Free stuff in Brazil... a miracle.

So i woke up today at 8:30, so the plans that i had to go running in the morning failed, so i decided to wear my running clothes to school so that i would have some kind of motivation to exercise. It worked but i always feel lazy during the middle of the day, and i only did a mile and a half, but my legs are sore, so that's a good sign i believe. I had i good lunch i think, my mom wasn't home so i didn't eat rice and beans but just the chicken and a bunch of veggies. YAY!

Yesterday i stayed up late because i was studying, but i had a fun night a bunch of us went to pelourinho to see a new museum open and there was drumming and bahianas dancing. I got some good pictures. Also there was free food and drinks, which is almost a miracle because i have come to the realization that nothing is free in Brazil. But we didn't even pay to get it, crazy to me. Most of us got ice cream before, i tried not to, but Bryant insisted that we share, and the brownie flavor was just to tempting. Good thing i wasn't holding it, because i could have eaten it all. We got Acai afterwords around 8pm, which is something that i am going to miss here in Brazil, its amazing how good it is, and i hope it is as good for you as they say it is because i think something that tastes that good cant be that good for you, it just isn't logical. It fills you up though, i didn't even eat dinner. The only bad thing about that place (where we got the acai) is that it smells awful, the location is horrible, it is near trash or something, im not totally sure.

I had a composition in Portuguese yesterday, i think it went okay, i did better than i thought i was going to do, meaning that i finished within the time limit and didn't stare at the paper for the first 30 minutes thinking about what to write. The book i am writing on is less than interesting though. Or i guess i could say that it just isn't a story that i would want to read. It is about a young poor girl living in the favelas of rio who only eats hot dogs and she is dirty, skinny, and unloved. And in the end she goes to a fortune teller (because she realizes that her life sucks) and then after the teller tells her that she is going to have good luck in the future, she gets hit by a yellow mercedes benz and dies! Awful story right!?

Tonight we are going out to Pelourinho again to go to the salsa club one last time all together, i hope everyone goes. It will be so fun to hang out with everyone one last time before we all go back to our real lives and next week we have to study because it is finals in both classes. I also have a paper due in Portuguese, where i dont know my topic yet, also a presentation due in Portuguese about that awful book.

Reggae and Birthdays

So yesterday i didn't go to the beach as planned because we were suppose to leave early to this reggae concert, around 3 or so, because the doors open at 5. Anyways before that i studied a little and went on a run and discovered that it was Black awareness day here in Brazil, it was nice to everyone in the streets dancing. So although there was a party going on in the day in Campo Grande, where i run, the real party was where i went. The reggae concert, which is the biggest reggae concert in all of Latin America, impressive huh? After i was on the bus for an hour and a half, we left at 5 because Brazilian time is always later than they say, and got there around 630 and it still hadn't started yet. So we chilled outside and ate some street food and took some pictures, it was fun about 20 of us went to the concert it was fun to have a lot of the group there. So we entered around 730 and they started at 8, 3 hours after the scheduled time said on the ticket!

So anyways, inside, there were so many people, i don't think i have ever seen that many people in one place at one time, it was crazy! and everyone was so happy and excited to be there. We made our way up to the front of the stage so that we could see the performers and surprising it was easy to get there! But as the night went on it was hard to walk in and out because more people would try and push there way though and it was very hot, and sweaty. I took a shower as soon as i got home. But my back started to hurt so i sat down for a while and went back in and then i couldn't handle it anymore, i needed to go home because i felt like i couldn't stand or walk anymore. Even though i left around 240am the main band hadn't even come on yet and there were 4 more to go by the time i left. Brazilians know how to party HARD!

So this morning i woke up and i had no idea what time it was, my window was closed so i couldn't tell from the brightness of the sun, but it was 12:20pm! So even though my day was cut short i decided that 1 week without going to the beach in Brazil was unacceptable, so i went with Haley and we eventually met up with Chuy and Alfonso. It was a chill day and my mom made really good steak for me. So now i have to figure out how i am going to write a composition in Portuguese class tomorrow on a book that is in Portuguese that i don't quite fully understand. wish me luck!

Harry Potter !

written on 19 November.

So I really should be studying this weekend because I have a final in culture coming up soon, and am Portuguese final, composition, and project due in the next 2 weeks, but I can’t bring myself to stay in my room when it is sunny and nice outside. This week of school went very fast to me, because we had another holiday on Monday and then a walk out on Tuesday to protest fee increase, which they passed for the upcoming school year, so when I get back to Davis, and I going to find a way to get out of there as fast as I can to avoid any more increases to come. So Thursday came fast, which means the weekend has started. After school about 5 of my friends and I went to Mercado modelo to go shopping, and I can say that I am totally done! Yay. Too bad I am going to have to pack accordingly to make everything fit, and not to mention I am going to have to where my winter clothes to the airport in Brazil, where I am sure I will get looks while wearing a fur coat and pants in the middle of the Brazilian summer. Oh well, I know that San Francisco will be cold when I arrive at 7am on December 6.

