It is almost two weeks since I arrived to Salvador Brazil and I will say that this has being a very challenging, hopeful yet complex experience. The idea of being away from having great friends, great family and great commodoties is perhaps sad, nostalgic but neccessary. Why Brazil? Because I dont know anything about it, because to me it was intriguing the idea of studying something (public health) that I dont know anything about in an environment where I will have to learn everything about the culture and about myself. It was a though decision but I am sure it was a good one. A decision that if one day I regret, I will also know it was necessary.
Below I will describe what I remember day by day since my departure to Brazil. I am new to this blog thingy so I will try. Believe me I dont usuallly have time to write stuff about my experiences in life. Es mas, I am already tired!
Day 1 Sunday 6th
Saying A Neccesary Good Bye
It was the right time to leave I prepared my luggage, I was going to be present for my bestest friend birthday and my parents came to Austin to say good-bye. It was all too perfect to say good bye. I felt loved in amounts that I cannot explain. I want to say thank you to all my friends, especially Marleen and Polo that sacrificed so much for helping a friend. The are the most wonderful people I've met and I want to say thanks to God and the creator for sending them my way. I love you hoes. I also want to tlazocamati to my family who is wonderful and loves me and cares for me like no one else. Without the help from my dad and the support of my momma I would not be here. Gracias a mis hermanit@s por ser tan bad ass y a mi hermana mayor por ser tan noble en todo lo que hace, she would sacrifice anything for always making a positive impact. Los amo familia!
I left my parents in tears and I left my Lili, Polo and Marleen in tears too. I dropped few tears because I knew I was leaving an awesome life sorrounded by great people, great adventures, and great learning experiences.
I took a plain from Austin to Dallas. The flight was normal and I clearly remember the blue shirt I was wearing (the same polo bought but in gray) At the flight which I can no longer remember, I slept the whole time! On the plane I met this nice Brazilian dude that helped me go through the foreigner’s line to arrive to Brazil. That was very surprising to me! The immigration system at Brazil is getting very difficult, and the police departments (which control it) are extremely extreme! LOL Sao Paulo airport is huge as well! I got lost for 30 minutes looking for the departure section!
Day 2nd
Impresionate
Impresionate
I arrived from Sao to Salvador around noon. And peeps, I was extremely tired so I decided to take a taxi to the place where I was staying for a day until I met the other people from my program. And as usual! Correlated to the lack of luck I posses! My computer crashed and the internet pages where the address of the hostel where I was staying dissapeared! I wrote part of the address on a piece of paper before it crashed to soon so the taxi driver figured out with magic I guess but I got there! Thank you taxi driver you saved my life! The Casa Orquidea where I stayed was a fineeee niceeee place! For 40 dlls it was more than awesome! Con decirte que I had my own kitchen! Como la ven! And the peeps there spoke Spanish and English and French! La chick de el hostel made me a lemonade all fancy and stuff! I was like, is she gonna charge me more? Because I refuse to pay more! The place was also a few steps from the beach! Perfect!
After I arrived to the hostel I walked to the beach in my first experience in Brazil! Carnaval was still at its momentum since it was only 2 days before it ended so people were enjoying it as much as they could. And it was hot! baby jevus, it was hot and humid, I steped out of the hostel and walked two steps and I was already trasnpiring like a pig during reproduction! I know pigs dont sweat! I was staying at a predominately low-income, black neighborhood at the outskirts of the city so the “carnaval” happening there was very different from the one at perulinho and barra which are at the downtown area of the city. I remember walking into the beach! It was amazing, Bahians were getting crunk with the music they call pagodea and also lots of reggae which I thought it was interesting… Pagodea is a fusion of reggae, samba, electronic music and other rhythms. This music reminds of what in the US would be a fusion of hip-hop and some spanish guitar and the guys that talk on the cumbia songs! A guy always says something before the songs begins haha! funny! If you want to know what pagodea is go to Leva Noiz-Liga da Justiçia, legal!No joke! Many women and men going down to the music right at the beach!
Another thing I was very impressed about was the amount of BROWN bodies! OMG! I never had seen so many beautiful colors in the same place! For the first time in a long time, I felt safe! I did, I felt safe! As I walked into the actual ocean, I noticed the huge waves bouncing everywhere! I got there around 5pm so the sand at the banks of the beach was very dirty. I wondered if somebody was going to clean the mess! It was really, really gross!
