Dispatches from Brasil

Moving to a New Blog

2009-07-23T17:59:00.001-03:00

Just in case some of you are still periodically checking for updates on this blog, I have switched to a new blog site at http://pinnaclesandthepedestrian.blogspot.com/.

I decided to do this since I still have a lot of material to share but I am no longer in Brazil; hence the concept of dispatches from Brazil would be dishonest. So now it's on to Pinnacles and the Pedestrian, a blog about books, travel and life. I hope you switch over and that you enjoy what you find there!

In Country: Recent Article in Time Magazine

2009-03-07T16:07:00.001-03:00

This recent article in Time magazine claims Brasil may get through the economic crisis fairly unscathed. Read the article here: http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1883301,00.html?xid=rss-topstories

In Country: Beach Time!

2009-03-06T18:16:00.005-03:00

Today is a holiday in Recife and all 2 million residents, seemingly, went to the beach. Although I am not a sun worshipper Fernando, Hope and I did go down to check out the action. This is what we saw.

Bodies, and more bodies.

Apparently Recife is renowned for shark attacks close to shore with about one per year ending up being fatal. Signs of caution like this one were liberally sprinkled around the beach.

Brasilians don't appear to care much about the warnings, however.

A lifeguard tower manned by pigeons. Surely they can fly fast enough if a great white breached, but I am not so confident about the birds' ability to handle a life preserver in the event of an emergency.
Bodies, lots of bodies. In this case, she had the body of a 30 year old and the face of a 60 year old. Brasil is the botox capital of the world, I am told.
Bodies, lots of bodies.

Vendors, lots of vendors. In this case, he was hawking plastic ponies from his forehead.
Hope drinking coconut milk.

Edigio working toward his 30th pull-up.
Stephanie, a Brasilian Obama lover.
Young bodies.
Umbrellas over bodies.
Old men.
Young boys.
Old men, young boys and vendors, lots of vendors.

What was the holiday? Known as Magna Pernamubuco, this civil holiday celebrates the Revolution Pernambuco which broke out on March 6, 1817. Also referred to as the Fathers of the Revolution, the instability caused by the Revolution Pernambuco eventually led to the independence of Brasil from Portuguese monarchical rule in 1822. Unfortunately for the leaders of the revolution when the territory of "Pernambuco declared independence from Portugal, Alagoas, Paraíba, Rio Grande do Norte and Ceará [also] adhered, the upheaval was violently crushed by Portugal, and the leaders were beheaded." http://www.v-brazil.com/information/geography/pernambuco/history.html

I wonder if all those bodies on the beach today knew some other bodies lost their heads in order to earn this holiday?

In Country: Recife Landing

2009-03-05T17:36:00.003-03:00

Last night we left Campinas and flew to Recife (pronounced hey-see-fe) which is an urban beach city of 2 million people. The flight was great but we didn't arrive at our apartment until about 3:00am. Consequently today was a foggy-minded day of orientation to a new city.

For lunch Fernando, Hope and I checked out a self serve restaurant about 1 block down from the apartment. While we were eating, a woman with a box of plants balanced on her head walked past the window. Of course I didn't have my camera with me to get you a photo, but I did buy one of her plants as a reward for her amazing feat of coordination. The plant now sits on the balcony table.

Speaking of the balcony, our apartment sits in a neighborhood of Recife called Boa Viagem. We will be here for about 3 weeks and decided an apartment with a kitchen would be better than a regular hotel. The balcony has a hammock similar to the type we used on the boat in Amazonas. Fortunately for us, the only swaying we'll be doing here is to the nice ocean breeze that blows in from the east.

If you look at a map, Recife is the closest point to Africa in South America. In fact, it's parallel with Luanda, Angola.

After dinner we went for a night walk on the beach. Hope and I chased each other while David and Fernando served as our bodyguards. Then, a warm rainshower interrupted our persecution of an albino sand crab who probably assumed the sunset would allow him a night's respite. Just when Fernando caught it in his hands the rain began in earnest. We left our prey and headed back to the apartment for dessert and coffee.

Our first day in Recife is just about over.

In Country: Summary of the World Social Forum in Belem, Brasil

2009-03-03T21:10:00.003-03:00

The following are a couple of salient excerpts from the summary. Otherwise, here is the link for you to read the whole document. It's pretty compelling and worth more of my attention than I have time to give it right now. http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=12520

"The declaration of indigenous peoples uses similar terms to those found in the ASM declaration to formulate demands for an antiracist, antipatriarchal and socialist alternative that would respect the earth mother. The crisis of the capitalist, eurocentric, patriarchal and racist development model is complete and opens onto the biggest social and environmental crisis in the history of humankind. The financial, economic and energy crisis contributes to structural unemployment, social exclusion, racist violence, machism, and religious fanaticism. So many deep and simultaneous crises spell out a genuine crisis in Western civilisation, the crisis of the ‘capitalist development and modernity’ that jeopardizes all forms of life. Yet even in such a quandary some still dream of improving this model and will not recognize that the present crisis is a product of capitalism itself, on eurocentrism with its model of a State for one nationality, of cultural homogeneity, of Western positive law, and of commodification of life."

"Lula’s political stance is close to the liberal social model of Gordon Brown in England, or of Zapatero in Spain. It mainly favours the big capitalist Brazilian companies established throughout Latin America, the powerful Brazilian agribusiness sector, the private banking system, and the big transnational corporations located in Brazil. It is a policy that promotes exports as fundamental to development, in particular the sugar cane industry with a view to producing ethanol, and transgenic soy exports. In ecological terms, however, the consequences for the last five years have been catastrophic. Since 2003, Lula’s policies have engendered deforestation in Amazonia over an area equal to that of Venezuela."

In Country: Labor Unions, the Communists and Global Economics

2009-03-01T17:55:00.006-03:00

Political protest is commonly viewed as a healthy sign in a functioning democracy. When opposition parties are allowed to assemble in public spaces and when labor unions are given voice -- and that voice is heard -- a country has self-respect is respected by other countries of the world. It is healthy for society to allow dissent, claims the purveyers of conventional wisdom.

If this is true, then I have two compelling examples that display the health and vibrancy of Brasil's democracy. One example comes in the form of a recent court ruling in favor of three labor unions.

But first some back history. As corporations around the world are struggling to deal with the global economic downturn, news of employee layoffs increase. This is the case with the world's 4th largest aircraft maker Embraer which, on February 19, announced a 20% reduction in its workforce in an attempt at dealing with declining work orders. As a result of the announced cutbacks, three labor unions representing the workers filed a collective lawsuit to stop the layoffs. Yesterday a court here in Campinas "temporarily blocked aircraft manufacturer Embraer from laying off close to 4,300 workers amid the steep global economic downturn." While the victory for the workers is not permanent, and the company will appeal the ruling, it is a good example of how labor unions work to preserve jobs in Brasil. Whether their attempts to keep jobs for workers will be successful, however, is a completely different issue!

