Christmas and New Year’s are celebrated very differently here in Brazil.  For one thing, they open presents on Christmas Eve, at dinner.  My family (including my 2 host brothers who were home for the holidays, and their girlfriends) went to dinner at my host mom’s friend’s house.  My host parents even gave me a Kipling (a popular brand in Brazil) bag!

Later that night, everyone in the under-25 sector went to Live Club for Balada do Noél, an all-night party with a band, DJ, and the whole works.  Then on Christmas Day, everyone slept until noon, then went to have lunch.  Afterward, I spent the rest of the day hanging out with my host brothers and their friends.

New Year’s was the same sort of thing, except that my host sister had come back from the US.  Also, Brazil has a fun New Year’s tradition:  The color you wear to ring in the new year can bring you luck in a specific area!  Red=passion, pink=love, white=peace, green=hope, and yellow=money.  I wore a white dress. . . with yellow undies!!

Shortly after the holidays, I left for my January tour of the Northeast. We learned about politics in the capital Brasília; climbed mountains, explored caves, and rode a small waterfall in Chapada Diamantina; danced forró and relaxed on the beaches of Maceió; went dune buggying, sandboarding, and market shopping in Fortaleza; met hippies in Canoa Quebrada; saw cathedrals and shark-filled waters (not for swimming!) in Recife; explored the first capital of Brazil and saw some AMAZING capoeira in Salvador; partied in Porto Seguro; met Jesus in Rio de Janeiro; and swam in crystal waters off of secluded islands in Angra dos Reis.  Whew!  Yes, we were all exhausted by the end, but it was the most unbelievable month of my life so far!

Then, a week after I got back to Cassi, it was already Carnaval!  I was lucky to be able to get to nearby Paranaíba, home of “Carnaíba,” actually considered the best Carnaval in the region.  There’s no describing the amount of people, energy, and excitement that came together for those 5 days of straight partying.  I can’t imagine what it must have been like in the beach cities!

I had decided not to try to throw a big birthday party because my birthday conflicted with my Pantanal trip, and my host parents were going away for the weekend.  So you can understand that when Katia and Luiz told me that we had to go to a little gathering for one of their friends the Wednesday night before my birthday, I thought nothing of it.  I was even a little annoyed because as the only American this town has ever seen, I get a lot of invitations to boring dinners with Rotarians and other influential people.  But when we walked into the pizzeria, I was surprised to see all my best friends from school, along with just about everyone I know in Cassi.  I was even more surprised when they all got up and started singing happy birthday!  I loved it, receiving a mountain of presents and eating lots of yummy pizza and cake.  It was the best birthday party ever!

That same week, Sylvia from my class found out that she passed 2 vestibulares (their college entrance exams) in first place.  She was the first student in my class to pass one, so it was a pretty big deal.  We planned her “trote” and a churrasco for Thursday, right after the weekly exams.  Let me tell y0u, trote was like nothing I have ever experienced!  It reminded me a little of hazing to get into a sorority or fraternity–they tied her up, threw water, eggs, coffee powder, flour, and sand on her, wrote the names of the colleges that accepted her on her face and arms, and then paraded her through the streets to the central plaza!!  I would have felt bad for Sylvia, but she looked so proud and happy!  I guess that’s the difference–it wasn’t really hazing because she already got into the schools.  This was just the celebration!  Once we got to the plaza, two guys untied Sylvia and used the rope to block off the street.  Then we went up to the car windows and asked the drivers for spare change.  We ended up making a couple hundred reais, which we used later to pay for the churrasco that night.  A little different from grad parties in the US, but it was really fun!

Friday, my actual birthday, happened to fall on the first night of Live Weekend, a 3-night party at the nightclub in my town.  A lot of my school friends were out of town for the weekend like my parents, so I ended up going with the “Live Club Girls” as I call them, the group of college girls who do promotions and get in free to all the parties.  It made for a fun night!

