly. I arrived here on Tuesday night, Claudio met me at the bus station and we went out for dinner with some other folks.

On the Wednesday I woke up at 5:50am in order to get the train to a small historic town called Morretes. Apparently the Brazilian government made a decision to get rid of passenger trains for some reason, so there's not many rides like this. But views on this 3 hour trip are fantastic. I spend a few hours walking around the town and had lunch there where the waiter - an old Dutch guy who decided to move here - told me about the place. The buildings look great and it's very peaceful here. If I ever retire, I think this place will have to be on my Top 5 places to live.

I got back to the train station 20 minutes before the 3pm (only train) was due to leave back for Curitiba and even had time to fit in a quick hair cut. In the evening Claudio's mum prepared dinner for us and Claudo's girlfriend - she spent a year in NZ and speaks English well. Even though Claudio speaks some English, we usually communicate in Portuguese.

On Thursday I got a tour bus around the city of Curitiba to see what it has to offer. The Couchsurfing community has a weekly dinner/get together on Thursday evenings, so I joined them. Seems like a great way to meet new people when you're travelling.

It's now Friday and I have a 2pm bus booked for São Paulo - a six hour trip.



The town of Morretes

Blumenau

I took this picture of Blumenau from a bridge






View from Fernando's house

I arrived here in Blumenau yesterday. My host Fernando, 26 has been very hospitable . I arrived yesterday around 4pm. He picked me up at the bus stop and took me back to this house. He lives with his parents and sister in a big house with a great view of the city.

Last night we went out for dinner. It was a Brazilian style restaurant (surprisingly) where salad is a "buffet style", and the waiters continuously bring around different types of pizza and meats. The meat is really really good! We finished off the meal with "chocolate pizza" and then went to a pub where he introduced me to a couple of friends of his (husband and wife).

Blumenau is a city of about 300 000 people with a particularly strong German heritage. The building have a European look and and feel to them. I'm told that a lot of the street names were German until WWII when they changed them to Portuguese. Although the street signs still have the old German names written underneath.

Anyway, just a short 24 hour stay here. My bus to the next city - Curitiba - leaves at 4:15pm!

Time to move on

Well, it's been a good five weeks in Floripa. I've made some new friends here and got to see some of what this city has to offer. I went on a hike for nearly 3 hours yesterday with some friends. We then had lunch at a restaurant and got a ferry back .

But I'm leaving tomorrow. This also marks my final official Portuguese course. I've studied the language for about four months now - a month more than I had initially intended. I hope to keep learning more through listening, reading and speaking (I still have a long way to go) but this marks my last official course.

The plan is to head back to Rio and spend about a month there. I'm going by bus which would be a good 15+ hour trip if I went directly, but I plan to break it up and spend a few days in some different cities.

First, tomorrow (Monday) a 4 hour trip to Blumenau - a small city with a lot of German heritage. Then on Tuesday I plan to get the bus to Curitiba - a city which I've heard lots of good things about. I plan to stay there until Friday.

For these two cities I plan to do something a bit more adventerous/crazy than I usually would in terms of accomodation. A few people in my travels have told me about http://www.couchsurfing.org
The idea is there's a community of people over the world who offer to let you "sleep on their couch". It sounded a bit crazy at first, but I've met some people that have done it and I kind of like the idea of meeting people who actually live in the city rather than a whole lot of other tourists which you tend to find at a backpackers place. Reminds be a bit of how in Bible times people would go to the town square and wait for some hospitable person to take them in.

So in Blumenau a chap by the name of Fernando has been kind enough to offer to host me on the Monday. He lives with his sister
http://www.couchsurfing.org/profile.html?id=5RSOSR5
Then in Curitiba for the Tuesday-Friday, a guy by the name of Claudio said he would host me. He lives with his mum
http://www.couchsurfing.org/profile.html?id=E3L8LBK

On Friday I plan to get the bus from Curitiba to São Paulo (a 6 hour trip)- Brazil's largest city. My friend Priscila Romeiro (I know lots of Brazilian Priscilas) has been kind enough to organise for me to stay with her family while I'm there!
So I'm looking forward to seeing some new places and meeting some new people!

