Hello all,
Sorry about the once again very delayed update...once again I can offer no good excuse.
I`m very happy to write that there have been some great changes in my exchange since I last wrote you. The biggest one being of course that school has ended and I am now on summer break until the end of january. This has given me alot of time to pursure new activities and even make some travel plans.
I decided that with all this spare time, I should try to do something really Brazilian outside of the house. And whats more Brazilian than...Capoeira!! For those of you who have no idea what Capoeira is, it can be best discribed as an Martial Art/Dance with it`s own specific style of Music. But actually, the best way to find out what it`s like is to watch videos; there are a lot on youtube, and I am currently trying to add a few that I took to my Facebook.
Taking a Capoeira class also oppened up a unique travel opportunity for me. There will be a Capoeria show Salvador, the capital of Bahia, and a major center of Brazilian culture. My professor is taking another student, and has also offered to bring me along! Salvador has always been the first city that comes to mind when I think about traveling, so this is pretty amazing! We will be able to stay one week, enough time to fall in love with the city and not want to come back, so I`m told hahaha.
However, that good news is preceded by some....rather strange circumstances. I discovered a few weeks ago that I will need to change host familys. Dont worry! It`s nothing I did or they did; everything is fine betwen us. The reason I will have to change familys is because my current host family has a family member who lives in another city, and is in need of a place to stay for a while with thier one-year-old daughter. This is sad because I have only recently begun to feel really comfotable here and started conversing alot more with my family [especially my mom, she`s really nice!]. But I also see this is a good opportunity to get to know more people and places, and perhaps even a new city. After all, who said a student exchange is about being comfortable, right?
Thats about all of the major developments thus far. This week I have been pretty busy getting ready for Christmas; buying presents and such. I went to a Presbyterian church yesterday for a Christmas service, it was very nice, but I really miss the christmas songs we use in the states...and snow! It is SO hot here, and I`m told January gets even hotter! Anywho, thats all for now. Beijos e Abraços!
Patrick
Monday, December 22, 2008
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Oi queridos
Hello all,
Wow, this is a very neglected blog, sorry for the delayed update!
I just returned from a weekend AFS orientation in a city called Assis. It was a very good experience. There were exhange students there from: Germany [7, I believe], Hong kong [1], Greenland[1], Iceland [1], and Italy [1]. Although I was the only American and native English speaker present, English was how we communicated, aside from some portuguese with the students from Hong Kong and Italy...who I got the feeling were rather lost for the presentations. It is amazing how quickly English has spread [and is still spreading] as a second language. The orientation also gave me a chance to try Brazils very popular busing system, being that Assis is quite far from my city. And try I did...for 11 hours! Luckly I had an exchange student from our city to keep me company, and 2 counsilers on the way back.
Anywho, all is well here. My Portuguese is coming along, I`m starting to understand my classes, and I`m even taking the tests with my class! Although I doubt I will be fluent by the end of this month, as many former exchangers have told me, I feel that I have made some considerable progress. I`m also learning Futebol [soccer] at an ok pace. The problem is that no one here really practices, they just play soccer!
I had a great Churrasco [BBQ] for my birthday! We rented a little place for Churrascos and partys of the like, bought alot of meat and drinks, and invited alot of people; pictures soon to be on facbook, as soon as I get my camera back, haha.
On the sad side, my good friend that I had made moved to Campinas just this past week...and I feel his loss :[. I was going out with him and his friends just about every weekend, and now I am little in-between friends like that.
Theres not a WHOLE LOT for me to write about thats super fascinating to read about since I am simply living with a familly and experiencing thier lifestyle. However, I think I will be taking more trips to other parts of brazil in the next months [especially since I don`t have school in December or January!!] now that I am a little more independent. Alright folks, thats all for now. abraços e beijos,
Patríck
Wow, this is a very neglected blog, sorry for the delayed update!
I just returned from a weekend AFS orientation in a city called Assis. It was a very good experience. There were exhange students there from: Germany [7, I believe], Hong kong [1], Greenland[1], Iceland [1], and Italy [1]. Although I was the only American and native English speaker present, English was how we communicated, aside from some portuguese with the students from Hong Kong and Italy...who I got the feeling were rather lost for the presentations. It is amazing how quickly English has spread [and is still spreading] as a second language. The orientation also gave me a chance to try Brazils very popular busing system, being that Assis is quite far from my city. And try I did...for 11 hours! Luckly I had an exchange student from our city to keep me company, and 2 counsilers on the way back.
Anywho, all is well here. My Portuguese is coming along, I`m starting to understand my classes, and I`m even taking the tests with my class! Although I doubt I will be fluent by the end of this month, as many former exchangers have told me, I feel that I have made some considerable progress. I`m also learning Futebol [soccer] at an ok pace. The problem is that no one here really practices, they just play soccer!
I had a great Churrasco [BBQ] for my birthday! We rented a little place for Churrascos and partys of the like, bought alot of meat and drinks, and invited alot of people; pictures soon to be on facbook, as soon as I get my camera back, haha.
On the sad side, my good friend that I had made moved to Campinas just this past week...and I feel his loss :[. I was going out with him and his friends just about every weekend, and now I am little in-between friends like that.