Another example that points to the health of Brasilian democracy was a protest I witnessed in the park adjacent to our hotel in Campinas. The hotel is called Park Tower Hotel and the park is known as Largo do Para. Both sit in the central portion of the city so there is a lot of activity most every day and night. But what took place on Saturday morning was exceptional. Typically every Saturday a handful of artisans set up booths to sell their wares. This Saturday, however, a convergence of people with large red flags and a man with a loudspeaker joined the craftspeople in the square. Because of the tree cover I was unable to get a good look at the flags. Likewise because of my still-insufficient abilities with Portuguese I was unable to firmly understand what was being said on the loudspeaker. Once the protesters made their way out onto the street, though, I got some good shots of the flags and the people. And guess what? They were Communists and Socialists. Yep, the Communist party in Brasil is alive and well.

Intersindical is a leftist organization which was formed as a result of the 2002 election of President Lula. Although Lula was originally a leftist too, many critics are concerned with the right (neo-liberal) turn he has taken with regard to economic and political policies in Brasil. Hence the emergence of a new group of leftist organizations, of which Intersindical is one. Also in this new cohort of political action against the present government is the PSOL (Party Socialism and Liberty) and the PCB (Partido Comunista Brasileiro or the Brasilian Communist Party). The PCB was initially established in Brasil in 1922, shortly after the 1917 Revolution in Russia. And, although it has undergone extensive revision in the past 75 years, it is still adherent to Marxist-Leninist ideology. This may explain the hammer and sickle on the flag below. Overall, these groups are comprised of "workers, landless activists and youth from all over the country" who are increasingly dissatisfied with Lula Administration policies, according to a SocialistWorld.net article from July 2008.

The crowds were small and fairly sanguine as they marched through the main thorough fares of Campinas. Indeed there was an absence of militancy or aggression amongst the protesters but they were protesters of a type never seen on the streets of American cities. After all, when was the last time you saw the Communists marching in broad daylight in Sacramento?

In conclusion, if this were the only measure by which a society were judged, then I would say that Brasil's democracy is healthier than the United States' simply by virtue of the political protests on display.

In Country: The Interregnum Is Almost Over

2009-03-01T17:26:00.002-03:00

You may have noticed my silence lately. I have been engaged in a blogging interregnum. However, this little break in the blogging action is almost over because on Wednesday David, Hope, Fernando and I hit the road again, this time heading for the northeast city of Recife.

In the past few days I have been doing a lot of reading, due in part to access to the books I had stashed at Jocelyn's house as well as the books in English I have been able to pick up at bookstores in Campinas. The long reading drought has mercifully ended! So, the following is a list of books and articles I have been working on lately. The only one that is not related to Brasil is the novel by Nadine Gordimer, which is set in South Africa, but is still a really good read.

Andrews, George Reid. Afro-Latin America 1800-2000. New York: Oxford University Press, 2004.

Bandeira Beato, Lucila. “Inequality and Human Rights of African Descendants in Brazil.” Journal of Black Studies, Vol 34, No 6, July 2004, pp 766-786.

Bartlett, Lesley. “Human Capital or Human Connections?: The Cultural Meanings of Education in Brazil.” Teachers College Record Volume 109, Number 7, July 2007, pp 1613-1636.

Bianchi, Alvaro and Ruy Braga. “Brazil: The Lula Government and Financial Globalization.” Social Forces, Vol. 83, No. 4 (Jun., 2005), pp. 1745-1762.

Borges, Dain. “’Puffy, Ugly, Slothful and Inert’: Degeneration in Brazilian Social Thought, 1880-1940.” Journal of Latin American Studies, Vol 25, No 2 (May 1993), pp 235-256.

Butler, Kim D. Freedoms Given, Freedoms Won: Afro-Brazilians in Post-Abolition Sao Paulo and Salvador. New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press, 1998.

Gordimer, Nadine. My Son’s Story. London: Penguin Books, 1990.

Haynes, C. Vance, Jr. et al. “Dating a Paleoindian Site in the Amazon in Comparison with Clovis Culture.” Science Magazine. Vol. 275. no. 5308, pp. 1948 - 1952

Mann, Charles C. “1491.” The Atlantic Monthly. Digital Edition. March 2002.

Scudamore, James. Heliopolis. London: Harvill Secker, 2009.

Shohat, Ella and Robert Stam. “Formations of Colonialist Discourse.” Unthinking Eurocentrism: Multiculturalism and the Media. London: Routledge, 1994, pp 55-70.

Stengel, Marc K. “The Diffusionists Have Landed.” The Atlantic Monthly. Digital Edition. January 2000.

Walker, Robert. “Mapping Process to Pattern in the Landscape Change of the Amazonian Frontier.” Annals of the Association of American Geographers, Vol 93, No 2 (June 2003), pp 376-398.

In Country: Lula, Obama and the Economics of Global Crisis

2009-02-24T17:42:00.007-03:00

One morning while floating down the Amazon River I awoke to some noise. Perhaps it was the boat's crewmen yelling nearby, or maybe it was the ubiquitous music playing loudly from the captain's pilot house. I will never know the true reason but wake I did. And when I peered out into the Amazon sunrise I realized that another second spent with my eyes shut was too long in this heartwrenchingly beautiful place. So I jumped up, grabbed my camera and headed toward the action.

Many times while headed down river, smaller lanches (Brasilian fast boats) or even the larger slow boats would appear seemingly from out of nowhere to deposit or pick up passengers. Thus was the action on this particular morning and watching it was an early morning delight. The unison with which each boat's pilot navigates in parallel is akin to watching water ballet. Each dancer knows his part (yes, it is always a "he") and performs it with the ease of many years practice. Usually along with a passenger or two, other items would be transferred between boats as well. Suitcases, boxes of food, and bundles of household belongings traveled between boats in synchronized fashion while crewmen yelled and whistled instructions. Frequently, if the connecting boat was large enough, vendors would hawk their wares while the two boats collaborated. So it would not be uncommon to see queijo (cheese), pao (bread), or dulce (sweet treats) transacted in the exchange: hands reaching for loved ones, for cheese, for coins or to maintain the delicate space between boats.