Another important thing I noticed was the speedos and the very, very, very, VERY short bikinis! OMG! I was like yeees! Imma enjoy myself here! Women of all ages and body types were showing their skin with no regrets and with two piece bikinis of very bright and wonderful colors! Yes! Do it women, do it girls, you got it! As for the men, get it with them speedos! Also, something really interested I noticed were heterosexual black men dancing on each other freely on the beach, right next to their enamoradas. To me that was so interesting! What you think?
Oh yeah I forgot to mention I went to the carnaval at Itapua, and it was interesting! A famous pop singer was there and the people were dancing and playing card games, drinking lots of skol and schim (beer that tastes like water here) jk brazilians. I must recognize US and Mexican beer are waay more heavy than this two brand of beer that most people drink. I stil get the asian flush with brazilian beer, lol.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SOsFJC5hOGo&feature=related I love this dance move and song, check it out! The faro that you see on the back is called faro de barra, its beatiful..
Oh yeah I forgot to mention I went to the carnaval at Itapua, and it was interesting! A famous pop singer was there and the people were dancing and playing card games, drinking lots of skol and schim (beer that tastes like water here) jk brazilians. I must recognize US and Mexican beer are waay more heavy than this two brand of beer that most people drink. I stil get the asian flush with brazilian beer, lol.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SOsFJC5hOGo&feature=related I love this dance move and song, check it out! The faro that you see on the back is called faro de barra, its beatiful..
Day 3rd
Meeting Everyone-SIT
I was exciting to meet the rest of the people from my program. I was more excited to not having to pay for transpórtation and food! Although, I did not eat much the days I was alone. I met everyone at the airport and they all seem nice. Up to this point I would say that they are all incredably awesome, intelligent and bad ass. After the airport they took us to a house at the outskirts of the city of Salvador to have the programs orientation. The house was kinda big and it had a small pool at the back. Overall the house was nice and I got my own room (with no air conditioner :( ) by myself so that was nice. And then we ate dinner! The food was really, really good. I remember lots of vegetables, beans of all sorts and types, rice and some sort of soy made balls that were sooo good. I had a great night getting to know everyone and eating a lot and very balanced.
I must mention the demographics of the program: All women, juniors, all over US, 4 students of color, 10 white students? I put a question mark because many of the students do not consider themselves white because event though they are more blonde that Pamela Anderson they have some sort of colored blood that makes them understand oppresion! blah, blah..I'll discuss this issue later, believe me I will discuss it! lol
Days 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th
From Enjoyment, To Exhaustion, To Trauma
We stayed at the house on jardiness of something for six days, it was a rich boring suburb! Yes six days! I wanted to just run away from there and disappear. I was dying of desesperacion y aburrimiento! Dios Mio! Anyways, at the house we did orientation and bureocratic things! Let me break it down for you! SIT (School for International Training) charges almost 20,000 dollars a semester and it should include insurance. Guess what: thh insurance covers like you scratching your index toe but it doesnt cover the breaking of your whole freaking foot! And we are studying the explotaitive system of private medical institutions and guess where they take you when something happens? To the PRIVATE HOSPITAL and you have to pay for it! Ay Dios Mio! Anyways, my professors are awesome, especially Damiana. I love that woman. She is a strong black woman! She is a certified physician in the area of mental illness and she has a PhD in anthropology. How bad ass is that! And Francisco, oh well, another heterosexual male who just does not get it. The first day he literally snapped his fingers at two of the women that do assitance work for SIT. And he kinda pushed Dr. Damiana in an intense discussion we were having! He is a nice men and I admire all he does but hommie needs to be told something and if no one says it ay va la de la boca abierta roberto flotte, ya tu sabes!
What I learned during orientation?
I obviously learn what you already know. Black and Indigenous folk were screwed and continue to be affected in all ways or senses througout the history of Brazil. I also learned about the politics of the dictatorship and the social revolutions for independence from Portugal. Brazil is a great nation with a very intricate history and people. Did you know that after defeating the dictarship, people were able to pass a constitutional law that states that the nation of Brazil must offer UNIVERSAL HEALTH COVERAGE for all its citizens regardless of race, color, gender, etc. I thought this was amazing because all people from Brazil and even foreigners have universal health in contrast with the US! The issue of inequality is similar to that of education in the US. It is universal for all but the accesibility and the quality is the real issue for underprivileged people.
