Truth in Advertising

I saw this ad on a bus stop the other day:
"Homens cuidado: sapato feio afasta mulher."
A loose translation: "Caution, men! Ugly shoes send women running in the other direction!"

Not the floor!

I went to CCBB today to see the new exposition -- "Drawing since the 15th Century" -- and it showcased drawings, etchings, woodcuts, lithographs, and silkscreens from several well-known artists.
While I was in the restroom, I noticed something. Let me start with a little cultural info. Here in Brasil it's NOT acceptable to set your purse on the floor. In Copacabana and the more touristy areas, putting your purse on the floor/ground at a restaurant means you're available and looking to get paid for the night. Besides that, I think it has something to do with how dirty the ground is here, even though the streets do get cleaned. With that said, even though the stall door may not lock or shut just right, you'll damn sure have a hook to hang your purse on!

A mix of cultures

I realized today that it's been quite awhile since I have written anything. I have been exhausted (it's been HOT here) and have had my friend Amy in town. She used to live here and we were roomies and she's back in the US. She was in town for a wedding; see if you can keep up.
Ramu is of Indian descent and lives in Atlanta. 2 years ago, he came to visit his friend (also from Atlanta) who lives here. Jeremy (the friend) met my roommate because their grandmothers know each other. She had introduced him to several of our friends from one particular church. While Ramu was here, we all got together (the 2 guys, their other friend, Amy, myself, and our friends from this church) and he met Veronica. Two months later, Ramu came back to Brasil to visit Jeremy and to surprise Veronica on her birthday. She figured out that he was really interested in pursuing her. Veronica came to the US last year and they got married in September. They came down here last week to have the "church" ceremony and to include her family in the whole mix (his family is in Atlanta). They are having an Indian-style reception (without the religious part, since Ramu and Veronica are both Christians) in Atlanta in April.
His mom, stepdad, brother, and sister-in-law (in addition to several friends) got to come down here for the wedding, and it was so much fun. His family is definitely Indian (and all are practicing Hindus), and I was thinking about how much fun God is to have contrived such a story for 2 people from 2 different countries to get together. I also thought about how wonderful it was for his family to both get to come down here and be so supportive of the wedding. You never know how 2 cultures will mix, but their families seem to get along wonderfully and Ramu's family will definitely take care of Veronica now that she is away from her own.

Mad language skills

I have been back in country for almost 5 months and I just realized something today.
Every time I meet someone new (especially a sweet little old lady), they always tell me how great my Portuguese is. Before I even say 2 words. It makes me smile.

Happy Birthday, Rio!

Today is the anniversary of the official founding of Rio de Janeiro (the city, not the state). It was founded in 1565 by Estácio de Sá (a Portuguese knight). The city's full name is São Sebastião do Rio de Janeiro, combining the name of King Sebastian (of Portugal, of course) with the name that the first settlers gave it.
Rio was the capital of Brasil from 1763 (when it was moved from Salvador) to 1960 (when it was moved to Brasília). It was also the capital of the Portuguese empire from 1808 to 1822, when the Portuguese royal family moved to Brasil to get away from Napoleon.
Many famous Brasilians are from Rio. Can you guess any?

(Thanks to wikipedia for the info)

Blast From the Past

I went on a retreat during Carnival, and we had a "noite infantil", or kids' night. We (as in all the folks on the retreat, ranging from 17 to 35 years of age) had to come up with a costume of a cartoon that ran when we were little.

I had an excellent time and went as Betty Rubble, from the Flintstones. It was quite an easy costume to make (I bought a double sheet and cut it out), and the series ran here in Brasil, so the Brasilians knew who I was. The myriad of costumes consisted in Punky Brewster (Punky Baker here), Fred, Wilma, Pebbles, Chapolin, Chiquinha, a smurf, the Incredible Hulk (green body paint and all), Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan & Tinkerbell, well, you get the point.