After the boats separated and ours resumed its course, I stayed on the deck adjacent to the pilot's cabin. The breeze was pleasant and the boat stayed close enough to the river bank that I could get some good photos. All the while the captain played music, notably at this moment The BeeGees' hit song "Night Fever". Remember that one? If you don't, it means you were born after Jimmy Carter was president. Perhaps it's just me and the incessant flashbacks to my early teen years that hearing this music caused, but there seemed to be some irony on our floating dance machine. "Then I get night fever, night fever. We know how to do it. Gimme that night fever, night fever. We know how to show it."

Imagine that. I am gliding past riverine jungle territory which houses tribes of uncontacted people who have never heard American pop music while listening to the pathetic lyrics of The BeeGees. The juxtaposition of 70s dance music to jungle inhabitants who don't know any kind of night fever except the type borne on insect's wings is rather jarring. Indeed these uncontacted tribes don't know who Lula (the president of Brasil) is, or who Obama (dare I say the new president of the U.S.?) is, or Merrill Lynch, Lehman Brothers, AIG, Tim Geithner, or any other "news maker" in the world right now. And yet, what the news makers make, what the news makers do and how the news makers do it will have a profound impact on the people and the place of Amazonia.

This, then, is my early morning realization. While the Gibb brothers proclaim "Night fever, night fever", the unceasing grind of government policies and corporate practices continue to decimate and destroy the habitat of the most isolated humans on the planet. Meanwhile, people of Amazonia are doing what they have done for millennia: cultivate the land, in order to adapt and negotiate with their environment in pursuit of survival.

What is different now from pre-contact realities is the relationship the people of Amazonia have with outsiders. To ignore the outside is to re-enforce cultural continuity and cultural preservation. Yet ignoring outsiders also points to cultural destruction, as outside forces operate outside the interests of the community in their ceaseless quest for money and power.

The dialectic remains, however, because to engage with the outside also suggests cultural destruction, as evidenced by the exploitation of multinationals like Shell and Cargill on individual farmers. Finally engagement with the outside also, to some extent, serves to protect cultural traditions particularly when local activists hold the line against corporate practices.

This, then, is the tension pushing and pulling on the people of Amazonia, a tension that ebbs and flows like the waters at the bank of the river on which they rely.

In Country: Superlatives

2009-02-24T13:06:00.002-03:00

Now that I have rested up a bit, and since I am about halfway through this trip, I wanted to post a list of superlatives: the best and the worst, so far. In no particular order, here they are.

Best pousada/hotel breakfast: San Juan Charm in Curitiba

Best beach: Ilha do Mel

Worst beach: Superagui (the dog poop didn't help)

Best limonada: some hole-in-the-wall place across from Praca de Republica in Sao Paulo

Best shopping mall food court (ugh, I can't believe I am even acknowledging this!): Dom Pedro Shopping in Campinas

Worst pizza: some hole-in-the-wall place in Santarem (the food poisoning was a factor)

Best airport: Belem (which was helpful because we had to spend 9 hours in it between flights)

Smallest airport: Santarem (which reminded me of places my dad used to fly the family into when I was a kid)

Best home cooked food away from Jocelyn's house: Carlos and Cesar's house in Monte Alegre

Most embarrassing moment: standing in the line for pregnant women while at the store in Campinas (caixa preferencial)

Most amazing thunder and lightening storm: last night while exercising in the hotel's rooftop gym

Worst laundry experience: when we paid the equivalent of about $90 US to a hotel worker in Belo Horizonte when we could have done it ourselves for less than $20 US

Best 4-wheel drive experience: in Carlos' truck on the way to the caves

Wildest boat ride: from Paranagua to Ilha do Mel (turning around in the storm to pick up the stray life vest didn't help)

Longest boat ride: swaying with strangers between Manaus and Santarem

In Country: Amazonia Melancholia

2009-02-24T12:30:00.002-03:00

After spending nearly 24 hours via taxi, bus, and plane traveling from the jungle back to civilization, we have arrived in Campinas for rejuvenation. In short, the Amazon took a lot out of us and we are just recovering.

As hard as it was on us physically, Amazonia is remarkably appealing. There are layers to the region: it is both water and land, hard realities and lofty spirits, people and nature. Having been there for about two weeks I can declare that I am in love with Amazonia. Its river and rainforest, its people and problems.

Amazonia is neither romanticized Eden nor metaphorized Hell. Amazonia is.

Beyond any label, out of reach of every mental compartment. Amazonia is.

Larger than national boundaries and before words validated history, when rocks were the pen and the canvas upon which the story of human experience was recorded, Amazonia was and is and will be.

It is like a person who is hard to make friends with, closed and barricaded from emotion. Amazonia will let you in but you must come on its terms. You must conform. It is unforgiving. Yet if you persevere, the friendship will be rewarding because great beauty can be found there.

Although Amazonia is very old, it is always renewing itself. This makes it seem young and tempting, like a woman with a new lover. Humans may pollute the downstream channels but the headwaters -- high up in the Andes -- continually pour out new, clean waters which flow down any of its 1100 tributaries. Amazonia knows how to rejuvenate itself without leaving itself.

I, on the other hand, do not. Hence I had to depart and now, separated from my new love, I have Amazonia Melancholia.

In Country: Global Economic Downturn Effects Brasil Too

2009-02-20T10:35:00.002-03:00

In the past two months, Brasil has lost 750,000 jobs as a result of the global economic crisis. And these are just the "formal" jobs registered with the federal government. Since many millions of people in Brasil work in unregistered jobs, we will never know the real impact of the economic slowdown. Informal jobs include street vendors selling pirated DVDs, beer, fruit and vegetables, and myriad other economic transactions that the government does not know about and views as illegal. While many here in Brasil don't even realize there is a global crisis (probably because life was hard even when the rich were flush with cash), the cloud gathering overhead suggests worse times are on the horizon.

In Country: Pessoas, Pintadas e Palavras

2009-02-16T10:51:00.006-03:00

As it is spoken in Brasil, the Portuguese language is lyrical and lovely. Although similar to European Portuguese (EP), there are some distinct differences in spelling, lexicon and grammar. This has to do with indigenous, African and British colonial influences upon the spoken word. Portuguese colonists may have brought the language to Brasil, but earlier inhabitants and other immigrants changed it into the unique language that it is today. Furthermore, although Brasil is the only country in the Western Hemisphere which speaks Portuguese, its historical relations with Britain and its close proximity to the United States probably explain why Brasilian Portuguese (BP) has absorbed considerably more words in the English language than EP. Take, for example, the English word "bus." In BP it is ônibus, or more commonly, unibus. Yet in Portugal it is autocarro. Another transportation-related example can be found in the English word "train." In BP it is trem, but in EP it is comboio.

