Well, the clock is ticking. Only one month left here and it is already feeling very bittersweet. I am SOOOO ready to see my friends and family and be back in the loop with what is going on in everyone's lives. I miss everyone so much and I am ready to get back to work! Something to occupy my time! I love to read, but I have been pretty much reading non stop since I got here. In fact, here is a list of books I have read. This may be boring but what else are you doing? Working? Ya right! And you never know, you may want to read some of these sometime. I'll even give you a 1-5 star system on how good they were in my professional opinion! I will not however give a description as to why they have the amount of stars given. I'm too lazy and you could probably care less. Enjoy!! (Can you tell it is a fairly uneventful day??)
New Reads:
The Red Tent-Anita Diamant ***
Cold Mountain-Charles Frazier ***
The Girl With the Dragon Tatoo-Stieg Larsson *****
The Girl Who Played With Fire-Stieg Larsson *****
The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet Nest-Stieg Larsson *****
A Visit from the Goon Squad-Jennifer Egan **
Heaven is for Real-Todd Burpo *
Lovehampton-Sherri Rifkin ***
History Lesson for Girls-Aurelie Sheehan ****
The Hunger Games-Suzanne Collins *****
Catching Fire-Suzanne Collins *****
Mockingjay-Suzanne Collins ***
Second Time Reads (so you know they are good)
Three Cups of Tea-Greg Mortenson ****
Life of Pi-Yann Martel *****
Watership Down-Richard Adams *****
A Million Little Pieces-James Frey ***
The Time Traveler's Wife-Audrey Niffenegger *****
Water for Elephants-Sara Gruen *****
Lost & Found-Jacqueline Sheehan ***
Currently Reading: The Abbey-Chris Culver
Next Up: Born Standing Up-Steve Martin
So obviously I have been a reading fiend!
Anyways, as I mentioned, I have a month left. I will happy to see my friends/family but I am getting so sick of goodbyes. Especially to Edi. BUT this is the way things have to be for now. Hopefully down the road we will be traveling together! But not only Edi, his family will be hard to ay goodbye to as well. I have become very fond of quite of few of his family members. Ok lets not think about it now. I'll push the saddness to the back of my mind and focus on having fun while I'm still here.
We did go play painball the other night. It was a little cold but we had a good time. I definitely did not play but I hung out with the girls and ate some BBQ and was the fascinating American girl for all of the people I had not met before. (I'm finally getting used to that) People would come over and say whatever English phrase they know which is usually Thank you very much(muito obrigado) or sausage, oddly enough (linguisa), which is funny in any language. Once everyone realized that I know the word for sausage in Portuguese, it became a big joke. Someone would hold up a sausage that was cooking on the grill and call my name and I would say "linguisa" in my most provocative voice and everyone got a kick out of that. Nice to finally be able to at least joke around a little bit with everyone. The paintball "arena" was pretty cool. Nothing too fancy but it was pretty big with a lot of good hiding places. I don't really know anything about paintball but it looked like fun. Edi got a nice big welt on his leg but other than that he was pretty much unscathed.
Last night Edi and I went out to a very cool restaurant for a late dinner/drinks. We had not been there before. Everything on the menu is served on a skewer. Interesting right? I thought so. The atmosphere was very cool. Bricks, exposed beams, very high ceilings, my fav! It was very open and the tables and chairs were a dark wood which was beautiful! I told Edi that if ever owned a restaurant this is what I would want it to look like. The only thing that is strange that I have noticed in the few restaurants that have a bar also (most places don't even have a bar top area) is that there is a bar but no chairs. I don't understand because the bar at this restaurant was beautifully done. It was a long L shape and beind the bar was a very tall shelving unit with all sorts of liquor bottles with beautiful backlighting. But nobody can actually sit at this bar because there are no chairs.......I asked Edi if people just usually stand around the bar and he said no, they just don't really use it. Why go through all the trouble of making this large, beautiful bar and only use it for service drinks? Edi said that if HE ever owned a restaurant he would definitely have a bar like that, but there would be stools. He's not really sure why restaurants don't take advantage of that idea. It would really add to the atmosphere and draw people in I think. Anyways, enough about me and my brilliant restaurant design knowledge.
Sunday we went to Edi's Aunt/Uncles house. The guys were playing some kind of poker-like card game outside and the ladies were inside checking out some sweet shoes! Fernanda, Edi's cousins girlfriend is opening a shoe store next month and she brought some of the newest shipment over to the house for the ladies to have first pick! Sadly, she did not know that I have monstrous feet (9!) so she did not bring godzilla sized shoes. Apparently all Brazilian women have small, dainty, perfectly sized feet. I'm not kidding, they were all either a 5, 6, or 7. So I just looked and told Fernanda I would have Edi take me to her store when it opens the first week of Nov. and get some shoes for myself! (Also, I will let her know that if she needs help when I come back here, I would be HAPPY to work in her shop! Job in Brazil, here I come!!!)
We stayed there most of the day and eventually it was only myself, Fernanda and Adriana(who knows a little bit of English) inside and I had my ipod with me which has a sweet translator on it. We went back and forth talking about my family, when I was leaving, when I hoped to come back, etc, etc... and I only had to use the translator a couple of times. It was mostly when I was trying to respond to their questions because I am getting pretty good at understanding what people are saying.
I realized something when I was responding to them. With the amount of Portuguese that know, I can respond accordingly to quite a few questions, but my responses are obviously very broken. When they ask me "When are you going back to the United States?" My response is "I go back November 20." When they ask "Do you like Brazil? My response is " Yes, I like. Very nice. Beautiful." Now, I am not the smartest person you've ever met, but I like to consider myself fairly intelligent and well spoken. But, obviously in another language that I am JUST learning, I don't sound too bright. I think that in America, we hear people that are not native to our language and we are sometimes quick to judge. People think they must not be smart, etc,etc... while that could be the opposite of the truth. Just because someone isn't fluent in your language or know your traditions, doesn't mean they are stupid. For example, Edi's English isn't perfect but he is a VERY smart guy. I've seen this in him for a long time, but seeing how much he has made for himself here and seeing what a great businessman he is first hand is just proof of that. Now that I am living this first hand I have nothing but respect for people coming to the US knowing so little about the language or culture and making a life for themselves. I have it easy. I live with Edi's family, I don't have a job, I don't really go out anywhere without someone that knows English. It couldn't get much easier for me and a lot of people that travel to another country to live don't have it this easy. Think about that they next time you meet someone from another country. That's all I'm sayin'!
Well those are my words of wisdom for now. I miss you all! Have a wonderful rest of the week!! Tchau!!
Thursday, October 20, 2011
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Rainy Days & BBQ's
Today is the first day that I've been here that I can actually feel some humidity. It has been raining on and off for a couple of days and it looks like it is going to continue for a few more. Right now it is sunny and beautiful, but I do see some dark clouds not too far off. Last night there was a raging thunder storm! It was so loud it woke me up and I sat cowering under the blankets for a good amount of time until it died down. I love thunderstorms, but for some reason they always scare me when I've been asleep. It wakes me up and freaks me out! So, as I was saying the humidity is actually getting up there for once and I am not a fan.