Minha rotina em Florianópolis

Eu escrevi este em Português. Se você não ler Português pode usar http://translate.google.com/#

Estou em rotina bom aqui em Florianópolis. De manhas eu tomo café da manhã em minha casa. Café da manhã sempre é pâo, cajo, fruitas e suco de laranja. Depois eu vou para um orfanato e ensinar inglês lá. As crianças lá têm ou correm o risco de AIDS. Eu gosto de ajudar lá, mas algumas vezes as crianças estão difícil rsrs
http://www.recantodocarinho.org.br/index.php?cnt=quemsomos

Depois almoço vou para aula de Português. Eu tenho aula de Português por 3 horas por dia.

Eu fiz novos amigos na escola e também através da igreja eu visitei. Eu gosto aqui, mas está frio pouco no inverno.

Futebol

During the game



One thing I was looking forward to before coming to Brazil, was being here while the world cup is on. As one might expect, in general they have a very big interest in soccer here. But just as in Australia, not everyone's into cricket or rugby, not everyone here is into soccer. But when Brazil plays in the world cup - it seems like the whole country stops. During Brazil's second game (it was my first full day here in Floripa), I was in an electronics store, but it appeared all the "customers" were just using the demo tvs to watch the game - the staff too.

For Brazil's last couple of games I've been invited to a friend's place a 15 minute walk from where I live to watch it - there's been about 10 people there each time. Most people usually have work or study, but that doesn't matter. Likewise my Portuguese lessons at the school I'm at have been arrange around Brazil's games.

With that said, I was disappointed Brazil lost last game. there's been five games of Brazil playing and I was hoping for a couple more - for the atmosphere if nothing else! People seemed a bit sad afterwards, but picked themselves up pretty quickly.


Lunch after the game. Brazil lost, but you wouldn't know it by their smiles


Now for a few of my observations about the game. It seems to me that there's a couple of issues that should be sorted out.

Firstly, unlike most other major sports these days, they haven't introduced any technology to help the referees in making the correct call. This goal by England against Germany easily went over the line and should have counted http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FkCnUTIWBAc
but the ref missed it. In a game where so few goals are scored, they really should do teams and fans justice by making sure goals count when they're supposed to. In the year 2010, technology is available to assist the refs in making this sort of decision (without slowing the game down). To add insult to injury the FIFA websites recap doesn't even admit the mistake but simply says "Meetings between these two sides often provide talking points and this one's came 60 seconds later when Lampard's shot from the edge of the box struck the underside of the crossbar and bounced down, with the referee ruling the ball had not crossed the goalie."

Secondly it seems to me that there's too many pansies who pretend to get hurt in order to get a call to go their way. In a game where a red card means the player is sent off (so that the team is down to 10 players) AND misses the next game, it can be rather harsh if they get penalised in this manner unfairly. Take this example where Kaka got a 2nd yellow card (and therefore missed the next match), when he didn't even appear to touch the other player's face.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lkIQ6pRcvv8
Now the ref has to make the decision on the spot, but at the very least they could review the tape overnight to see if some if the yellow card was warranted and rescind it in a case like this so that he doesn't miss the next game. Furthermore they could look to penalise players for faking it so badly. But no they don't do that. The ref's call is final. I'm told soccer pride's itself on being a game with constant motion and just a few simple rules. But the thing is, it seems to (perhaps somewhat nievely) rely on players being honest. I think they need to amend the rules to discourage this sort of behaviour.

Lastly, I was disappointed Ghana last yesterday - I was really hoping that'd pull it out. That said, some people seem to feel that Uruguay won by cheating. In the final minute of extra time Ghana had what would have been a goal, but a Uruguay player used his hand to defend it. The result was a red card - meaning he missed the next match and Ghana got a free kick. While I really wanted Ghana to win and therefore am sad they missed the free kick (which mean the game then went to a penalty shootout where Uruguay won), I don't feel Uruguay cheated. In my opinion they made a last desperate attempt to save the goal - which paid off. If that's not meant to be part of the game, then again they should consider changing the rules such that its an automatic goal in these situations, rather than just a free kick.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_qpTNnFFbr0

Florianópolis

The street where my house is


Its actually quite steep...


Floripa


I've been in Floripa for over a week now. I'm pleased to say so far that I haven't come across any of the negative preconceptions about this place. On my second night here I went to a bus stop and asked the two guys waiting when the next bus was due. They soon worked out I was a foreigner and we struck up a good conversation.

