Embu and dancing

Oi, friends.
So after more than two weeks here, some things are getting easier. I no longer stress too much about going to stores, or calling a cab, or generally communicating with Brazilians. By and large, the people here are very kind and are willing to laugh with (ok, maybe at) me when I try to speak Portuguese. Then again, my confidence and competence with the language has improved quite a bit in the short time we’ve been here. That’s not necessarily saying much, but it helps.

Yesterday was a great day for the family and me though. We got OUT of the city for the first time – to an outlying town called Embu. It’s an artsy and artisan-y town with tons of little shops on cobbled foot-traffic-only streets. Really nice little place. We bought a hodge-podge of things while we were there: a couple of rugs, some pillows, a plant, etc. Our goal was to get some things to add a little color to our blank-slate white apartment, and we accomplished that a bit.

Random digression: so there are little waste-baskets next to the toilets in every public restroom that I’ve come across in Brazil. After a few days, I was pretty sure I’d figured out what they’re for, but really didn’t want to know for sure. But it came up in a conversation with a Brazilian the other day, and it’s been confirmed that they are, in fact, shitty toilet paper bins. I should defend the country a bit and point out that apparently in the major cities, they’re really not necessary, as the pipes and sewage system have been upgraded. But outside of the major cities, it’s pretty much a necessity. I plan to flush mine anyway.

Ok, so we got back from Embu yesterday, and then I went out to experience the real Sao Paulo nightlife for the first time. In Sao Paulo, Saturday is a legitimate workday for most residents. So since Sunday is the only morning that people can wake up late and hung over, Saturday night is a total throw-down night here. Anyway, I went to the downtown neighborhood of Vila Madelena with a bunch of coworkers, all of whom have spent less than three weeks in Sao Paulo as well. The Vila is a change from where I live in Morumbi, a Sao Paulo neighborhood that is known more for its swanky apartment buildings and actual green space. Indeed, Morumbi is apparently known by some Paulistanos as BORumbi….not very cool. In Vila Madelena, we spent the first few hours of the evening (using the term “evening” loosely here – it was about 11 when we got out of the cab) at a live music joint where we sat and drank local beverages. ***side note: the caipirinha is the national drink of Brazil, and it’s pretty amazing – they use a sugar-cane based liquor called caxasa, sugar, lime and rum. People drink them everywhere here, at all times of the day.*** So the first bar was nice, and not terribly different than any of a number of downtown bars in the states. Our next stop, however, was quite a bit different. It was a dance club where the dance of choice was (I think) the samba. There were probably 500 people in this place, but only about 20 of them were actually on the dance floor at any given time. It was a full Brazilian band playing, and everyone in the place seemed to know the words to their music. It was cool, because I feel like it was one of the first real tastes I’ve had of the culture here since I’ve been somewhat insulated by the American school where I’ve spent most of my time when I’m not at home. Of course, I an do a little Brazilian dancing of my own. Check it out - that's me on the right...I mean left:



Did I mention that I actually taught last week too? Last Tuesday was the first day of school, so Abby and I have both been teaching for four days now. Most of my students are Brazilian, actually. Probably 50% or so. Then about 25% or so are American, 15% or so are Korean, and the others are random. Of course, my percentages might be a bit skewed by the fact that I have a total of 37 students. THIRTY SEVEN! I have 38 in one CLASS at Marsteller one year, so I think I can handle this. I teach two 80-minute blocks of 8th Grade Humanities every day. That’s it. 160 minutes in the classroom. I have one planning period, an hour for lunch, and the other 80ish minutes are planning/team-teaching time. Occasionally I may be team-teaching with the other 8th Grade Humanities teacher, but generally it’s another planning time. The students are generally very nice and respectful, relatively speaking. So work life here is SO much better than it’s been. I had no idea that this type of world existed. As far as elementary teacher’s schedules go, Abby’s is great too. Not as good as middle school teachers but definitely an improvement for her too. Abby's also got the superintendent's wife as a ESL teacher in her class every day, so she's getting us in good with the boss. The kids are doing great with school so far as well. Noah is made for school, so he loves it, his teachers love him, and he’s making lots of new friends (his best friends here so far are kids named Achilles – who is the son of another teacher – and Lukie). And Sophie loves her class too. Probably for different reasons though. I think the chance to challenge another authority figure for 3 hours-a-day is probably what makes her clock tick, but it’s definitely a positive thing for her too.

So that pretty much catches you up on life here. I’ve really got to start taking my camera out with me so I can share some of the sights and sounds of the city here too. I’ll try. By the way, today is Father’s Day here in Brazil, so yahoo for me. Tchau.