Fall is my favorite time of year in NH. Foliage, orchard apples, perfect weather, bonfires, fairs, etc... So I am missing it a bit right now, but also know that fall is short and soon there will be frost on the cars every morning and everyone wearing jackets and scarves and then those awful little frozen white things will fall from the sky. So while I miss the fall, I am happy to extend my summer for a few months before I head back to the NH in its frozen state.
Edi's sister Edilaine had a BBQ on Saturday night. Edi's immediate family was there but it was mostly made up of people from Edilaine's work. This was the 3rd or 4th time I had met most of them and they are just so nice. There is one couple that are loud and funny and love to dance and laugh and they are my favorites! Whenever Gi(the wife) sees me at a party she runs up yelling my name (or sort of my name. When everyone says my name here it sounds like Jany. They have replaced the -et sounds with eeeee!) So she comes running over yelling Janyyyyyyyyyyyy!!!! and always has a giant hug/kiss for me. She's hilarious. They invited Edi and I to a party at their house this coming Saturday and I can't wait to go. It seems that I am making some friends here OUTSIDE of Edi's family, despite the language barrier!
Let me say that I am so thanful for Edi's Aunt, Ana Paula. Her English is great and I knew she was going to be a big help to me here but she is even more helpful than I thought. She is always helping me translate when someone is trying to talk to me, but even when nobody else is around she will kind of quiz me and teach me new words which is great. Not only that but it's nice to have someone here to just chat with, girl talk and all that. As we all know, Edi is not much of a talker and I absolutely AM so there is only so much talking I can do without a satisfactory response. It's nice to have Ana Paula here.
I am surprising Edi's family as well as myself with how much I have picked up here in the last month and a half. I understand quite a bit of what is said and his family can ask me to get something or do something and I can get/do it for them. They can ask me a question and I will know what they asked. I'm still too shy to really answer on my own for some reason....I'm trying but I am still just not comfortable. When I talk to Edi or Ana Paula I have started some Portuenglish. I am speaking English but I' sprinkling whatever words I know in Portuguese into my conversation. It's weird, but it's something at least. I was slightly perturbed the other day when we are out and Edi was talking to 3 people we have met a few times before. They were asking about how we met and how we started dating, etc... and Edi was explaining to them and I was listening and smiling and was picking up on quite a bit of the discussion. The woman turned to one of the men and said "She doesn't understand anything, does she?" And I stopped Edi in mid conversation and said "Tell her that I do understand and she can feel free to ask me if she would like." I know that she wasn't trying to hurt my feelings or anything but it was frustrating. Please don't talk about me right in front of my face. If you are wondering something about me, ask! All well, no big deal, no harm done.
Tonight (if the weather holds up) Edi and a bunch of his cousins are going to play paintball. I am obviously not really paintball material so I thought I would probably just hang out at home but Edi said there is a space there for whoever is not playing to hang out. All the female types will be there while the boys with their toys try and destroy each other with paint and afterwards someone is having a BBQ (do I even have to say that anymore? Just assume that at least twice a week I am at a BBQ) so that should be fun. Edi doesn't have to work tomorrow because it is a holiday (Children's Day I think?) Whatever it is he's not working!
I guess those are all the updates I have for now! Have a great week!
Fall is my favorite time of year in NH. Foliage, orchard apples, perfect weather, bonfires, fairs, etc... So I am missing it a bit right now, but also know that fall is short and soon there will be frost on the cars every morning and everyone wearing jackets and scarves and then those awful little frozen white things will fall from the sky. So while I miss the fall, I am happy to extend my summer for a few months before I head back to the NH in its frozen state.
Edi's sister Edilaine had a BBQ on Saturday night. Edi's immediate family was there but it was mostly made up of people from Edilaine's work. This was the 3rd or 4th time I had met most of them and they are just so nice. There is one couple that are loud and funny and love to dance and laugh and they are my favorites! Whenever Gi(the wife) sees me at a party she runs up yelling my name (or sort of my name. When everyone says my name here it sounds like Jany. They have replaced the -et sounds with eeeee!) So she comes running over yelling Janyyyyyyyyyyyy!!!! and always has a giant hug/kiss for me. She's hilarious. They invited Edi and I to a party at their house this coming Saturday and I can't wait to go. It seems that I am making some friends here OUTSIDE of Edi's family, despite the language barrier!
Let me say that I am so thanful for Edi's Aunt, Ana Paula. Her English is great and I knew she was going to be a big help to me here but she is even more helpful than I thought. She is always helping me translate when someone is trying to talk to me, but even when nobody else is around she will kind of quiz me and teach me new words which is great. Not only that but it's nice to have someone here to just chat with, girl talk and all that. As we all know, Edi is not much of a talker and I absolutely AM so there is only so much talking I can do without a satisfactory response. It's nice to have Ana Paula here.
I am surprising Edi's family as well as myself with how much I have picked up here in the last month and a half. I understand quite a bit of what is said and his family can ask me to get something or do something and I can get/do it for them. They can ask me a question and I will know what they asked. I'm still too shy to really answer on my own for some reason....I'm trying but I am still just not comfortable. When I talk to Edi or Ana Paula I have started some Portuenglish. I am speaking English but I' sprinkling whatever words I know in Portuguese into my conversation. It's weird, but it's something at least. I was slightly perturbed the other day when we are out and Edi was talking to 3 people we have met a few times before. They were asking about how we met and how we started dating, etc... and Edi was explaining to them and I was listening and smiling and was picking up on quite a bit of the discussion. The woman turned to one of the men and said "She doesn't understand anything, does she?" And I stopped Edi in mid conversation and said "Tell her that I do understand and she can feel free to ask me if she would like." I know that she wasn't trying to hurt my feelings or anything but it was frustrating. Please don't talk about me right in front of my face. If you are wondering something about me, ask! All well, no big deal, no harm done.
Tonight (if the weather holds up) Edi and a bunch of his cousins are going to play paintball. I am obviously not really paintball material so I thought I would probably just hang out at home but Edi said there is a space there for whoever is not playing to hang out. All the female types will be there while the boys with their toys try and destroy each other with paint and afterwards someone is having a BBQ (do I even have to say that anymore? Just assume that at least twice a week I am at a BBQ) so that should be fun. Edi doesn't have to work tomorrow because it is a holiday (Children's Day I think?) Whatever it is he's not working!
I guess those are all the updates I have for now! Have a great week!
Monday, October 3, 2011
Beatles in Brazil!
