Shards of Glass

Still enjoying Brasil :) Making sure not to take a day for granted. Sometimes being down here can feel like you're in a totally different world. Things work soooo differently. I wanted to try and find some pics so that you could see a little of what I see. In order to explain this photo, you have to understand the crime in Brazil. It's MUCH MUCH greater than in the U.S. There are more people living in poverty who are much more desperate and willing to steal from people. Because of this, there are high walls around nearly every business and house. (I will show more pics to explain) In modern times (from the late 1990's on) the tops of these fences are covered in electric wiring to keep robbers from climbing over, but back in the 60's, 70's, and 80's when construction sites were building these cement walls, they would stick broken pieces of colored glass all over the tops of the walls in order to make it dangerous to climb. Even though these shards of glass were meant for safety purposes only, I find them really beautiful and unique looking. I love them. They are so random and unorganized, bright and dangerous......they sum up the essences of Brazil. Lol. A lot of Brazilians will hate me for saying that but I say it with love, I really love these small things about Brazil that make it so original.

Here is just an example of the gates that are guarding nearly every house in Brazil (at least if you live in town). This one was the best I could find, but most of the time the gate will go all the way to the top so that there is no space to get through and the window and front door are also guarded with an extra gate to keep unwanted people out. Another thing thats very different about the houses in Brazil is that they are all sorts of different colors. You never see a brick or wooden house without some sort of bright paint covering the whole thing. This house here is a pretty mild yellow but its very common to see hot pink, lime green, aqua blue, bright purple....whatever crazy color you could think of, they have a house that has it, I swear. Lol.

Now, some Brazilians (those a bit wealthier....upper middle class I would call it) have the option of living in a "Condominio Fechado" which is a gated community. Security guards keep 24/7 watch on who is allowed in and out and members of the community get cards to give them access and if you are visiting a friend, you must tell the guards the name of the friend and they will call to make sure you're allowed. The places are really nice though. You're house doesn't need to be guarded by a gate and the company that owns that community even provides a free gym and pool area for the family to use whenever. Also, if you notice, NONE of the houses or buildings in Brazil are built on a wood base, they are all cement and brick based, which is very different from what we see in the U.S. This house here is all brick and cement and is about 3 stories high.

Well, I guess I should catch you up on my last week in Brazil :) Probably the biggest event that happened was one of Fernando's friend's parents, Lol....that was confusing to write....anyway, they were celebrating their 25th anniversary together. In the U.S. we might send them a card, or bake them a cake, they might go on a little honeymoon trip together....but this isn't the U.S.....it's Brazil and Brazilians will use any excuse to throw an over the top extravagant PARTY! Remember that place that I told you about a while a go that I went to watch a soccer game? Well, it was at a place just like that. Decorated beautifully, completely catered with suishi and steak and every kind of delectable dessert you can think of. It was amazing, more extravagant than any wedding I've been to let alone an anniversary party. They hired security guards to park everyone's car for them and wine and beer was all the house with 2 or 3 open bars with bartenders who would make whatever you wished! They had a lit up dance floor complete with disco ball and amazing music from a live band. The company that was hosting the party actually surprised this couple with a famous Brazilian singer named, Ed Motta. I'll post a picture below.

They played all the old classic disco music, mostly all American. There were about 500 people total for this event. It started at about 8:30pm and lasted until around 5:30am. Lol. At the end of the night they had the girls line up to get a free pair of custom made white and silver havaianas flipflops that we could wear in case our feet were tired of the heels. lol.

Heres a pic of some havaianas. The one's we got had little diamonds on the top and instead of flower decorations on the soles, they said "25 years"and the names of the husband and wife. They were really cute. I had a blast. :)

Compare and Contrast :)

(these are most of the top phone companies in Brazil...or their logos at least. Oi means "hi", Claro means "it's clear...or of course" and Vivo means I live)