That night, about 12 of us went out to the club called “whats up”, it was fun and I am really learning how to dance like a Brazilian. Although if I dance like this in the United States I think I might get some weird looks. But oh well, Bahia Brazil is such a dance culture, that if someone starts to make a beat, someone close will start moving their body. I am learning to words to the songs to, so I can sing along and pretend to be Brazilian, until they realize that I have a Spanish/English accent in Portuguese and with that I am not really Brazilian. Well the night ended odd. We got a taxi and he stopped to get gas (which was my first time in Brazil, getting gas at the gas station) and then the driver went the wrong way on a one way street and go pulled over by a cop and got a ticket. It was certainly an experience; the cop was even trying to hit on us…awkward.

Friday morning I woke up and got ready to see my favorite series of movies. I think I was showing my inner nerd (although it is outer as well) to my friends by recapping the harry potter movies. I don’t remember when I read the last book, the 7th, but I know that I read it twice, and it was very good. And this movie, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, parte 1, was one of the best ones out of the series. I rode on a bus sweating and afraid to touch the seats because of germs for one hour there and one hour back to see this movie, for R$8, 5 US dollars. It was interesting seeing Portuguese subtitles and I think my friends and I were the only ones in the theater who didn’t need to read them. Either way it was very exciting, and I am sure I will go and see it again in the States.

Afterwards we had a little festa (party) at Haley’s house. It was so cute; her mom put out snacks and set the table for us. We had about 7 people over and ate pizza, acai, ice cream, and chocolate cake. Her mom made and bought us all food, they are such a god host family, and it was so cute. There were small spoons, plates, and knifes too. Then we just hung out and talked about school, and our lives back in the States and waiting to see how the transition from our Brazilian life here, and back to our real life at home.

Eu nao existo...

Today was kind of fun. Besides the test that i had in Portuguese, it was good. I went to a bigger mall today, that was called iguatemi, and although it took about an 45 minutes to get there, it was interesting about what i found. As soon as i got off of the bus there was a huge Santa statue outside the mall and inside there was also a huge Christmas tree there. But perhaps the best thing about that mall was the ice cream, it was amazing, and it made me really happy! I also found a funny shirt that says "I don't exist" in Portuguese with a picture of Santa on it, kind of a sad shirt for me. But i was thinking like why would they even make that kind of a shirt?! Anyways my trip to the mall is always quite interesting and i always bring my camera, so that i can never miss something weird or funny in foreign countries.

I tried to go out tonight, but it was kind of a fail. We went to this hostel party, but it wasn't really a party so some people bought some drinks and then we all went down to the beach and just talked and walked for a while. Except there was a weird guy sitting with us and making weird sounds, i am pretty sure he was drunk too. So we left early, and walked home, it was pretty safe.. but no one person is going to try and jump 8 people, at least not a sane person.

well i register for classes tomorrow, i hope i get everything i want!

American souvenir?

Tomorrow i am off to another adventure in Bahia, we are going to this place called Cachoiera, which means waterfall in Portuguese, but yet this town has no waterfall... so oh well, i guess we will see how this goes. But we are all going to be together so that will be good and it will be a wonderful time to take some more pictures, which everyone in the groups knows all to well that i love to do way to much.

The election happened this Tuesday in the USA and a lot of people here in Brazil in the program were mad with the outcome of the GOP winning the House back and the majority of governors. But i was happy, because i am a republican, and although 94% of my friends and colleges here are not, and are liberal, i wont change my mind or what i think, we just wont talk about politics, it would only end badly. Even if i don't look like a "republican", what ever that might mean. We are all so young anyways to fully comprehend and understand everything because we do not live on our own yet and we still don''t have our lives put together yet, only college students.

Today was a weird week at school because we didn't have class on Tuesday and almost nobody even went on Monday so we only watched a movie, but we had class all Wednesday and Thursday so i feel like our weekend was cut a little short because we are going on this trip and i have only had one beach day. But a lot of us went out to this bar called, "Whats Up?", yea i know what your thinking, and yes it is really called that. Although the name was very lame and makes you laugh, it was a fun place and it was open bar and only 15 rieas for girls, but it was kinda far, so that was the down side. A lot of my friends got pretty wasted, which for me it quite entertaining to watch, no matter how much they don't remember.

