Barra do Turvo... Our Final Week in Brasil

Our last week in Brasil... I can't believe it!  Starting from Monday we spent our final week in a rural area within Vale do Ribeira.  The first day involved two bus rides and a boat ride from Sao Paulo to our final destination: Cooperafloresta (see below).  This was a beautiful area within the Atlantic Forest near the south of the state of Sao Paulo.  It was a very poor area where people made a living from their land.  People were up and ready to work at the cocks crow, they worked all day, feasted on the foods they grew, and sang, played music, and danced for entertainment.  Upon arrival we were greeted by Pedro, the owner of this farm, and a group of Brazilian students studying agroforesting techniques.  This group of hippies (to give you a better idea of what they looked like) was very welcoming and kind to us.  After lunch, we met and talked with Pedro who spoke to us about his ideas of global citizenship and the responsibilities we have to the earth we live on.  He told us about the dilemma facing the people living in this area.  He said that even though the people here live in very rich lands, they are very poor.  But they are poor because they see poor, think poor, act poor, and therefore make themselves poor.  Pedro was once like this too, until he decided to switch his life for the better.  He realized how lucky he was to live on this land and he took advantage of the soil to produce crops for his family and to sell.  After talking to Pedro, he gave us a tour of the area very quickly because it started to rain.  After the rained stopped we went swimming in a pool, ate dinner, and danced to music played by the group.  It was one of the last days of Carnaval so it was only appropriate to dance samba.  We learned a very specific type of samba called Coconut Samba.  It was very interesting and fun, hopefully I still remember by the time I get back home so I can show you what I learned!!

Tuesday we woke up at the cocks crow to have breakfast with the group.  Breakfast was then followed by visits to nearby farms.  My group stayed with Pedro and had a more in-depth tour of his farm land and the forest surrounding it.  He showed us some new technology he developed for the transport of bananas from the top of the mountain to the hillside.  It was the equivalent of a zip-line but for crates of bananas.  They were released onto this metal wire from the top of the mountain and allowed to drop down a distance of a couple hundred meters or so.  A trip that would take at least an hour or so walking, was reduced to 1.15 min on zip-line.  After witnessing this system Pedro asked us if we were up for a hike to see where the banana trees were, up near the peak of the mountain.  So off we went for a hike into the forest in search for the banana trees.  The hike took a lot longer than expected because we were by no means experts in maneuvering through the jungle.  There were lots of trees, mud patches, spider webs, and other tiny, annoying, pestering insects.  I actually had a very interesting (to say the least) encounter with some insects that were a mix between flies and bees.  As we were heading up the mountain, we stopped near a hive of these splendid creatures to talk about some of the neighboring vegetation.  Very soon after we stopped I noticed a lot of buzzing near my head, by my face, in my ears and around my hair.  The insects were swarming around me and soon made a home out of my hair.  There were literally 20 or 30 bees in my hair!!!  I quickly took off my pony tail and shook my head back and forth as to get the bees out... but they would not budge!  I had to individually pick them out one by one until I no longer heard any buzzing.  It was quite a scene.  Lesson of the day:  When in nature, don't wash your hair with herbal essences! Apparently insects like the scent and will hastily leave their home to make a new one with you.

But my day was not all that bad.  After our visit to the farms, we headed to a nearby waterfall for some relaxation time.  It was beautiful (see below)!  The water was crystal clear and very very cold, but refreshing for such a hot day.  We then had to say good bye to all of our friends at Cooperafloresta because the rest of the week was to take place in Barra do Turvo, a nearby town.  When we got to this town, we settled in a hotel and went out for dinner as a group.  After dinner we were free to do whatever we liked.  So we took the liberty to hang out at the town square.  There we meet Denin who worked for the municipality as a social worker.  He was briefly introduced to us on Monday by our country coordinator but we didn't know much about him.  We spent a lot of time chatting and conversing in the square that the time passed by too quickly for me to notice.  Until I was all of a sudden surrounded by a group of about 20 students all singing me Happy Birthday.  I was so surprised!  It was only minutes past midnight, and already people were celebrating my birthday.  From this moment on I knew that they day would only get better =)