A couple weekends ago, I went with my friend Mariane and her family to Campo Grande, the capital of our state.  She used to live there, but she moved to Cassi around the same time I arrived here.  Anyway, she went back to visit her friends for a weekend, and invited me to tag along.  I’m so glad she did, because we had a great time!  Campo Grande is probably the most Americanized city I’ve seen here in Brazil so far.  That could be because big cities in the interior are relatively new compared to the older, Portuguese-colonial cities along the coast.  Campo Grande has high-rise apartment complexes, a big shopping mall, McDonald’s, Subway, Pizza Hut, and even a Wal-Mart!  I almost felt like I was back in the US for a few days.

I also went on a school field trip to Hopi Hari, an amusement park near the city of São Paulo.  It was a great time and I got to know a lot of kids from the younger classes better.  Because we stay in the same classroom the whole day here, we hardly ever get a chance to talk to kids from other years.  The Hopi Hari trip convinced me that the 2nd year kids aren’t so bad, and maybe it will actually be ok in February when all my 3rd year friends leave for college.

Hopi Hari and Wet n’ Wild, the water park, were slightly bigger than Valleyfair.  There was only one rollercoaster, but the rides that they did have were fun.  They had a Power Tower type thing in the shape of the Eiffel Tower, and I think it drops even faster, if that’s even possible.  They also had a really awesome haunted house.  I normally don’t get scared in that kind of thing, but this one was seriously freaky.  The workers inside chase you around, grab you by the arms, and whisper things in your ear.  Creepy.

School is still going well.  I found out that tests are not obligatory for me, which is nice.  But I’ve already been doing ok on the Math and English tests:  the first test I took, before I was even present in a Math class, I got 5.5/7!  That was better than most of the other students in my class!  Also, last week we got our history tests back, and although I only managed to answer 4 questions, the teacher wanted to keep mine as an example!  He was impressed by how I had answered one of the questions about Napoleon Bonaparte.  We were asked to compare Napoleon’s constant wars in foreign countries to a current event.  I compared it to the US’s involvement in Iraq, using the phrase “nossos soldados,” or “our soldiers.”  Although I was actually expressing my lack of support for the war in Iraq under the Bush administration, my history teacher said he was impressed by my patriotism and shared my answer with the class.

My final bit of big news is that I’m no longer the only exchange student in Cassilândia.  Last Wednesday a new guy named Dante arrived from Mexico.  So far he’s kind of quiet and timid, but I think that he’ll open up as he learns a little more Portuguese.  As of right now, he speaks almost none at all, so I’ve been acting as his Spanish-Portuguese translator.  I can’t begin to explain how incredibly cool and powerful it feels to be able to translate.  It’s like there’s a secret code that only I can break.  There have been other times I’ve acted as a Portuguese-English translator, too.  When I went to São Paulo the first time, I helped a couple guys from Turkey cut a deal with wholesale silver jewelry to sell back in Europe.  Everywhere I go, my new tri-lingualism comes in handy.

I’m still happy and doing well, and I generally keep myself way too busy to allow time for any saudades (homesickness) to kick in.  Tchau, beijos!

Then Saturday morning, all 40 or so of us exchange students from all corners of the world met at the fazenda of the district coordinator to discuss Rotary rules (No Drinking, Driving, Drugs, or *Dating).  Afterwards we spent the day soaking up the sun, eating churrasco, and playing Ultimate Frisbee in the pool (the Germans kicked some serious American/Canadian/Mexican/Indian butt).

Later that night, all of the exchange students met to go clubbing together.  I think that the club had more foreigners than Brazilians in it that night!  It was a fun night though, and I feel like we all got to get to know each other a little better.