In some ways it might be worth considering the language as representing points on a continuum. Going back in time, one could start with the painted pictures in the caves at Pedra Pintada. Although we may not always know exactly what the earliest human inhabitants were saying, we know without question that their pictures are saying something to us. Our inability to interpret their picture words with any certainty is analogous to some of my conversations with Brasilians today. Because of my inability to de-code the language, it's auditory gibberish to me. Likewise with the pictures painted on the rocks by our Pleistocene brethren. In our 21st century inability to de-code the images, those 12,000 year old pictures are visual gibberish to us. We can guess what they are trying to tell us, just as I guess when Brasilians speak with me on the street, but often it is just that: a guess.

Moving forward through time, the Tupi people emerge as a distinct culture with a distinct language in the region. Actually there are hundreds of dialects of the Tupi language, some now extinct but some still persisting in the face of genocide and modernization. Perhaps the people who made the ceramics and funerary urns c. 5000 BCE spoke an early derivation of Tupi. It's likely.

With some imagination one can visualize Tupi men sharping stone blades and carving wooden statues, with hushed voices discussing crops, rain, and women as they labored late into the night. Likewise the women, working the dampened earth with their hands and shaping the earth into ceramic urns, would work as they discussed food, their children and men. Sometimes the women might break into laughter at a particularly funny story one told of a man, but the hands would continue to kneed the clay and the words would continue to ebb through the task. All this in a language which we will never hear but which we can catch a glimpse into by looking at the objects those men and women left behind.

Fast forward again to the first Europeans who washed up on Brasilian shores. They brought with them other languages, more words than the Tupi could have ever imagined along with weapons superior to the stone tools which had been in use for thousands of years. But, as with the confluence of rivers which may run side by side for miles without mixing but then ultimately do, there was a cross fertilization of words, ideas and labors between the Tupi and their interlocutors. For several decades in the 16th century the two civilizations inhabited parallel lives, human rivers which flowed side by side but seldom mixed. Eventually, though, the Tupi learned European words and European weaponry. So, too, did the Europeans learn Tupi words and Tupi foods. The rivers merged to form a new language, sprinkled with Portuguese, English, Spanish and the words of the newest arrivals, the unlucky people from Angola and the Gold Coast of Africa. It is not a pure Tupi, nor is it a pure Portuguese that is spoken in Brasil. Too many other rivers have met at this confluence.

With the speed of light on our journey through language we move forward into the 21st century. Techology once again changes the method and the medium of communication. An ironic example can be found during my excursion into the jungle to visit the cave paintings. Several times our guide, Nelsi, received calls on his cell phone. So there I am studying 12,000 year old paintings -- the only communication we have in a one-way conversation with our Pleistocene forefathers-- and my guide is talking on his cell phone. The beauty of the moment may be beyond words. Yet that is what we have: communication. Whether in pictures or words, whether ancient or recent, whether by petroglyph or cell phone, the most profound element to being human is our ability to communicate.

In Country: Pedra Pintada

2009-02-15T17:51:00.014-03:00

Our goal for traveling to Monte Alegre was to meet up with a guide and a driver who would take us to visit a series of caves in the region. Excavated over a span of three years by the prominent archaeologist Anna C. Roosevelt, the caves are significant because they contain the "oldest firmly dated examples of art in the Western Hemisphere" (Wilford). Roosevelt lived in Monte Alegre while she worked at Caverna da Pedra Pintada (Cave of the Painted Rock), the most well-known of the four caves we visited.

Early Friday morning we met our guide and his driver, Nesli and Carlos, who picked us up in a sturdy green diesel 4-wheel Toyota pick up. The trip to the caves took about an hour and consisted of driving along dirt and sand tracks through the jungle.

A couple of times we saw evidence of deforestation, in the form of recently burned tracts of land adjacent to an individual farmer's thatched roof house. It was clear that the land was being cleared either for crops such as corn or soy, or to make room for the ubiquitous herds of cow (and in this case, water buffalo) that we encountered several times along the way.

We also saw evidence of human intervention with the landscape. Notice the rectangular shape carved out of the jungle in the middle of this photo frame. While not as noticeable when on the ground, this view from a rocky outcrop above the jungle canopy vividly displays the ways in which humans manipulate the land to meet human needs. It's this last point that Roosevelt postulates so controversively as a result of her excavation at Pedra Pintada. In a 2000 interview with the Society for California Archaeology, she claims that "indigenous peoples have access to the knowledge that their interaction with environments is a kind of co-evolution . . . People adapt to environments but they also change them. There are no virgin environments on earth in areas where people lived." If Roosevelt's theory is correct, then the popular idea that the Americas -- north and south -- were pristine wildernesses prior to European colonization is merely Euro-centric mythmaking. This makes Roosevelt a diffusionist of the first order.

But Roosevelt's challenge to conventional thinking about pre-contact land use does not stop here. She also claims that the indigenous people of the Lower Amazon basin were interacting with the very ground on which they walked. In other words, the people were performing a complicated gardening technique whereby they were creating a unique type of soil known as terra preta (black earth). Perhaps the best way to describe her idea is to consider the backyard compost pile. By adding coffee grounds, egg shells and other organic matter to the ground in your own backyard, you can create a new soil which is full of nutrients and very fertile. This rich, new soil can be added to your garden to enhance plant growth. In short, it's a home grown fertilizer.

This, then, is what Roosevelt claims the people of this region were doing: terraforming their environment to enhance a naturally weak and unstable jungle soil in order to maximize cultivation. And her evidence is compelling. Throughout most of Brasil we have encountered red earth. Indeed the road on which we traveled was mostly red, as evidenced by the photo with the water buffaloes. However when we arrived in the vicinity of the caves where the earliest inhabitants lived, the soil changed. It was black, loose and seemingly very fertile. The ground was unlike any I have seen in any other part of this region or the country, for that matter.

So, who were the people of Pedra Pintada? Based on the Carbon 14 dating of the objects excavated at the caves, the people definitively lived here between 10,500 - 10,300 BCE. It is likely that they were here before and after those dates too, but the science pegs the material record to this 300 year range. According to Roosevelt, they "gathered nuts and fruits, fished and collected shellfish, turtles, tortoises, and frogs and caught small animals, not big game." This point, too, is important. Traditionally, mainstream archaeology claims that the Clovis model (big game hunters who lived about 11,000 years ago) were the only human inhabitants of the Americas. Yet the evidence from this region refutes this theory. In the words of Roosevelt, Pedra Pintada "showed a different and somewhat unexpected type of terminal Pleistocene culture" which was a "much more heterogeneous Paleoindian culture than envisioned in the Clovis model." Apparently the inhabitants were seasonal residents who used the caves for cooking meals, sharpening stones, sorting seeds and painting their world view. Rather than being the descendants of Clovis "they were contemporaries, with their own distinctive stone technology and art and a foraging way of life suited to their forest and riverine habitat" (Wilford). Some of the paintings they made are of clearly recognizeable shapes: birds, people, fish. Obviously they depicted the every day objects of the world in which they lived. Other images are zoomorphic and other worldly, with likely spiritual meanings and originations.