So after weeks of talking about it and night after night of plans falling through Edi and I FINALLY went to the "American Bar" that Edi was talking about. Truth be told it was actually an Irish Pub which is of course not an American bar but I know now more than ever what Edi was talking about when he said it reminded him of home. (well, MY home anways)
First of all the atmosphere is great. To me, atmosphere is such an important part of the restaurant/bar experience. Of course we went on a Saturday and we got there between 9:30-10:00 so the place was hoppin'! I was worried we were going to be waiting a while at first because there was a line out the door. Luckily for us it was all from the same group of people deciding if they wanted to get a table. They decided not to wait and off they went. Score! They had a couple of tables left for 2 people so we were able to get a seat right away. The place is not all that big. There is a small outdoor patio area which is really cool with some palm-like trees and green uplighting that gives it a really cool look and feel. Then inside there is a small bar area which could probably hold 7-8 stools but there were none. People just stood where the stools would be and to be honest that makes a lot of sense because there were about 20 people all lined up at a bar where only 8 or so seats would fit. Anyways there was the bar and then there were maybe 20 tables inside ranging in size from a 2 person table to like an 8 person table.
We sat down and perused the menu for drinks and a snack. I was thrilled and shocked to see buffalo wings on the menu. Buffalo Wings! Oh how I've missed you. I also saw a non-Brazilian beer selection which included Guiness, Heineken, Stella, Newcastle, among other things. I looked around at the decor and saw a snowboard hanging on the wall which is hilarious to even think about while we were sweating in the 95 degree heat. Also the Brazilian and Irish flags hung above the bar. The walls were brick and the ceilings has exposed beams. It looked great and it definitely felt like I was sitting at an Irish Pub back in the US. As I looked around I noticed that there was a small stage and it looked like there was going to be some live music. Not surprising since A. It was Saturday night and B. In Brazil almost EVERY restaurant has live music almost EVERY night. I did notice that this looked like a full band setup whereas usually here it is just a couple of guys playing guitar and singing. I then looked at the posters to my left. I nearly fell out of my chair I was so excited! We just happened to come on a night where the band that was playing was a Beatles/Rolling Stones cover band!!! (First of all, Bealtes AND Rolling Stones cover band? Have you ever heard of such a thing. I have not. But hey who am I to judge, I was getting 2 bands for the price of none!) I turned to Edi and I am sure I looked like a kid on Christmas "Did you see that?! It's a Beatles/Rolling Stones cover band!! This place is great! I love it here!!" Edi looked at me and I am pretty sure he was thinking I didn't get enough sleep last night. "Yeah I see that. That's cool!" I refrained from yelling "Cool? Cool?! This is awesome!!! Best night ever!!" because I didn't need him thinking I had gone off the deep end.......yet.
Let me explain why this was so exciting for me. First let me preface by saying that I truly do love it here and I am a big fan of all the restaurants we have been to, I like Brazilian cuisine, beverages, music, Edi's family, and pretty much anything else that I have come across here. I say this because I know I have a lot of friends/family that are happy I am here but worry about me and whether I am or will be happy here. The answer is yes I am. However, with that being said I have been here, away from my home, friends, family, and comfort zone for over a month. 1 month is not enough time for someone to be totally comfortable in their new surroundings if those new surrounding are in another country. As much as I love it here, I obviously struggle on a daily basis. Although I understand SO much more than I did when I first got here, I struggle everyday with the language barrier. I am living with Edi's family which is hard to get used to, no matter how nice they are. I am used to having my own space, doing my own thing. I don't have a car to go where I want, blah blah blah. Did any of these things change because I was in an Irish style pub? No, but it felt like I was home for a couple of hours at a bar that I would go to in the US. I ate french fries and drank beer from a bottle (I went with Stella. I don't mind it, it's just not my fav.) and listened to a band playing songs in English. It relaxed me. I needed that bit of an oasis to recharge my batteries. We had so much fun. I sang all the lyrics to all the songs, (Edi tried but needless to say he won't be starting a Beatles coverband anytime soon) and drank my beers and ate my food and felt totally comfortable for the first time in a while. We will definitely be going back soon. Also I wish so badly that I could have had a chance to talk to the lead singer of the band because I have heard a few people try to sing songs in English here and the accent usually makes the song sound a bit off or they don't quite the word pronunciation right, but this guy was AWESOME! Was he so authentic that he had a british accent? No but when he was singing it sounded great. Everything sounded clear. I really wanted to ask him if he spoke English or just memorized the songs.
Other than that fabulous night out there is not a whole lot here to report at the moment. I have been trying to run everyday because the whole eating a lot everyday and doing no sort of exercise is beginning to take its toll..... The weather is perfect as usual but I think we are do for a few rainy days later this week. I am in for a big shock when I come home in November. What is wrong with me? I am out of New England for the fall (my favorite season) and I come back for Nov, Dec, and Jan??? If you know me, you know I hate the cold/snow. All well I do love the holiday season!
Miss you all!
Tchau!!
First of all the atmosphere is great. To me, atmosphere is such an important part of the restaurant/bar experience. Of course we went on a Saturday and we got there between 9:30-10:00 so the place was hoppin'! I was worried we were going to be waiting a while at first because there was a line out the door. Luckily for us it was all from the same group of people deciding if they wanted to get a table. They decided not to wait and off they went. Score! They had a couple of tables left for 2 people so we were able to get a seat right away. The place is not all that big. There is a small outdoor patio area which is really cool with some palm-like trees and green uplighting that gives it a really cool look and feel. Then inside there is a small bar area which could probably hold 7-8 stools but there were none. People just stood where the stools would be and to be honest that makes a lot of sense because there were about 20 people all lined up at a bar where only 8 or so seats would fit. Anyways there was the bar and then there were maybe 20 tables inside ranging in size from a 2 person table to like an 8 person table.
We sat down and perused the menu for drinks and a snack. I was thrilled and shocked to see buffalo wings on the menu. Buffalo Wings! Oh how I've missed you. I also saw a non-Brazilian beer selection which included Guiness, Heineken, Stella, Newcastle, among other things. I looked around at the decor and saw a snowboard hanging on the wall which is hilarious to even think about while we were sweating in the 95 degree heat. Also the Brazilian and Irish flags hung above the bar. The walls were brick and the ceilings has exposed beams. It looked great and it definitely felt like I was sitting at an Irish Pub back in the US. As I looked around I noticed that there was a small stage and it looked like there was going to be some live music. Not surprising since A. It was Saturday night and B. In Brazil almost EVERY restaurant has live music almost EVERY night. I did notice that this looked like a full band setup whereas usually here it is just a couple of guys playing guitar and singing. I then looked at the posters to my left. I nearly fell out of my chair I was so excited! We just happened to come on a night where the band that was playing was a Beatles/Rolling Stones cover band!!! (First of all, Bealtes AND Rolling Stones cover band? Have you ever heard of such a thing. I have not. But hey who am I to judge, I was getting 2 bands for the price of none!) I turned to Edi and I am sure I looked like a kid on Christmas "Did you see that?! It's a Beatles/Rolling Stones cover band!! This place is great! I love it here!!" Edi looked at me and I am pretty sure he was thinking I didn't get enough sleep last night. "Yeah I see that. That's cool!" I refrained from yelling "Cool? Cool?! This is awesome!!! Best night ever!!" because I didn't need him thinking I had gone off the deep end.......yet.
