I know how much everyone likes random lists! Here are some.
Top 5 music/location combinations of the last week:
1. "Let That Show" by The Pernice Brothers/ Praia Manguinhos -- this poppy, jangly break-up song provided the perfect sonic backdrop to a pensive beach walk in Buzios. As the sun set on the painted boats and the lavish summer homes, the lyrics "a big wheel was turning/ a great gap was burgeoning" really resonated.
2. Born to Run by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band/ Bus Ride from Buzios back to Rio -- Passing through the favelas off the highway, seeing literally thousands of small paper kites (called pipas here) flying from the shanty houses and grassy areas, I began thinking about the so-called 'American Dream' (given how the album practically is the US if it could make a rock album) and how I would define a 'Brazilian Dream' as an outsider who had spent a small amount of time here. My profound soliloquy was interrupted when I saw a chubby little kid jumping on a trampoline right off the highway and waving to all the cars. It was pretty funny, for some reason.
3. "Suck", "Stutter" by Yuck/ Copacabana in the early morning -- one night, I woke up two hours before my alarm went off. Unable to go back to bed, I perused my iPod and decided upon one of my current favorite albums: Yuck, by Yuck. This 90's revival British band soothed my half-asleep, perplexed mind and allowed me one more REM cycle before having to go to class.
4. St. Vincent (various songs)/ lazy afternoon in our condo at Buzios -- The inventive melodies and irresistible voice of Annie Clark accompanied my logic puzzles as I waited for dinner after a beachside morning.
5. "Untitled" by Interpol segueing into Game Theory by The Roots/ That giant-ass bridge traversing the Guanabara Bay -- This is getting eerily specific, but somehow, the switch from moody guitar textures to vindictive verses of the gritty truths of inner city Philadelphia seemed to fit the low-key frenzy of a late night bus ride out of the city, recently infested with hordes of Catholics, ready to see Pope Francis.
Top 5 fruits I've had in Brazil:
1. Mango (Manga)
2. Strawberry (Morango)
3. Passion Fruit (Maracujá)
4. Guava (Goiaba)
5. Papaya (mamão) -- If Lisa and Ty are reading this, they're probably confused, but I guess I like this fruit now?
Top 5 beers I'm missing here in "the land of mediocre beer" (this is what their flag says, for those of you who don't speak Portuguese):
1. Lake Louie Warp Speed
2. Bell's Two Hearted
3. New Glarus Fat Squirrel
4. Ale Asylum Hopalicious
5. Lagunitas WTF
My thoughts, when I see another American here in Rio (one who isn't in the program):
Wait, what is SHE/HE doing here? God, speak portuguese, don't be such a tourist! Oh wait...I suppose I have been speaking english here as a tourist. But I'm better than them, right? Because at least I'm learning the language! Well, I guess I don't really know whether they know it or not. But come on! I was here before it was cool! Well, for all I know, they could be perfectly bilingual Brazilians. Man I could really go for a mango and some Lake Louie Warp Speed right now...
As you can see, my strong reactionary side and my rational, tolerant side have to hash it out upon seeing another gringo.
So, let me tell you a brief tale about Buzios.
In Buzios, we bought our own food at the grocery store (this was the first time that my host mom hadn't provided the meals for the day, which meant that I could finally not have ham for breakfast) and the cereal selection was subpar. I don't think cereal is much of a thing here. Of course, my traveling companions flipped out when they realized I don't use milk in my cereal. (A side note: being a non-cheese eater here is harder than I though it would be, but not nearly as hard as it is for my roommate Kegan, who is a vegetarian.)
We were fortunate to stay for free at one of my friend's host mom's condo very close to the beach. The unfortunate part is that the condo was designed for about 4 people to stay there, not 8. Despite this, we made the most of it, and had a fun time. The weather, albeit a little chilly, was mostly sunny for the long weekend, so we had some nice beach walks. The night life seemed limited, but fun. I avoided going to a club the last night we were there, because it cost 150 reais (about 75 dollars) to enter. My friends who did go ended up staying until 6:00 in the morning or something crazy like that. While I have been staying up later this trip (my initial goals will be addressed in the last blog post), that was too much for me.
Somehow, I ended up watching about five movies over the four days we were there, and let me tell you. Don't feel the need to see Drive Angry, starring Nic Cage. Ditto The Lady in Black with Daniel Radcliffe. Also, Death Race kinda sucks. Zombieland is pretty good. I also think that rom-coms have the potential to become an unhealthy addiction. They certainly aren't for me, but they portray life and romance in such a asinine way that your desire for things to work out that easily makes you think that you like such movies.
The last night in Buzios, the mosquitos attacked. Five days later, I'm still dealing with the aftermath. For a few days, I had a bite on my wrist the size of a small mound of mashed potatoes. Speaking of which, the potatoes here are really good, and the french fries actually taste like potatoes. (I don't really know why I'm all about food for this post. I just ate dinner...)
As you may be able to guess from my musical top 5 above, I really enjoyed the bus rides to and from Buzios. It offered time for air-conditioned contemplation, naps, and some of the most interesting contrasts in rural scenery and shoddy suburbs.
Upon getting back, we found Copacabana to be completely closed off to cars, buses, and taxis (due to the pope's World Youth Day). The metrô was similarly stymied, so we were forced to walk from Botafogo. If I hadn't had to carry my luggage for the 2-mile journey, it would have been quite fun, because we were able to walk down the city streets, through the mountain tunnels, against the heavy pedestrian traffic of international Catholic youths, who had seen the pope speak on the beach that morning. Unfortunately, toting the luggage made the walk a long slog and upon returning, I exhaustedly slumped down on my bed, ready to sleep for 12 hours straight.
Since this tired juncture, I have felt reinvigorated. I owe part of this newfound energy to the trip and getting out of the hectic city for a while. I owe part of it to the fact that this trip is almost over, both in that I'm excited to get back to the end of Madison's summer, and in that with my numbered days here, there is still so much to do!
This week so far, I have been to a fun samba gathering with one of the professors in the program and some fellow students in the program, I have traveled to Niteroi (read: the New Jersey to Rio's New York) and seen historic forts, and I attended a Brazilian soccer game at Maracanã. Of these events, I will say that they were all awesome, and I'd be happy to tell you about them in more detail when I see you next. Well, maybe I'll tell you about the soccer game during the next blog post, because it was pretty awesome.
That's all for now, friends and family.
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| Here is me next to a painted sewer pipe in Santa Tereza. It says Amar Mais, or Love More. I encourage you to follow its advice. |
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