College in Brazil

Geoff and I are both full-time students at the Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, or UFSC. Geoff is working on his PhD in economics and I am working on my master's in international relations.

University life is interesting here for obvious reasons: it's been a few years since we've been on a campus, and we're in Brazil. I'd say it's the latter that more so makes being a student again a challenge.

Higher education: Brazil has state universities, federal universities and private universities. The public universities here are difficult to get into, but are FREE. So, we will leave here with advanced degrees and no student loans or debt. Wow. What an opportunity. (Just had to learn another language first.)

Etiquette: I once waited 45 minutes for a class to start because I arrived 15 minutes early (soooo American) and the professor was 30 minutes late. The majority of students will be any where from five minutes to two hours late (classes are 4 hours each). It drives me crazy.

Eating and drinking during class is not OK, but tolerated if you're pregnant. Am I the only one parched, hungry and with a full bladder? And growing a baby? Guess so.

Side conversations are completely acceptable while the professor lectures or during a class discussion. It's overwhelming. Debates are also tough to follow. The professor once asked me why I looked confused. I told her it was because everyone was speaking in Portuguese.

Foreign student status: I am one of two foreign students in my program of 15, but the other is from Paraguay and has lived here for six years, so I'm pretty sure she doesn't count. I feel very different. For example, during the first few weeks of the semester, one professor was taking attendance and apologized for not knowing anyone's name yet, adding, "But we all know who Brye is, for obvious reasons." The obvious reasons likely being, in no particular order: my accent, my lack of a full comprehension at any given point, my pregnant stomach sticking out, or the one who catches all the looks whenever someone brings up U.S. foreign policy or major historical blunders, which, to be clear, I'm not actually responsible for. That said, my fellow students are incredibly accepting and very nice, helping me whenever they can in class, inviting me out, emailing me their study guides, etc.

Learning in another language: It's tough. Our Portuguese is good, but comprehending at an academic level is very challenging. Reading the material and listening to lectures are a little easier (because of context) than writing at this higher level. That said, Geoff got a 4.0 his first semester here. Luckily, much of the assigned international relations texts are written in english.

This is the building where Geoff and I have our
respective classes. Pretty much all of campus looks like this -- no ivy-covered red-brick
clock towers like in the states, and the inside always smells like wet cement.

The hippies set up tents every Wednesday on campus to sell organic products and
various food items. (It's the only place we've ever found hummus!) Geoff, who hadn't had a
 hair cut in seven months, just needs a hackie sack and some patchouli.

Countless hours of studying and figuring math equations. Ugh.
On the up side,  Geoff and I see a ton of each other on breaks and for lunch.
It's been a lot of fun being in school together and really
interesting to do so here -- we always have lots to talk about.

Eri watching futebol with the econ group, while on a study break, at our apartment.

Me and my adorable portuguese tutor, Amabile, at school. I made
brownies for her once (authentic ones are rare) and she asked me for the recipe,
hence the boxed mix we're discussing and my "open, stir, bake" translation. 

The econ group celebrating at happy hour after a big test.
Eri's trying to get in on the action and let the fellas know
she's got the next round.

Dia das Maes / Mother's Day

It's Mother's Day in Brazil, too! Much to my delight, Eri, 3, has entered into the macaroni-necklace crafting phase of preschool:

This may be the best gift I have ever received. Ever.

A few tidbits from Brazil

Abracos e Beijos: Brazil is a little more touchy-feeley than the states. I'm not sure I like it; Eri literally turns her back to it; Geoff fully accepts it.
Here, hugs and kisses are common greetings and send-offs. For the most part, it doesn't matter how well you know the person (first-time meeting or BFF) or how brief your encounter is (even a 30-second conversation between the hi and bye), it will warrant a kiss on the cheek for females and a hug for males. The formality of the relationship is also irrelevant to this social norm. My obgyn (a woman) kisses me hello and goodbye at each prenatal visit, though I suppose she does know me well. Professors and students hug and kiss if they run into each other on campus.
You should also write and say it. Females sign emails and text messages with "kisses" and males with "hugs," in lieu of "sincerely" or just "goodbye."
And, if the person is not present to accept the kiss or hug, it's verbalized. For example, my tough-as-nails pilates instructor (a male, who also knows Geoff), will tell me to pass on a hug to my husband for him. I laugh every time. Ok, drill sergeant, will do.

Like a native: We've been here for 10 months now and the switch has flipped for Eri, 3. She speaks Portuguese like a champ. It really is amazing to see her in action, not to mention pretty adorable. To hear her converse, we like to linger at drop-off and pick-up at her preschool, which is all-Portuguese except for the few hours a week of English class that I'm pretty sure she could teach. Interestingly, she switches easily between the two languages without confusion or hesitation. She replies to whatever language is spoken to her, and is aware of the difference. She often asks how to say a word or the name of an object in Portuguese.