Brazil social stricture are very similar to those of most countries of the world. Whites, and Asian immigrants concentrate and live in south in the regions of Sao Paolo and Rio. This area is the most developed and rich area of the whole country where most of the best resources for health accesibility and education exist. I livc in Salvador, Brazil which is located in the northeast area of the country and where most black descendant people reside. The amazonian region and the Northeast have the most unqueal access to health and education. And other social complexities of this amazing nation.
I am going to include my arrival to my homestay, food and people dynamics in Salvador next blog! Otherwise, this will be very long y estoy super mega cansado! It took me two weeks to finish this ay no!
Meeting Everyone-SIT
I was exciting to meet the rest of the people from my program. I was more excited to not having to pay for transpórtation and food! Although, I did not eat much the days I was alone. I met everyone at the airport and they all seem nice. Up to this point I would say that they are all incredably awesome, intelligent and bad ass. After the airport they took us to a house at the outskirts of the city of Salvador to have the programs orientation. The house was kinda big and it had a small pool at the back. Overall the house was nice and I got my own room (with no air conditioner :( ) by myself so that was nice. And then we ate dinner! The food was really, really good. I remember lots of vegetables, beans of all sorts and types, rice and some sort of soy made balls that were sooo good. I had a great night getting to know everyone and eating a lot and very balanced.
I must mention the demographics of the program: All women, juniors, all over US, 4 students of color, 10 white students? I put a question mark because many of the students do not consider themselves white because event though they are more blonde that Pamela Anderson they have some sort of colored blood that makes them understand oppresion! blah, blah..I'll discuss this issue later, believe me I will discuss it! lol
Days 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th
From Enjoyment, To Exhaustion, To Trauma
We stayed at the house on jardiness of something for six days, it was a rich boring suburb! Yes six days! I wanted to just run away from there and disappear. I was dying of desesperacion y aburrimiento! Dios Mio! Anyways, at the house we did orientation and bureocratic things! Let me break it down for you! SIT (School for International Training) charges almost 20,000 dollars a semester and it should include insurance. Guess what: thh insurance covers like you scratching your index toe but it doesnt cover the breaking of your whole freaking foot! And we are studying the explotaitive system of private medical institutions and guess where they take you when something happens? To the PRIVATE HOSPITAL and you have to pay for it! Ay Dios Mio! Anyways, my professors are awesome, especially Damiana. I love that woman. She is a strong black woman! She is a certified physician in the area of mental illness and she has a PhD in anthropology. How bad ass is that! And Francisco, oh well, another heterosexual male who just does not get it. The first day he literally snapped his fingers at two of the women that do assitance work for SIT. And he kinda pushed Dr. Damiana in an intense discussion we were having! He is a nice men and I admire all he does but hommie needs to be told something and if no one says it ay va la de la boca abierta roberto flotte, ya tu sabes!
What I learned during orientation?
I obviously learn what you already know. Black and Indigenous folk were screwed and continue to be affected in all ways or senses througout the history of Brazil. I also learned about the politics of the dictatorship and the social revolutions for independence from Portugal. Brazil is a great nation with a very intricate history and people. Did you know that after defeating the dictarship, people were able to pass a constitutional law that states that the nation of Brazil must offer UNIVERSAL HEALTH COVERAGE for all its citizens regardless of race, color, gender, etc. I thought this was amazing because all people from Brazil and even foreigners have universal health in contrast with the US! The issue of inequality is similar to that of education in the US. It is universal for all but the accesibility and the quality is the real issue for underprivileged people.
Brazil social stricture are very similar to those of most countries of the world. Whites, and Asian immigrants concentrate and live in south in the regions of Sao Paolo and Rio. This area is the most developed and rich area of the whole country where most of the best resources for health accesibility and education exist. I livc in Salvador, Brazil which is located in the northeast area of the country and where most black descendant people reside. The amazonian region and the Northeast have the most unqueal access to health and education. And other social complexities of this amazing nation.
I am going to include my arrival to my homestay, food and people dynamics in Salvador next blog! Otherwise, this will be very long y estoy super mega cansado! It took me two weeks to finish this ay no!
