Parabens pra voce!

Thank You all for the plethora of birthday wishes. It is great to hear from people from home. I spent a very nice birthday. My host mom took me to lunch at Mahi Mahi, a ritzy waterfront restaurant where you can jump off the pier and swim in the ocean or go in the pools on the deck. It was an absolutely gorgeous day--warm but not too hot. Every time you overheated you could just dip in the water and immediately be refreshed. We spent the afternoon there.

Here are some pics from the day:

1. Mae and I eating lunch (the vegetarian selection was limited because the place's specialty is fish, but they custom made me a salad which was nice).
2. This guy jumped from the upper platform and dove into the water. Needless to say I did NOT try this myself, and preferred to use the ladder to descend into the water. (Although perhaps I should have jumped in because I did step on some coral getting into the water and a piece is stuck in my pinky toe and I can't walk on it)
3. Another picture of me and my host mom

4. Here I am, age 20!5. This is the homemade strawberry cake my mom made. Yet another culinary dessert masterpiece by her.

O Poder Mudou

I have seen this ad many times around the city. It is part of the advertising campaign for an old newspaper that is changing its make and look. The line reads "O Poder Mudou" which means "The Power has Changed." It sends a pretty bold message about our country. The fact that people across the world recognize Obama (who is not even President (yet)) as an agent of change is impressive. And the fact that is phrased in the passed tense--while may be appropriate for the newspaper--makes it seem that the world is confident that we will elect him. And despite how many countries we have razed on the international level, they are willing and ready to give us a second (or maybe thousandth) chance. If Obama is bringing hope to Brazilians...wow.

There is one month until elections and I still haven't received my absentee ballot stuff here, but I heard rumor that I can vote at some consulate within two weeks of election day. This is going down in history books, so be sure to play your part and VOTE!

P.S. Tomorrow is election day here in Brazil. Voting is mandatory. (Wouldn't that create a different campaign strategy?) How do they enforce it? Since in order to get any job, you have to pass a test, if you skipped out on voting you cannot take the test, and thus not get employed.

P.P.S. Tomorrow is my birthday so if you feel like sending me a birthday email, I would love it!

Quiejo

One of my favorite foods here in Brazil is the Queijo. At first sight, one may seem a little skeptical. It is a narrow block of white cheese (with small holes) skewered onto a stick. The queijo is sprinkled with oregano and slowly roasted over a small pot of hot coals. When I first saw them selling this on the beach, I was like WHO would buy hot cheese (that has not been refridgerated) on a scorching hot day. But now, I cannot make a trip to the beach without getting some. As each side toasts a light brown, the delicous smell wafts towards you. mmm! The final touch to the oregano-toasted-cheese is a light drizzle of honey. Strange? No, its delicious!

Morro de Sao Paulo

Uma ilha de paraiso!

This weekend I spent 4 days in Morro de Sao Paulo with a bunch of kids from my program. Morro is a island off the coast of Salvador and is absolutely beautiful. At times the white sands and palm trees made me feel like I was on the set of Pirates of the Carribean. Other times (more inland) it felt like rural northern Nicaragua due to the lush green tropical landscape, rolling hills, muddy streets, and small houses.

Morro is a small island designed for vacationers (mostly other Brazilians, Argentinians and Israelis--there was more hebrew writing there than I have seen outside of Israel). Since it has just turned spring here (low season), the island was very tranquilo and not bustling (I can imagine that in the summer it would feel very touristy). There are no cars and the streets are all sand. Everything is done on foot or via wheel barrows. Everywhere artisans sell their wares--beautiful jewelery, hand crafted mobiles, art, dresses, or homemade cakes.

The main attraction to Morro is the beaches which are exquisite. Unfortunately Thursday and Friday were rainy (so far all rain that has fallen in Brazil has only lasted for about an hour. However, this rainy drizzle lasted two days!). So we did a lot of exploring of the island or relaxing in hammocks under roofs. On Thursday night they had this great festa on the beach. They played music (everything from samba, forro, techno, hip hop, michael jackson, etc) and we all danced in the rain. On Saturday I took a boat tour that stopped at a bunch of different locations on the island. We saw dolphins playing in the water (the dolphins are super cute and only about 2-3 feet long). We also went to this amazing mud place. From afar it looked like a cliff of purple and yellow rock, but the rock was softer than clay and we lathered ourselves in the mud (which looked kinda like orange/strawberry sherbet or chocolate milkshake). It definitely brought out the little kid in you as you got to climb through mud, jump into it from higher up, lather it everywhere and throw it at each other. Then you would let it dry and rinse it off. It made your skin feel phenomenally soft.

I am finding it very difficult to put to words the feeling of the island (which ran on island time--meaning there were absolutely no clocks and you were NEVER in a rush...sometimes things went very slowly). Anyways I took a lot of GREAT pictures

These are the ruins from the fort. From here I looked out and could almost see the Black Pearl approaching...