Sunset Beauty

I went to see the sunset last night at Arpoador (the rock between Copacabana and Ipanema) with a friend of mine. It set behind Vidigal and Dois Irmãos. To say the very least, it was breathtaking. I have never been to a place where people applaud the sunset, but here they do (at least at Arpoador). It struck me that many of them may not even know Whom they are applauding.

Update

This last month has been a good one. We have been visiting churches and have found them all for our teams this year. We know where all the medical teams are going (unless something changes, which may happen, but we hope not). We currently have 23 teams signed up to come this year, spread over 26 weeks. We have 1 week off the in the middle of the summer and 1 week that we are going to AGM (which is still called Mission Meeting here). We have some time off from teams in May as well; our teams don't stop from the end of May to the end of October (with those 2 weeks off I mentioned).
We have a volunteer in this week, Stephanie, who is teaching some of our interpreters English. If you've met any of them, you know that they already speak very good English. So what are they learning? The more complicated nuances of English that we never think about, like phrasal verbs (put up, put on, check out, take up, give back, etc.). I am teaching another group of about 5 people who don't know tons of English but really want to learn. They're beginners in English, so I am giving the class in Portuguese. Let me tell you that I never thought I'd be doing that! It's been really good for my Portuguese, though it makes my brain tired.
Carnaval starts (officially) on Saturday, though the parties have already begun. Carnaval is, unfortunately, the only thing many people think of when they think of Brazil. It is a time of revelry and general partying (along with the parades) before Lent starts on Ash Wednesday. Many churches here take retreats away from the city of Rio during Carnaval.
Between now and the end of April, we will be getting ready for our teams to start – visiting/revisiting churches, organizing medicines, unwrapping Bibles, cutting senhas (tickets to enter the clinic), etc. I'm sure there is much more to be done.
Next month, we have tentatively planned another all-Brazilian clinic (we had one last month as well), which I am looking forward to.
Continue to pray for us as we prepare for our teams – for all of the planning that has to be done (still), for the churches we will be working in, for the areas we will be working in, the teams that are coming, and the people we will meet. We couldn't do anything without your prayers!
For He alone is worthy.

There's a novela here whose characters insert English words in the middle of their conversations. The words are being used correctly (thank goodness), but I must say it's weird to hear "hunny" and "no stress" in the midst of Portuguese.

A little drama, anyone?

Okay, so I think I am destined to have dramatic Valentine's Days. Not the good kind. Here is a run down of the dramatic ones I have had:
One year I was in the ER with a migraine.
One year I locked myself out of my house.
Today was equally dramatic, though the drama has been resolved. Any guesses on what will come next year?
Anyone else got any V-Day drama? Bring it on!!

Pictures of home

I have been here for 4 months and have just realized that I haven't put any pictures of my apartment or the area surrounding it up for anyone to see! So, here goes:

The pic on the left is of the outside door of my building. It feels a little like a dorm. The box to the right of the door is what people have to buzz to be let in if they don't have a key. I am safe. Yay! The pic on the right is the outside of my side of the building.

I love the surroundings I am in; they seem like the jungle in the midst of the city. As it happens, Rio is home to the world's largest urban forest, which I happen to live in the middle of (or actually on the edge of, but living in the middle of the woods sounds more exciting). Every once in a while I will see monkeys running around in the tops of the trees. I truly live in the midst of paradise.

Flower Power

So this is what we did yesterday afternoon. My boss went to the CADEG (again, the long drawn-out translation) and bought about 8 dozen roses. We made 3 flower arrangements like this one (mine has 3 dozen roses in it) for less than 40 bucks (yes, that's US dollars, and that's total, not each)! And, since I love fresh flowers, I have found yet another reason to love this country.

Finally

A day at the beach. I mean, an hour at the beach. It's been raining so much here since the beginning of the year. Between that and running around trying to get things prepared for our volunteers (which of course was all done on the sunny days), there hasn't been much beach-friendly time. Today finally worked out.

BAD fashion news

I'm sad to say it, but pantsuits are back. Not the great-looking two-piece suits. The onesies. For ADULTS (well, for women). Without straps, most of the time. They are all over the stores here. I thought about getting one, but I am not sure I want to become that Brasilian.