So Wednesday was, of course, My Birthday! After breakfast we hoped on a bus to go visit a Quilombo.  Quilombos are communities of African American slave descendants in Brasil.  They live off the land through the use of farming and agriculture.  After the slaves were freed in Brasil, they all left their owners in search for their own homes.  They traveled very far distances until reaching areas of plush vegetation near rivers in the Vale do Ribeira.  Many of these communities still exist today, however they are very small in numbers.  After a brief introduction of the village, we got a tour of a traditional herb garden.  We saw plants that were used for diabetes, the common cold, high blood pressure, headaches, and more.  It was very interesting to see.  In this community we also toured their farms since it was one of their main practices.  We had to again hike a little bit to get there but eventually we landed upon an area of land used to grow corn, bananas, zucchini, cucumber, and more.  The area was about the size of a soccer field, and tended by only one man.  He told us that he worked on planting and harvesting every single one of the plants there.  Wow what a job!  After our visits we had lunch with the people of the Quilombo.  They cooked us delicious meals, all made from food grown on their land.

After the Quilombo, we visited another waterfall! What a great birthday present.  Also before leaving the Quilombo, on my way down the mountainside, I was greeted and kissed by a beautiful blue butterfly.  The day was just full of pleasant surprises.  Once back in Barra do Turvo we had dinner together as a group and after dinner I was surprised yet again by a birthday song and cake!  It was delicious.  You can see parts of it left on my face below hehe.

Thursday, luckily for us, we had the morning off!  So I got to sleep in till 10... yay hehe. The whole day was pretty low key actually.  We stayed in Barra do Turvo and visited the municipality building and a primary school.  At the school we got the chance to talk to a panel of health professionals which included nurses, doctors, community health workers, and peer educators.  They talked to us about the troubles encountered with health care in rural areas.  Most people here have access to general care, but when it comes to specialties or medical emergencies patients must be transferred to other hospitals in nearby cities.  And this could take hours.  For example deliveries usually are not done at the clinics here so they have to transfer them to other hospitals, and in most cases expecting mothers end up having their babies on the ambulance on their way to the hospital.

This was our last night here, so we celebrated by having a pizza dinner at a local restaurant/club.  During dinner a live band played famous Brazilian cover songs, and after dinner we showed everyone our thanks by saying a few words on all of our site visits and quest lecturers.  The night ended with a spontaneous dance party hosted by the locals.  We had loads of fun and learned a lot of new dance moves!  Oh and I also learned a new card game called Truco... I will show everyone when I get back =)

Friday was a very interesting day.  I woke up at 8:30, went to class and did my written evaluations, but after that I took a visit to the clinic.  The night before I had noticed a couple of red blotches all over my face and hands and thought that they would go away by the morning, however they didn't, they actually had gotten worse.  So after much debate I decided to go to the clinic to get it looked at, considering that in 2 days I would be leaving the country.  And unfortunately, I have to say that my first-hand experience with the public health care system in Brasil was not the best.  I got to the clinic and all they asked for was my passport.  They took down my name and birth date and asked me to have a seat.  After about 10 minutes I was called in by a nurse who took my blood pressure and my temperature.  My temperature was normal at 36 or so degrees C but my blood pressure was low at 80/50.  I then waited some more for the doctor to see me.  After 20 minutes I was called in by the doctor.  I took a seat, she asked me what I was in for, I showed her my hands, and within 2 minutes she was already writing me a list of medications.  There were no tests involved, no touching, no consulting, nothing.  Only one question was asked and that was "So what is the problem?"  I was prescribed 3 medications, and I only decided to buy one based on my own knowledge of the symptoms and my distrust of the doctor. Below is a picture of one of my hands, as you can see it looked like a sunburn but it was very sporadic and uneven.  It was on my face as well as in between my fingers and on the undersides of my arms... weird!  After my visit to the clinic, we headed back to the city.  We took a bus which was only supposed to take 5 hours, but ended up taking 10.  We hit a lot of traffic on the way back into the city, and halfway there one of the tires got a flat. So instead of getting to the hotel at 7pm we got there almost at 1 am.  What a stressful day.