Nelsi, our guide, suggested that the image above is a calendar. It contains 51 boxes, which roughly corresponds to weeks of the year. On the rock adjacent to this image is the photo above it, which Nelsi claims depicts 9 planets and a shooting star. The human form to the left of the constellation is a woman giving birth. There were several child birthing images at three of the four cave sites. This suggests to me the importance of a woman's role in ensuring the survival of the species.

David, field lecturing on the attributes of Pleistocene art.

Maureen, sweaty and happy in the jungle.

Nelsi, our guide. Apparently he was the one who brought Anna Roosevelt to the caves when she first arrived in the region in 1991.

Sources:

Wilford, John Noble. "Scientist at Work: Anna C. Roosevelt; Sharp and To the Point In Amazonia." New York Times. April 23, 1996. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E07EFD91F39F930A15757C0A960958260&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=1

Interview with Anna C. Roosevelt, 2000. Society for California Archaeology. http://scahome.org/about_ca_archaeology/2000_Roosevelt.html

In Country: Swaying with Strangers

2009-02-15T16:42:00.007-03:00

You have probably heard of swinging with strangers, but our most recent experience takes that term to a new level. What, you might ask, is swaying with strangers? Basically it entails stringing up a hammock in the belly of a boat while floating down the mighty Amazonas River. The hammocks are strung quite close together and create a lovely mosaic pattern of colors and shapes. And, if you are really lucky, you might enjoy having a complete stranger kick you in the head free of charge. Tudo bem.

And so, swaying with strangers is what David, Hope, Fernando and I did on Thursday afternoon. We purchased three hammocks from the street market in Santarem before catching a medium sized boat headed east down the river. For about 6 hours we swayed in our hammocks as the boat sailed past isolated fishing villages and low lying riverine terrain before arriving at our destination, Monte Alegre (population 30,000).

This small city on the north bank of the Amazonas River sits adjacent to a geologic anomaly in the Lower Amazon basin. While most of the region is flat and rests at sea level, the area of Monte Alegre is relatively mountainous. Indeed, monte in Portuguese, Spanish and Italian refers to the word mountain and thus suggests the modest elevation gain of up to 350 meters around Serra Itauaiuri, its highest mountain.

It's probably also worth noting that the word alegre typically means happy. So after swaying with strangers we safely reached happy mountain.

In Country: Plan B

2009-02-11T21:09:00.006-02:00

This morning dawned hot, humid and booming with thunder showers. As a result we dropped our plans for a jungle excursion this morning, which gave Hope and I time to identify verbs from Steinbeck's Mice and Men. Hence today's activities represent Plan B, which later in the afternoon consisted of Fernando and I walking around Santarem while David and Hope took a nap.

Since we arrived in the Amazon last week, I have been trying to comprehend the enormity of this place and what it means to Brasil and the world. Obviously people spend their lives here and don't have a complete picture of its importance, so how could I possibly grasp it in just a handful of days? That said, in the brief time I have been here I have come up with a short list of what I think are the fundamental issues in the Amazon. In no particular order they are deforestation, oil extraction, the loss of traditional cultures, and environmental degradation.

Deforestation takes two forms in the Amazon. According to Robert Walker, deforestation occurs first at the individual level. A farmer cuts down the forest in order to plant crops for subsistence production that ensures his family's food security. This is the most basic level and has been occuring for thousands of years (Walker 377). William Balee, a Tulane University anthropologist suggests that "about 12% of the non-flooded Amazon forest was of anthropogenic origin - directly or indirectly created by human beings" (Mann 52). In other words, humans have been cultivating the forest for a very long time as a means of survival. Thus the individual farmer's cultivation of forest land is a very old and well established practice.

However, as market forces (commonly known as globalization) have penetrated Brasil that forest survival takes on new meaning and leads to the second level of deforestation. In this instance, multinational corporations (such as Cargill here in Santarem) encourage farmers to shift their cultivation practices from subsistence to commercial production. Typically this requires the farmer who once cultivated multiple crops to focus on a single plant species, a practice usually known as monoculture. In Santarem this explains the heavy reliance on soy and the shift away from jute, rubber and other agricultural products in the past 10 years.

According to Walker, however, the individual farmers and the multinational corporations are not the only players in this deforestation game. There are also loggers, gold miners and government bureaucrats who have a hand in the environmental changes taking place in the Amazon today. Farmers practice "invasive forest mobility" whereby they "follow loggers into newly opened forests" in an effort to put more newly deforested land into monoculture cultivation (Walker 378). More crops mean more money for the individual farmer. Furthermore, "80% of timber production from Amazonia comes from illegal logging" which suggests the blind eye bureaucrats must turn in exchange for cash to allow the practice to continue (Almanaque Brasil Socioambiental 2008).

There is another important aspect to the deforestation problem. As multinational corporations with all of their financial muscle acquire more land holdings in a region they force individual farmers off their land. These newly landless individual farmers become migrants who move into unclaimed -- and typically old growth -- portions of the forest in search of new lands to cultivate (Walker 378). The end result: more deforestation of the rainforest in an apparently endless cycle of cutting and cultivation, cutting and cultivation in the quest for the ever allusive dollar.

The second important issue on the list has to do with oil extraction. This is not a phenomena taking place in the lower Amazon. Rather it is occuring in the borderland region between Brasil and Ecuador. While I have not done too much research on it yet, I do know there is a legal battle being waged between the indigenous people and Texaco (Shell) http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=94751411. A significant portion of the complaint the people have against Texaco is due to the impact oil extraction is having on traditional cultures and the consequent environmental degradation to the people and the land.

With regard to environmental degradation, there appear to be two types taking place on the river in the lower Amazon region. On the one hand, people along the Amazon realize that this river is special and worth preserving. On the other, the boats that serve as buses transporting thousands of people each week up and down the river dump their untreated toilet waste directly into the river. Yes. I saw it with my own two eyes. In addition, as we were underway on the river, individuals would casually toss their soda and beer cans into the river. Indeed the banks and beaches of the river are strewn with cans, bottles and plastic bags, along with the occasional sleeping pigs.

Furthermore, the sewer system is not very well developed here in Santarem or much of the Amazon region. Open sewer channels, known as open tubulation, run parallel to most sidewalks in town. Unfortunately their contents also flow directly into the river.

