Blogs from Foz do Iguaçu, Paraná, Brazil, South America

There is no guinea pig on offer on the dinner table in Brazil however the meals are still a little different from those served in the UK. The South American theme of eating a ridiculous amount of rice continues here although it isn’t always accompanied by potatoes so that is a step in the right direction when it comes to the carbs balance! Instead of potatoes, we usually find beans or feijão as they are called here. They are generally served in a creamy and tasty sauce and they are a key ingredient in one of their national dishes, Feijoada. Feijoada is quite a strong tasting dish and some I have tasted have been very salty, I am reliably informed that this is due to the meat being preserved in salt. It is a stew consisting ... read more

Friday marked the beginning of the end of my journey as I completed my final shift at the Special Educational Needs school that I have been working in for over two months now. It was an emotional finish to what had been a very emotional week all in all, a real rollercoaster ride. Part of the work that I have observed here, and been part of, is with very troubled youngsters who have need of real understanding and for many, medical care as well. The school has many specialist staff members who put their efforts into making each day as positive and productive as possible; these include psychologists, physiotherapists, musical therapists as well as a staff of teachers that really care and love the children and adults that they look after. This week I witnessed more ... read more

Hi everyone, sorry for the time it has taken for a new blog entry to arrive. Unfortunately, I have spent most of this week in bed, suffering from a horrible cold. Yes, you heard right, I have travelled to sub tropical Brazil and I have caught a cold. I know what you´re thinking but here over the last few weeks we have had crazy changes in temperature each day and I think this may be the cause. It has become the norm lately for the temperature to vary from 9°C to 27°C within a matter of hours, very confusing for my wardrobe choices and for my poor body! However, it is not all bad news! My illness has opened up my world a little. I have been lucky enough to make a good friend here who ... read more

Today I visited an Ecomuseum, this one is based near the border of Paraguay next to the enormous Itaipu Dam. I will tell you more of the actual construction, workings and experience of the Dam next time but for today and the for the Ecomuseum I will concentrate on the planning that went into the Dam. So if you are going to build a Dam, particulary one of this impressive size it turns out that there are an awful lot of things to think about. Not only do you need the right location and resources to begin such an operation but you also need to think about the social and environmental impacts of your work and this is what the Ecomuseum tells us about. The Itaipu Dam stands on the Paraná river, the natural border between ... read more

After having seen Iguazu falls from the Argentinian side, I was ever so slightly sceptical as to what the experience would be like from the Brazilian side. Most people you speak to will tell you that the Argentinian side is better and others tell you to not even bother with the Brazilian side. For us though, this seemed ridiculous, as how can seeing those falls again be a disappointment? I just hoped we would see enough difference in the Brazilian side to warrant the trip over the border. Either way though, we would get a day out, be able to see the falls from all the possible view points, plus, we would get to head into Brazil for the day. Bit of a no brainer really! Before we got to see the falls though, we needed ... read more