Saturday was our free day to pack and get ready for our next trip.  I woke up, did some laundry at the hotel, and attempted to go to the post office but it was closed.  In the afternoon I did most of my homework, Skyped with my family and packed all of my belongings.  I am always surprised by the amount of stuff I can fit into my one suitcase.  For dinner, a group of friends and I went to a local pizza place.  The lady serving us was super kind and friendly.  She offered to play samba music for us, lowered the price on our food, and gave us free desserts!  It was great... below is a picture of the coconut treats she gave us to try for dessert.  They were very delicious and sweet.  Tchau Brasil.... You were amazing, I will miss you dearly!!!!

Oh São Paulo... How I will miss you!

The week got off to a good start with the purchase of our Carnaval tickets!  Lucky for us, we got out early that day from class and were able to make it to the ticket sales place before it closed.  We also got our tickets for half price because of our student IDs... yay us!  Tuesday we had the morning off, so my roommate and I took advantage of the time to go shopping in the garment district: Bom Retiro!  There were tons and tons of shops everywhere, all throughout the streets of this town.  I'm glad we decided to come and check it out before leaving the city.

Wednesday and Thursday were our two case study days.  Our project was to research water sanitation and treatment in Brazil.  On the first day we visited a sanitation engineer at the Universidad de Saude Publica.  She told us all about the problems in dealing with clean water in Sao Paulo.  It was very interesting and informative.  I learned that there are about 700,000 people that die each year as a result of improper water treatment and lack of sanitation.  On Thursday we continued our research by visiting an organization called Trata Brasil which educates local communities on the importance of water sanitation and treatment.  They recently conducted a survey and out of the 2,000 respondents 30% had no idea what the word sanitation even meant.  And only 3% of this population were able to make a connection between sanitation and health.  Very impressive.  After meeting with the coordinators of this organization we headed over to an Indigenous Reserve on a mountain side.  This reserve was one of the communities that Trata Brasil worked with.  It was a community with very minimal needs and belongings.  Children running without clothes or shoes on, women breast-feeding their babies in the public, and men tending to the work.  We were told that this was a community without knowledge of hygiene, and indeed we noticed almost as soon as we got there by the mountains of trash everywhere and anywhere.  What was most alarming however, was the amount of untreated water running all over this village.  If one wasn't careful enough, one could step in urine or other forms of polluted water.  There is no wonder why children here are becoming sick from diarrhea and other illnesses caused from improper sanitation.  Overall, however, this was such an amazing visit and I was very grateful to have seen how these people live and how they still maintain their almost direct contact with nature.

Friday we ended our school week by presenting our research findings at Santa Casa.  Each presentation was 45 min, so you can just imagine how long our day was.  But after school, we began to prepare for Carnaval!  Blocos, or pre-carnaval parties, started Friday in neighborhoods all over the city with people parading the streets, beating drums and dancing.  Instead of going to a Bloco however, my big sister Caro took us out for one last drink in the city.  We went to this really nice tropical bar in Vila Magdalena and enjoyed the cool midnight breeze of the city.

Saturday - The big day!  All morning we were preparing for Carnaval by taking naps to build up our energy.  Carnaval is a nine hour long event beginning at 10 pm.  It starts on Saturday and continues on until the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday.  Like most of you may know, Carnaval involves a lot of dancing and elaborate costumes.  And floats too!  It was a lot of fun to be able to see it live and to simply be in Brazil for this time.  We are so so lucky!

