Bom dia!

It has been a nice, routine week of going to classes and doing homework without too many extra adventures going on. It’s a good feeling to be comfortable taking the bus and walking to and from my different classes. This is the building where I take my culture class in the morning and where the study abroad office is located.

One thing I’ve noticed is that Salvador is a pretty dirty place most of the time. The gutters are often clogged with trash and most neighborhoods smell faintly of urine. Thankfully, there are plenty of uniformed servicemen working on keeping things more tidy. The other day these motivated workers set about completing the important task of raking the hill across from my apartment.

Yesterday, we went to Cidade Baixa which is a more modest section of Salvador contrasting to the industry and bustle of the upper-class neighborhoods where we live and take classes. It is also the location of the Igreja do Senhor do Bonfim.

People come here to ask Senhor do Bonfim to heal them and make wishes by tying colored ribbons to plastic molds of whatever body part is ailing them and hanging it up in the church. This makes for a very spooky “wishes” room.

The colored ribbons of Senhor do Bonfim are extremely common and all over Salvador. Many people will try to sell them to you and they're available in most gift shops, but if you hang around the right places they'll be gifted to you for free. A friend is supposed to tie it to you with three knots and with each knot you make a wish. Supposedly, when it breaks your wishes will come true. Almost everyone here has one on their wrist or ankle.

That’s all for now!

Love and beijos..

Capoeira, soccer, and dancing, oh my!

Well, despite you all being really terrible at the comments game, I'm updating again. =)

The exciting news is that I think I did about every cultural activity possible in this past week. The unfortunate news is that I didn’t bring my camera to any of these events. The good news is that my camera has not been stolen.

On Tuesday, we went to a favela - or rather, a community, since favela is no longer a politically correct term - and had an introductory Capoeira class. The neighborhood is called Baixo da Égua and it seemed like a pretty classy place as far as favelas go. During the fall semester I’ll be able to teach English classes there if that’s what I decide to do. Anyway, trying to do capoeira was fun, despite failing miserably.

That night after classes, we went to a soccer game of one of the local teams. Now, I’ve been to some unruly soccer games, but this particular stadium was absolutely out of control. Almost as soon as we got there, a fight broke out among some fans and it quickly escalated into a wide-reaching brawl. The armed police merely looked on, as more people rushed to the scene. This proved to be far more entertaining than the actual match, as the beloved team of these boisterous supporters had very little actual talent. Fortunately, the opposing team was even less endowed with soccer skill, so the home team won, much to the glee of the drunken fans. Yes, soccer, the beautiful game, is an intellectual sport requiring finesse, strategy, and setting off illegal mortars after each goal.

The next day, we participated in an Afro-Brazilian dance class, which turned out to be quite a workout. This was definitely a good time, but one felt very self-conscious of one’s whiteness and lack of rhythm or ability to improvise dance moves. This insecurity was only intensified by the many pairs of eyes of local students peering into our classroom as we struggled to execute a dance sequence.

That night, we went to a Candomblé ceremony, but we arrived late so we missed the trancing at the beginning. It was still really cool to listen to the music and watch the dancing. Since it was a festival of one of the Orixás, everyone was dressed in traditional garb of the Orixás. I decided that my favorite Orixá is Oxossi, who lives in the forest with the animals and is patron of horseback riders. Fitting, right?

Yesterday, I went to the beach and then we went to the Afro-Brazilian museum which is in a really old building that was interesting in and of itself. They had some old urns there that made me feel concerned about what they did with the remains that had been inside them.

I have another essay due on Monday, and my family is preparing some delicious feijoada for lunch (it is Saturday after all) so I’m going to get back to real life in Salvador.

I love yous and miss yous. Send news.

Beijos..

I’ve been in Brazil for over a week! This is my first time successfully using Internet on my own laptop.. I’m using Wireless in the gigantic shopping mall near my house. I hope nobody mugs me on the way home.

For those of you who are already dying to send me letters, all of my mail should be directed to:

Alida Perrine the Great
C/o Jeferson Bacelar
CEAO - Centro de Estudos Afro-Orientais
Praça Inocêncio Galvão, 42 (Largo 2 de Julho)
CEP 40.060-055
Salvador - Bahia - Brasil

And for those of you who want to Google Earth my residence, I live at:

Rua Guadalajara, 07 Ap. 101
Edificio Alto da Colina
Bairro: Morro do Gato - Ondina
Salvador da Bahia
CEP 40.140.461

It’s a pretty nice apartment and we live on the first (second) floor. (You can see my bedroom window in the middle.) I have a cool family, though they mostly keep to themselves. This is my 23-year-old Brazilian sister Fernanda:

We’re drinking ginger ale… it’s very popular here.

I’ve been pretty busy so far taking part in the various cultural activities with the program on top of my intensive Portuguese and Brazilian culture classes. I just finished writing my first paper (don’t worry only 2 pages). I also founded a successful bakery.

The city life is very exciting and everything is close to the shore. I’m sure I’ll spend a lot of time at the beach during the coming year.

I think that’s all for now, dear readers. Now that I know that the wireless works here, I'll try to update more often and I'll also be able to use Skype here. (lidamonstr) All in all, I’m having a remarkable time and speaking lots of Portuguese. Do send news of yourselves.. I miss you terribly!

Beijos
Much love,

Alida

ps. Dad, I sent you a few e-mails, but I don't think you're receiving them for some reason... I'll try from my other e-mail address... I love you!