Travel and Thought

Hello!

I am in disbelief at just how time passes by so quickly. Portuguese lessons and our seminars are well underway. I am still adjusting to the daily routine of my family (waking up at 6 a.m...), but they are so nice and include me on many family activities. This week has been pretty cool because I have gotten some time to spend with my brother, Anderson. Anderson is 39 and is a Portuguese high school teacher during the day, but at night he teaches Brazilian jiu jitsu and muay thai. The reason that we are able to hangout this week is because the teacher's of Salvador are on a three day strike and are demanding an increase in pay. One afternoon this previous week he got to teach me some Portuguese (and I even taught him a little English) and then we had a Brazilian jiu jitsu lesson! Besides my impromptu Brazilian jiu jitsu lesson, I really enjoyed some things that we got to do this week.

On Tuesday night a few of us walked to one of our fellow student's host home. We got to meet her family and visited with her for a few minutes (and I played with the family parrot too...). After leaving her house and eating dinner at a local restaurant (grilled chicken, salad, anddddd FRENCH FRIES) we then proceeded to "Blessed" Tuesday night in Pelourinho. After a little research, I found out why this is called "Blessed" Tuesday night. It is called this because the poor received free bread from the church on Tuesdays. Not only do they receive free bread, but the streets come alive as bands set up on the streets and play Afro-Brazilian music while people dance, eat and party. So many people with such a rich culture, and I had a blast!

After the band finished playing, we followed the crowd into the street and soon encountered people playing drums. We all stopped and joined in more dancing in the middle of the street...SO much fun!

Public transportation has become more "natural" for me as this week has progressed. It is just an unavoidable fact of life in Brazil, but I get SO frustrated by the system. There is absolutely no rhyme or reason (that I see or others see) as to how the system operates. You can stand at a bus stop for 2 minutes or an hour waiting for your bus to come. It is frustrating to me because I have to take the bus to get to the SIT building for school, and I get a grade for punctuality. I leave at the times my parents tell me and some days everything works out just fine, but some days I have been 15-40 minutes late! Another frustrating thing with the public transportation and Salvador in general is that they hate...literally hate...giving you change. It is like pulling teeth from a cat! It is somewhat of a touchy subject that I found out while riding the bus one day. While on the bus, a man entered and tried to pay with a big bill, but the person who collects the bus fare didn't "have" the change. Long story short, the bus driver pulled our bus over for 15 minutes as he, the bus fare collector, and the man (as well as other various people riding in the bus with me) yelled and argued. Finally, he was kicked off the bus. The issue is that many times, the people actually have the change, but they just do not want to give it to you.

In our seminars this week we have been focusing on race and human rights. Our speakers have been really neat to listen to and we have had some interesting discussions. What does being a citizen mean to you? Is it a form of identity or does it mean nothing at all? Do those who are not citizens of a particular country have basic human rights? Who determines the definition of being a citizen? Where do you find your identity? These questions are very important when talking about equal access to health care.

This weekend we are going to a Candomble temple (a religion that is commonly practiced in Salvador) and will be watching some of their rituals. I really do not know what to expect, but I am extremely excited to see this holistic and spiritual side of Salvador.

I hope that everyone enjoys the last few days of break!

Until next time remember..."When the sun rises, it rises for everyone." - Unknown