Let me explain why this was so exciting for me. First let me preface by saying that I truly do love it here and I am a big fan of all the restaurants we have been to, I like Brazilian cuisine, beverages, music, Edi's family, and pretty much anything else that I have come across here. I say this because I know I have a lot of friends/family that are happy I am here but worry about me and whether I am or will be happy here. The answer is yes I am. However, with that being said I have been here, away from my home, friends, family, and comfort zone for over a month. 1 month is not enough time for someone to be totally comfortable in their new surroundings if those new surrounding are in another country. As much as I love it here, I obviously struggle on a daily basis. Although I understand SO much more than I did when I first got here, I struggle everyday with the language barrier. I am living with Edi's family which is hard to get used to, no matter how nice they are. I am used to having my own space, doing my own thing. I don't have a car to go where I want, blah blah blah. Did any of these things change because I was in an Irish style pub? No, but it felt like I was home for a couple of hours at a bar that I would go to in the US. I ate french fries and drank beer from a bottle (I went with Stella. I don't mind it, it's just not my fav.) and listened to a band playing songs in English. It relaxed me. I needed that bit of an oasis to recharge my batteries. We had so much fun. I sang all the lyrics to all the songs, (Edi tried but needless to say he won't be starting a Beatles coverband anytime soon) and drank my beers and ate my food and felt totally comfortable for the first time in a while. We will definitely be going back soon. Also I wish so badly that I could have had a chance to talk to the lead singer of the band because I have heard a few people try to sing songs in English here and the accent usually makes the song sound a bit off or they don't quite the word pronunciation right, but this guy was AWESOME! Was he so authentic that he had a british accent? No but when he was singing it sounded great. Everything sounded clear. I really wanted to ask him if he spoke English or just memorized the songs.
Other than that fabulous night out there is not a whole lot here to report at the moment. I have been trying to run everyday because the whole eating a lot everyday and doing no sort of exercise is beginning to take its toll..... The weather is perfect as usual but I think we are do for a few rainy days later this week. I am in for a big shock when I come home in November. What is wrong with me? I am out of New England for the fall (my favorite season) and I come back for Nov, Dec, and Jan??? If you know me, you know I hate the cold/snow. All well I do love the holiday season!
Miss you all!
Tchau!!
Saturday, September 24, 2011
Decision accomplished!
Tomorrow marks one month here. I know I say it over and over but it does not seem like that long. Time is really flying! The weather is staying right around 80-85 degrees everyday. (except for today. It is a little rainy so it is only about 70) The nights are the perfect weather. Not so hot that I can't wear jeans but not so cold that I need a jacket. Perfection! I check the weather in Dover now and then just to keep track of what its doing near home and I saw a frost warning the other day. HA!! A frost warning!! Needless to say I am very happy that I will not have to hear about or see frost for a couple more months!
I finally exchanged some of the US dollars I brought with me for Brazilian Real last week. When I first got here I know that $1(USD) was worth approximately R$1.40 (Real) which is pretty low. The dollar had been steadily decreasing in value for quite some time. When I changed it in last week $1 (USD) was worth R$1.64 (Real) so for my $200 that I cashed in I got R$328 which is not too shabby. Now looking at it today the dollar is worth 1.83 real which is great! Hopefully the dollar keeps rising! This is also why I didn't just trade in all my money for real at once. If I don't use all my money here and I change it back to USD I could lose money if it keeps rising and I don't want to lose any $$$$!!!
Well I do believe I have come to a decision on what my next step will be. I WILL be flying home November 20th when my original scheduled flight is. I will then proceed to work my little (ok not little) butt off for a couple of months and make enough $$ to get back here probably at the beginning of February. *sigh* I really did not want to be home without Edi for another 3 months but I don't really have any better options. I did it before, I can do it again. And this time will (hopefully) be shorter. It would cost $$ to change my flight to a later date and even if I did come back to the US later than I originally planned I would still have to stay home for a few months to make $. That is reall what it all comes down to. Flying back and forth is expensive but options are limited. I originally thought of coming back in January but the tickets are a few hundred dollars cheaper in Feb. Have I talked to anyone about the steps I would need to take to get a permanent visa? No. Should I? Yes. That HAS to be my next step. I need to talk to someone that can really help me because everytime I email a question about my visa to the Brazillian consulate in Boston where I got it, the answers they give me are less than helpful. I really think a lawyer would be my best bet. Immigration lawyer or something? I don't know. I'm new at this.
In the meantime, Edi will be starting the process of applying for a tourist visa to the US. THIS is going to be a process. First Edi needs to apply for a renewed passport since his will expire soon. This could take about 3 months..... Next he needs to try and get an appointment just to apply for a tourist visa. We checked th other day and if he reqested the appointment today, he would possibly have an appointment in about 110 days. Awesome. Next after he applies it takes god knows how long for them to review it, etc... THEN once that is all said and done, he may not even be approved to get the visa. So it toook me a few weeks to get my visa and I was pretty much guaranteed to get it. I never had to worry about that. For Edi however, this process could and probably will take over a year for him to possibly get a visa and have the opportunity to come back. double *sigh* Well at least we know what we are getting into!
Enough about visas and all that boring stuff. Tonight I believe (if the weather gets a little better) Edi is taking me to a place that he says reminds him of The Coat of Arms (which is a bar/restaurant in Portsmouth that I really like) and I do know for a fact that they sell Guiness (yum!) Heineken (Ew!) and Stella (eh...) It's funny because Edi calls this the "American" bar but The Coat of Arms is a British Pub and none of those beers are american beers. But to Edi, The Coat was in America so to him, it's an American bar. Good enough for me!! I'll be interested to see what other things have been "Americanized" there.
Random side thought. I was at a BBQ the other day (shocker!) and I saw something funny that reminded me of someone (I can't even remember what it was now so clearly it was thrilling I'm sure...) but I instinctively went for my cell phone to text that person and then wuickly realized that was not going to happen. Even after a month here I forget that A. My cell phone doesn't work here B. It would not be as simple as picking it up and texting a friends number. That's all, it was stupid but i had a nice little chuckle at myself.
That'll do it! Enjoy your weekend!
I finally exchanged some of the US dollars I brought with me for Brazilian Real last week. When I first got here I know that $1(USD) was worth approximately R$1.40 (Real) which is pretty low. The dollar had been steadily decreasing in value for quite some time. When I changed it in last week $1 (USD) was worth R$1.64 (Real) so for my $200 that I cashed in I got R$328 which is not too shabby. Now looking at it today the dollar is worth 1.83 real which is great! Hopefully the dollar keeps rising! This is also why I didn't just trade in all my money for real at once. If I don't use all my money here and I change it back to USD I could lose money if it keeps rising and I don't want to lose any $$$$!!!