I like this city, the buildings and streets have a bit more of a European feel to them. Its just a pity that it is rather cold at the moment. The house I'm staying at is quite big. Its good all the basic necessities: Running water, electricity and wireless Internet access. Even has hot water as a bonus! The house has one lady in her 50s by the name of Anna and her two adult children - a son and daughter, although her son is currently overseas and I haven't met him yet. The only negative about this house is I don't have much interaction with the people, they're often out and so that part of the homestay (getting to know other people and living with a "family") isn't as good as it could be, but overall things are going well.

I visited a church on Thursday night and met some people and to invited to a weekend getaway on the south of the island. So I went on that which proved to be a great opportunity to worship God, meet lots of new people, go to the beach (just for a look as its cold at the moment), play some soccer have a barbecue (Brazilian style) and just hang out with some new people.

I'm meant to be doing one one one Portuguese lessons here, but for the first week one of the teachers was sick and I ended up being in a small group. I ended up doing six hours a day. This week I'm doing one on one classes for three hours a day. I've also enquired into the possibility of doing some volunteer work - so I've arranged to go to an orphanage tomorrow and see if I can assist there.

Things are going well here so far!



BBQ at weekend away


Some of the guys I went away with on my first full weekend in Floripa

Goodbye to Palmas, on to Floripa, and the World Cup

Farewell dinner with friends I've made in Palmas


This may not look that speical - but its the very centre of Brazil.


Well I spent four and a half weeks in Palmas - two more than I initially planned.

As I write, I'm at Palmas airport about to travel to Florianópolis (Floripa). I'm flying via, Brasilia, then Sao Paulo so its going to take 7 or 8 hours. Floripa is an island (connected by a bridge to the mainland) to the south of Brazil. It's meant to be really good for surfing and similar water sports that I could have done in Sydney but never did. However, as I understand it the weather is also somewhat similar to that of Sydney - meaning its pretty cold right now...

A few things I've been told about the south of Brazil:

- There's a lot of people of Europeans decent - Portugual, Italy, German (apparently a few post WW2 nazis made there way these parts too)
- People look a lot fairer (blond hair, blue eyes)
- The women are particularly beautiful
- The people aren't as open and friendly as in the north of Brazil
- The people are richer
- Its mean to be a great spot visit

Anyway, I'll try and put aside all these preconceptions (good and bad) and make the most of my time.

I've enrolled in another portuguese school for three hours each morning for four weeks. I'm also hoping to do some volunteer work while in Floripa. This is something I'm hoping my Portuguese is now good enough for me to be able to add some value with. We will see.

I'm now going to go back a few days and talk about Brazil's match of the World Cup. It was on a Tuesday commencing at about 3:30. I was invited to a house where a barbecue was taking place to watch the game. Most of the people there had jobs, but everyone had left work early for the game. It seems like the whole country stopped for it. The fans were pretty intense!

It was Brazil against North Korea and I somehow managed to wear red. I thought I better take my shirt off for most of the game, which was just as well as everyone was covered in shaving cream on the two occasions that Brazil scored. After the game not everyone seemed to be happy with the 2-1 victory. If only Australia's soccer team had such disappointing victories…




As I was wearing red they decided I was on N. Korea's side. I believe the Spanish basketball team got in trouble for this sort of pic a couple of years back



After the Brazil N. Korea game

Pronounciation could do with some work

Lunch time






At the start of the day


I've made some new friends here in Palmas which has been really good. Been playing basketball about once a week too.

It was a holiday here recently, so I went on a trip about an hour out of town with a group of about 12 people - friends that I've made through my friend Angela and the church I've been going to here. We found a good spot to have a picnic (Brazillian barbecue) which was really good. There was some great views and a nice lake for to go for a swim.

On the way back in the car, I asked one of the girls if she had any brothers. She asked me if she told me would I remember. I thought this was a bit of a strange response and said that I would. Then before I knew what was happening she started rattling off her email address. The word for "siblings" in Portuguese "irmãos". Which (the way I said it) sounds like email. Oh well, I was planning on asking her for her email address anyway...

Anyway, its my last week here in Palmas. I'm off to Florianópolis (Floripa) - which is in the south of Brazil - this Saturday. I don't know anyone there yet, but I've enrolled in yet another Portuguese school there who have organised a homestay for me. I plan to be there for at least four weeks.

