If Stephen Colbert lived in Brazil right now, his #1 threat on the threat count down would be rain… bears would probably be number two. Oh, what a crazy week I’ve had. Recently, the rain has developed this nasty habit of pouring off and on all day, every day. The rain dictates city life. Rain means less buses, more traffic, and more of a pain to try and walk around. Take yesterday for example: I spent two hours (when it usually takes me 30 minutes) traveling to work to VERY disappointingly discover that all events had been cancelled due to rain. I was drenched and my former bright and cheery yellow umbrella was looking very disgruntled and sad, kind of like my spirit. Do my advisors call me to tell me all has been cancelled? No. Do I get sexually harassed by the main director of street educators in his car on my way home? Yes. I ended the day curled up in my bed, watching “Heroes” (thanks to Julia) with a liter of Coke Light.
Today I had glorious plans of going to the beach but alas, the never ending rain ruined them. I came home to find Igor curled up on the bathroom floor. Fatima told me in an unsympathetic tone that he went out last night and drank too much. At first I thought, “Aww, poor Igor.” Then, after listening to him puke his brains out (all the walls are paper thin) I started thinking, “Poor me! I am stuck in the house and have to listen to this!” Like Fatima, I am now also unsympathetic. I decided walking downstairs to Fatima’s house to type out this blog and some emails sounded like a better plan. Puke in peace, Igor.
I may or may not go to a birthday party in Liberdade today… it depends what this crazy weather does. Tomorrow, if it’s sunny, I plan on going to the message beach and surrounding myself in new, peaceful scenery. PLEASE DON’T RAIN TOMORROW!!! All I want is to be dry.
Next week I am going to work more with street kids in the capoeira center. I fricken LOVE Projeto Axè! It’s such a great program, minus the douche bag administrator. In short, Projeto Axè uses art, capoeira, and dance to give children in the situations of the streets self-confidence, self-worth, and a means to become productive, healthy citizens. The children have to first agree to go home or live in an assigned house: in turn, they get three meals a day, access to health care, a choice of which program to participate in, and a change to work to replace street wages. At the moment, Projeto Axè is helping over 1,000 children in Salvador. It’s amazing and I’m really lucky to have this opportunity.
Saturday, May 23, 2009
Monday, May 18, 2009
Hippie Town
Last week I started my ISP which will focus on the benefits of capoeira for removing children from the streets to homes. I met my academic advisor on Thursday and started interviewing/filming on Friday. It´s a little scary taking my video camera in public, but what will happen will happen. My advisor is a true city girl, pretty cold. I´m glad I only work there for one week.
I found a University that hosts college kids from CA near Campo Grande, where I now get free internet (b/c I pass as a gringa) and where I met a surfer from CA named Lucas. We were talking about cheap get aways and he mentioned a place called Aldeia Hippie in Arembepe. I left on Friday afternoon by myself with a backpack full of the absolute necessities, a little money, and the names of the busses/Aldeia Hippie/Arembepe on a piece of paper.
I was a little nervous, especially after arriving in Arembepe in the dark and without a clue of where to go. I took a moto-taxi to the edge of town where the driver dropped me off with a curt "Aldeia Hippie- straight". I gave the guy an extra $10R to walk me into the village. It somehow had slipped my mind that hippies don´t use electricity and I would arrive in utter darkness. Shoes in hand, we waded through a stagnant river and then up a sand bar, dodging palm trees and getting a little light from the many stars overhead. After narrowly dodging the hidden rear end of a horse I arrived at the "Janice Joplin" house. It looked fitting, so I bid my guide goodbye and stepped inside the little open hut made of palm trees, old plastic tents, and many numerous other objects.
The man of the house (Cezar) should have his picture in Webster under Brazilian hippie- an indigenous Brazilian with a full head of long black dread-locks wearing a turquoise speedo, lying in a hammock with his woman, complete with five little hippie children eating popcorn on plastic chairs- eyes fixated on a mini battery TV. After a little small talk, Cezar said I could sleep in the hammock for $10R. Ta bom.
I didn´t get much sleep- mainly because the dog kept barking, and the rooster began cockling at 4am. At one point, the rooster was directly beneath my hammock. When I woke up, I started talking with the family about how life was like in the Hippie Town. People visit from all over the world to camp and smoke mj. Everyone was very friendly and laid back. As I was exploring, I met a man named Cacao who owned a pousada in the village. He was very friendly and hospitable. As he was showing me around, he shimmied up a palm tree and opened a coconut for some delicious coco de agua. One of the main attractions, besides the enourmous amount of weed, are the turtles that lay their eggs on the beach.
I was planning on staying until Sunday, but I freaked out and high tailed it for Salvador later Saturday evening after exploring the nearby town of Arembepe. The hippie´s were great, but I needed a companion in order to feel safe. Amanda!! Why did your apendix have to burst?!