Sunday was our last day in the city, and I will have to say that I will truly miss it all, especially my homestay family.  In the morning we made a final run to our favorite market at Republica.  We had lunch with our family, and after lunch I was surprised with a Birthday Cake!  My family knew that my birthday was coming up and they wanted to celebrate with me before I left.  I was so warmed by their affection and thoughtfulness!  Plus the cake was delicious.  It was made with condensed milk, coconut milk, and pieces of coconut.  After lunch, I worked on some school work and began my packing.  It was very sad but I am glad to say that I really enjoyed my time here in Sao Paulo.  I was truly blessed with a great homestay family here in Brazil.  And I hope to be able to come back here again!

Brasil Week 2... Time please slow down!

The second week of classes here just flew by (on a jet plane) super fast!  Monday we continued our talk on women's health by discussing birthing practices.  We had a panel consisting of three women from Sao Paulo who each gave us personal accounts on their birthing experience.  I was surprised to hear that most women in the city have C-sections (90%) as opposed to natural or ordinary labor.  This is because of two main reasons: (1) in the past the government of Brasil encouraged women to become sterilized as a form of contraception.  However, they did a faulty job in educating women on this practice.  For example, women who came in for the treatment later came back to their doctors asking for an "undo", because they were now ready to have children.  This was a huge problem to say the least.  After clarification however, it became very common to undergo sterilization after a C-section given that no extra surgical procedure was necessary.  (2) Doctors also encourage pregnant women to undergo C-sections because they get paid more for the procedure.  As disappointing as this may be its a reality that affects all workers, and despite the added health risks for the mother, they still consider it to be the best option for delivery.  All the women we talked to were against C-sections, and it was very alarming to hear their stories of Brazilian hospitals and their struggle to have ordinary labor.

After this panel, we were split up into groups to visit different women's hospitals.  I went to Perola Byington, a hospital for women who have experienced sexual violence.  This is a huge problem in Sao Paulo.  Approximately 12 million women are victims of sexual assault each year and this hospital treats about 15 new women a day.  Their hospital is equipped with an ER, gynecologists, oncologists, psychologists, and community health workers or agents.  I was very impressed by their ability to dedicate an entire building to this type of work in Sao Paulo.  I think it is a very important step to realize that forms of sexual violence also fall under the umbrella of health problems because not only do victims experience physical consequences, but they tend to have a great deal of mental repercussions as well.  One of the biggest problems that women of this hospital face is becoming pregnant as a consequence of rape.  Brazil is a very religious country, and as a result abortions are viewed as crimes.  Women are highly criticized and stigmatisized for this, so most choose to undergo abortions illegally, which impacts their health greatly due to unsafe methods.  Recently however, a law was passed in the country to allow for abortions in 2 circumstances: (1) in cases of maternal mortality and (2) in cases of rape.  This alleviates part of the pain, however it is still very much ingrained in these women's minds that what they are doing is wrong.  Part of this comes from the penalty of being accused of having an abortion.  The penalty for abortion is 2-5 years in prison (the same penalty for the sexual assaulter!  Incredible).  On a happier note, below is a picture of some graffiti right outside the hospital.  Sao Paulo is known for its graffiti as a form of art all around the city.

Tuesday we got out of class early, so we celebrated by going to the Mercado Municipal.  This is a permanent market in the city of Sao Paulo, open everyday, with all sorts of foods including fruits, vegetables, meat, fish, cheese, wine, nuts, spices, you name it!  It was great.  If you would like to learn more about it see Anthony Bourdain's video on Brazil: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z1THRZ4BbJA (min 3:45 - 6:45).