Lest one think that this photo depicts an isolated incident here is evidence to the contrary. According to an official government website,
"the North region of Brazil, principally the Amazon, presents the worst level of services of sanitation and infrastructure in the country, where only 2.4% of the houses have a sewer service and 13% access to water treatment. The infrastructure of Santarém is precarious for many neighborhoods, especially on the peripheral, outskirts of the city. Roughly 50% of the city’s residents have water treatment access and only 8% sewer service" (Santarém Municipality Website, 2007, page 3). Rather than being a rare event, this type of sewer drainage into the Amazon River is the norm. Hence the two part pollution problem: individuals and government both contribute to the environmental degradation of this amazing natural resource.

As I suggested earlier, the enormity of this place is almost incomprehensible. Yet, there are some know-able aspects to life in the Amazon. It is beautiful here, yet human agency seems to be engaged in a daily act of environmental destruction. It is valuable here, yet market forces seem to be pushing individuals to sell out rather than preserve its value.

Sources:

LOCALE CASE STUDIES: Santarém, Brazil. http://transact.marketumbrella.org/uploads/Brazil%20Research%20Files/trans%E2%80%A2act%20Final%20G-b%20Locale%20Case%20Study%20-%20Brazil.pdf

Mann, Charles C. “1491.” The Atlantic Monthly. Digital Edition. March 2002.

Walker, Robert. “Mapping Process to Pattern in the Landscape Change of the Amazonian Frontier.” Annals of the Association of American Geographers, Vol 93, No 2 (June 2003), pp 376-398.

Almanaque Brasil Socioambiental 2008. http://www.socioambiental.org/amazon/?q=amazon/history

In Country: Scenes from the Amazonas, Solimoes and Tapajos Rivers

2009-02-11T10:10:00.006-02:00

Looking back I realize I did not post any pictures of our boat trip down the river. The following is a sample of some of the 300 photos I took on while on the Amazonas.

Under an Amazon sky

Contrary to North American stereotypes of steep mountainous jungles tangling down to the river's bank (which is the case in the Andes), the Amazon basin here in Brasil is surprisingly flat. According to recent NASA satellite imagery, geographers have determined that the Amazon is 4,250 miles long. In addition most of the 2,900 miles that are located inside Brasil are at sea level, thereby making the landscape very flat. As a result there is a startling sameness to the sky, water and land.

Creative carrying capacity was on display in the harbor in Manaus. Note the bicycle, refrigerator and stove on this small lanche (motor boat), and the amazing ability of the men to heft huge items around like this guy carrying a full size refrigerator on his head!

A boat crewman waiting for passengers.

These boats are used like buses on the Amazon. Indeed, there are no roads that go from Manaus to Belem so the only way to get from the interior to the coast is by air or by boat. Hence the river functions as a roadway network. Typically the overnight boats are comprised of three decks. Locals string up their hammocks in the middle decks and sleep swinging in a common area that can be very crowded.

Hope, assessing the life boat capacity on our boat.

Cooks, waiting for departure.

At the juncture of the Solimoes and Negro Rivers, the waters come together but do not mix. The Solimoes is muddy brown while the Negro is black, hence its name. Where they meet the waters swirl together in interesting shapes that look a lot like coffee con leite (coffee with milk).

And always the river and the sky.

Wildlife at the dock in Santarem

In Country: Santarem and the Museum of Amazing Artifacts

2009-02-10T21:08:00.009-02:00

This morning after breakfast Hope, Fernando and I headed out on foot to visit the Museu de Santarem. Housed in a yellow 19th century colonial building, this museum was free of charge and delightfully informal. We were met at the entrance by a young woman whose name was barely pronounce-able to me and, unfortunately, I forgot to it write down.

The building originally served as Santarem's version of the county courthouse, complete with the judge's chambers and a jail. Each room was separate and centered around a courtyard in the middle. The chamber that was most compelling to me contained indigenous artifacts including funerary urns, blow dart weapons, clubs, zoomorphic ceramics, arrowheads and other stone tools. Our guide claimed most of the stone and ceramic objects to be about 6,000 years old. The other articles including the war club are less than 100 years old. Unfortunately there was no provenance information on any of the articles aside from a brief plate identifying Santarem as the location. Regardless of the dearth of information, the exhibit was an incredible "find". In less than one hour I took about 100 photos. If, in this analogy, items can replace words then the objects presented here are haiku.

What's really interesting about these objects is that it appears very little research has been done on them. I was able to find references to only one book (in Portuguese) written in 2002 by an academic at the University of Sao Paulo and one master's thesis (in English) written in 1952 by a student in the U.S. Clearly lower Amazonian-region ceramics are a topic ripe for more research.

So, who were the people likely to have created these objects? Most accounts claim that the original inhabitants of this region were the Tupaius (now known as Tapajoas, like the river). Probably because of its convenient location at the juncture of two massive rivers, the Tupaius people settled a village here. It may have been a seasonal settlement or it may have been permanent one. Although no one questions its antiquity, there is a huge controversy in archaeological and anthropological circles right now about the type of settlement that formed here. Traditionally scholars have thought that the soils of the Amazon were too fragile to sustain anything more than mobile and small-sized hunter/gatherer communities. The main advocate for this line of thinking is a woman named Betty Meggers who has done quite a bit of research in this region as well as on an island closer to Belem. The scholars who identify with Meggers' theory are known as inventionists, and are generally considered mainstream academics. The basic idea behind their theory is that the peopling of the Americas occured gradually between 10,000 BCE (Before Common Era) - 3,000 BCE as a result of migrants walking across the frozen ice sheets between Siberia and Alaska during the last Ice Age. Anyone who has studied anthropology in the last 100 years has been taught this theory of human migration. The inventionists claim that the peopling of South America took place later than the peopling of North America simply because it took about 7,000 years for the migrants to move this far south.

On the other side of the controversy are the diffusionists. They are academics who are considered outside the mainstream because their ideas are not in line with the traditional theories about human migration. The diffusionists suggest that there may have been intentional contact between Pacific and Atlantic civilizations between 7,000-3,000 BCE. Basically diffusionists challenge traditional ideas about how and when the Americas (particularly South America) were peopled. One of the more prominent academics who could be called a diffusionist and who works in this region is Anna Roosevelt (yes, a distant relative of the two U.S. presidents). About 10 years ago she discovered petroglyphs in some caves across the river from Santarem. After performing over 50 carbon-14 dating tests on the paintings and other objects found there, she determined that humans inhabited this region as early as 10,000 BCE. Clearly this discovery throws the traditional theories on their ear.

Another important element about Roosevelt's discoveries at Caverna da Pedra Pintada has to do with the type of society the diffusionists believe early South Americans constructed. In short, Roosevelt postulates that the social formation consisted of "large, proto-state . . . interfluve forest societies" (Nugent). They weren't mobile, nor were they small according to Roosevelt. This, then, leads to another controversy about the type of soil in the region and the soil's ability to sustain a large-scale community.

