From summer to winter in just a plane ride!

Transitioning

Wow, well I guess this is going to be my last blog entry on Brazil since my time there has officially come to an end;( - I’ve been home one month already! I have to say, it has gone by pretty quickly, although re-adjusting from the height of summer to the frigid winter of Minnesota January has had its ups and downs too. It’s hard being cooped up inside so much in this cold weather and not having the warm, social lifestyle of Brazil. But I’ve been trying to enjoy the positive winter aspects while I'm here – the beautiful snow; the cozy coffee drinks by the fire; basketball; watching the winter Olympics (love this!); and walking around the frozen lake in the city (when it's above zero degrees and possible to walk outside!!)



Lake Harriet Bandshell and the frozen Lake Harriet in the distance, Minneapolis, MN

What I always find amazing coming back home after being away is how many things you notice about your own country, or see in a different light, which is one of the best reasons in itself to go abroad, I think. You really appreciate (or don’t;)) certain things about your own culture when you get back home.

One example: In Brazil you are lucky to get across the street at all without being run over by one of the many motorbikes (I had a close call with that!) or cars because they truly don’t yield to pedestrians; it’s literally the other way around! So, of course I assumed that once I got back to Minnesota, I would appreciate cars that actually stop at stop signs and lights. But now I have to say that instead I find it almost annoying how long cars will wait here for pedestrians and other cars to pass. You can be on foot at one end of the parking lot with a driver in another car at a stop sign at the opposite end, and he will still wait for you to get there and make it through the cross walk before he moves. There would be plenty of time for him to stop and go again before you get there. So why wait so long??

I mean let's look at the differences:

Traffic in Minnesota


Traffic in Sao Paulo!;)


Another thing that always drove me crazy in Brazil was how there never seemed to be any lines – people would either stand next to you and the cashier/clerks would have no idea who was next, or they would stand behind you but so close you just felt like elbowing them and getting them off your back. Or getting off a plane or bus in Brazil, everyone dashes out into the aisle to guarantee that they get off first. There’s no thought to going row by row, or helping the elderly off first. If you don’t make it into the aisle initially, good luck finding someone to stop and let you into the aisle to go ahead of them! I couldn’t believe this when I first saw it, so again I thought I would be happy to be back in the US, the land of lines, personal space and order, but upon arriving back in Atlanta from São Paulo I found myself incredibly impatient waiting for each row to slowly disembark one by one. I wanted to just get off the plane already!

Many times since I've been home, I have been in lines in Minneapolis, at a café, pharmacy, etc. and you're not even sure who is in line and who is just shopping because there is so much space between each person that you could fit 10 extra people between them! (This extreme personal space may be all the more pronounced in Minnesota, however, with our Scandanavian heritage:)), but still… This would definitely never work in Brazil, and I have to agree to an extent: Why stand so far away???? What are we afraid of? Let’s get the line moving!:)

Fying over Sao Paulo

Of course, leaving Brazil after two years definitely left me with mixed feelings. Part of me was ready to leave and the other part really wanted to stay. In Portuguese, the word "saudade" has a strong significance and is used very often when you want to say you miss something/someone or have a longing, nostalgia for something/someone. So, on the plane on the way home I was thinking about this and made a list of things I would miss and wouldn't miss (sinto saudades) about Brazil.

Here are my top 15 for both sides in no particular order:)

I will miss:

1)The kindness & warmth of certain people I met

2)Waking up to the sun & the wonderful views of São Paulo from my apt.

3)The beaches, outdoor pools & overall great, warm weather

4)Traveling to new & diverse places all the time

5)The wonderful tropical fruits & juices

6)Maracujá (passion fruit) everything – mousse de maracujá, capiroska da maracujá, etc;)

7)Nail salons (Cheap & good quality.In the U.S. it's more about primping & painting the nails, whereas in Brazil they really clean them & paint them - much better!)

8)Excellent buffet breakfasts & lunches

9)Speaking another language every day (sometimes frustrating, but fun too)

10)Working with English teachers & education in Brazil

11)Sitting outside at cafes/bars at any time of day

12)Good long distance bus service

13)Intl cuisine of Sao Paulo – especially La Tartine – French restaurant across from my apt:)

14) The shopping: street fairs & markets, amazing shoe stores, and the Camelodromos (small malls with mazes of stores selling goods for no tax(pirated) yet usually left alone by the gov. and police!:)

15)Being able to walk everywhere – restaurants, work, movie theaters

Toss up: The aiports The lines are always long & chaotic, with nothing seeming to function, yet in Brazil, when your plane departure time is getting close they call your flight and allow anyone still checking-in to move to the front of the line. The plane rarely leaves without you – a good & secure feeling!:) Plus going through security is MUCH easier in Brazil than the U.S. You can even walk through with a bottle of water, no problem. So, despite the craziness, I guess overall I thought it was a better experience than American airports.

I won’t miss:

1)The unpredictability: Never fully trusting that people will follow through with things, call you back or show up when they say they will

2)The flooded streets & sidewalks of Sao Paulo when it rains

3)The construction everywhere: Tripping on poorly maintained sidewalks or nearly falling into a hole in the street that isn’t blocked off!

4)The trash in the streets & parks

5)Feeling so alone when dealing with stressful situations– going to the doctor,the lab, hospital, Federal Police…

6)The crazy traffic, speed bumps every 2 feet & lack of signs to find your way (at least in Sao Paulo:))

7)The noise pollution – loud music, loud people, blaring advertisements from passing cars or motorcycles

8)The crime: always having to watch my belongings & be alert

9)Not being able to do anything without a CPF and Brazilian credit card!

10)Never being able to get assistance from the first person you ask, but needing to be transferred or referred to at least 3 other people before your question can be answered

11)Having to buy everything brand new – huge lack of second hand or used clothes/furniture shops

12)Waiting in huge lines at the bank, or elsewhere

13)The exhaustion of trying to deal with all the bureaucracy & red tape of real estate companies, banks, cell phone companies, airlines companies, etc. alone in a foreign language

14)The sadness of the poverty and drastic differences in economic classes

15)The lack of any order or courtesy when trying to get off planes or buses


So, that’s about it for my blog on Brazilian adventures over the past two years (at least for the time being:)). I hope you’ve enjoyed following along with my experiences. It was a fascinating two years and I’m glad I had the time there to experience the people, food, culture and history while living and working in two great cities of Brazil: Londrina and São Paulo. I will certainly miss it.

Thanks for reading!

Boa noite e boa sorte!