Settling in....

This is a long one so brace yourself.

Things are finally settling in here. It is difficult to come into the program on a weekend as there is little structure and we are all trying to get to know each other. The team is doing well and is trying to adjust to the night sounds of geese honking, dogs howling and a confused rooster who never got the message that he should start his crowing when the sun comes up!

Our flights were great and all our luggage arrived with us, which was a relief. Our wonderful Brazilian guide, Cris, was waiting for us at the airport and our adventure in Rio began. We were taken to the hotel to unload the luggage and take 20 minutes to freshen up and then we were off. We walked to a smoothie bar and had wonderful fruit smoothie drinks with some granola.

Cris was so much fun. She had interesting observations, some of them about the team. She looked at Jenn and named her the White, White Girl because of her light complexion. She saw that Alice had her toe nails painted (with little flowers on the big toes) and said that is very popular in Rio…but only among the young girls…no one over forty! We had so much fun. She was an excellent guide and I am so thankful for her time with our team.

We then went to the statute of Christ the Redeemer. What an incredible sight. Not only were we able to look at this amazing statute but we were also able to have a 360 degree view of Rio. It is a huge city, full of contradictions. There are immense skyscrapers, luxury hotels and beautiful beaches. There are also communities called slums, where it appears that houses are built upon houses, carved into the hillsides. The crime rate here is unimaginable, with some neighborhoods being so bad that no one goes there after dark because gangs shoot at each other and bullets rain over the cars. Crime is so bad here that the police are not even trusted. In fact, right outside of the airport, we got pulled over by the police for a document check and our guide told us to close the windows because many times the police are not really police, but robbers. She said that much of the police force is corrupt.

We then drove past Copacabana Beach where there are sections for various kinds of people. There is the family section (I believe that was section #8), the gay section (you’ll find that at section #9 – easy to find because there is a large rainbow flag marking it), the drug section, etc. After sightseeing we went to a Brazilian steakhouse. The food was delicious and the staff was very kind. Once we were finished with dinner, we went to Ipanema Beach (all day long we were trying to remember the tune for the Girl from Ipanema!). It had begun to rain so after a quick wade in the ocean and a brief time of shopping in an outdoor market we were all ready to go back to hotel and get some sleep.

We were up at 5 am to be ready for breakfast at 6, and then picked up at 6:30 to go to the bus station. That’s when the trip got really interesting. Cris had taken us into the bus station and took us to our platform, #12. When the bus arrived and we went to board, we were told we were in the wrong line. Fortunately, our bus was in the next bay and we didn’t miss it!

We then began our 7 hour drive to Vicosa. The ride was not without its strange moments. If you have read the previous blogs you know that I tell on myself. So here goes. I went to use the bathroom on the bus. The road was crazy, winding back and forth, up and down. I had finished what I went in there to do and was standing up and about to come out. I had my back to the door and the driver swerved. I fell back, hit the door and it sprang open. Out I flew to the amusement of the children and families riding in the back of the bus! There we are laughing at me in Portuguese. And every head on the bus had turned to see what the racket was. It will go down as one of my very embarrassing moments. But, Alice had what could have been the MOST embarrassing moment. We had stopped at a bus stop and she took advantage of the bus not moving, to use the bathroom. Before we took off, the driver counted heads to make sure everyone was on the bus. He, apparently, wanted to make sure he counted everyone so he yanked open the bathroom door to see if there was anyone in there to count. Thankfully, Alice was fully clothed and about to leave when he opened the door. She looked at him and said ‘hello!” I think all of us will think twice before using the bathroom on the bus again.

Finally we arrived at the Vicosa bus station, were picked up and taken to meet Team Two to prepare for the transition. We had a lovely time with everyone on Dan’s team and then left to go to the house and meet the students. After introductions and some brief conversations, the team was ready for a good night’s sleep (this is before the dogs, geese and chickens and confused rooster got started).

Today we began our first day of class. Jenn began with ‘The Verb of the Day’…to “linger”. It is a new verb to the students and Jenn used an interesting illustration to help explain it. She shared with them the common experience of going into the bathroom after someone else and noticing the smell still there after the other person is gone. The smell is an example of ‘lingering’ The class busted up laughing and it took a few minutes for us to pull it together…ok...it took me more than a few minutes to pull it together. After the class, one of the language helpers offered Jenn another example she could use in the future, of a woman walking through a room wearing perfume and the smell lingering after she left. Great example but given the illustration Jenn used, I suspect the students will smile every time they hear the word ‘linger’. :0) She did a wonderful job teaching today.

We are falling in love with these students. They are an incredible group of people and I know they are going to impact us greatly.

Sorry for the length of this post…the next one will be shorter but I had a weekend to catch you up on! So…tune in tomorrow for more on our adventures in Brazil.

Bye from me and rest of the team…Lisa, Sue, Alice, Pam, Deb S, Jeanne and Jenn,

Deb