While there are more questions than answers about the people who inhabited this part of the lower Amazon, one thing is for sure. The controversy about human migration, points of contact between civilizations, social formation and soil stability point to a redefining of our understanding of pre-historic America. In short, the story has not been fully told.

Most of the information on this topic can be found at http://www.theatlantic.com/issues/2000/01/001stengel.htm , http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200203/mann , and http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/275/5308/1948 .

The citation came from Nugent, Stephan. "The Amazon on Display: Unknown Amazon: Culture in Nature in Ancient Brazil." British Museum exhibit. June 2002. Anthropology Today. Vol 18, No 3, pp 21-22.

In Country: Pink Dolphins

2009-02-09T18:02:00.003-02:00

One of the creatures we caught a glimpse of while on the boat headed down river from Manaus was the Pink River Dolphin. The locals call it boto but it has several other names including its scientific name, Inia geoffrensis. Unfortunately the one I saw leaping out of the water was small and quick, and I was unable to get a photo of it.

The Pink River Dolphin likes to hang around near the river bank rather than swim in the center of the river, which makes them accessible to humans. Unfortunately there is evidence that fishermen in the region kill them because the fishermen perceive the dolphin as competition. Apparently the dolphin eats more than 40 different species of fish, along with crabs and other river animals. They are known for arching their neck in interesting directions as they feed among the roots of the flooded forest trees. They are a freshwater species.

When not killed by locals, the Pink River Dolphin can live up to 30 years. However because of pollution, the consequences of river dams and being killed for bait they have been listed as Vulnerable by the 2000 IUCN Red List.

The following is a National Geographic video. I did not take this video footage. http://video.nationalgeographic.com/video/player/kids/animals-pets-kids/mammals-kids/pink-river-dolphin-kids.html

A book from the Los Rios catalog:
Montgomery, Sy. Journey of the Pink Dolphins : An Amazon Quest. New York : Simon & Schuster, 2000.

And some other sources:
http://www.iucnredlist.org/details/10831

http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/wildfacts/factfiles/62.shtml

And if you are really into it you can "volunteer" with Global Vision International for 2-4 weeks on the Amazon studying the Pink River Dolphin: http://www.gviusa.com/projects/south-america/brazil/volunteer-pink-river-dolphins-project-brazil/home

In Country: Resources on This Part of the Amazon

2009-02-09T16:52:00.002-02:00

All afternoon I have been thinking about the impact of Cargill and the soy industry on this region. Perhaps these musings of mine partly contain a sense of guilt about my participation in the degradation of the Amazon. After all, I drink soy milk rather than cow's milk. Indeed I raised Hope to be a soy milk drinker rather than a cow's milk drinker beginning when she was an infant. Typically we purchased our soy milk by the case from the Costco off of Highway 99. Now I am wondering where that soy originated. Did the milk we drank in Elk Grove come from the plant here in Santarem, Brasil? I don't know, but I am going to try to find out!

In the mean time, here are some resources on the issue of deforestation. All of these titles are from the Los Rios catalog.

Barbosa, Luiz, C. The Brazilian Amazon Rainforest : Global Ecopolitics, Development, and Democracy. Lanham, MD : University Press of America, 2000.

Le Breton, Binka. The Greatest Gift : The Courageous Life and Death of Sister Dorothy Stang.
New York : Doubleday, 2007.

London, Mark and Brian Kelly. The Last Forest : The Amazon in the Age of Globalization.
New York : Random House, 2007.

Margolis, Mac. The Last New World : The Conquest of the Amazon Frontier. New York : Norton, 1992.

Millard, Candice. River of Doubt : Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey. New York : Doubleday, 2005.

There are a couple other titles from the 1980s, including a video. Obviously the information in them would be obsolete but they may serve as prescient reminders of present realities. We can know the future when we listen to the voices.

In Country: Santarem

2009-02-09T13:20:00.008-02:00

After taking the overnight boat down the Amazon River we have arrived in Santarem, a small city (population about 300,000) which sits at the juncture between the Rio Amazonas and the Rio Tapajos. Indeed the waters from the two rivers, although they flow side by side, do not mix. The water from the Rio Amazonas is a muddy brownish color and comes from high up in the Andes. The water from the Rio Tapajos is blue-ish in color and warmer. The locals call this the "meeting of the waters."

When we initially arrived in Santarem, our boat pulled up adjacent to a huge port and industrial shipping operation. It did not look like anything we had seen closer to the city, or at any of the stops on the way down the river. The sign near the port read "Cargill." After doing some research I have discovered that Cargill is a U.S. based corporation which set up this soybean shipping port on the west side of the city. Although initially the locals were receptive to the construction of the port because they thought it would bring good jobs to the region, recently the port and Cargill have fallen out of favor. Apparently there has been an ongoing court case at the federal level against Cargill for not getting the necessary environmental impact clearances. The following links offer more information about the conflict. http://www.cargill.com/news/issues/issues_greenpeacereport.pdf and http://www.greenpeace.org/international/news/soya-blazes-through-the-amazon

In the States we often hear about how the Amazon rainforest is being burned to make way for cattle and other crops. As I am realizing, that is no longer an abstraction. It is real and it is happening right here in this community.

Because of the legal action against Cargill, a moratorium against further deforestation has been imposed. However that does not prohibit the cultivation of lands that have already been deforested, nor does it stop the building of roads into the forest. The following is an interesting article with a visual about the environmental deterioration in the region. http://www.greenpeace.org.uk/blog/forests/impacts-amazon-soya-are-shown-map-20090119

Other sources: http://digitalcollections.sit.edu/isp_collection/249/
http://ran.org/what_we_do/rainforest_agribusiness/spotlight/case_studies/cargill_in_santarem/

http://ran.org/what_we_do/rainforest_agribusiness/spotlight/case_studies/cargill_in_santarem/

In Country: Manaus

2009-02-05T09:46:00.002-02:00

This city is an armpit. Over 2 million people huddle into this squalid (and once glorious) city in the middle of the jungle. At every street corner a scammer crouches waiting to pounce on an unsuspecting tourist. Crafty men known as touts offer Amazon tour packages at inflated prices. The art of negotiation serves as the capstone for every transaction. The streets are narrow and clogged with vendors, their carts and wares. Each morning it rains, the warm water accompanied by thunder and lightning. We are in the midst of the jungle, and it is a desperate and unpleasant place.

Last night, after surveying the situation we decided to get out of here as soon as possible. Therefore in a couple hours we will hop on a boat headed down the Amazon. The boat ride takes 36 hours and there will be no internet access. As soon as I have connectivity again I will post about our experiences. Until then, eat some vegetables for me.