Palmas

My friend Angela (another Braziiian friend I met in Sydney) lives in Palmas - about a one hour flight from Brasilia. She invited me here, so I've been here for a couple of weeks. He brother Fred owns a language school with his wife Patricia so I've been getting Portuguese lessons at a good rate.

I'm staying with friends of there's. A young married couple my age (yes Ricky that does count as young here) Daniel and Aline. Daniel is a blackbelt in judo and Aline is a judge, so I figure I had better not get up to any mischief here! I wondered if it was unusual for a judge to be so young, but apparently not in this area. Palmas is only 21 years old as such there don't seem to be many old people here.

The people I'm with (Daniel and Aline as well as Fred, his wife Patricia and Angela) speak more English than most people I've been with in Brazil and seem to be quite well off. I think the two go hand in hand to some extent as the people I'm with are business owners and/or professionals.

Again everyone here has been very hospitable. My daily routine has been to get picked up for school in the morning, have class for about two hours. The methodology is somewhat different to when I was in Maceio. There's more translation then I'd like, but its all about talking not analyzing the language as much as in Maceio, so thats been good for me. Also, I'm the only Portuguese student here - the school has about 400 students but most of them are Brazilians studying English - as such I get lots of practise. I go to lunch with Angela to Fred and Patricia's place, then after lunch I get picked up by one of the guys who works here and ride on the back of his motorbike back to school where I hang around for a couple of hours. People here seem to like talking to me which is fun and I get to use the Internet to catch up on stuff. I then have another Portuguese class at 5pm for about an hour.

I've now been in Brazil for ten weeks - the longest I've ever been away from Australia. After eight weeks here, I've found I can have basic conversations with people - if they're patient with me. But listening in on someone else's conversation still seems way beyond me. I made a friend who's into basketball like me. He said he like's Dwayne Wade but thinks he's a bit of a hog. He thinks Lebron is good but "armarelo" (yellow), which I take it to mean he thinks he's scared to take the big shots. So I was glad I was able to have this conversation in Portuguese. I got to play basketball for the first time since leaving Australia too which was good fun!

Anyway, its been a while since I posted a blog and I thought I should let my worldwide followers know what I've been up to :) I should be going camping tomorrow with some friends which sounds like fun. Hopefully I can stand the heat - its about as hot as Maceio, although at least its not as humid so I don't sweat so much.

Brasilia part 2

View from Priscilla's uncles' house


Backyard soccer action


Priscilla's family and me


For the 2nd half of my stay in Brasilia I stayed at my friend Priscilla's place. I know her from when she spent a year in Sydney. I has also met her sister Polly last year in Rio de Janeiro. It was really nice to see them again. Priscilla and her whole family were extremely nice. Her parents don't speak any English which was good practise for me! Her mum used to be a Portuguese teach and helped me out with some things. Her dad seems quite funny, but spoke at "full speed" with me so I often couldn't quite work out what he was saying.

On my first day with their family I went with them to Priscilla and Polly's uncle's house for a barbecue. I joined them for some soccer. It may have been backyard soccer (3 on 3 or 2 on 2), but they took it pretty seriously - the women and children were confined to the sidelines to cheer us on. Although they did get to join in volleyball later on… I had some nice chocolate type food there. I'm not exactly sure what it was but when translated the name is "boy's foot"…

Polly's boyfriend speaks English very well - he's an English teacher. I went along to a couple of his classes and spoke to his students. Some of them had never spoken to a "gringo" (someone from outside Brazil) before, so this was kinda fun.

I had a really good time in Brasilia. I got to just about finish the Rosetta Stone Portuguese software course I was doing. I got to meet some new people as well as catch up with old friends. Both the families I stayed with were extremely hospitable.

But now I'm in Palmas (about a one hour flight from Brasilia)- I'm a bit behind in my blogs as I've been here for a week. Another friend (Angela) has organised things for me to stay here for a few weeks, I'm studying more Portuguese here and getting to meet lots of new people. More on that next time…

Taboo

I'd like to announce that this blog now has ten official followers! Of course that's just a small representation of the thousands of you readers out there that do read my blog but aren't "official" followers.

Trying to communicate in a language you aren't fluent in can be a bit like playing the game Taboo. You can't say the specific word you want to say, so it helps to be creative and something close to what you're actually trying to say. I like Taboo. Just like with Taboo it doesn't just come down only to the creativity of the person speaking, but the people trying to work out what you're trying to say have to realise that you can't say the actual word you want and and need to be a bit creative in guessing what you're actually trying to say - some people are better at this than others...