Wednesday we began our discussion on HIV/AIDS in Brasil.  Every year 7,000 cases of HIV/AIDS are added to the total population in Sao Paulo.  It is a huge issue to be addressed and thankfully it has been.  There are many organizations in the city set up to raise awareness and offer support to victims of this disease.  Most importantly, AIDS here in Brasil is viewed as a communal problem, not blamed on the individual.  They realize (and rightly so) that AIDS will affect their entire population if not handled correctly.  Brazil, unlike the US, is a very culture and community orientated country and I believe this helps greatly in the prevention of  AIDS.  Medications are also easily accessible and available free of charge to the public, so there exists a lot of  resources to prevent spread of this very much prevalent health hazard.  After class we went to visit several NGOs relating to HIV/AIDS.  The first place we went to was the Center of Reference and Training in STDs and AIDS.  This place was like Perola Byington in that it was entire building dedicated towards one health issue.  After visiting this center, we split up into groups and visited other NGOs.  I went to E de Lei which was an organization that worked with the homeless population in Sao Paulo, especially those that were doing drugs, and those affected with HIV.  Instead of just telling people to stop using drugs they focus more on helping individuals through the struggle by giving them needed attention and care.  They educate them on several health and social issues as well as accompany them to doctor visits, since most can't read or write.  This is a small organization that simply acts as a bridge between the homeless people and doctors.  "Homelessness is not forever, it is just a moment of life we must take care of."  It was after this visit that I came to a huge realization.  There are many issues affecting health such as sexual violence and homelessness that most of society chooses to ignore or view as just another way of life.  But when you take time to address these issues, people really begin to shine.  During both of my visits to these hospitals/centers, I was approached by patients asking me where I was from and what I was doing.  After telling them the reason for my visit they held my hand, looked me in the eye, and thanked me sincerely for being there and for taking the time to learn about these issues.  "Thank you, thank you, we really need your help."

Thursday- the party begins!  After class on Thursday we headed to a school of samba called Vai Vai.  We were lucky enough to visit the oldest Samba school in Sao Paulo, and we were even luckier to be able to talk to the man who founded the school.  He had been there for over 50 years, so he knew a lot about the history of the dance.  Samba originally was an African dance which came from the religious ceremonies of the slaves in Brasil.  During rituals, people would share spiritual callings by singing and dancing, more specifically they would pass all their good spirits along from one person to the next by touching each other's belly button .  The word for belly button in their native African tongue is "sumba", so from this you can see where the word for Samba came from.  After the history of the dance, we were invited to stay longer to watch the members of Vai Vai practice for Carnaval.  It was a lot of fun.  There were drummers and dancers of all age groups... from little children to elders.  After they processed through the streets several times, we were invited to join them in their dancing and singing.  I'm sure the locals were making fun of our dancing, but we didn't care, we were enjoying the music and festivities!

Friday we spent our entire day at the Butantan Institute.  This is a research facility for venomous animals such as snakes, spiders, and scorpions.  Scientists here extract and use these venoms for medicinal purposes, the most common being to treat animal bites.  The research institute has a great history, being founded over 100 years ago during times of the bubonic plague, and the motivational drive behind their work is very impressive.  Because of Brasil's SUS program, most of the medicines, vaccines, and serums produced in Butantan are given to patients free of charge.  In the US I feel like this medical research and production would not go without some form or another of payment.  Every scientist is looking to make a ground-breaking discovery in order to win fame as well as monetary compensation.  Also, in the US every new idea or discovery is immediately patented with the fear of others taking the idea and the prize.  Here in Brazil medical researchers are not looking to be millionaires, instead they work for the betterment of their own community, for the advancement of science.  Their priority here is to publish papers so that other people can learn about their achievements and implement them, not to patent for legal and monetary rights.

After our visit, we had a dinner party with all of the students and their host families.  It was fantastic!  The dinner of course was delicious, with an assortment of fruits (mango, grapes, pineapple, watermelon and papaya) and a salad bar including guacamole =).  We also had white rice with chicken for dinner and banana cake with vanilla ice cream for dessert.  After dinner we put on a show for the families, buy singing American songs including but not limited to "Small Town Girl" by Journey and "I Want It That Way" by the Backstreet Boys.  This sing-a-long soon turned into a kareokee and everyone was singing and dancing with us.  One of the dad's played the guitar and the rest of us clapped and hummed to the beat.  This get together began at 8pm and lasted well up until midnight if not later.  But we weren't done, after dinner we all decided to go to Canto de Ema, a Brazilian club with regional music called Forro.