Well I do believe I have come to a decision on what my next step will be. I WILL be flying home November 20th when my original scheduled flight is. I will then proceed to work my little (ok not little) butt off for a couple of months and make enough $$ to get back here probably at the beginning of February. *sigh* I really did not want to be home without Edi for another 3 months but I don't really have any better options. I did it before, I can do it again. And this time will (hopefully) be shorter. It would cost $$ to change my flight to a later date and even if I did come back to the US later than I originally planned I would still have to stay home for a few months to make $. That is reall what it all comes down to. Flying back and forth is expensive but options are limited. I originally thought of coming back in January but the tickets are a few hundred dollars cheaper in Feb. Have I talked to anyone about the steps I would need to take to get a permanent visa? No. Should I? Yes. That HAS to be my next step. I need to talk to someone that can really help me because everytime I email a question about my visa to the Brazillian consulate in Boston where I got it, the answers they give me are less than helpful. I really think a lawyer would be my best bet. Immigration lawyer or something? I don't know. I'm new at this.
In the meantime, Edi will be starting the process of applying for a tourist visa to the US. THIS is going to be a process. First Edi needs to apply for a renewed passport since his will expire soon. This could take about 3 months..... Next he needs to try and get an appointment just to apply for a tourist visa. We checked th other day and if he reqested the appointment today, he would possibly have an appointment in about 110 days. Awesome. Next after he applies it takes god knows how long for them to review it, etc... THEN once that is all said and done, he may not even be approved to get the visa. So it toook me a few weeks to get my visa and I was pretty much guaranteed to get it. I never had to worry about that. For Edi however, this process could and probably will take over a year for him to possibly get a visa and have the opportunity to come back. double *sigh* Well at least we know what we are getting into!
Enough about visas and all that boring stuff. Tonight I believe (if the weather gets a little better) Edi is taking me to a place that he says reminds him of The Coat of Arms (which is a bar/restaurant in Portsmouth that I really like) and I do know for a fact that they sell Guiness (yum!) Heineken (Ew!) and Stella (eh...) It's funny because Edi calls this the "American" bar but The Coat of Arms is a British Pub and none of those beers are american beers. But to Edi, The Coat was in America so to him, it's an American bar. Good enough for me!! I'll be interested to see what other things have been "Americanized" there.
Random side thought. I was at a BBQ the other day (shocker!) and I saw something funny that reminded me of someone (I can't even remember what it was now so clearly it was thrilling I'm sure...) but I instinctively went for my cell phone to text that person and then wuickly realized that was not going to happen. Even after a month here I forget that A. My cell phone doesn't work here B. It would not be as simple as picking it up and texting a friends number. That's all, it was stupid but i had a nice little chuckle at myself.
That'll do it! Enjoy your weekend!
Monday, September 19, 2011
Decisions, decisions
I have officially passed the 3 week mark here. I can't believe it. I think this probably means I should figure out my next move......I am technically scheduled to fly back to the US on November 20th. With my tourist visa I am allowed to be here for 3 months at a time. My 3 months would be up at the end of November. I am allowed to apply for an extension. The largest extension I could ask for this time around would be to extend my stay for another 2 1/2 months because that plus this 3 month stay and my inital 2 week stay would total the 6 months per year that I am allowed to be here. Just because I CAN extend my stay for 2 1/2 months doesnt mean I will. First of all I want to be home for Christmas. I can't imagine not spending Christmas with my family! (not to mention they may disown me if that were to happen) But not only that, if I extend it for the full time then I would have to fly home in Feb. and I wouldn't be able to come back for a few months when it will be a full year since I first traveled here and my visa will renew itself. So much to think over!!
1. Extend my stay into December and fly home for Christmas and stay in the US for an undecided amount of time
2. Leave it as it is and flyback November 20th and stay home for what? 1 1/2 months? 2?
There are obviously many more options (go home and stay for a much longer time, go home and stay home, etc...) but these are not options I want to think about. I do know that whatever I choose I need to make a decision soon because if I do need to apply for an extension I dont know how long that will take. Of course when I ask Edi for his input it is met with what seems to be the typical Brazilian laid-back attitude "We'll figure it out." "Don't worry about it right now." Well I HAVE to worry about it right now. Soon right now will be 2 months from now. I am a planner and I need to know my next step. Not to mention the $$ it is going to cost to come back.... I know that I can work when i go home for however long that is. UNO has told me I'm welcome to come back and I can always go work with my mom like the good old days! Not only will I have to make $ to pay for another ticket but I will need to continue to pay my monthly bills (loans) and my money will pretty much have run out by the time I get back. HOPEFULLY my next trip here I would be able to get a job somewhere to make a little $$ while I am in Brazil. That would help immensely! Honestly, don't mind me. I am just thinking ut loud and it is nice to have my options written down in front of my face. I will obviously keep you all posted on what I decide to do!!
On to the more exciting things! Ana Paula has taught Edi's mom to say "Let's Go!" in English to me so whenever she wants us to go somewhere she say "Let's Go Ana!" (Ana Paula's house) or "Let's Go Shopping!" (Let's go to the mall) or the other day she said "Let's Go Escola!" (Lets go to school!) I figured, why not? I was curious to see if the schools here were any different. It was like 5:30pm so I figured she was going to a parent/teacher conference of something. I figured it would be her and a teacher and me. The school is within walking distance so we walked there and we walked up to the second floor (not surprisingly the schools are pretty much the same, including the ever present writing on desks by students. Hearts, names, etc....) and we entered a classroom and I stood frozen the spot. There were about 20 people in the room. 6 students with their parents and a line of teachers at the front of the classroom. My first instinct was to run in the other direction. I had horrifying visions that they were going to go around the room saying "Hello, my name is _____, I am from ______, and my favorite hobby is ______." and I was not interested in partaking. Trying in front of Edi's family is one thing (which I have been doing much more of lately!) but I was certain I would be ridiculed by a room of 14 year olds. I was scared to death. But I pushed though my fear and took a seat next to Arlete and PHEW! thankfully this WAS a student teacher conference they just do it a little differently. They were doing this in small groups. Very efficient. So I sat and listened as usual and at the end of the meeting, Biel told his foreign language teacher (english!) that I am from the United States. I thought, "Cool!" maybe I would be able to have a stimulating conversation in English with this woman who must clearly be fluent! She didn't really respnd when they told her where I was from. Finally when we were all leaving and she was right in front of me so she couldnt really get away she said to me "It very hot here for you today?" ........ I was surprised. I thought of my high school Spanish teacher and how he was maybe not a perfect person, but his Spanish was impeccable. I was quite taken aback. Then the more I thought about it I realized that it is middle school and I remember my middle school Spanish teacher being less than competent in her field. So I guess I am not that surprised. Maybe the high school teacher has a better english background. And on the bright side, maybe I can be an English teacher at the middle school here sometime in the future!! haha
One of Edi's cousins who lived with Edi in NH has opened a pizzaria here in Brazil. It has only been open a few months but it seems like business is good. He had a BBQ at his pizzaria yesterday for Edi's family/friends. There was a futebol game on and the usual gang was there. It was a lot of fun as usual and everytime I hang out with these people I learn a little bit more and I feel a little bit more comfortable. A few people came back to Edi's house afterwards and we hung out outside playing music, drinking, whatever. It came to a screeching halt when two people had a little too much to drink and they started to fight. Edi brought one of them home and the other stayed on the couch here. Same old story, too much beer, people take things to heart, names are called, etc, etc... No harm done other than waking Edi's sleeping parents up. All is forgiven in the morning.