Soooo.....a lot has happened...as usual....over the past few days and I haven't had the time to keep up on my blog, lol. First things first! I got a cellphone FINALLY. I've been searching for nearly a week but the cheapest new cell phone that you can buy is like $70.....but Fernando had a friend (a.k.a. TANK) who sold me his old one for $30. The cool thing in Brazil is that, due to the high percentage of poverty (and to the fact that landlines in homes are even moreeee expensive than cellphones) cell phone companies have more options here than in the U.S. ......So, for example, you can have a phone....and not EVER have a plan on it....not EVER pay for minutes....and if you dial 9090 before punching in the number you want to call, what will happen is when the person answers the phone, an automated voice will say something like "If you answer this person's call, you will be paying for the minutes. If you still want to take the call, press 1". It's great because this way, I can have a phone without paying for ANY minutes and still be able to contact who I need to contact. And some people who are wealthy enough already have unlimited minutes anyway...so they aren't really "paying"for the call....they're just keeping me from having to pay. Brazil has a lot of "progressive"things like this that I would have never even thought about if I hadn't come here. It makes me wonder what else works differently in other parts of the world.

(these pics show the inside half of the Mutley club...pretty cool,eh???)

I'm really excited about tonight :) All the teachers from my school are going to have a "barbecue"party after the lessons are over. Apparently there is an American guy names Lamar who is dating one of the teachers at my school. He's really wealthy and lives in a realllllly nice apt in Taubate so it should be a lot of fun. Brazilians know how to have fun ;) Afterwards there is a club called Mutley that we're going to (probably around midnight or so). Brazil has such amazing weather that some clubs, like Mutley, are able to actually be outside...or well, half outside. It sounds strange, I know, but I've been to one before and they're really nice. You have a dance floor and a bar, and the landscaping is always beautiful....they usually have lights hanging all over the trees and everything....of course there is fencing around the area as well....but the bands are always live so there is great music. It's a lot of fun....I wish Oklahoma had nice enough weather year round to have something like this.

This is where Brazilians "barbecue". Nearly every single house, and even some apts (if you live in a penthouse) has one of the areas with a stone oven, outside of the house....usually in the backyard. This is where they cook shish kabobs of steak, pork, chicken, and veggies while drinking beer and eating peanuts or olives, etc. Brazilian barbecues usualllllly start very early in the day (2pm) and often last until midnight or later. You just cook, drink, eat, and hang out with friends and family all day. It's SO much fun. No burgers or hotdogs here, Lol....just GOOD healthy food.

Catch Up Time

Welllllll....its been 3 days so far in Brazil and I've already done a crap job in keeping this thing updated. So much happened this weekend that it feels like I've been here for a full week or even two. Lol. My airplane experience was terrible. Omg...Lol...but more on that in a bit. The day I left for Brazil was on Friday and my mom, Sawyer, Tess, and me went to the airport (along with little Ember who was safe in mommy's belly :) and Kailee and Wes met us there in order to say goodbye. It was sad, and my mom cried....but for some reason I never seem to cry when I'm at the airport....at least not about being sad because I'm going. I always cry when my plane is taking off into the air because I'm always so thankful and feeling so blessed that I'm getting the opportunity to do what I love, again. The first time I came back from Brazil after being gone for a month, back in 2008, I cried when I saw my mom for the first time in the airport not because I had missed her....but because I knew that when I saw her....I really was back in Oklahoma...back in the U.S.....back from my trip....and I didn't want to be... Lol. She was so angry with me, haha.  She always cries at the airport....and this time was no different, but she let me go and told me she was proud of me. We loaded the plane in Oklahoma and after sitting there for half an hour, the pilot gets on the intercom to tell us that the left engine isn't working and they will need to call for a mechanic while we unload. UGH....so we all get off and I'm thinking....I only have a 2 hr layover in Dallas to catch my flight to Brazil and if this takes much longer, I'm going to miss it!!!!! We all sit around for half an hour more and then they tell us that the flight is cancelled....I get a sick feeling in my stomach and everyone starts lining up in front of the flight attendents in order to get help. Luckily I was one of the first ones in line bc even so....I waited for another 45 minutes before I even got help. At first the lady tells me that there are no other flights that can get me on a plane to Brazil tonight but after a few minutes she finds a flight with another airline (Continental) thats leaving in just half an hour for Houston but she will need to get my luggage out of the AA airplane and I will have to RUN and get them from the baggage area and then recheck everything in through Continental. Man....I've never rushed so fast in my life....and I seriously barely made it on the flight. After landing in Houston I went to my next gate.... and it always brings me so much happiness everytime I wait at these gates on the flights to Brazil. Brazilians fill up the whole area...Portuguese is everywhere....and I feel like I'm right where I need to be. I love it.  :)

-GRU

After a longgggg day on the plane, I finally arrived in GRU....the huge airport in Sao Paulo....happy and ready to get out of the plane and into my new home. Fernando met me at the airport and we headed into Taubate to check on my housing. Even just the the hour and a half drive from Sao Paulo to Taubate will open your mind more than any Geography or History book could ever try to. The roads, the cars, the bikes, the hills, the trees....everything is so different from the U.S. It makes you question everything about your life when you see it. It's amazing.