Theres not a WHOLE LOT for me to write about thats super fascinating to read about since I am simply living with a familly and experiencing thier lifestyle. However, I think I will be taking more trips to other parts of brazil in the next months [especially since I don`t have school in December or January!!] now that I am a little more independent. Alright folks, thats all for now. abraços e beijos,
Patríck
Saturday, September 6, 2008
One month and 12 days...
...went really fast! I think this is because I haven´t adjusted to everything here, so every day feels similar in the sence that eveything is still new, if that makes sence. But to think that I really only have 11 months left scares me, it really makes me want to make the most of this opportunity.
Sorry about the delay! I will try to blog more consistantly, hahaha.
Learning a second language through emersion has made me experience some strange things. One of the most bizzare sensations is when I skip the translation process while thinking, speaking, or writing in Portuguese. By this I mean I have a thought, and am able to express it using Portuguese words before English ones. It feels like `whoa, where did that come from!?´. Unfortunatly, this dosen`t happen as frequently as I would like, haha.
My daily routine [which is pretty consistant] works like this: monday through friday I wake up at 6, do my morning bodily functions, eat, and go to school [which begins at 7]. We have 3 classes every day [which are different for every day of the week], with a short break in-between them. Our subjects [which are the same for the entire school year] are: Art History, Biology[2 classes], Math [2 classes], Portuguese, Chemistry [2 classes], Physics [2 classes], Literature, Writing, Geography, Brazilian Histor, and, of course, English. My teachers are really nice and interesting, and my peers have been very welcoming. School ends at 12:30, my host brother and I get a ride home from our friend, and my host family and I eat lunch [the main meal of the day] right when we get home. My host parents are Italian, so the food we eat for lunch has been extremly delicious....and I may have gained some weight, hahaha. After school I usually go the Clube [like a fitness center, but most people go there to either pratice sports or simply hang out], or play Soccer with the other students from my school. The more Portuguese I learn, the more I am able to get out of my classes and textbooks, so I will probably be devoting more time to studying in the future. On the weekend most people go out with friends to either a pub/resturant or a friends house for a party.
Thats all for now I guess. I have some pictures on facebook if you want to see them. Miss you all :],
Partíck.
Sorry about the delay! I will try to blog more consistantly, hahaha.
Learning a second language through emersion has made me experience some strange things. One of the most bizzare sensations is when I skip the translation process while thinking, speaking, or writing in Portuguese. By this I mean I have a thought, and am able to express it using Portuguese words before English ones. It feels like `whoa, where did that come from!?´. Unfortunatly, this dosen`t happen as frequently as I would like, haha.
My daily routine [which is pretty consistant] works like this: monday through friday I wake up at 6, do my morning bodily functions, eat, and go to school [which begins at 7]. We have 3 classes every day [which are different for every day of the week], with a short break in-between them. Our subjects [which are the same for the entire school year] are: Art History, Biology[2 classes], Math [2 classes], Portuguese, Chemistry [2 classes], Physics [2 classes], Literature, Writing, Geography, Brazilian Histor, and, of course, English. My teachers are really nice and interesting, and my peers have been very welcoming. School ends at 12:30, my host brother and I get a ride home from our friend, and my host family and I eat lunch [the main meal of the day] right when we get home. My host parents are Italian, so the food we eat for lunch has been extremly delicious....and I may have gained some weight, hahaha. After school I usually go the Clube [like a fitness center, but most people go there to either pratice sports or simply hang out], or play Soccer with the other students from my school. The more Portuguese I learn, the more I am able to get out of my classes and textbooks, so I will probably be devoting more time to studying in the future. On the weekend most people go out with friends to either a pub/resturant or a friends house for a party.
Thats all for now I guess. I have some pictures on facebook if you want to see them. Miss you all :],
Partíck.
Monday, August 4, 2008
Olá!
The first few days...have been very disorienting. Everything is soo new; I can not think straight. The flight [or flights, rather] were very long, but, thanks to the other two American AFSers, not unbearable. When we arrived in the São Paulo airport, there were tons of other AFSers from all over the world who would be in Brasil with us for the next year or semester; it was a very exciting atmosphere. Me and the other Americans thought `great, now it is time for us to look like idiots since we are the only ones here who can not speak a lick of Portuguese!´. To our suprise, no one spoke any Portuguese; what a relief! Even more to our suprise was the fact that almost everyone there [especialy those from Europe] was relatively fluent in English. My first night with my host family was amazing. I went to my first [of what I hear will be many] party followed by an amazing concert.
The food here is also amazing. My host father is Italian, and makes delicious meals [if you think you have had good lasagna, you are sadly mistaken!]. The Brazilian idea of a BBQ [churrasco] is very different from ours, and very delicious!
I had my first day of school today. I got the jist of my first 3 classes, but am still trying to figure out what my fourth class was, haha.
Well, thats all for now. I hope you all are well. I will make another post when either I get into somewhat of a routine, or I begin to speak more Portuguese [hopefully the second happens first!].
Tchau tchau,
Patríck
The food here is also amazing. My host father is Italian, and makes delicious meals [if you think you have had good lasagna, you are sadly mistaken!]. The Brazilian idea of a BBQ [churrasco] is very different from ours, and very delicious!
I had my first day of school today. I got the jist of my first 3 classes, but am still trying to figure out what my fourth class was, haha.
Well, thats all for now. I hope you all are well. I will make another post when either I get into somewhat of a routine, or I begin to speak more Portuguese [hopefully the second happens first!].
Tchau tchau,
Patríck
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