Sunday morning, we met in a hotel conference room to learn about the Rotary trips to Pantanal/Bonito, Nordeste, Sul, and Amazonia.  I for sure want to do Pantanal/Bonito and Nordeste, but I’m not sure yet about the others.  Sul is really expensive and includes a LOT of bus travel, but we get to go to Buenos Aires. . . and also the more I travel, the more experiences I miss out on with my hometown friends.  I’ll see how I feel about it in a few months.  And Amazonia sounds cool, but I’m not sure yet.  I was relieved afterward that Juliano, a police officer and Rotarian here in Cassi, was there to drive me home.  The bus adventure hadn’t gone too horribly, but I was happy to be able to relax and not be constantly worried about missing my bus.

Upon my return to Cassi, it was back to the daily grind (sort of).  On Monday after the Rotary meeting, Thelma, a friend of my host mom and an English teacher at the university, took me to have an interview with her students.  It turned out to be really fun.  They asked some good questions, and we all laughed a lot. The rest of the week was the usual routine of school, lunch with the family, hang out with friends, go to the gym, dinner, sleep, repeat.  Last night we had a birthday party for one of the guys in my class.  We ate delicious cake and watched a couple movies at his house.

*The district coordinators explained that Brazilian Rotary is a little more lenient on this rule (hahahahahahahahahah)

Monday 8/10–First day of school.  It was chaotic and overwhelming, but fun at the same time.  High school here, or colegio as they call it, is totally different.  First of all, you stay in one classroom the whole day with all 20 or so students in your year, and the different teachers come in and teach their classes.  I’m in 3rd year, which is their senior year.  My school starts at 7:30 AM and normally lets out around noon.  Everyone goes home for lunch and then we’re free for the rest of the day, which is nice.  Except for Tuesdays and Fridays, when we have the dreaded aula da tarde, or afternoon class.  Then we have to go back after lunch and stay until evening.  And you don’t get to choose classes here.  Everyone studies the same core curriculum:  English, Spanish, Physics, Chemistry, Portuguese Grammar and Literature, Composition, Sociology, Geography, Biology, History, and Math.  Each day of the week has a different class schedule, and I am expected to take notes and pay attention as well as I can, but no one expects me to understand much.  However, I have become the English professor’s favorite teaching method!    In school in the US, students are forced to stay awake, leave the desks in neat rows, and remain silent unless answering a question.  Not so here.  At any given moment, people are moving desks around, laughing, talking, sleeping, and generally making havoc.  Everyone here understands that it’s their own responsibility to pay attention when they need to if they want to pass the Vestibular, the Brazilian version of the SAT.

After school, I experienced my first Brazilian mani-pedi.  Jeez, the Brazilians are serious about their cosmetic procedures!  Everyone knows about the infamous Brazilian wax, but this manicure made my fingers bleed!  But hey, my hands and feet look good!

Later tonight, I went to my first Rotary meeting, which I think went pretty well.  Again, everyone was excited to hear about school, driving, and all things USA.  And they told me I have to sing for them at the next meeting.  Those of you who know me well know that I’m not a big fan of solos, especially not when I’m representing all American singers for nearly 100 Brazilians.  No pressure or anything :/

Then out of the blue, my friend Otávio’s parents invited me to come with them for a weekend in São Paulo!  They have to bring Otávio to the airport because he’s doing a year of RYE in Mexico.  Not only do I get to go to say goodbye to him, but I get a weekend of shopping and sightseeing in Brazil’s biggest city!  We will leave on Thursday and come back on Sunday.

Tuesday 8/11–School went better today, I understood a little more, and was able to get to know some of the other students a little better.  The girls are really nice, and the guys are funny.  Everyone wants to know all about my life in the USA, and they’re totally jealous that I can already drive there (driving age is 18 here).  After aula da tarde, I went out for café gelado (like a Frappuccino with chocolate or caramel and a scoop of ice cream) with my new school friends.

Wednesday 8/12–School again, then after lunch at home, I went to my friend Lilia’s house to make Brigadeiro, a yummy chocolate fudge type thing that’s really common here.  We hung out at her house for a while, reading fashion and gossip magazines.  Then later we all went to the local gym for a Pumping class.  It was grueling but fun, and I was out of shape after my 2 weeks of doing nothing. My arms ached for days afterward, but I’m going to go back and do it again!

