First Full Week in Joinville

Portuguese Words of the Day:
- Renda = income
- Amanhã = tomorrow
- Alcançar = to achieve
- Pipa = kite
- Maça = apple

It has been awhile since my last post. I also apologize for any typos as I am writing on an iPod. But this week has been an interesting week. The first disaster of the week was that my computer completely stopped working. I have been borrowing a friend´s computer and working off my iPod as well. I am very happy that I have computer access, but it is still difficult as I am working in marketing at Instituto AMAR. Hopefully it will be resolved soon.

My first full day at Instituto AMAR went much better than last Friday. I learned more about how the organization operates. The main goals are to improve the lives of those in need of assistance, especially in Barrio Morro de Meio, the poorest neighborhood in the city, through direct food donations and classes for long-term economic prosperity. Then on Monday, I took three buses alone from Instituto AMAR to the University. I was so nervous, but it really wasn't that hard. You just ride the bus until the terminal and transfer there. Of course, waiting for the bus was not any fun, and it took over an hour to make it to the university, about a fifteen minute drive by car.  

On Tuesday and Wednesday, I went to work and then to the university after for Portuguese classes. It's helpful in that you go over words and phrases that are useful. I also learned that if you see a spider in Brazil, kill it. Combined with living and working in an environment where only Portuguese is spoken, I really hope to come go back to the US with some sort of fluency in Portuguese.

On Thursday morning, I had the opportunity to ride in the convey to get donations from bakeries and grocery stores around town to deliver to Barrio Morro de Meio, something that the Institute does every Thursday. We stopped at about 18 bakeries around the city, and I was able to see most of the city. Everybody says that the city is relatively small, but it really isn´t that small when you take every road. The infrastructure of Joinville is varied in terms of the roads. Most of the roads are paved with asphalt, and there are a number that are made with stones. There are also some dirt roads, including the ones leading up to the neighborhood (I will post pictures once my computer is working).

As we were driving to the neighborhood, you could tell that the conditions were getting worse and worse. I did some research about the neighborhood after, and there are only 3 paved roads in the entire neighborhood. We pulled up to a woman´s house, and she, along with four children began unpacking the food from the van. While we were leaving the neighborhood, the children playing on the road all gave us thumbs up as they ran towards the woman´s house.

The weekend was much more festive than the rest of the week. On Saturday night, I attended (crashed may be a better word, since I wasn´t actually invited until the day before) to a wedding of a friend of Camilo at a Chapel (I find it strange and pretty cool that I´ve now been to more weddings overseas than in the USA, but anyway). It was a beautiful wedding that felt kind of like prom. The women were all dressed in evening gowns and sparkles. I also felt even shorter than normal as all of the already tall Brazilian women strapped on their five inch heels for the night. The ceremony started at 8pm at the Chapel. Though the Father spoke in Portuguese, it was pretty easy to understand him and the proceedings and what he said was pretty similar to the ones in the States.

After the Father pronounced Camila and Cassiano as husband and wife, the party moved to the Joinville Tennis Clube. The reception hall was beautifully decorated in flowers and candles. Once the bride and groom arrived around 11pm, we started dinner. The absolutely amazing dinner was a buffet that featured grilled salmon, stuffed shells, beef filet with a balsalmic reduction, salad, and rice. And there were even more varieties in desserts. Of course, in a Brazilian wedding, there was dancing. The bride and groom began with a dance to Michael Jackson from a live band, and everybody joined in. The band was amazing. The lead singer looked a bit like Jack Black and had a wide range of vocals. The songs that he sang varied from Waka Waka to I Will Survive to Party Rock Anthem. In addition, there were little shows going on. At one point, one man juggled fire and I participated in the most ridiculous congo line in which all of the guests participated in and featured a never-ending tunnel.

Today (Sunday), we went to Daniel´s parents´ house in Curitiba for a traditional Brazilian lunch. There was a potato salad with egg, haipim, homeraised chicken, salad, and rice. Tudo foi muito bom. After lunch, Daniel´s brothers and cousins went outside to play in their large yard. The two kites (pipas), a soccer ball, a tennis ball were enough entertainment for hours until there was an awkward whistle from a car passing by, and we all went inside. Around mid afternoon, Daniel´s mother made a delicious ´bolo´and coffee. Overall it was a relaxing and happy Sunday afternoon.

Until the next post, have a great night/days!