At the language school I was at in Maceio one American guy complained that being able to only communicate with people in Portuguese meant it was like his whole personality was suppressed. All these things he wanted to communicate but couldn't.

Fortunately in my case I have a fairly simple sense of humour, so my jokes are already making it through! I was told by Priscilla's family (who I'm with at the moment) that unlike most gringos (people outside Brazil) I'm very funny. I guess its a good thing that I'm leaving soon - before they realise I've only got a handful of jokes I just reuse :)

Brasília

Davi and his mum Cintia

Nara, Aaron, Priscila

Livia's dad

Me outside fancy looking cathedral

My friend Livia (in Sydney) has been kind enough to organise for me to stay at her family's place while I'm here in Brasília. They are really nice. Her dad is very friendly and seems quite funny from what I can make out. Her mom is a fantastic cook. She makes some great meals - especially for lunch - which seems to be the main meal of the day here. Her brother Célio isn't working at the moment due to a futebol (soccer) injury and has been kind enough to show me around the city during the week. Likewise her sister Priscila gave me a tour when I first arrived and has introduced me to some of her friends. Priscila seems to have a good knack for picking up when I'm pretending to understand what someone is saying but don't really get it… Priscila's friend Nara also lives with the family and likewise has been very friendly.

The family doesn't speak English which has forced me to practise what Portuguese I've learnt so far. They do know a few English words, but more than not I feel that those words are ones I already know in Portuguese - a first for me!

One can't really expect a family to take a stranger into their home and treat them so extremely well. But they have done just that. Something I feel blessed for and am very grateful for. In fact on my second day here, they took me on a two hour drive to another city called Goiânia where Livia's other sister lives with her husband and two year old son Davi - when I first met him he was quick two inform me that his age is dois (two) :) We stayed there overnight.

I initially planned to be with this family for my whole 17 day stay in Brasilia. But there has been a slight changed of plans whereby Livia's parents had go back to Goiânia this week. So I'm staying with the family of another friend - Priscilla (different from the Priscila with one "l" mentioned above). Her family is just as nice and generous - more on that next time.

Its been nice to have warm showers nice I arrived in Brasília - especially as the weather is a little cooler here. Actually I really like the weather here. Its warm enough during the day that I can walk around in shorts and a tshirt - without breaking into a sweat. In the evening there's generally a gentle breeze. Brasília is a nice city. Perhaps a bit like Canberra in that it was built to be the capital (Rio used to be the capital). Brasilia was built in 1960. It has some quite impressive buildings. It all seems quite well designed, the roads are nice and wide with multiple lanes which minimises traffic jams - quite refreshing having been to Rio and Sao Paulo!

With over two million people, Brasília was the largest city (by population) in the world at the close of the 20th century that didn't exist at the beginning of the century. lt is the only city in the world built in the 20th century to be awarded (in 1987) the status of Historical and Cultural Heritage. I was warned before I came here that its not a great touristy place. Being inland there's no beaches - although there is an artificial lake which is very nice. While it may not be the best place for tourism, I think overall the city is quite impressive and strikes mean as being a good sort of place to live.

Here I've even observed cars stop at pedestrian crossings without the pedestrian having to take a "step of faith" onto the road first - all quite civilised really. I don't believe I've previously observed this sort of behaviour outside of Australia!

Observations here

Locals playing Footvolley


This is my last day in Maceio and I thought I'd reflect on what I've observed here. I'll take a moment to compare an aspect of Brazil to the Philippines (another "developing country I've been too). I recall in the Philippines a time that Ricardo and I went for a jog on the beach. We got people looking at us and even a few taking photos - felt a bit like celebrity status.
Its not like that in Brazil. For the most part I feel like people don't give me a second look really. A lot of countries seem to "look up to" the West, and - while they certainly have their degree of western influence here with translated movies, books, magazines etc - I get the feeling that Brazilians are really content in their culture here.

One thing I was looking forward to in the north of Brazil was that I was told that the people are really friendly. Although I haven't really observed that here, just in general people seem to keep to themselves and go about their business (nothing bad a bit like Australia really). I've heard that may be an exception for the particular area I'm in… That said, if you do talk to people they do seem pretty friendly. Like when guys let me join in their game of beach volleyball last weekend.

