Sorry I stopped blogging about Croatia—work became super
busy towards the end, although I did have time to visit the beautiful island of
Hvar and really enjoy the rest of my time in Zagreb! It will not soon be
forgotten and neither will all the amazing friends I made.
I’ve been in Brazil for two weeks and what an incredible two
weeks it’s been! I arrived completely and totally jet-lagged (three continents
in six days will do that to you) but excited. I had about 24 hours to
recuperate before I met the group I’m here with. We had a few days of
orientation at a wonderful hostel called Bee W Hostel (if you’re ever in São
Paulo and need a hostel---stay there). We got acquainted a bit with this booming
city of eleven million people (almost twenty million in the metropolitan area).
That Sunday I met my host parents and moved in. My host parents are great
people, a chill young couple, with an awesome cat. My window has a great view
of a few of the thousands of skyscrapers in São Paulo. I’ve been learning some Portuguese and
exploring a bit. I’ve been to the municipal market, taken Samba lessons, two cultural
centers, a giant cathedral downtown, ate out a lot, been to a balada, oh and I did start classes this
week. I’m taking some interesting classes on Brazilian Foreign Policy, the BRIC
nations and marketing in Latin America. My classes are part exchange students
and part Brazilian students so I really am learning with people from all over
the world, which is exciting! Lucky for me, these courses are taught in
English. My school hosted a few welcome activities for exchange students, which
included a city tour, a capoeira
demonstration and a presentation by the school drum line that I think was their
version of school spirit. The people
here really are amazing, everyone is so nice. Besos are given every time you meet someone or see someone you
know. And yes it’s true, the food is amazing here too. São Paulo certainly has
a lot to offer since it is an international city but that doesn’t mean the
traditional dishes are forgotten. I’ve had a lot of rice and beans, pasteis and empanadas. Freshly squeezed
fruit juice, sugarcane water, and a soda called Guarana are popular drinks here. Overall I’m a huge fan of this
city and country; although, living in a developing nation certainly presents me
with the constant challenge of stepping out of my comfort zone and being more
resourceful than normal. The upcoming weeks I have some day trips, company
visits, and a trip to Rio de Janeiro planned so hopefully I have some exciting
things to share with you soon. Until next time—Tchau!!
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| View from my Window |
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| Learning to Samba! |