The weekend was pretty low key.  On Saturday we headed downtown to walk around and we coincidentally ran into some guys doing Capoeira.  This is a Brazilian martial art which mixes dance and music in it as well.  It was a lot of fun to watch all the jumps and kicks as well as the maneuvering back and forth.

Sunday we went back to the Feira du Praca da Republica and toured the food portion of the square.  They had some wonderful smelling desserts and all kinds of delicious snacks.  Food food everywhere!  I wouldn't be surprised if I can no longer fit into my jeans by the end of this program... ahh!!!  But I still love you Sao Paulo =)

First weekend in Brasil!!!

Thursday after class we had community building, on the roof of our fellow's apartment complex!  The day was cloudy and it began to drizzle, but that did not stop us from enjoying the fantastic view of the city from this location.  Plus there was a pool!  How were we going to say no to that.  We went over some "roses and thorns" (positive and negative experiences) of the trip so far and enjoyed bonding time as a group.  We all sat around the pool sharing our stories and thoughts.  I love us!

After community building we all decided we needed to have some fun.  Since Sunday, when we arrived in Sao Paulo, none of us had gone out and gotten together as a group.  So we decided to meet in Villa Magdalena, a very hip bohemian neighborhood in Sao Paulo.  Caro, our host sister, was nice enough to drive us there along with her bf, Gabriel.  They both recommended this bar called Empanadas Bar which served the most delicious empanadas I have ever tried.  They were not the typical Mexican empanadas I was used to, instead these empanadas were filled with ground beef, chicken, potatoes, and other vegetables (more like pot pockets if you will hehe).  Very good!  We also tried some typical Brazilian drinks, at least according to our host sister.  We had what they called "Batidas" which were basically like milkshakes with a little something extra.   I also noticed that they like to mix condensed milk in with their alcohol... like with wine or vodka (interesting).  And needless to say, almost at every bar, on every TV monitor, there was a soccer game playing.  Welcome to South America where people live, eat, and breathe soccer. =)

Friday after our morning class we were sent off to visit several NGOs with a focus on women's health.  My group went to visit Promotoras Legais Populares (Popular Legal Promoters).  This was a feminist organization run in order to lobby for public policies as well as to educate and support women in their local communities.  Heath promoters, or "promotoras" as they are called here in Brasil, have been involved with many issues including sexual violence, labor rights, health, racism, and sexual/reproductive rights.  We talked to Amelinha who was a women rights activist since the early 70s.  She was very excited to talk to us about all the advancements Brasil has had in women's rights.  One of her proudest memories was when she pushed the Brazilian government to implement a policy on criminalizing sexual abusers.  Because of her work with sexual violence, a new law has been implemented in Brasil allowing for the imprisonment of sexual abusers.  She is also very proud having a female Brazilian president, Dilma.  She believes that without her work as a feminist, Dilma wouldn't even have been allowed to run for the position, let alone win the election.  It was very empowering to see how passionate Amelinha was about these topics and I was really glad that she was willing to share all her stories with us (Amelinha is the one next to me in the picture below).

Saturday morning came and I didn't know what to do with all of my free time.  I was so used to having my schedule planned out for me each day that the freedom was killing me. But I eventually got off my tushy and had a pretty productive day.  After breakfast I went to the gym with Caro and ran on the treadmill for 40 min.  It felt great to be physically active, especially after a week of sitting in classes all day.  Then since I was sweating bullets I came back home and took a shower before heading to the feira.  Lauren (my roommate) and I, had been planning on going to the Feira du Praça da Republique, which is a handicrafts market near our apartment.  It was actually a lot of fun, we got to see a lot of interesting things and before leaving we met a vendor from South Africa.  Luckily for us he spoke English and after talking to him for a while we found out he was a tour guide too!  He gave us his business card and wished us the best of luck on our upcoming travels (esp to South Africa).