English is tough, too: I have lost count of the number of Brazilians who have asked me about the difference in pronunciation of "sheet" and "shit," which are difficult vowel sounds for the non-native tongue. This seriously comes up a lot. Brazilians are extremely worried about asking for a shit of paper or shits for the bed on their next trip to the United States.

Never a rush: Living here and fully integrating into the culture (i.e. we don't live on a military base and we all attend schools with Brazilians), makes you realize a lot about your own country. Americans are always in a hurry, always multi-tasking, always off to the next whatever. Here, life is more calm. When a class at the university ends, no one bolts for the door. The students and professor hang around, chat and leave whenever. During lunch time, everyone sits down and just eats, no working through the mealtime or running errands. And when lunch is a social engagement at someone's home, it is a five-hour commitment by the time the meal is served, followed by a walk, more conversation, dessert, coffee and more conversation. Then the host asks why we are leaving so early. Well, because it's dinner time.

A few pics:

Ahhh, life is pretty good here.

One little girl on the back;
one little boy inside the front.
Happiness. 

My two favorite things in Brazil.

Eri at our favorite pizza restaurant.

Only in Brazil!
We saw this sign on a jet boat docked at the lake in Florianopolis.

Feliz Pascoa / Happy Easter

As it turns out, Brazilians celebrate Easter, too, and on the same day. There are a few differences here, though, than the states. (No Cadbury mini eggs or Starbust jelly beans. Just sayin'.) Rather than fill baskets with treats, parents here give children large (practically head-sized) hollow chocolate eggs. There are public events, like parties in the mall, but no egg hunts in the park. And most exciting for Eri, the Easter Bunny / Coelhino da Pascoa visited her school's Easter party last week. 

Face painting at the mall Easter party.

Puppet show, that was presumably Easter themed. (The
plot was difficult for me to follow.)

Loot from the Easter Bunny at school.

Bunny bakset and bunny ears art projects.

Loot from the Easter Bunny at home. (She's desperately
trying to get the plastic wrap off a chocolate bunny.)

Egg hunt in the living room of our apartment.

Eating Dad's bunny pancakes. 

Brazilian Road Trip: Iguazu Falls, Curitiba, Morretes & Honey Island

During our summer vacation (December - February in this hemisphere), we took our first Brazilian road trip. My parents, who have visited us everywhere we've ever lived -- good and not-as-good, far away and even farther -- made their way from Idaho to join us on the road in between touring around lovely Florianopolis. 

We traveled for almost two weeks, first heading to Iguazu Falls (second only to Victoria Falls in southern Africa), then to the largest southern Brazilian city called Curitiba, and finally to the car-less and completely tranquil Honey Island.

Highlights!:

Picking up Nana and Gramps at the
Florianopolis airport. Let the fun begin!

In total, we logged more than 1,000 miles on the road (some of them dirt), more than
20 hours driving, and countless loading and unloading of the Subaru.

First Stop: Iguazu Falls

Impressive, to say the least, beating out Niagara Falls in volume and wow-factor. There are 275 drops, with the largest in height being 269 feet. 

The waterfalls of the Iguazu River are on the Brazilian-Argentinian border, so each country gets a portion (think Canada and the U.S. splitting Niagara). We visited both sides, and on the Brazilian side, we stayed at the only hotel inside the national park, giving us before- and after-hours access to the trails. And it had a pool (it was incredibly hot). Another highlight was the boat ride we took on the Brazilian side through the base of some of the falls. 

What a view.

And another.

And another.
(There's the constant sound
of rushing water and NO public bathrooms.)

Eri spent most of the vacation like this.

Paradise, with a really good food.

Second Stop: Curitiba

Curitiba is the capital of the Brazilian state of Parana, north of where we are in the state of Santa Catarina. It's the most populous city in the South and a nice big city to visit. We toured around, stopping at the Botanic Gardens, Oscar Niemeyer Museum, Opera House, etc. We took a day tip to the small, historic and cute city of Morretes by train. 

Botanic Gardens.

Famous Brazilian art (inside).

Nana, Gramps and the City.

Did I mention the heat?

Downtown.

On the train. Morretes or bust.

The Serra Verde Express, or as Eri called it, Thomas.

Adorable Morretes.

Surprisingly, this is not Geoff.

Third Stop: Honey Island

This little island is just off the coast of the state of Parana. Ferries shuttle visitors to and from the island, where there is no traffic or McDonald's, but just complete relaxation. We stayed in little beach cabanas, just steps from the ocean, and spent the days hiking around, playing in the sand and swimming. 

Life is good ...