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Published: February 8th 2009
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Lula Poster at Rocinha Samba School
Lula Is a big hit in the favelas (i.e. amongst poor people). However, he is very controversial, often hated, within middle and upper class circle because of his welfare politics, corruption and 5th grade education. So, I am spending 4 months in Brazil - about 2.5 in Rio, learning Portuguese and volunteering in the Rocinha favela, and 1.5 months traveling up the coast to the Northeast. I’m living with 3 Brazilian girls in their early/mid 20s in Apoador, the area between Ipanema and Copacabana.
I thought I’d try to get back into diary/blog mode and jot down some of my initial observations and experiences.
Language School: I’ve been taking language classes every day for four hours in the morning. The school is in the business district which is a bit of a hike, but a nice change of pace. Plus, there are a lot of museums and historic buildings up there. The school is absolutely great. If anybody is considering a trip down to Rio to learn Portuguese, check out Bridge Brazil. They strive effortlessly to prevent us from speaking “portugnol” - but it’s just so damn easy to speak portugnol and so freaking hard to actually speak Portuguese.
Volunteering in Rocinha: I’ve been working with the Two Brothers Foundation in Rocinha, the largest favela in Brazil. 100,000-150,000 people call it home. A great contrast to my middle/upper class neighborhood of Apoador and
Rocinha Samba School Rehearsal
The MC taking one of his many ladies out for a spin on the stage hanging out in ritzy Ipanema. Rocinha is chaotic, loud, smelly and full of life - very reminiscent of India, especially Old Delhi. From afar, it looks like a beehive during the day and a Christmas tree at night because of the flickering lights. I expected to see machine guns everywhere and witness live drug deals, but I haven’t seen a thing. It is obviously going on, but to date, I have felt safer in Rocinha than in my own neighborhood. (currently knocking on wood that there is not a police raid tomorrow)
The work has been so much fun. I teach a adult film class twice a week. We’ve been watching American movies like Forrest Gump and Crash and discussing themes/doing vocab. I’m also going to be leading outdoors excursions for the kids. There are 10-15 other volunteers here as well. A handful of them live in Rocinha, a once in a lifetime experience. They are from all over the place and new ones are constantly coming in.
The Beach: I am conveniently situated two blocks from Copacabana and five blocks from Ipanema. The bodies are bronzed and chiseled, and the bikinis are miniscule. There are many (many
Samba
These women can move, even with 7 inch heals and 3 foot head dresses many many) people trying to sell you everything you could imagine, ranging from fried cheese to backpacks to feather earings.
The most interesting aspect of going to the beach is observing the microcosm of society. Along Ipanema and Copa, there are “posts” every kilometer or so. A specific personality congregates around a given post. For example, post 8, which is closest to my house, is where the gays hang out. Post 9 is where the pot heads and beautiful people hang out. Post 7 is where a lot of the favela kids hang out. Etc.
Futebol + Volleyball = Futevolley: Everybody knows Soccer is huge in Brazil. A lot of people know that Brazil is also quite good at volleyball. But, I doubt many of you know that Cariocas have invented a rather fascinating sports called Futevolley - a game of volleyball, in which you can only use your head and feet, no hands. I have yet to participate in a round.
Samba: Samba is playing everywhere you turn, especially with carnival around the corner. There are tons of samba schools in Rio that parade during carnival. Every weekend, they have public rehearsals. I went to the
Sao Conrado beach and Favelinho
A viewing point on Pedra Bonita -- Sao Conrado is the nieghborhood where Rocinha lies. Beautiful beach, alot less crowded than Ipanema.
Favelinho is a baby favela in SC - there are no drug lords there. Rocinha samba school rehearsal and had a blast. I pretended to know how to dance samba and watch women prance around in 7 inch heals and 4 foot head dresses.
Forró; Although samba is more famous, Forró is where it’s at. This simple dance from the Northeast is the most fun you can have. Two steps to the right, two steps to the left. You can’t go wrong. Thanks to Yuri, a Japanese girl I met through couch surfing, I’ve been developing a serious obsession with Forró. My trip to the Northeast is actually a forró pilgrimage.
Brazil Time: I was expecting it, I knew about it, I was warned about it, but I still can’t handle Brazil time. Whenever somebody says “I’ll meet you in 30 minutes,” they really mean “sometime in the near future” i.e. 1-4 hours from now. I just have to remind myself that I am not doing a gap year in Germany anymore and adjust my schedule accordingly.
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