Oh ya! We went to a BBQ on Sat. too. The same friends of Edi's sister that we all went to dinner with a couple of weeks ago. It was a much smaller, intimate setting. There were about 10 of us all together. Music, dancing, laughing and BBQing per usual. Everyone is so happy here most of the time. It's great!
That about does it for today. Peace and grease!!
1. Extend my stay into December and fly home for Christmas and stay in the US for an undecided amount of time
2. Leave it as it is and flyback November 20th and stay home for what? 1 1/2 months? 2?
There are obviously many more options (go home and stay for a much longer time, go home and stay home, etc...) but these are not options I want to think about. I do know that whatever I choose I need to make a decision soon because if I do need to apply for an extension I dont know how long that will take. Of course when I ask Edi for his input it is met with what seems to be the typical Brazilian laid-back attitude "We'll figure it out." "Don't worry about it right now." Well I HAVE to worry about it right now. Soon right now will be 2 months from now. I am a planner and I need to know my next step. Not to mention the $$ it is going to cost to come back.... I know that I can work when i go home for however long that is. UNO has told me I'm welcome to come back and I can always go work with my mom like the good old days! Not only will I have to make $ to pay for another ticket but I will need to continue to pay my monthly bills (loans) and my money will pretty much have run out by the time I get back. HOPEFULLY my next trip here I would be able to get a job somewhere to make a little $$ while I am in Brazil. That would help immensely! Honestly, don't mind me. I am just thinking ut loud and it is nice to have my options written down in front of my face. I will obviously keep you all posted on what I decide to do!!
On to the more exciting things! Ana Paula has taught Edi's mom to say "Let's Go!" in English to me so whenever she wants us to go somewhere she say "Let's Go Ana!" (Ana Paula's house) or "Let's Go Shopping!" (Let's go to the mall) or the other day she said "Let's Go Escola!" (Lets go to school!) I figured, why not? I was curious to see if the schools here were any different. It was like 5:30pm so I figured she was going to a parent/teacher conference of something. I figured it would be her and a teacher and me. The school is within walking distance so we walked there and we walked up to the second floor (not surprisingly the schools are pretty much the same, including the ever present writing on desks by students. Hearts, names, etc....) and we entered a classroom and I stood frozen the spot. There were about 20 people in the room. 6 students with their parents and a line of teachers at the front of the classroom. My first instinct was to run in the other direction. I had horrifying visions that they were going to go around the room saying "Hello, my name is _____, I am from ______, and my favorite hobby is ______." and I was not interested in partaking. Trying in front of Edi's family is one thing (which I have been doing much more of lately!) but I was certain I would be ridiculed by a room of 14 year olds. I was scared to death. But I pushed though my fear and took a seat next to Arlete and PHEW! thankfully this WAS a student teacher conference they just do it a little differently. They were doing this in small groups. Very efficient. So I sat and listened as usual and at the end of the meeting, Biel told his foreign language teacher (english!) that I am from the United States. I thought, "Cool!" maybe I would be able to have a stimulating conversation in English with this woman who must clearly be fluent! She didn't really respnd when they told her where I was from. Finally when we were all leaving and she was right in front of me so she couldnt really get away she said to me "It very hot here for you today?" ........ I was surprised. I thought of my high school Spanish teacher and how he was maybe not a perfect person, but his Spanish was impeccable. I was quite taken aback. Then the more I thought about it I realized that it is middle school and I remember my middle school Spanish teacher being less than competent in her field. So I guess I am not that surprised. Maybe the high school teacher has a better english background. And on the bright side, maybe I can be an English teacher at the middle school here sometime in the future!! haha
One of Edi's cousins who lived with Edi in NH has opened a pizzaria here in Brazil. It has only been open a few months but it seems like business is good. He had a BBQ at his pizzaria yesterday for Edi's family/friends. There was a futebol game on and the usual gang was there. It was a lot of fun as usual and everytime I hang out with these people I learn a little bit more and I feel a little bit more comfortable. A few people came back to Edi's house afterwards and we hung out outside playing music, drinking, whatever. It came to a screeching halt when two people had a little too much to drink and they started to fight. Edi brought one of them home and the other stayed on the couch here. Same old story, too much beer, people take things to heart, names are called, etc, etc... No harm done other than waking Edi's sleeping parents up. All is forgiven in the morning.
Oh ya! We went to a BBQ on Sat. too. The same friends of Edi's sister that we all went to dinner with a couple of weeks ago. It was a much smaller, intimate setting. There were about 10 of us all together. Music, dancing, laughing and BBQing per usual. Everyone is so happy here most of the time. It's great!
That about does it for today. Peace and grease!!
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
Back at It
It's been almost a week since I last posted on here but there have really only been a few days of action to write about so I figured I would start spreading these out! As most of you know already this weekend was Edi's birthday. It actually happens to fall on 9/11. That being such a sad day in US history it is nice to have something happy to celebrate. And actually his Aunt's birthday is the same day and his cousins birthday is 9/13 so it was quite the party!
As I mentioned before Edi's family rented out what I called an event hall of sorts but that really isn't what it is. I'll try and explain it better. It is a property that the owner rents out. It has a house (2 bedrooms, 1 bath, dining room, living room, kitchen) with a large outdoor area that is covered with a big stone BBQ pit for cooking. It also has a pool, a covered garage sort of area, a smaller yard close to the pool and a larger yard with goal posts for playing soccer (or I really should say futebol) It is about 20 minutes outside of the city that Edi lives in. It is in a much more rural area. It is down a dirt road and the only other things down that dirt road are more rented out properties so it's private which is nice too. Basically families rent out these properties for the weekends so they can have fun and be as loud as they want and stay up late, and eat and drink without having to worry about bothering neighbors, etc... I remember going to a couple of these types of properties the last time I was here. His family likes to do this whenever there is a birthday or something to celebrate or sometimes just so the family can get together. Edi's family is so big that none of his family members houses would be able to accomodate everyone comfortably. Plus it is a nice bonus to have a pool and a nice big yard.
They rented it out for Saturday and Sunday but most people had things to do during the day Saturday or they had to work so we went up once Edi and Marco got out of work. There were only about 15 people there Saturday night. We got there around 7pm. We had dinner and just hung out. All of the ladies grabbed chairs and started chatting while the guys hung around the BBQ cooking and telling stories. They started the music and the ladies started dancing. I obviously joined in. I spent most of Saturday night hanging out with Edilaine(sister) and Fernanda (cousins girlfriend) which was nice. Edilaine is always very nice to me and she knows some English so she was helping translate some things for me. Fernanda I don't think has a mean bone in her body. She is always smiling and always pleasant. Eventually a Katy Perry song came on and I got very excited because I could actually sing the words to this song so I belted them out. We stayed until about midnight then it was time to pack up and head home. All in all a pretty low key, fun night.