-maid room

We got to the house I would be staying in for the next 7 1/2 months. In Brazil, it's very common for middle class families to have maids who will do all the housework (cook, clean, wash and dry the clothes, etc...) for almost no pay. For working nearly 50 hrs. a week, they making roughly $400 per month. Often, the family will have a small apartment located behind the house, usually no more than 40 square feet with a bedroom and bathroom combined. I'm no maid :) but in one of these "maid houses" is where I will be living for $200 a month. I really love it though, it's perfect for me and in a third world country....you can't expect much more. My family is really nice as well, they welcomed me with open arms and were actually excited to know that I was American (In Brazil, learning English is a pretty big deal and any opportunity to do so is usally taken).

(this is an old photo of Fernando's weekend house...before the lake and the kid's playground that they added about a year or so ago)

After housing was settled, it was off to the "weekend house" we go, lol. Fernando's dad has a really nice house about 20 minutes away from Taubate that the family likes to go to during the weekends. It's out in the country and it has a pool, a sauna, a soccer field, a basketball court, a barbecue pit, and 5 bedrooms. It's the perfect place to go and relax....hills surround the whole area....exoctic plants and animals that will make you wish you lived there. In Brazil, everbody is very welcoming....talkative...relaxed....open....its something to adjust to for sure....considering the Individualism that runs rampant in the U.S......but with my 3rd visit to Brazil....none of this comes as any shock to me and appreciate all the differences between the cultures of Brazil and the U.S.

-Brazilian beers!

That night was a night for celebration....and Brazilians know better than anyone how to have a celebration, Lol. I'm pretty positive that they party more than any other group of people in the world...with at least (and this is no exaggeration) 2 parties per week....EVERY week. They make Americans look like a bunch of recluses. Lol. It was a great night...I drank quite a bit of Brahma and Itaipava and Skol (the popular beers of Brazil), and ate quite a bit of Habib's to sober me up (Habib's is a famous Arabian fast food chain in Brazil....one of the very few fast food chains that Brazil has). I don't think I've ever slept so well in my life....ah, Brazil. ;)

(a night time photo of the place that was rented for the game)

Sunday was the big game!!! Soccer is a religion over here....seriously....in fact...I think some Brazilians are more passionate....more defensive....and more in love with their soccer team....than their God. A very wealthy friend of Fernando rented an entire party building, complete with a band, a bar, a dancefloor, catered food,  2 ponds, 3 acres of beautiful scenery, and a projector screen TV just to watch the event of Palmeiras vs. Corinthians. 2 rival soccer teams in Brazil. People decorated their tables with shirts of their team and screamed louder during a foul than any American even screams during a goal made at the Super Bowl. Lol. I couldn't do anything more than laugh to myself and be happy that I was somewhere as colorful and as animated and as full of life as I was. Corinthians won, of course :) Which is my team now, I guess, but only because Renato said so. Lol.



Okay....are you caught up yet? Gosh....I'm going to remember to write on this thing everyday, I swear....bc this much writing for a single post is simply ridiculous...and I actually left a lot of details out. But...we are finally at TODAY. And today is the most important day of all because today was the day that I got my very first overseas job!!! My interview with Exacta (my English teaching school) was a 2pm. Ana is the name of the girl who interviewed me, a lady who has spent the past 14 years of her life studying English and has never even had the chance, or the money, to travel abroad. She liked me so much that she asked me to come back at 4pm to start training.

I'm so happy. This is everything I've been working for, for the past 3 years of my life. I'm watching my dreams unfold before my very own eyes and I could not have done this without the wonderful family that has done whatever possible to help me reach my goals. You guys have no idea how thankful I am....and how blessed I feel. Thank you for everything....I look forward to sharing more of my experiences over these next 7 months with you and with myself.