Thursday 8/13–10 hour car ride to São Paulo.  São Paulo is a huge, colorful, diverse, beautiful, dirty city.  If that makes any sense at all.  We are staying at Otávio’s brother Angelo´s apartment downtown.

Friday 8/14–A morning of shopping at 25th street in São Paulo with Jani, Otávio’s mom.  25th is kind of like Chinatown in NYC in that you can buy anything you want, really cheap, right out on the street.  But it’s not like Chinatown in that it’s not at all Chinese.  Afterwards we went to a pretty indoor market with every kind of fruit I never even knew existed, then hung out the rest of the day at Angelo’s apartment.

Later, we all piled into the car and drove to Guarulhos airport to drop off Otávio.  Everyone was on edge, praying that everything would go well with the flight, the authorization, etc.  We arrived, got him checked in, waited, waited, then. . . Otávio’s authorization to leave the country wasn’t properly notarized, and now he has to leave on Monday night instead.  Luckily, Otávio’s cousin’s family lives in Mogi das Cruzes, a really nice suburb of São Paulo near the ocean.  I feel bad for Otávio, but I’m actually a little happy that we get to stay in SP a little longer!  In Mogi, the whole family goes out for pizza, then Angelo, their 19-year-old cousin Livia, and I all went out to a party.

Saturday 8/15–After waking up and seeing Mogi das Cruzes in all its daytime glory, we head out to Pereque on the beach for a huge seafood lunch.  We came back to the house for the daily midday nap, then Otávio, Angelo, Livia, and I went to the mall for awhile.

Sunday 8/16–Slept late, hung around the house, Angelo left to go back to São Paulo because he has class in the morning (he’s studying medicine at the university there) then went out with Livia and a few of her friends to some parties.  One club we went to was Sertanejo music, and one of Livia’s friends taught me how to dance it.  It’s really fun!

Monday 8/17–Packed up, went to the mall again to see a movie, Arrasta-me para o Inferno (Drag Me to Hell, is it playing in the US too?)  It was in English with a few parts in Spanish, all with Portuguese subtitles.  Then we went to the airport again, and this time everything went according to plan.  We ate at Pizza Hut in the airport, and it was almost the same as in the US.  I hadn’t realized how much I’d actually been missing American food!  They have American chains like McDonald’s here, but only in the big cities, not in Cassilândia.  And you can’t find normal American food anywhere in the country, which explains why everyone here thinks I’m accustomed to a constant diet of Big Macs and fries.  Seriously!

Otávio successfully headed off for Mexico, and his parents and I got back in the car and headed back to Cassilândia.

Tuesday 8/18–Woke up this morning entering Cassilândia.  I got back too late for school in the morning, but today is Tuesday.  I’ll go for aula da tarde after lunch, then it’s back to the daily grind.  I loved Mogi das Cruzes, but I’m excited to see all my friends here again too!  And besides, I might go back to Mogi during summer break, if Rotary here will let me.  I’ll keep my fingers crossed!

1)  Eating a lot.  Probably not such a good thing for me, but we normally have 4 meals every day here:  café da manhã, almoço, café da tarde, and jantar. Almoço (lunch) is normally the biggest, and usually consists of rice, beans, some kind of meat, and sometimes a little salad.  Today, though, I went with my host mom to have churrasco (Brazilian barbecue) at her friend´s house.  Depending on the day, though, café da tarde could be pão de queijo, cake, or pizza. And jantar, which normally happens around 9 or 10 at night, is either a huge, delicious lancha (sandwich) or churrasco. Oh, and sorvete (ice cream) is super-popular and a common social activity between friends.  Today I talked with my host mom about joining a gym, but I don’t know what’s going to happen with that.  I just don’t want to be 100 lbs heavier by the end of the year!  I don’t think they understand that I don’t have the magical Brazilian gene that lets them eat and eat and eat some more and never get fat.  I don’t know how they do it!

