Sometimes, despite the extensive amount of preparation that we put into future experiences, we are never ready for what life throws our way. The first week of our trip in Brazil was the epitome of this.
We arrived in Florianopolis, Santa Catarina at 11:30 PM on Friday the 2nd of September. By this point in time you guys had slept like babies, while the bags under our eyes told the story of a sleepless 26 hours filled with screaming babies, numb bums and way too much technology crammed into a small place in hope of passing the time. It didn't. The warm welcome that we received from our host families made the journey all worthwhile.
I´m not sure about the other two girls (Ellen & Angela (Lucas had not arrived yet)), but after an adrenaline filled meeting of my family, the first question I was asked was “Do you want to go out?” After a quick look at the watch and a self reassuring: `You will only ever have one first night in Brazil´, I was off and away. Here is an example of how language barriers in different countries can lead to some very interesting surprises. I was informed that I was going to a ´Sushi Bar´, which was owned by my host brother´s brother. I had a shower, whacked on some jeans and then half an hour later I was outside of a…club. This club was packed out to it´s full capacity at 2AM with the most glamorous young men and women that you could ever imagine. I very soon became familiar with the Brazilian social scene, and felt very welcome, a part from the occasional suspicious stares I would get when I actually sang the words to the American club music rather than the usual discreet mumble. On my first night I really took advantage of the cheap and generous amounts of…´Sushi´.
All of us feel privileged to have such welcoming families. Lucas and I are staying with a family of a mother, young man and the grandmother. They live in a suburb called Sao Jose, which at first glance could pass as somewhere in Queensland. It is a three story house with a very comfortable setting. The thing that sets it a part from home is the décor that they spread all around the house. They have multiple photos of every family member and little souvenirs crowded on every ledge. The architecture itself is old, but the abundance of things like televisions, indoor squash quarts, tennis courts and outhouses gives away the upper class status. I think the most uncomfortable thing that we have to endure is not being able to flush toilet paper down the toilet. Actually, I lie. The language barrier is the hardest challenge. Sometimes the attempts to explain things would become so exhausting that we had to resort to google translate. I began to feel awful when after 20 minutes of google translating I realised we were no longer having eye contact while talking, because we were just sitting there typing. I knew technology was, in some cases, an easier way to communicate, but I sincerely hope this is not what the world is coming to. My family and I made a pact to only google translate something that involved a matter of life or death.
I spent two nights with Angela, Ellen and their host family. They were equally as welcoming. They are staying with two young women, a boy the same age as us and their two parents. The children speak amazing English, so I think Angela and Ellen will need some extra pushing when it comes to practicing Portuguese, especially now that our classes are over.
We spent 15 hours of our first orientation week at Portuguese classes with a lovely woman called Dayane. We were slightly concerned when in the first class she began explaining everything in Portuguese, but we soon grew surprised at the amount we understood. It is frustrating however, to not be able to talk back to her in her beautiful language. One of the biggest lessons of the week was that sometimes there aren´t exact translations from one language to another. You have to look deeper than words to find the meaning of something. Words do not only allow us communication to survive, but they enable us to convey emotions. Since on the other side of the world their culture is so different, it should be expected that sometimes their words tell a completely different story. Aside from this realisation, we noticed that Portuguese is a bloody hard language. Good luck us.
Not to worry we have four weeks in Curitiba to practice before we head back to our host families. Best of all, we get to practise with whom we won´t be judged on our awful accents; animals.
We arrived in Curtiba last night on the 10/09. We have come from night clubs to being amongst nature, and the contrast of this trip so far is amazing. We have spent about 13 hours meeting all of the different animals and we are no where near meeting them all. We were so naïve thinking we could get in the cages of the Jaguars and cuddle up to them. I have to remind myself that this isn´t one of Thailand´s tourist zoos, these amimals are the real deal and we have already learnt that we have to respect them and their natural ways. In other words, the oldest female Jaguar, Fofina, has made it quite clear that if we come too close, claws will come out and blood will be shed. Fofina, however, is an exception, and to our surprise we are allowed to handle the animals a lot more than we expected. Luciano and Chris, the two doctors that own the sanctuary are very laid back and their heart and soul goes into giving these animals the best lives possible. Their captivities are unbelievably generous. They are so well fed and the amount of effort that goes into this place is exceptional. Today was mostly an orientation and rest day, so we just can´t wait until tomorrow where we are able to get down and dirty to help the natural balance of this country.
I can safely say that we all miss our family and friends so much already. No matter how much we are happy with where we are, where we are is never home and home is never where we are. This is where the personal growth will come from.
Love from Sophie, Ellen, Angela and Lucas
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