After the feira, we took a tour of the Universidade de Sao Paulo with Caro and Gabriel.  The campus was huge, but I mean gi-nourmous!  Probably the size of an entire town or two.  USP is a public university here in the city but despite that it is very prestigious, not every one who applies gets accepted.  USP teaches and offers degrees for every possible field of study ranging from engineering to teaching and even marine biology.  Each department has its own building, which might give you a better understanding of the size of the school. You need a car or public transportation to get from one place to another.  Below is a picture we took in front of a very famous monument on campus.  

Finally on Sunday we ended our first weekend in Brazil the way all locals end their weekend... by going to a soccer game!  In the morning I woke up early to buy my ticket for the game.  Mind you that this was my first time traveling alone in the city and the first time I would have to maneuver the metro system to get to my destination. But I did it!  And not only was I able to get there but I also manged to make everyone else think I was Brazilian.  I knew this because at almost every transfer point on the metro I had people come up to me and ask for directions in Portuguese.  After buying my ticket I came back home to accompany my host mom and sister to the market.  It was amazing!  Soooo many fruits and veggies everywhere.  Apparently most people here in Sao Paulo buy their groceries at local markets instead of at supermarkets or grocery stores.  My new favorite exotic fruit is carambola (a.k.a. starfruit).  Our host mom made juice from it and it was delicious!  We also got to eat the actual fruit (like an apple) after our dinner on Sunday.  

After the market, we headed to the soccer game.  The team we were rooting for was called the Corinthians (black and white were their team colors).  We were told that if we wore either green or red we would not be let into the park.  And later I found out that this was because of a big rivalry between the Corinthians and the other Sao Paulo team, kinda like the Cubs and the White Sox.  The fans here were of course very dedicated and although the game ended in a tie, fans were still chanting and cheering for their home team.  Most surprisingly and awesome, were the banners they created and held up during the game (see below).  We got the chance to hold one up as well.  It was a lot of fun, and it was a nice time to get out of the sun too hehe.    

  

Brasil - Estou Aqui!!!

(For those of you who think I misspelled the name of this post... you're wrong! hehe its in Portuguese)

Sunday we arrived in São Paulo at 7 in the morning... after a 10 and a half hour flight.  I only got about 1:30 hours of sleep... mostly because there was just so much to do (movies, tv, music, food, etc.) and so much to think about. But surprisingly I wasn't tired, my excitement was much much greater.  As soon as we got out of the terminal, we exchanged money (from dollars to reais) and were ready to begin our adventure!  The weather was beautiful 80 degrees and sunny.  We walked out of the airport and all we saw around us was trees, and more trees.

A bus took us from the airport to the hotel where we would be staying for the first night.  The hotel was gorgeous (see below)... It was in the center of the city with many shops and bars only walking distance away.  We got there around 8 or 9 in the morning and had a complimentary breakfast.  Breakfast included the typical eggs and bread/pastry assortment, but it also had almost one complete table full of just fruit (apples, bananas, pears, papaya, melon, grapes, you name it).  Then after breakfast came the most brutal part of our day... Orientation.  This only lasted about 2 or so hours but it was the longest 2 hours of my life.  By that point my tired/sleepiness began to sink in and it was just impossible to stay awake.  Luckily our guide realized that we all needed rest so she gave us the afternoon free to do as we pleased... and of course I went up to my room and slept.  After my slumber we decided to go out for dinner as a group.  We walked down Ave. Paulista (a major avenue in São Paulo) and found a little Japanese restaurant.  We thought oh a Japanese place... they must know some English right?  WRONG!  It was day one and none of us knew any Portuguese... so I started to whip out my Spanish along with various other hand motions and facial gestures.  And at the end of it all we were quite successful, we were able to order food and eat.

We then began heading back towards the hotel, ready to call it a night, when we meet up with Caio our language facilitator.  He was with some other students heading towards a bar and "convinced" us to go with him.  It is worth noting that during our orientation one of the things they talked to us about was drinking in moderation.  They also warned us about this one Brazilian drink called Caipirinhas (made with sugar cane rum)... and of course this was the first drink everybody ordered that night.  Its very sweet and because of this people usually cannot taste the alcohol in it so they typically drink more than they should.  But nothing bad happened to us, people were just curious and wanted to try it.  Here is what the drink looks like...