Sunday was when the real festivities started. We got to the house about 11:30am. We were some of the first people there but shortly threafter the whole family started arriving. I cannot get over how big his family is. I can say that I am very thankful that I was able to come to Brazil with Edi when he moved back in May. I at least got to meet most of these family members at that time. I know that last time I was VERY quiet, VERY shy and stuck VERY close to Edi's side anytime that everyone got together. This time I was happy to do my own thing and sit with whoever I felt like and some of them know a little English so they would try to tell me what they know. Or they would say something in Portuguese and I would stare at them, squinting, listening as hard as I possibly could and ask them to repeat themselves a few times and eventually I would get the jist of it and respond the best I could. People were asking me to come sit with them or go in the pool with them and it was nice to feel like part of the family. I didn't feel like so much of an outsider this time around.
Ana Laura wanted to go in the pool pretty early on and nobody wanted to go in with he so I bit the bullet and went in. She had a blast. I was FREEZING but I had fun with her anyways. She just LOVES to jump off the side of the pool and have you catch her. I remember doing that all the time when I was little yelling "Mom! Mom! Watch me! Mom!" she was pretty much doing the same thing. When she started shivering so much her teeth were chattering I figured it was time to get out. I watched the boys play soccer, ate some food, listened to music, just relaxing. I had changed out of my original outfit because it had gotten a little wet near the pool. That was a mistake. I knew that the boys had started throwing water on each other and throwing each other into the pool but I wasnt paying close enough attention. Ana Paula (Aunt) was sitting next to me at one point and told me to be careful because she could hear them plotting to throw me into the pool. I told her they would have to try pretty hard, "I'm stronger than I look." Well about 30 seconds later I would eat my words because I didn't see it coming until it was too late. Edi's cousin Sydney (he lived in the US for about 4 years) came charging at me and Ana Paula with a giant bucket of water. SPLASH!! My dry change of clothes was now soaked from head to toe. I think a few of the family members were watching to see if I would be mad. They don't know me that well so who knows how I would react? Well obviously I didn't care. I laughed and told Sydney that I would get him when he least expected it. Then I figured since I was soaked I might as well go back into the pool! i never did get Sydney back but I have plenty of time. The rest of the day was fun. We left around 6pm and came home and crashed after a long day of fun. All in all I think Edi probably had one of the best birthdays he has had in years getting to spend it with his family finally!
That is it for now I guess. I'll update later this week! Miss you all! Tchau!
As I mentioned before Edi's family rented out what I called an event hall of sorts but that really isn't what it is. I'll try and explain it better. It is a property that the owner rents out. It has a house (2 bedrooms, 1 bath, dining room, living room, kitchen) with a large outdoor area that is covered with a big stone BBQ pit for cooking. It also has a pool, a covered garage sort of area, a smaller yard close to the pool and a larger yard with goal posts for playing soccer (or I really should say futebol) It is about 20 minutes outside of the city that Edi lives in. It is in a much more rural area. It is down a dirt road and the only other things down that dirt road are more rented out properties so it's private which is nice too. Basically families rent out these properties for the weekends so they can have fun and be as loud as they want and stay up late, and eat and drink without having to worry about bothering neighbors, etc... I remember going to a couple of these types of properties the last time I was here. His family likes to do this whenever there is a birthday or something to celebrate or sometimes just so the family can get together. Edi's family is so big that none of his family members houses would be able to accomodate everyone comfortably. Plus it is a nice bonus to have a pool and a nice big yard.
They rented it out for Saturday and Sunday but most people had things to do during the day Saturday or they had to work so we went up once Edi and Marco got out of work. There were only about 15 people there Saturday night. We got there around 7pm. We had dinner and just hung out. All of the ladies grabbed chairs and started chatting while the guys hung around the BBQ cooking and telling stories. They started the music and the ladies started dancing. I obviously joined in. I spent most of Saturday night hanging out with Edilaine(sister) and Fernanda (cousins girlfriend) which was nice. Edilaine is always very nice to me and she knows some English so she was helping translate some things for me. Fernanda I don't think has a mean bone in her body. She is always smiling and always pleasant. Eventually a Katy Perry song came on and I got very excited because I could actually sing the words to this song so I belted them out. We stayed until about midnight then it was time to pack up and head home. All in all a pretty low key, fun night.
Sunday was when the real festivities started. We got to the house about 11:30am. We were some of the first people there but shortly threafter the whole family started arriving. I cannot get over how big his family is. I can say that I am very thankful that I was able to come to Brazil with Edi when he moved back in May. I at least got to meet most of these family members at that time. I know that last time I was VERY quiet, VERY shy and stuck VERY close to Edi's side anytime that everyone got together. This time I was happy to do my own thing and sit with whoever I felt like and some of them know a little English so they would try to tell me what they know. Or they would say something in Portuguese and I would stare at them, squinting, listening as hard as I possibly could and ask them to repeat themselves a few times and eventually I would get the jist of it and respond the best I could. People were asking me to come sit with them or go in the pool with them and it was nice to feel like part of the family. I didn't feel like so much of an outsider this time around.
Ana Laura wanted to go in the pool pretty early on and nobody wanted to go in with he so I bit the bullet and went in. She had a blast. I was FREEZING but I had fun with her anyways. She just LOVES to jump off the side of the pool and have you catch her. I remember doing that all the time when I was little yelling "Mom! Mom! Watch me! Mom!" she was pretty much doing the same thing. When she started shivering so much her teeth were chattering I figured it was time to get out. I watched the boys play soccer, ate some food, listened to music, just relaxing. I had changed out of my original outfit because it had gotten a little wet near the pool. That was a mistake. I knew that the boys had started throwing water on each other and throwing each other into the pool but I wasnt paying close enough attention. Ana Paula (Aunt) was sitting next to me at one point and told me to be careful because she could hear them plotting to throw me into the pool. I told her they would have to try pretty hard, "I'm stronger than I look." Well about 30 seconds later I would eat my words because I didn't see it coming until it was too late. Edi's cousin Sydney (he lived in the US for about 4 years) came charging at me and Ana Paula with a giant bucket of water. SPLASH!! My dry change of clothes was now soaked from head to toe. I think a few of the family members were watching to see if I would be mad. They don't know me that well so who knows how I would react? Well obviously I didn't care. I laughed and told Sydney that I would get him when he least expected it. Then I figured since I was soaked I might as well go back into the pool! i never did get Sydney back but I have plenty of time. The rest of the day was fun. We left around 6pm and came home and crashed after a long day of fun. All in all I think Edi probably had one of the best birthdays he has had in years getting to spend it with his family finally!
That is it for now I guess. I'll update later this week! Miss you all! Tchau!
Thursday, September 8, 2011
Keeping Busy!
So it has actually been an eventuful couple of days! I have been out and about running errands, etc... with Edi's mom sister and Aunt quite a bit during the day which is nice. It makes the days go by faster.
