UNICAMP

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Today is my second day working at the University of Campinas, or UNICAMP (pronounced oooni-campee), as the locals say. Pedro works in a lab at FEAGRI, or the Department of Agricultural Engineering, so I have access to the internet and computers and everything here in a lab. There are a couple of grad students who work here, plus a post-doc, plus a director in this building. I have been joking with the other students that no one in America believes there is internet and electricity in Brazil, so they told me to post these pictures of the department. Very nice...

I have already been put to work here checking a translation of an abstract for a journal - its nice to feel needed. Otherwise, I have been doing my own translations, of my survey questions and my information sheet to hand out when I get to Mato Grosso. Everyone is interested in my study, or at least they pretend to be, as any polite graduate student would. Grad students often feign interest in other people´s studies, because we are all desparately hoping someone will feign interest in ours!

Yesterday we went to eat this the cafeteria here - it was very much like I imagine a cafeteria in a prison - enormous, concrete, everything served in metal trays - nearly unidentifiable food....it actually tasted ok, despite appearances. Today, we went for lunch at a quilo restaurant, my first time on this trip. These are excellent restaruants - they serve comida tipica, or traditional food (normally), and you load up your plate with what you want, and you pay by the quilo (well, hopefully for the sake of your waistline, less than a quilo). Tonight a group of students and I are going to a "happy hour" - 16 dollars or so for all you can eat and drink for 3 hours...why don´t we have anything so fabulous in the US?!!

Tomorrow is a big day for me, I am meeting with a professor and with an official from the Agricultural agency to talk about my research...in Portuguese!!! (!)

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Photos

FEAGRI
the agricultural engineering department at UNICAMP - the best University in Brazil, or as Pedro says, the Harvard of Brazil.

FEAGRI
ok, this really is a building at FEAGRI - the other was a view of the landscape nearby, obviously - Pedro is walking out the door here...

FEAGRI
here I am, proof that I am actually here working! These are all student buildings I think, where students work...

FEAGRI
This is in a pretty park area at FEAGRI....