This is me and my friend Daryn at the ruins. (When the sun finally came out on Sunday it was scorching hot).
Here is sunset on Saturday. Saturday was mostly cloudy but occasionally the sun poked its golden rays through illuminating everything with a warm glow. We stayed basically right on the beach.

Friday morning we took a long walk down the coast and then cut inland across the island. This wet greenery and sandy streets brought me right back to Nicaragua. I felt like I was revisiting a long lost home...
Here is the mud. I have other pictures to do the color of the rock more justice, but it is still hard to capture the vibrancy on camera. We climbed up to this sort of vat/pool of mud nestled into this cliff face. You had to crawl up because if you tried to walk you would sink too deep.
Here are Daisy, Jessica, Arilene, and Ysenina with the mostly dry mud all over their bodies.

Faces of Salvador

I admit, I have not been as good of a photographer as I hoped to be on this trip. Many times I choose to leave my camera at home because of the hassle of carrying it around, and the danger that it brings. Or even when I do bring it with me, I only reluctantly take it out so I don't draw attention to the fact that I am a tourist with a valuable camera. I do think I am being a little overly cautious, but as many of you know, I treat my camera like it was my first born child and if someone stole it/it got damaged, I would be devastated. Not just the value of the camera, but it would be like the loss of a friend.
Anyway, I took most of these pictures at the Favela we visited today in our culture class. Our teacher is very passionate about breaking the stereotypical image of a drug-ridden favela that City of God has given Americans. (For the record, the 'favelas' shown in that movie based in Rio are actually PROJECTS, not favelas).
Favelas are the type of living communities for the majority of the population who cannot climb the ranks to upper-middle class. Favela dwellers come and invade the land and begin to build their home (with the help of other favela dwellers). After three years of inhabiting the space, the land is considered theirs. Also after three years the government provides electricity, running water, and sewage system. Favelas also have the best views in the country. Unlike the US where the rich flock to the hills, here hills are covered in the disjunct little box houses that teeter on the slopes.
The favela we visited today is on a hill right on the edge of the ocean. The views are exquisite as is the breeze that provides a little relief from the scorching sun. The lack of roads (only uneven footpaths and disjoint stairways) in the community makes the entire area very tranquil and free from the bustle of city life. This specific favela is home to many foriegners (Italians, Americans, Germans, Swiss) though the majority are Brazilian. The community is working on this great beautification project of putting up mosaics on their walls.
Here are some of the kids that followed us around--gawking at the spectacle of Americans in their favela. As we, in turn, took out our cameras to gawk back:



Sorry about the underlined--I'm not sure how that happened. And dont forget to click on the photos to enlarge them

The City of Salvador

The Fallen Cross--symbolic of the Catholic Church (yes , seems quite a contraversial and progressive symbol)This is my family's pet Black Bird (I put this up for you lex). He sings all the time and eats fruit from your hand.
A meat market...mmm (actually one of the cleanest I've seen around the world though)
This is for you Nikki. These puppies were for sale at the open air market.
This is the famous elevator that connects the City Baixa to the City alta.
The Traditional Bahian woman
Pelorinho--the old city
This is my view from my window that I look at everyday
Igreja do Bonfim. Bonfim is the Patron Saint of the city of Salvador. This church is most famous for its Candomble traditions (african religion) that successfully mix with the Catholic religion
The view from the Church
PS. You can click on the pictures to enlarge them

Capoeira

I went to my first Capoeira class on Monday. It was amazing. Capoeira (for those of you who dont know), is a sort of Afro-Brazilian Martial Art. Without contact, two players fight in a a circle. They keep eye contact and flip and twist and duck and kick in a completely spontaneous ritualistic sort of dance. Meanwhile the onlookers are playing African instruments (the Birimbau, and the drums) and others are singing call and response chants and clapping their hands.

Doing capoeira gives you such a feeling of respect, strength, and control for yourself and others. Needless to say, I was ungraceful and quiet timid. But, in the class there are everyone from beginners to masters and all are welcome. For the first hour of class the 30 of us students (in remarkable silence) follow the maestro in stretches/strengthening exercises. He, himself, is a remarkable and laconic man. Everything was learnt by watching, and when he came over to correct your stance, he would silently but forcefully angle your foot in the right direction or push your arm up to proper form. Within five minutes we were all sweating profusely.

The second hour of class we play/fight (in portuguese you say you jogo capoeira `I play capoeira´) in the circle with the music. Our teacher began by fighting his very best students. The teacher is such a boss. I mean like in all meanings of the word (Boss: (noun) A highly respected, known person. Top of the line whoruns things around his hood). Though the sport is non violent he would punish his players if they ever took their eyes off him for a split second by tripping them, or pushing them to the ground. The whole fight reminded me of an animalistic dance to show alpha male dominance in a pack. You could not help but look up in awe at this teacher.

Two days later, I am a little sore (especially in my back muscles) and am excited to go again.