2)  Kissing a lot!  Every time you see someone you know, which in a small town is pretty much everyone, you have to stop, kiss them on the cheek, and say “Tudo bem?”  I think it’s fun and kind of cute.  Much more interesting than the American wave.  Then when you go your separate ways, you have to kiss again and say “Tchau, até mais!”

3)  Being pretty a lot.  Brazilian women would never leave the house without jewelry, styled hair, and cute clothes.  I cheat a little because it’s soooo hot that I don’t want to be wearing that much, but I am going through a lot more hair products than usual.

4) Speaking and understanding Portuguese.  I’m not going to say I’m perfect, or even that I understand half of what people say, but every day I understand more.  And I actually think the lack of English speakers here just adds to the adventure.  Nobody said it would be easy, but I honestly think it’s kind of fun.

Things I don’t think I’ll ever get used to:

1)  The heat!  You know how in January in Minnesota, it actually hurts to be outside?  Like when you open the door and the cold hits you and knocks the air out of your lungs?  It’s like that here, but with heat.  People here mostly stay in the shade during the day, but if I do step outside the house, the sun hits me like a ton of bricks.  I’ve never experienced heat like this.  The evenings and nights are actually really nice though, so people go outside later.

And honestly, there’s not much more to say.  Things are pretty calm around here.  School starts tomorrow, finally, so I’ll let you know how that goes.  Tchau, beijos!

For a few days I settled into the slow-paced routine of daily life in Cassilândia.  I wake up around 9 or 10, have some coffee, then go online or watch tv until my host dad gets home around 12:30 for lunch.  After lunch, I normally go run a few errands with my host mom, i.e. the bank, buying chlorine for the pool, etc.  Then we stop at home for a few minutes before going to one of my mom’s friends’ houses for afternoon coffee.  Coffee time often lasts for hours, until it starts to get dark.  Then we go home, shower and change clothes, and then either go out somewhere or just watch tv and go online again.  Now that the Festa is over, there’s a lot more of the latter.  It’s kind of funny, but the hardest adjustment for me has been to get used to the laid-back lifestyle.  I’m used to the American style of rushing from place to place, doing tons of activities.

Today I bought my cell phone here, which I’m really happy about.  Right away I called a couple of my friends here, and we went out shopping in town.  It’s a lot easier to go out and do things with people when I can call them instead of waiting for someone to drop by my house.

. . . with Cassilandia!  I arrived two days ago, but yesterday was really my first day of seeing and doing things.  When I first got off the plane in Campo Grande, my first thought was how hot it was.  Then I remembered that this is winter here!  Already it’s about as hot as it normally gets in July or August in Minnesota, and they say that it gets a lot hotter during the summer!

My host family’s house is beautiful, and right in the middle of the town!  It ‘s only one floor and looks small from the front, but it stretches back forever.  The backyard is the best part:  it’s a huge courtyard with a pool and a bar.  Brazilians love to entertain and host parties, so many families here have a party venue behind the house.  My bedroom is very nice as well, and I have my own bathroom.  I will upload pictures as soon as I figure out how to connect my camera to this computer!

So, my first full day in Cassilandia:

I woke up and wandered into the kitchen, where the maid was busy cleaning.  She said something to me that I didn’t really understand, and then handed me a box of something similar to Cocoa Krispies.  Then she poured me a bowl of thick milk from a metal can, opened a can of sweetened condensed milk, and handed it to me with a spoon!  I didn’t really know what I was supposed to do with it, so I just mixed a few  spoonfuls in with the milk and then added the cereal.  Like all of the food here, it was delicious!

