The Old and the New

          Homesickness is something that many exchange students deal with at some point during their year abroad. In Brasil they even have a special word just for saying that you miss something or someone, "saudade." This being said, I feel like there's a difference between feeling homesick and just missing certain things from your home country. I don't think I've really been homesick yet, because at no time have I though that being here was a mistake, and that I want to return early. This is my home for the next year, right? There have definitely been things, people, cultural habits that I miss though, and I feel like the best way to deal with these are just to accept that I miss them, and then try to think about all of the amazing new things that I have here in Brasil. So I thought why not make a blog post where I list some things that I miss, and then list some new things that I like! Here it is then, and maybe if you're an exchange student reading this you miss some of these things too!

Saudades:

• Chocolate chip cookies... I don't even eat these that often in the US, but lately I've been craving them for some reason! 
• Walking to downtown or the water. It's not as safe for girls to walk around by themselves here, and because I'm white and not fluent in Portuguese it makes it that much harder.
• My family. I think this is a given.
• My friends and my school. School is really different here, and it's all in Portuguese!
• Silence, because here there is always noise! Brazilians are generally loud people, and even when I'm in my room there are these cars with speakers that drive by blasting Brazilian radio stations. It's a type of advertising that we don't have in the US, and they always play the same songs, and it drives me nuts!
• Starbucks... yea I know, typical white girl problems, but seriously!!!
• Hugging my dad and going window-shopping downtown with my mom.
• Going to the gym with my aunt.
• Driving...!

New and Exciting:

• Food. The ever-so-superior ice cream, the fruit, the traditional Brazilian dishes like feijoada and acaraje, BRIGADEIROS which will probably make me so fat this year... but that won't stop me from eating them.
• My family here, my parents and my amazing sister who I love so so so much!
• Brazilian music and dance! Everyone here loves to teach me new dances, and everyone plays guitar perfectly. All I ever want to do anymore is listen to music and dance!
• Portuguese, which is such a gorgeous language. I'm learning faster than I thought, too.
• The way everyone acts. I know that's vague, but people are so positive and affectionate and welcoming! They greet you with an enthusiastic hug and kiss on the cheek, which I know I'll miss so much when I leave:(
• Trying new sports like muay thai, kickboxing, and volleyball.
• Water that's warm enough to swim in even in the winter. Well, the Brazilians say it's cold, but they've never swam in glacial melt-off water, now that is cold.
• All of the green! There's just as much in my state I think as there is here (being as it's called "the evergreen state" and all), but it's very different. Here the green is much brighter and tropical. It's breathtaking!
• The other exchange students. Other people going through the same things as me,  who know how I feel and face the same struggles, adventures, and accomplishments. It's nice to be able to talk with people who are sharing this new and exciting experience with me!

          So there it is! Some things that I miss, and some new things that I love. There are countless other things I could add to both lists, but those are what came to me off the top of my head. If you're an exchange student reading this, it's okay to miss stuff from back home! It's natural! Don't think that it makes you a bad exchange student, or that you shouldn't tell anyone. Just remember that for everything that you miss there, there's probably something new that you love here. The year goes by so quickly! Try as many new things as you can, because when you go home after a year, you won't regret the things that you tried, you'll regret the things that you didn't try when you had the chance. My sister told me that (she went to Germany for exchange last year), so it must be true..! For people reading this back home, I miss you. I miss the little things that you do and don't even think about. Singing in the car with my dad, hearing my aunt say she loves me on the phone, my mom's art projects on the kitchen table. And I love it here, so don't worry about me, okay? I'll see you in a year, and I'll come back with lot's of great stories to tell! Til' next time, tchau!

*The word for rain is chuva. The weather has been rain one minute and sun the next because it's spring time here. In fact, today is the first day of spring, primavera, in Brasil!

Blazer Lyfeee

          Hey, so this is going to be the most random post ever, but I'm just sitting here in my room in Brasil staring at nothing in particular--honestly just zoning out--and my rotary blazer just happens to be on the wall right in front of me. So... I guess I just thought it would be a cool idea to post a picture of my blazer every once in a while, so over the course of a year you could see it get more and more pins! I'm not sure if this will even be interesting to those of you who aren't exchange students, but maybe you'll like it. I personally love seeing other exchangers' blazers and exchanging pins with people not only from Brasil, but from all over the world!

My second day in Brasil

Two weeks

          Now before I get any further into this post, I should probably explain what the significance of an exchange student's blazer is. For those who don't know, every rotary exchange student gets a blazer to take on exchange with them, and in most countries they are navy blue. When a student first arrives in their host country, it's traditional that they wear their blazer, so their host family can find them at the airport. The blazer sort of symbolizes the student's exchange year, and it gets covered it in pins that exchange students give them from their home countries, pins that they find in you host country, pins from back home, and whatever else they can manage to attach to it! At first my blazer was pretty bare, with some pins from my club back at home and pins that my friends gave me before I left... call it the minimalist stage, haha.
          Now I have been here over two weeks, and my blazer is looking more covered already! I exchanged pins with all of the other exchange students in my district, and my host sister gave me a couple, too. I also brought pins to hand out, and so the other exchange students all have a USA pin as well. Here are some pictures of how my blazer is looking now!
          That's all for this post! I hope you all found it interesting, and I'll try to update you on how my actual life in Brasil is going soon. Until then, tchau gente! Beijos!

*If you want to sound like a real teen in Brasil, you have to learn to say oxe! when something surprises or excites you, and beleza which means cool, great, awesome etc... they all giggle when I say these words, because they're Brazilian slang, and they think it's funny when gringas (Americans) like me use them.