So today i went to the fair today in Salvador where they had booths for different kinds of food from Italy, Spain, Germany, Bahia (Brazil), Arabia, the Orient, and the United States. It was kind of funny because i was so excited to get a milkshake, but at "The United States of America" booth they didn't have them yet, only on Saturday. I hate that about Brazil, the menus are never what they actually have on the menu, so i stopped looking and i just asked what they had instead. So i got a brownie, which was quite good, so i got a little bit happier after my dreams were crushed from the lack of ability of milkshakes. I think they were a little confused on what American food was as well because they have enchiladas and quesadillas on the menu... which last time i checked is Mexico, and it also made me laugh a little bit that the food from the "USA" booth were packaged in McDonald's bags. I finally decided to eat some Spanish food, which was very good, i think it had a lot to do with the fact that the people working in that booth were from Spain, which confused me at first because i thought there Portuguese was so clear and then i realized they were speaking Spanish, good job Jessica. The next little issue that was laughable was that they had "The Orient" like Oriental food right? No its only Japanese food here, i think if you are Asian or anything Asia, it is considered Japanese, so the Japanese flag, yakisoba, tamaki, and sushi was representing the Orient over there.

Oh and now i have reached my goal of having equal amounts of bottoms and tops of bathing suits here. 15 baby :)

Iiye Aiye celebration!

Yesterday we had school, it wasn't really worth it because there was only 5 people in my class when we usually have 13, but i went anyway. But last night i think i really got a feel for the Bahian culture because i went to Ilye Aiye's 37-year anniversary celebration in the Liberdade district of Salvador. This was celebrating Black culture in Black with a huge party, there was samba, acaraje, feijoada, cervejas, and awesome drumming groups and performers. I am not sure how long the party lasted but i left at 2am and i am pretty sure that it went on all night long. When we finally reached the favela district of Liberdade there was a huge street party that had been going on sense before sunset and it didn't look like it was stopping anytime soon, our taxis could barley fit threw all of the people dancing and talking to each other. I felt so crowded but happy and excited at the same time to be in that environment that i would have never found on my own in Brazil. One of the girls in the program, her dad is the director of the program and its anniversary so she got us availability to the tickets, and it was so worth the 20 reias.

There were so many beautiful people there, i was wondering were they all were sense i came to Salvador. And not only did i see Afro-Brazilians but all colors and ages too. Everyone was invited and it was amazing to see all the races and colors dancing and singing along together for the same purpose: to just be happy and celebrate. The music was unbelievable, i have never heard as good music live as i have here in Brazil, they are amazing and they had wonderful dancers and costumes too!

The week long birthday!

Do you remember how i said that a couple of my friends and i were going to go the airport to buy tickets to go to rio de janiero? well that was a entire day adventure, we all met at 1230pm and decided to catch the bus to go, well in Brazil there isn't a bus schedule...you just stand there totally available for any car to take you out as you wait to wave down the bus that may or may not come. Well it did come eventually after 45minutes, and it was only around a dollar (which was the only good part)and it took about an hour and a half to get there. And we went around to even company and found out that the tourist agencies actually have the best price, so we bought our tickets for 255 reias (125 dollars) to get there and back on the 20th-25th of October. I am excited because that weekend there wont be as many people and the prices wont be ranked up because of the holiday. But the way back was brutal... it was almost 2 and a half hours on that bus, lucky we were sitting next to people that we knew... but it was packed tight and a drunk guy came on the bus with his beer just to say hi. So we left at around 1pm and came back at 730pm, and most of the trip was in transit. But i got back in time to change and shower to go out to my moms birthday.

So i have realized here that when you have a birthday, it isn't one day... its as long as you can stretch it out. my moms birthday is actually today but it started on Tuesday, my friends and i went out to salsa and she said that she was going too! she is really fun and all my friends were impressed that she was so cool. Anyways we all went out to a nice restaurant where there was live music and good juice and food, and a lot of the family came out. Leo came with me, which was good to not be the only one who spoke English, but he was a little overwhelmed by all of the people, as i was the first time. But we had a good time, and the singer was so animated that i couldn't help but think about the only Latin guy in the movie "proposal" that played the exotic dancer, priest, the tool shop owner, and who knows what else, but he defiantly looked exactly like him. After we all ate and drank, my brother and i went home and my mom went out to go party somewhere else with her friends and cousins. She parties hard.

This morning Leo called me to wake up, i sleep through so many alarms even here when they are so loud and annoying, i seem to be able to press snooze without remembering every 5 minutes that i had already pressed it. But i manged to get up and go to the beach for a couple of hours today, although there wasn't that much sun... it was really hot. Then i came home and at lunch with my family and had the best chocolate cake ever! They told me that they are going to a wedding today at a nice place that i don't really remember the name but they said they will be out until 6 in the morning and i think the 5 days of partying out of 7 a week might be getting to me, because i just might go out to a movie instead. but i want some more of that cake as i am writing this. So i think i am going to get some, tchau!