Another game they're into here is "Footvolley" sort of a mix of volleyball and soccer. Where you've got to hit it over the net, but can't use your hands. Its incredible how good some of the locals are. I didn't dare attempt this one…
Here's a short video clip (unfortunately a Facebook login is required)
http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=412858087436

Also, in my last couple of weeks here I started going to a different church. I really liked the feel there and have made some friends. I like meeting new people and making new friends.

There are 26 states in Brazil, apparently the one I'm currently (Alagoas) in is the poorest. But compared to some other countries I've been to it doesn't seem all that poor to me. That said, it certainly would be nice to be able to use a toilet where I'm allowed to flush the toilet paper rather than have to throw it in the bin… Don't get me wrong, there are certainly a lot of poor people in Brazil. Particuarly in a place like Rio - although it is richer overall than here, the higher cost of living can be hard on the poorer people - Rio is known for having a lot of favelas.
But economically speaking, overall I get the feeling that this country is on the rise. I'm told that the current president - Lula - has done a lot to get rid of corruption at the highest levels in the country over the last few years and is really popular.

Change of plans

Centro de Maceio


Well before I write about my change of plans I thought I'd mention that I recall why I never tried to learn another language before - its hard! A lot of work too. I go through ups and downs. On the latter, sometimes I get down on not being able to understand what people are saying and everything goes over my head. But in regards to the former, I have moments like the other day when I got a taxi and was able to have a bit of a basic casual chat with the driver - something I realised I couldn't have done four weeks ago. Or one time I did't understand much of the text in class, but in the evening when I was reading the text slowly at home and realised that I did understand most of the words.

This is the last of my five weeks in Maceio. My plan has been to go to Florianópolis - a city to the south of Brazil which is meant to be very beautiful - next. But I've had a change in plans. I'd like to take a couple of weeks of self study where I can finish using the Rosetta Stone language learning software course I started before I came to Brazil and also review what I've learnt so far since I've been here. My friend Livia (who is in Sydney) was very kind offer to let me stay at her family's place for a couple of weeks. So I've booked a ticket to Brasilia - the capital of Brazil - for this Saturday to go there. I'm looking forward to going to a new city and meeting new people! I have another friend Angela who lived in Sydney for a while and is now back in Brazil. I plan to go and see her next in Palmas (another city). Her brother actually works at a language school called Wizard and has arranged for me to get some lessons there at a good rate!

So there are my plans for the next five weeks or so. I may go to Florianópolis after that. Apparently the south of Brazil is very different to the north.

Turn up the heat

Well I've decided to turn up the heat with my Portuguese study for my last two weeks in Maceio by doing two extra hours each day in the afternoon. I don't really want to learn new stuff in these classes (Im not sure that my brain can handle new stuff) but am hoping that it will help reinforce what Ive already been learning. The only other student in this class is from Mexico - so as Spanish is her native language I feel she can communicate here much better than I can.

With all that said, tomorrow is a public holiday here. Its Tiradentes' Day. Tiradente was a leader in a revolutionary movement in the 1700s. He was hanged - like many of these revolutionaries really. After the hanging his body was quartered into "several pieces" (I would have thought quartering would involve four pieces). All rather brutal - but he began to be considered a hero in the late 1800s and after Brazil became a republic in 1889, the annivserary of his death - 21st April - was declared a public holiday.

Second weekend in Maceió (third in Brazil)

Durval was out teacher for the first two weeks.
He's the guy in the middle...


Beach volleyball action


Well this blog is a bit late as I'm writing about the previous weekend on a Friday (early Saturday if you're in Australia), but better late then never, right?

So I went to Praia do Francês - a famous beach which I was told I should check - with some fellow students on Saturday. This means after having lived in Sydney my whole life and rarely gone to the beach, I've now been to the beach three straight weekends here in Brazil.
The day was actually a bit overcast, but still worth the visit to Praia do Francês.

However activities like that still mean I'm howling around with fellow foreigners. I'd really like to meet more Brazilians and experience the culture more. So on Sunday I set about ventures that would lead to meeting more Braziliians.

I went to a church on Sunday morning. "Assembleia de Deus" is the same denomination church (Assembly of God) that I go to in Australia. I actually bumped into this particular church in Maceio one time when I got lost. Even though its the same denomination in name, it was a fair bit different in the way they behaved. They dress more formally (a lot of the guys) wear ties and are less expressive in their singing (generally speaking I'd say Brazilians are more expressive than Australians). People there were quite welcoming, although I didn't really get talking to anyone extensively.