On Sunday I went to the National Ballet of Cuba with Julia in a very fancy theater near Campo Grande. For $15 US I got into the nose-bleed section and enjoyed 3 hours of beautiful dancing, while being surrounded by the most well-dressed white people I have seen since my arrival in March.
Two very different experiences, one really great weekend. I want to go on a different adventure every weekend until I leave on June 13. Suggestions are appreciated! Until next time, my hand might as well be glued to my umbrella because the forecast calls for rain every day, all day.
I found a University that hosts college kids from CA near Campo Grande, where I now get free internet (b/c I pass as a gringa) and where I met a surfer from CA named Lucas. We were talking about cheap get aways and he mentioned a place called Aldeia Hippie in Arembepe. I left on Friday afternoon by myself with a backpack full of the absolute necessities, a little money, and the names of the busses/Aldeia Hippie/Arembepe on a piece of paper.
I was a little nervous, especially after arriving in Arembepe in the dark and without a clue of where to go. I took a moto-taxi to the edge of town where the driver dropped me off with a curt "Aldeia Hippie- straight". I gave the guy an extra $10R to walk me into the village. It somehow had slipped my mind that hippies don´t use electricity and I would arrive in utter darkness. Shoes in hand, we waded through a stagnant river and then up a sand bar, dodging palm trees and getting a little light from the many stars overhead. After narrowly dodging the hidden rear end of a horse I arrived at the "Janice Joplin" house. It looked fitting, so I bid my guide goodbye and stepped inside the little open hut made of palm trees, old plastic tents, and many numerous other objects.
The man of the house (Cezar) should have his picture in Webster under Brazilian hippie- an indigenous Brazilian with a full head of long black dread-locks wearing a turquoise speedo, lying in a hammock with his woman, complete with five little hippie children eating popcorn on plastic chairs- eyes fixated on a mini battery TV. After a little small talk, Cezar said I could sleep in the hammock for $10R. Ta bom.
I didn´t get much sleep- mainly because the dog kept barking, and the rooster began cockling at 4am. At one point, the rooster was directly beneath my hammock. When I woke up, I started talking with the family about how life was like in the Hippie Town. People visit from all over the world to camp and smoke mj. Everyone was very friendly and laid back. As I was exploring, I met a man named Cacao who owned a pousada in the village. He was very friendly and hospitable. As he was showing me around, he shimmied up a palm tree and opened a coconut for some delicious coco de agua. One of the main attractions, besides the enourmous amount of weed, are the turtles that lay their eggs on the beach.
I was planning on staying until Sunday, but I freaked out and high tailed it for Salvador later Saturday evening after exploring the nearby town of Arembepe. The hippie´s were great, but I needed a companion in order to feel safe. Amanda!! Why did your apendix have to burst?!
On Sunday I went to the National Ballet of Cuba with Julia in a very fancy theater near Campo Grande. For $15 US I got into the nose-bleed section and enjoyed 3 hours of beautiful dancing, while being surrounded by the most well-dressed white people I have seen since my arrival in March.
Two very different experiences, one really great weekend. I want to go on a different adventure every weekend until I leave on June 13. Suggestions are appreciated! Until next time, my hand might as well be glued to my umbrella because the forecast calls for rain every day, all day.
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Pagode
I just returned to the grind in Salvador and thought I should catch you up on the end of my village study in Santo Antonio de Jesus. I think this was by far the best two weeks I have had in Salvador. I was completely and helplessly submerged into Brazilian culture and had both hands in the health sector. Most days we would walk door to door to check up on patients, register new patients, administer vaccines, regular check ups, you name it. Other times we would be sitting side by side with public health agents in the post waiting for the rain to stop, waiting for a task, or just waiting for no reason. Never in my life have I done so much sitting, pondering, and waiting. It´s a great thing I was blessed with Maritza as a partner- our long, deep talks about life were the best time fillers.
All Brazilians know how to have a banging time, especially those in the interior because there is not a lot to do otherwise. The 10 hour pagode/fogo party was the icing on my village study cake. Typical Brazilian party- total madness. The floor was dirt which quickly turned into mud. There were two main venues- one was the main stage with pagode/fogo music and the other was a small DJ cement area with techno music. As soon as main stage switched artists, people would hurry to the other "techno-club" venue. Brilliant- non stop dancing. I like pagode- it´s a dance that makes you forget you have bones in your body. Unfortunately, we only stayed until 3 am for the entirety of the pagode. Fogo, the main attraction, didn´t start until 4 am. The later it got, the more the dangerous equation of (men + alcohol + cloth wrapped around fists= fights + police beating people off of each other) started to make me nervous.
