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 :)

Homestay

The homestay I'm at is quite good - I've already been here for one week! There's a lady in her 30s by the name of Marcela, her sister Carla and another friend of there's - although I don't see much of her as she's out a lot. As part of the deal they prepare me breakfast and dinner. There's a good bit of variety in the food and I like it - mostly.

As expected they don't speak English. When I first got here, I was pleased with my Portuguese in that I could communcate a fair bit of stuff - not in whole sentences, but just with key words (and pointing etc). As she's used to having foreign students, or gringos -the term they use for non-Brazilians living here), I think she's probably accustomed to communicating in an easy to understand manner. As was confirmed the the next day in school (my first), I don't know much portuguese yet :)

Arrived in Brazil

Saying goodbye to friends at Rio airport.

I'm at an Internet cafe in Maceió, Brazil having completed my first week of portugues school and thought I'd get around to blogging a few thoughts.
I left Sydney, Australia on Saturday 20th March 2010. It had been a busy week getting things in order before leaving, so it was nice to be able spend a few days with my Dad in Auckland before embarking on my big trip to Brazil. I left Auckland on 23rd March. As I flew using my frequent flyers they took me the 'scenic route'. From Auckland to Sao Paulo via LA and New York... Not something Id do for a short holiday, but given Ive left my job I figured I have a bit less money and a bit more time on my hands... so why not. I then paid my own way to Rio de Janeiro. A trip of about 40 hours - a personal record.

In Rio, I stayed at my good friend's (Monique) mum's house (the same place I stayed at during my first visit to Brazil last year). It was great to spend a few days catching up with friends there! I plan to go back there later during my trip.