Am I really in Brazil???
I must admit, this trip so far has been ALL about shattering perceptions. Perceptions that I didn´t even know I held. From São Paulo, we departed to Belém, the capitol city of the state of Pará. A city of 2 million, it is located roughly where the Amazon river meets the ocean. The flight from São Paulo to Belém was an experience of mystical proportions -- looking out the window at the vast Amazon rainforest - nothing but jungle and the mighty Amazon as far as the eye could see. It was a first-hand Planet Earth-type experience. It wasn't until right before we touched down, that out of the sprawling green carpet of the rainforest emerged a booming metropolis. Right here, in amazonia, I was going to a Beatles cover band concert. Talk about surreal.
I have read that Brazilians are among the friendliest people in the world, and was told by Paulistano friends (people from the city of São Paulo), that people in the north are the friendliest. Even armed with this information, I have been (and continue to be) completely blown away by kindness. From the moment we stepped off the plane in Belém, we were greeted with dozens of students and teachers meeting us at the arrival gate with handmade "WELCOME ETAS!" signs. We were hugged and kissed and shuttled off to our welcome party at the university (the first of many). Armed with little portuguese, and many new friends, we set off to get to know them and our surroundings.
Our first friends (and surrogate mothers) were the teachers with whom we would be working at the university. They have taken their "help the ETA's if the have questions" instruction, to a whole new level (for a more in-depth description of some of these amazing women, please check out Cory's blog at www.floodingbrazil.blogspot.com).They have invited us into their homes, cooked us amazing food, helped us navigate the confusing beurocracy of buying cell phones and registering at the federal police, all with grace and pleasure. We would be lost without them.
One new mini-endevour I have embarked on while being here could be loosely described as 'broadening my culinary horizons'. A vegetarian of 7 years, I have to say, I was a little nervous about my options in meat-happy Brazil. I was right. So, I am trying to enter the world of eating fish. This is made simpler by the fact that I live near the amazon, a bunch of other rivers, and the ocean - so fish is, suffice it to say, fresh and abundant. There is also the fact that, if I didn't eat fish here, my options when eating out are limited. And by limited, I mean, non-existant.
"But Maria, why don't you just eat at home and cook your own veggie friendly meals?" you may ask. Well, that brings me to my next topic of interest regarding Brazil: unfurnished apartments/houses. We recently got our own house (Jessica- the other ETA, Cory and I) and it is amazing. Beautiful. Enormous. And empty. In Brazil, 'unfurnished' literally means unfurnished. For example, in our house we don't have a fridge, a stove, or a toilet seat. Unfurnished. So, until we do find said items, I am at the mercy of the restaurants of Brazil.
After spending some time in Belém, we arrived in Bragança, the city of our placement for the nine months that we will be in Brazil. It is an beautiful old colonial town at the base of a river adorned with colorful fishing boats. We are the first Fulbright ETA's ever to be placed here, so we are the object of much curiosity. I have never been asked to have pictures taken with me so much in my life (a pseudo celebrity moment compounded by the fact that the students think that Jessica (the other ETA) looks just like Gisele Bündchen). Students are all about Facebook, which is adorably pronounced "Facey-bookie" here (other adorable pronunciations: Hip-Hop = "hippie hoppie", laptop = "lappie toppie" etc.). Still getting to know my surroundings and making friends, I am getting good vibes from this place.
So far, so good Bragança.