A little later, I went with my host mom to run some errands.  First we took the big fluffy cat, Minu, to the groomer.  He was not very happy about it!  Then we stopped by the hospital where my host dad, Luiz, works.  Then we wandered around downtown, my host mom showing me off to everyone she saw.  “This is my new daughter!  She’s American!”  She even bought me my first pair of authentic Brazilan Havaianas.  Everyone wears them here!  I quickly discovered that unlike the Sao Paulo airport, where it was easy to find people who spoke English, most people here don’t understand English at all.  My Portuguese is going over well, though.  I usually have to ask people to speak slowly, but most are very impressed that I can speak and understand it at all.  Don’t get me wrong, I’m still completely clueless most of the time, but I’m so happy to just be here!  Plus, laughter is the same in every language!

Later I met with some of my host brother’s friends, and then some of my own friends who I had met on Facebook before I got here came by.  They were really upset that no one had told them I was already here!  They took me into town and we went to the central park.  One of the girls, Lethicia, was an exchange student in the US and speaks English really well.  It was a relief to be able to ask her what people were talking about, but I try not to make her translate too much!  My new friends explained to me that we have to dress up kind of country for the rodeo.  I’m glad I brought two pairs of boots!  Later we all went to the Festa do Peao, but this is already the longest blog ever and my host parents probably want me to get off the computer now.  The rodeo festival started Monday and ends on Sunday, so there will be more stories to tell in my next blog!  Beijos, ate logo!

I’ve also started going to more Rotary meetings lately.  I know what you’re probably thinking:  oooooh, she has to actually be somewhere by 7:30 in the morning during the summer?  But they’re really kind of fun.  The Waconia Rotary members are fun and enthusiastic about their club, plus we get breakfast!  Apart from that, I’m just enjoying another beautiful Minnesota summer, for a few more weeks anyway!

Right now I am in the preparation phase of my exchange.  I am finishing up my visa application, working on my Portuguese, getting presents for host families, and going to a few Waconia Rotary meetings.  So far I’m loving the Rotary Youth Exchange program.  I have met so many amazing inbounds and rebounds who have given me great advice for my upcoming exchange.

I have also been talking to my first host family in my host city of Cassilandia, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil.  They are very nice and I’m so excited to meet them!  My host mom’s name is Katia, and she is a part-time college professor and stay-at-home mom.  She is really sweet and always ends her emails to me with “Um super-beijo da sua mae,” which means “A super-kiss from your mom.”  My host dad Luiz is a doctor/surgeon, and my two host brothers Vitor and Paulo Eduardo, ages 23 and 20, also study medicine.  I also have a 17 year old host sister, Maria Fernanda, but I won’t get to meet her until December when she comes home from her exchange in Pennsylvania.  Last but not least, my host family has two cats named Minu and Chiclete, and they own a farm near the house with cows, horses, chickens and pigs.  I know my host family will be great!

My first host family

Mae e Pai

Mae e Maria Fernanda

My city of Cassilandia might not be exactly what you’re imagining when I say I’ll live in Brazil for a year.  It’s a city of about 20,000, surrounded by wilderness and cattle ranches.  It’s located in the center-west region, hundreds of miles from the coast.  Cassilandia is famous for the annual Festa do Peao, which is a huge rodeo and city-wide party.  That’s why I’m hoping my visa is accepted to arrive on July 25, because Festa do Peao is during the last week of July.  If all works out, I will meet a VERY enthusiastic welcome to my new host city!  The great thing about going to a smaller city farther out in the country is that not as many people will speak English, and there probably won’t be a lot of other exchange students to hang out with.  This means that I will be spending all my time with Brazilians, understanding and speaking Portuguese, 24/7.  The people also seem to be genuinely nice and helpful.  A few have already found me on Facebook to welcome me to the town.  I did some research online as soon as I received my city info, and it looks beautiful.

Waterfall near Cassilandia

Cassilandia

This will be an experience like nothing I’ve ever done before!

That’s about all I know for now.  I will keep updating as I get closer to my departure!