On Tuesday I went grocery shopping with Edi's parents. I have been to a couple of stores before but they were more like the Wal-Mart type of store. This was the actual grocery store like a Hannaford or Shaws or whatever. Let me tell you this was one BUSY grocery store. Yikes! Now, here is something my old roommate Leah can attest to: The level of anxiety I get while grocey shopping is quite frankly, ridiculous. It is pretty much uncalled for but for some reason the grocery store stresses me out! There are always so many people there, I feel like whenever I go they are stocking the shelves, and the amount of carts all trying to get to the same place.....ugh. I shudder just thinking about it. Leah and I had the unwritten rule that she pushed the cart while I was I charge of the list whenever we went grocery shopping. I was much more comfortable with this setup. Well of course Edi's parents don't have a clue about any of this. So naturally, I was put in charge of pushing the cart through the sufficiently busy store. Oh. God. Needless to say I survived. Whew! It was definitely touch and go there for a luttle while though. A couple of things I realized while maneuvering my way through the store behind Arlete:
1. she knows a LOT of people. Every aisle there was someone there that knew Arlete and said hello and introduced themselves to me and Arlete told them who I am and they said hello
2. The amount of fresh fruits and vegetables available in the grocery store is unbelieveable. There are SO many choices.
3. The amount of people BUYING fresh fruits and vegetables and the amount that they were buying was incredible. The majority of everyones carts were fruits and veggies and then a few other things thrown in. Meat, milk, bread, etc... Don't get me wrong people are buying cookies and candy too, but its used as a treat, not as an everyday thing. Its so good to see an entire culture basing their diet on fresh fruits and veggies. I feel like in this respect, we Americans could learn a lesson.
Wednesday Edi had the day off! Independence Day here in Brazil. (As I'm sure a lot of you may have seen on the Google homepage.) We went to the zoo which was fun. It is apparently within walking distance from Edi's house and I had no idea! Was it the best zoo I've ever been to? No. However, was FREE! A free zoo? Nice! I don't think I've ever seen that before. I think that is a great idea. Now that I know that I may just walk there and walk around. It was really beautiful with all the vegetation. The amount of animals was eh... Still, there was plenty to look at and I had a good time.
We went out last night with some cousins and friends of cousins. As usual we went somewhere with live music and good beer. It was a low key night. No dancing. Just sitting, talking (or listening in my case) and enjoying each others company. My kind of night. Per usual, the girls at the table that I has never met kept staring at me when I talked. Flabbergasted at my crazy language! haha They were all very nice and a fun bunch!
I've noticed that my blue eyes come into the conversation here quite a bit. Blue eyes are a lot harder to come by here. I noticed that Edi does have 1 cousin with blue eyes but that is really all I've seen. A lot of people comment on them because they don't see them much.
Ana Paula (Aunt that speaks English) is back and she has been a helping a lot with letting me know what is going on and telling me how to say certain things. I'm very thankful that she is so helpful and she is around quite a bit. It makes me feel more comfortable being able to get across what I am trying to say to other people through her so it won't be completely misinterpreted. I went shopping with her, her daughter (Ana Laura), Arlete and Edilaine today. We just walked around a few shops and they bought some clothes. They had some cute stuff and everything in the stores were only $10! Probably not the best quality but I wouldn't mind going back and buying a few things.
Edi's birthday is Sunday! Funny enough so is one of his Aunts and his cousins is the 13th. So they have rented a place for Saturday and Sunday for the family to go and hang out and celebrate. It is basically like an event hall of sorts but is is outside and I know there is a pool for sure but I'm not sure what else. So needless to say that is where I'll be spending most of my weekend!
I guess that is it for now. I'm sure I'll have an update after the festivities this weekend. Tchau!
On Tuesday I went grocery shopping with Edi's parents. I have been to a couple of stores before but they were more like the Wal-Mart type of store. This was the actual grocery store like a Hannaford or Shaws or whatever. Let me tell you this was one BUSY grocery store. Yikes! Now, here is something my old roommate Leah can attest to: The level of anxiety I get while grocey shopping is quite frankly, ridiculous. It is pretty much uncalled for but for some reason the grocery store stresses me out! There are always so many people there, I feel like whenever I go they are stocking the shelves, and the amount of carts all trying to get to the same place.....ugh. I shudder just thinking about it. Leah and I had the unwritten rule that she pushed the cart while I was I charge of the list whenever we went grocery shopping. I was much more comfortable with this setup. Well of course Edi's parents don't have a clue about any of this. So naturally, I was put in charge of pushing the cart through the sufficiently busy store. Oh. God. Needless to say I survived. Whew! It was definitely touch and go there for a luttle while though. A couple of things I realized while maneuvering my way through the store behind Arlete:
1. she knows a LOT of people. Every aisle there was someone there that knew Arlete and said hello and introduced themselves to me and Arlete told them who I am and they said hello
2. The amount of fresh fruits and vegetables available in the grocery store is unbelieveable. There are SO many choices.
3. The amount of people BUYING fresh fruits and vegetables and the amount that they were buying was incredible. The majority of everyones carts were fruits and veggies and then a few other things thrown in. Meat, milk, bread, etc... Don't get me wrong people are buying cookies and candy too, but its used as a treat, not as an everyday thing. Its so good to see an entire culture basing their diet on fresh fruits and veggies. I feel like in this respect, we Americans could learn a lesson.
Wednesday Edi had the day off! Independence Day here in Brazil. (As I'm sure a lot of you may have seen on the Google homepage.) We went to the zoo which was fun. It is apparently within walking distance from Edi's house and I had no idea! Was it the best zoo I've ever been to? No. However, was FREE! A free zoo? Nice! I don't think I've ever seen that before. I think that is a great idea. Now that I know that I may just walk there and walk around. It was really beautiful with all the vegetation. The amount of animals was eh... Still, there was plenty to look at and I had a good time.
We went out last night with some cousins and friends of cousins. As usual we went somewhere with live music and good beer. It was a low key night. No dancing. Just sitting, talking (or listening in my case) and enjoying each others company. My kind of night. Per usual, the girls at the table that I has never met kept staring at me when I talked. Flabbergasted at my crazy language! haha They were all very nice and a fun bunch!
I've noticed that my blue eyes come into the conversation here quite a bit. Blue eyes are a lot harder to come by here. I noticed that Edi does have 1 cousin with blue eyes but that is really all I've seen. A lot of people comment on them because they don't see them much.
Ana Paula (Aunt that speaks English) is back and she has been a helping a lot with letting me know what is going on and telling me how to say certain things. I'm very thankful that she is so helpful and she is around quite a bit. It makes me feel more comfortable being able to get across what I am trying to say to other people through her so it won't be completely misinterpreted. I went shopping with her, her daughter (Ana Laura), Arlete and Edilaine today. We just walked around a few shops and they bought some clothes. They had some cute stuff and everything in the stores were only $10! Probably not the best quality but I wouldn't mind going back and buying a few things.
Edi's birthday is Sunday! Funny enough so is one of his Aunts and his cousins is the 13th. So they have rented a place for Saturday and Sunday for the family to go and hang out and celebrate. It is basically like an event hall of sorts but is is outside and I know there is a pool for sure but I'm not sure what else. So needless to say that is where I'll be spending most of my weekend!
I guess that is it for now. I'm sure I'll have an update after the festivities this weekend. Tchau!
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