As I said, I have returned to Salvador and started my ISP today. At 8am I went with a program that hands out a hot breakfast/groceries/and clothes to children in the situations of the streets- street children in a non-acceptable term because under Brazilian law all children are protected by the Constituion of 1988 and the government is responsible for providing all children with homes and numerous other rights... I personally have witnessed many situations that scream other wise. I am living with my original host Mom which is wonderful because we get along great and Fazenda Garcia has a lot of character and a good typical Brazilian vibe.
I can´t believe I am only here for one more month!! I want to finish up my ISP in 20 days so I will have time to visit other places in Brazil before I leave- possibly the Pantanal region like my Uncle David suggested to see the amazing wild life.
All Brazilians know how to have a banging time, especially those in the interior because there is not a lot to do otherwise. The 10 hour pagode/fogo party was the icing on my village study cake. Typical Brazilian party- total madness. The floor was dirt which quickly turned into mud. There were two main venues- one was the main stage with pagode/fogo music and the other was a small DJ cement area with techno music. As soon as main stage switched artists, people would hurry to the other "techno-club" venue. Brilliant- non stop dancing. I like pagode- it´s a dance that makes you forget you have bones in your body. Unfortunately, we only stayed until 3 am for the entirety of the pagode. Fogo, the main attraction, didn´t start until 4 am. The later it got, the more the dangerous equation of (men + alcohol + cloth wrapped around fists= fights + police beating people off of each other) started to make me nervous.
As I said, I have returned to Salvador and started my ISP today. At 8am I went with a program that hands out a hot breakfast/groceries/and clothes to children in the situations of the streets- street children in a non-acceptable term because under Brazilian law all children are protected by the Constituion of 1988 and the government is responsible for providing all children with homes and numerous other rights... I personally have witnessed many situations that scream other wise. I am living with my original host Mom which is wonderful because we get along great and Fazenda Garcia has a lot of character and a good typical Brazilian vibe.
I can´t believe I am only here for one more month!! I want to finish up my ISP in 20 days so I will have time to visit other places in Brazil before I leave- possibly the Pantanal region like my Uncle David suggested to see the amazing wild life.
Sunday, May 3, 2009
Santo Antonio de Jesus
Classes finally wrapped up and I am in the middle of my village stay here in Sto Antonio de Jesus. It is a small city located on the other side of the bay from Salvador. The voyage to the city was beautiful- a short ferry ride to the the other side of the bay and then a rocky ride through gorgeous green Bahian country side. The country side is full of small hills, many palm trees, various animals eating grass on the road side, and some houses doting the horizon. It has been a great break from the concrete and bustle of Salvador.
Last week I helped vaccinate people over 60 years of age with local PSF agents. PSF, in theory, is a Brazilian national health program that focuses on prevention in families. PSF centers are placed in the middle of neighborhoods, primarily low class, and contain agents that check up on each individual in the assigned area. I really like PSF because each agent resides within the assigned community and knows the socio-economic realities and necessities. The agents check for dengue, HIV/AIDS prevelance, tuberculosis, hypertension, diabetes, etc. They administer vaccinations and help educate citizens about healthy life styles.
We had some interesting vaccination patients. The trouble about working with elders are that they are very forgetful. They forget how old they are, they forget if they had the vaccination or not, they forget what their name is, they don´t know if they slept, etc. One woman in particular, had a combination of all these problems. The hardest part about PSF is that they patients can be non-compliant a lot of the time. This is a combination of a lack of education and trust in the Brazilian health care system.
This past weekend we went to a beach called Itaparica, the same beach I went to over Easter weekend. It is a very local beach with few tourists and lots of great views. Everything about the beach is cheap and wonderful, so I will most likely be doing the same thing next weekend.
I have some real school work to catch up on and a presentation about domestic violence to prepare and give on Wednesday. Beijos.
Last week I helped vaccinate people over 60 years of age with local PSF agents. PSF, in theory, is a Brazilian national health program that focuses on prevention in families. PSF centers are placed in the middle of neighborhoods, primarily low class, and contain agents that check up on each individual in the assigned area. I really like PSF because each agent resides within the assigned community and knows the socio-economic realities and necessities. The agents check for dengue, HIV/AIDS prevelance, tuberculosis, hypertension, diabetes, etc. They administer vaccinations and help educate citizens about healthy life styles.
We had some interesting vaccination patients. The trouble about working with elders are that they are very forgetful. They forget how old they are, they forget if they had the vaccination or not, they forget what their name is, they don´t know if they slept, etc. One woman in particular, had a combination of all these problems. The hardest part about PSF is that they patients can be non-compliant a lot of the time. This is a combination of a lack of education and trust in the Brazilian health care system.
This past weekend we went to a beach called Itaparica, the same beach I went to over Easter weekend. It is a very local beach with few tourists and lots of great views. Everything about the beach is cheap and wonderful, so I will most likely be doing the same thing next weekend.
I have some real school work to catch up on and a presentation about domestic violence to prepare and give on Wednesday. Beijos.
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