Monday was our first day of class!  We walked to our school, Santa Casa, and as soon as we arrived we were welcomed by a team of doctors and coordinators.  Santa Casa was originally part of a Catholic church reaching out to their community by offering free health care and other services.  Eventually it became affiliated with a hospital and then was turned into a medical school.  Santa Casa is known as one of the best medical schools in all of Brazil.  It is a private school with a lot of history. My favorite story about Santa Casa has to do with their wheel.  In the past, they used to have a revolving wheel passing from the outside to the inside of the building.  It was placed there for single mothers to leave their babies, either because they couldn't take care of them or because they were embarrassed of being single mothers.  The best part of this story is that after babies were dropped the nuns at Santa Casa would raise them and educate them to be doctors in order to give back to their community.  Amazing!

After school we headed back to the hotel to wait for our host families.  It was like waiting to be picked from a puppy litter at a pet store.  We would see one family come in and hope it was ours (pick me pick me)... but then they would walk towards other students, and we knew we had to wait some more.  Finally after 10 families or so ours came!  We were picked up by Rodrigo and Polly, our host brother and his gf.  They drove us to their apartment in the city and we were greeted by his parents Francisco and Francisca, his sister Carolina and her bf Gabriel.  Everyone was so excited to meet us!  We had dinner with them and the food was delicious (we didn't know it at the time but our host mom was the best cook in all of São Paulo!).  They then let us retreat to our room, and boy what a view!  We were smack dab in the center of downtown and only 4 blocks away from the school, what more could we have asked for! Lucky lucky us.

Tuesday, our second day of class we learned about the medical system here in Brazil.  Brazil has a program called SUS which provided universal access to health care free of charge to any people living in the country.  This means that anyone no mater what age, class, sex, race, ethnicity, marital status, you name it, can have access to free health care ranging from general check-ups to liver transplants and everything in between.  We first heard from Monika who was a Polish immigrant.  She told us a story about her mother getting sick on Christmas Eve, she was visiting from Poland and all of a sudden she felt this strong pain in her chest.  They rushed her to a nearby public hospital and treated her without asking any questions.  All they needed to know was her name, no insurance plan information, no proof of citizenship or residency, nothing.  In Brazil health is viewed as a human right, and therefore all people are given access to it.  This law has been prevalent in Brazil since 1988, but was practiced even before then by specific states.  However the system is not perfect.  We ended class with a panel talking about the various aspects of SUS and some of the problems they have encountered. For example, many people complained about the quality of care and the long waiting time or the stigma of the care.  Since its free, most people think that these clinics or hospitals are only for poor people and that is certainly not the case.  Nonetheless, I think that Brazil is doing much better in terms of addressing public health than the US. Health is a very important part of human life, and without it one might not even have the chance to live it.

Wednesday was my favorite day so far.  We dedicated almost the entire day to visiting poorer neighborhoods in São Paulo (favelas).  My group was assigned to visit Cantinho do Ceu (translated to mean little piece of heaven).  Even though this was considered to be a favela it was the most beautiful place we have visited so far.  This town was located near a water reservoir, however this water was very unsanitary and polluted.  The city of São Paulo has used this reservoir as a dump by basically channeling all their wastes to this area.  Recently, however, the town has tried to fix the problem by moving people away from the waterfront and by cutting back on waste disposal here.  Locals continue to use this water for fishing and for harvesting, and even for recreational activities such as swimming.  Despite all of the sanitation issues and the marginal economic status of the people living there I fell in love with the place.  It was a small small town with tiny streets and little shops out of people's homes, but the feeling of community and family I felt from being there was fantastic.  These people would not let their poverty stop them from achieving their goals.  They worked together to build a child day care and a clinic, and they have also been actively involved in reducing violence and fighting.  It was a very empowering experience.