Sunday in Salvador

          I told you that last Sunday was incredible and deserved its own post, right? Well here it is, and I hope you're ready for some pictures! On Sunday morning, all of the intercambistas (exchange students) and rotarians met up at the dock of one of Salvador's beaches. We boarded a super adorable little tour boat, and took off through the water.
          It was one of the most gorgeous days I have ever had the pleasure to enjoy, and spending it out on the water with a bunch of Brazilians only made it that much better! The sunny was out, and the sky matched the vibrant blue of the ocean, with nearly no clouds to be seen across the whole horizon! We sat and hung out on the prow of the boat, right over the water, took pictures, listened to music, danced etc... it was a good time for everyone.

Getting ready to jump...!

          We visited two islands. To get to the first one we all jumped off the boat into the water and swam ashore. The water was not too warm, but cool and refreshing after sitting in the sun on the boat.  The water here in brazil is bright blue, and so clear that you can see the sandy bottom even after the wave pass over it. It is literally like paradise!
          At the second beach we ate a little lunch and relaxed in hammocks that were shaded by palm trees.
          The boat ride back from Salvador was much colder than any of us expected! We all were tired, so we huddled together and wrapped ourselves in our country flags to keep warm, and we took a nap. I was sad to leave the boat when we got to Salvador again, because we had to say goodbye to all of the rotarians and intercambistas that live in Salvador. We all hugged and kissed and said "Tchau, beijos" and parted ways, at least for the time being.
          Then already it was time to leave Salvador. I felt like I had just got there and met my exchange friends, and before I even had time to say hello I had to leave! We drove to the bus stop, and left Salvador and its wonderful people. It was 10:00pm when we left, and the bus ride to Itabuna took eight hours! UGHHH! When we arrived my family was waiting to welcome me, but that's
another story that I'll save for another time. Boa noite!

*The word rodoviaria is bus station, and bus stop is ponto de onibus.

Ola Brasil!

Arriving at the Salvador airport! Finally!

          Okay! Since I last posted I 1.Got my visa, 2.Flew to Brasil, and 3.Met my first host family! I think I might as well just jump in then! So I got to the airport in Salvador, and Katarine of rotary picked me up and brought me straight to this restaurant downtown where all of the district’s exchange students were having lunch. They are all super nice and in the two days that we were all together we all got so close! I already miss them so much, but hopefully I’ll see them every so often. But anyway, after lunch we went walking around Salvador, looking at this little market next to the beach, buying sorvete (ice cream) which tasted amazing! I got this flavor called graviola, which is some tropical fruit I have never heard of, but was super delicious. We heard some drumming and saw a crowd of people, so we went to have a look and guess what… it was a group of SAMBA DANCERS AND DRUMMERS. So we hung out there and danced and listened for a while. It was so cool! In Salvador samba dancing is like flamenco is to Sevilla, it’s everywhere in the streets wherever you go. As we were walking back to the bus, we stopped on this cobblestone street surrounded by tall, brightly colored buildings. A huge crowd with drummers and people holding political flags was there and they were all chanting “Dilma, Dilma, Dilma!”… and then they started cheering! we looked up, and low and behold the Brazilian president, Dilma, pops her head out of a high up window and waves to us all. What?!?!?! Guess who saw the president on her first day in Brasillll! This girl!!! As she walked through the crowd, two of the exchange students even managed to shake her hand! AHHHH!

Right: Eva from France, Center: Tiffany from USA.

          The next day we had the orientation, and that concluded with a little rotary party outside at night, which we all got dressed up for. The party turned into a huge dance, and all of the Brazilians wanted to teach us the dances to each song! They tried to teach us some partner dances, too, and one guy who I danced with was amazed when I was able to dance one of the hardest partner dances, Foho (because it had the same moves as swing dancing) so we went in the middle of the circle and everyone was watching! So fun! I told him that next time we were in Salvador I would teach him how to swing dance, and he was very excited to learn!
         On sunday we went on a boat and visited two islands, one of which we had to jump the boat and swim to. The beaches there are out of a dream, sandy with the clearest water! It was like a vacation in paradise! and we danced more on the boat ride home. That day deserves its own post, so maybe I will write more soon.
          The bus ride that night was eight hours from Salvador to Itabuna, so we arrived around six on monday morning. My host family was there, and they greeted me with hugs and kisses! I went back to their apartment--or should I say our apartment--which is very beautiful and has a great view of the city, and I had breakfast and then took a nap as my parents went to the clinic for work, and my sister to school. around noon they all returned, we ate lunch, and Tiffany (from Florida), and Annika (from Germany) came over. Later we were joined by my grandmother and my host sister Marcela’s best friend Filipe, and we played songs on guitar and sang in English, Portuguese, and even Spanish. A very nice way to end my first day in Itabuna. I love my family, and I think they love me too. Marcela is the best sister in all the world and we get along so well! She taught me a song on guitar earlier!
          Everyone here is amazed that I can speak portuguese in full sentences already, but I tell them that knowing Spanish helps me, and that I still have a long way to go. I’m so happy I can communicate, more or less! Some of the intercambistas are struggling with the language, but I know that eventually we will all get the hang of it. I should go now. If I told you everything that I want to it would take all day! I miss all of you, but I also am so happy to be here and surrounded by so many loving people who I can already call my family. So for now, Tchau! Beijos!


*The word for beach is praia. Vamos para a praia means Let's go to the beach!