In the afternoon I went for a walk along the beach in search of a game of beach volleyball. Bingo! I came across some guys setting up the nets. I asked if I could play with them and they said "sim" (yes). They take it pretty seriously - pure 2 on 2 (I was on a 3rd team that subbed in) with rope to mark the court'd boundaries. I was really glad to play, but unfortunately I wasn't quite at their level of competition. Perhaps I should challenge them to swimming next time...

Learning português

I've completed my first two weeks of português lessons here in Maceió. Its actually been nine days of class as the first Friday was a holiday.

I'd already learnt a little bit through using the Rosetta Stone software I've been using and talking to Brazilian friends. So I was hoping I might sneak in the the class just above the absolute beginners. They gave us a test when were first arrived - it was a written test all in Portuguese (as might be expected). It was pretty hard - we were all put in the beginners class except Karla who is from Mexico. She hadn't studied Portuguese at all, but her Spanish was enough to get her in the intermediate class (both languages are both Latin based and have similarities). Although she was finding the intermediate class a bit tough and in the second week moved down to our class.

Of the other new people in my class there's an American couple Jeff and Susanna from San Francisco who are studying for three weeks before going to Sao Paulo to work on some sort of hotel venture. Zach from Miami - a lawyer from Miami who has decided to study inter-American law and thought the another language spoken in the Americas would be good before he commences his law study in June. There was also a French lady who was just doing one week of one on one classes.

Anyway, its a good thing I was put in the beginners class as I'm finding it quite hard. Its all in portuguese - the teacher (although we get a new teacher ever second week or so) we've had speaks no English which means if when we don't know a word the teacher "acts it out" to try and demonstrate what it means. Thats fine with me as the software I've been using is based on "immersion" with no translation. But I've felt like I'm a bit behind the other students. It turns out Zach has previously studied both French and Japanese - not to mention Portugues a few years ago - so a lot of it seem to be coming back to him. Jeff and Susanna took some tutorials before coming here and are also doing some extra classes in the afternoons. There's a lot of information to take in and it can be hard to learn new words from the context if I don't understand some of the other words which other students do. In my first week I didn't really use a English-Portuguese dictionary at all, but in my second week I've felt the need to sucumb to doing so. I'd rather not, but the other students are and I feel I may need to.

I find it very draining too. The classes are just from 8-11:50, although I've been doing homework as well as my Rosetta Stone software study to accompany what I've been learning. Then in the evening I talk communicate in Portuguese (and sign language :) Ive felt a certain level of "mental toughness" has been required to "stick with it" and not get frustrated.

In the first week, I was getting really tired by 7pm and going to bed between 8 and 9. Then I was waking up about 5-5:30 in the morning - most unlike me! This week I've been staying up a little later and been getting up a bit later. I haven't studied this hard since I studied for my Cisco CCIE in 2008! Speaking of study, thinking back to when I was in high school I don't think I had much of a work ethic or knew how to knuckle down and study back then.

Anyway, despite finding things hard I'm feeling good and really enjoying the experiences. I feel I've learnt a lot and after two weeks can speak some Portuguese (certainly more than I've been able to in the past :)

First weekend in Maceio

Last weekend - my first in Maceio was a three day weekend due to Christmas. This meant there was no school on Friday.
So on the Friday I went with some of the other students to a beach called Guaxuma. Most of the other students are American, but there a people from other counties including a lady from Japan and another from Switzerland who don't really speak English. Any the beach a 30 minute trip north on the bus. While there are many beaches in Sydney, there's not many where you can eat a nice lunch actually on the beach. This combined with the fantastic beach itself went for a nice day.



I've made my first Brazilian friend here in Maceio - Fabiana. She's a friend of a friend (Livia) in Sydney. She doesn't speak any English - which is all part of the fun! She invited me to go to her church's cell group (a house meeting) on the Saturday. She was kinda enough to come and meet my at my place and get the bus (onibus as they're called here) to the house where they were meeting. So it was was great to meet a few more people. I was going to get a taxi home, but we had some trouble finding one, so her brother was kind enough to give me a lift home.

In Sydney over the years I'd meet various people from overseas who didn't speak much English - so its an interesting experience being on the other end of the stick :)