Small but wise

"Four things on earth are small, yet they are extremely wise: Ants are creatures of little strength, yet they store up their food in the summer...." (Proverbs 30:24-25)
As I walk around the school where I live, I am always absolutely amazed when I look down at the ground. I can see leaves and flower petals seemingly moving themselves along the ground. Yup, you guessed it. It's the ants. Carrying things that are 10 times their size. They work to build their homes, they work to bring their food home, yet they are so small. God made them a mighty example to us to be diligent, doing one thing at a time.
I think that our culture has been seduced by quick fixes and instant results. We must remember that even though God put His plans in motion from the beginning, they are still not done. How many years has that taken? And He's God! Why do we, who are not God, think we can get things done faster than the One who has chosen to spread the fulfillment of His plans throughout human history?
I tend to get overwhelmed at not seeing what we would call "results" of the workings of God in my own life. But then I remember the ants. They carry one leaf or petal at a time, seeming futile, but full of purpose.

Train ride

I went with my language tutor today on a train trip. We are trying to take advantage of every type of public transportation here in Rio. There are several types of trains, from the old ones with wooden benches down the sides and lots of handles hanging from the ceiling to the new "chique" (fancy) ones with cushions on the seats and an outer appearance like that of the Disney World monorail. It's really not that different from the metro (subway), because the train here is used as more of a commuter train than an actual "trip" train.
There are people who walk up and down the train selling drinks and candy, and people who sell newspapers ("to pass the time on your journey").
We went all the way out to Santa Cruz, the last stop on the train. We started at Central do Brasil, one of the most famous train stations in Brasil and the subject of a 1998 movie (Central Station, in English -- watch it to get a little touch of Brazilian culture. See info about the movie at IMDb.com). The train station is just like any train station in Europe, filled with newsstands and little food stands to buy pasteis (pastries). People are everywhere, hustling and bustling through the station on their way to bigger and better things.

Exciting news....

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows set to be released 21 July 2007. Thanks to Team Redd for the info.

One of the things I love about Brasil is its seemingly endless supply of fruit. We got up early this morning and went to the CADEG (I found out what it stands for but it's a really long, boring name to translate so I'll spare you). I bought strawberries and peaches. Being a Georgia girl myself, I couldn't pass the peaches without at least trying one. And let me tell you, it tasted just like a peach should taste.
I also tried a type of fruit I've never heard of before, called sapoti. It was kind of a cross between an apple and a pear with a strange taste (my co-workers said it was like a fig; I'll have to take their word for it).
Pineapple I might have bought; however, it is a pain to cut up. People actually use the word for pineapple when they are talking about a situation that isn't going to be worth it in the long run to get into (because the work is going to be much more than the outcome).

I can't seem to get my mind set to get anything done that I feel needs to be done -- diligent language study, diligent prayer and reading. I can accomplish things very well while I am moving, but when I stop is when I feel useless. I can always find something that needs to be done. Take today, for example. I need to go get a key made and call people and wash my strawberries and sweep the floor and make up my bed and wash dishes. But here I am in front of my computer, trying (and failing, I might add) not to be distracted while I write.

Preparing for a miracle

My friend JAX sent me a wonderful recipe for hummus yesterday. This weekend, I found a place to buy garbanzo beans (chickpeas) and sesame seeds and I tried to make some hummus. It turned out okay -- passable, edible, but not great. Here was the problem: most recipes that I've seen call for a 400-gram can of chickpeas (cooked). I BOUGHT 500 GRAMS OF DRY BEANS. Needless to say, they expanded very much when I soaked and cooked them. So, I ended up multiplying my intended amount of hummus and have tons left over.
Also, I saw a 500-gram can of tahini paste in the grocery store (that's 1 pound, folks!). WHO IN THE WORLD is going to use a pound of tahini paste? I didn't check to see how long it lasts once the can is opened. It was R$15 (about U$7). Next time I make hummus it just might be worth it.