In Country: Brasilian Blues

2009-02-04T19:45:00.003-02:00

Okay, let me say this up front: I have flown in airplanes all my life. My father is a small aircraft mechanic who, for most of my childhood years, was also a small aircraft pilot. Family vacations often consisted of flying into remote regions, where my gregarious father seemed to know every mechanic, air tower operator, and flight instructor between Alaska and Mexico. I have also flown quite a bit as an adult, to Bangkok, Boston, London and Vancouver Island. You get the idea.

So, what's the point of talking about previous travel experiences in a blog about Brasil? Because last night was our first domestic air travel in Brasil and it was a doozy! To start, the flight left at 11:55pm (yep, that's almost midnight) and arrived in Manaus at 1:55am (yep, that's the middle of the night). Because we were traveling back in time (how Hollywood is that?), we lost two hours. In other words, we were in the air for 4 hours but arrived 2 hours after we had departed.

Time change I am used to but the next part is where it gets really weird. Our boarding pass said we were to board the plane at 10:55pm. That's a whole hour before departure. Despite the stated time on the boarding pass, we actually didn't board until about 11:30pm. Unfortunately then we sat in the airplane for a good 30 or 40 minutes. Why? Oh, I thought you would never ask! Because, oh wait, did I mention that we were departing Sao Paulo in the midst of a thunderstorm? Yep, that's right. We had to sit in the airplane because we were waiting for a lapse in the lightning that flashed all around us. Finally someone more experienced than I in determining when it's okay to fly during lightning storms decided we were ready to take off and so . . . up, up and away we went. Had the lightning stopped, you ask? Of course not! But we made our ascent with the flashing lights on the aircraft wings taunting the flashing electric storm in the sky.

While strapped into our seats awaiting departure, and perhaps to take our minds off the storm, the steward people passed around small pieces of candy and head phones. So I listened to Bruce Springsteen sing "Born in the USA" as the plane taxied down the runway, the engine gained speed and, suddenly, it occured to me that it sounded like . . . a small lawn mower. There we were sitting in a metal canister with an engine that sounded like David's yard equipment while enormous quantities of electrical energy stabbed the air around us. I may have been born in the USA, but surely I was going to die in Brasil.

Alas, it was not to be and we passed through the storm unscathed. The steward people turned down the lights and everyone sank into a shallow airplane slumber. And then, it happened! Without warning (or was that what the intercom voice had just said in Portuguese?) the cabin lights blinked on. Why? Because surely you must know that at 1:00am in the morning everyone needs to eat chicken, rice, salad and a coconut dessert treat.

Like lemmings we dropped our tray tables, ordered our drinks and ate our dinner in the middle of the night. Unfortunately, then the steward people forgot about us. Half eaten dinner rolls, empty drink cups, and greasy dressing packets sat before us on a bed of crumpled tin foil and saran wrap coverings. Indeed, we were left with dinner remnants on our tray tables for oh, about an hour as we shifted and squirmed to get comfortable in the reduced space. Just try getting up to use the restroom if you are on the window and have three open tray tables between you and the aisle.

Finally relief came when the steward people removed our dinner remains and the cabin lights were dimmed. Sleep and the hum of the lawn mower. A woman snored. Hope, in her sleep, kicked the man sitting next to her. Desculpe.

I wallowed into slumber with Hope's head buried in my lap. Then I awoke. The cabin was stifling hot. Sweltering hot. Choking hot. Did I mention it was hot? I glanced at David across the aisle. He was gasping for air. Poor guy.

Suddenly, the lights came on. In Portuguese the intercom voice told us the plane would land in 13 minutes. Cold air flooded the cabin. I could breathe.

The plane nosed down onto the tarmac in one of the softest landings I've experienced in a long time and we had arrived in Manaus: the Amazon.

In Country: Museo de Arte de Sao Paulo

2009-02-03T15:06:00.005-02:00

Today is our last day in Sao Paulo. Late tonight we fly to Manaus, a city of 2 million people in the middle of the Amazonian jungle.

Before leaving Sao Paulo I wanted to catch one more museum so this morning Fernando, Hope and I headed for the Museo de Arte de Sao Paulo. Considered to be one of the best museums in Sao Paulo, this collection was started after World War II when Europe was in ashes and Brasil was emerging from dictatorship. Because of Europe's weakened state, Brasil was able to pick up paintings by some of the greatest European masters of all time including Picasso, Cezanne, Raphael, Bosch, Constable, Rodin, Monet, Manet, Van Gogh, and Tintoretto. We also managed to see a 2nd century C.E. sarcophagus carved in Rome and a 3rd century C.E. Roman copy of a Greek statue of Eros. Needless to say, this is an art lover's paradise and a world-class museum!

Hope is becoming a first rate museum-goer. Today she brought her notebook and pen and took notes of the paintings she liked. Unfortunately the museum did not allow photos inside so I couldn't capture images of the paintings or of my daughter studying them.

Fernando also enjoyed himself, although he did not know that it's not okay to touch the art work. When we first arrived and were looking at a huge portrait by Thomas Gainsborough he reached out and touched it saying something like "This is not original, right?" Aghast I explained that he can get in lots of trouble with the museum guards, who seemed to be everywhere, and that museum etiquette required that the artwork NOT be touched. We escaped without alarm bells ringing across the gallery. Perhaps I am hyper-sensitive because prior to going to the museum I had read that a couple paintings had been stolen from this museum in December 2007 and again in June 2008. As a result, the curator of the museum had vowed to enhance security measures in the facility, which may account for the number of guards we saw.

One last point about museums in Brasil. Since we have been here, I have viewed about 15 art collections at different museums around the country. And, except for two small museums in Ouro Preto where I paid one or two heis (less than $1 U.S.), all of the museums have been absolutely FREE. Now some of this is just lucky timing. For instance, the museum today is always free on Tuesdays. But some of it is because the Brasilian government and other philanthropists have decided to make the collections available to the public. And this is what seems remarkable! World class exhibits placed inside world class architecture available for viewing at rock bottom prices. Amazing.

In Country: Sao Paulo Street Scenes

2009-02-02T21:53:00.012-02:00

This church sits in Praca da Se (known as Cathedral Square), which is considered to be the heart of the oldest part of Sao Paulo. The church is called Catedral da Se and is the seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese in the city. This particular building took over 40 years to be constructed, beginning in 1913. The architectural style is known as neo-Gothic with its tall spires, pointed arches over the windows and on the tympanum, and extensive use of stained glass. It is, however, a 20th century invention which is what earns it the "neo" (meaning new) designation.

Although this structure was built within the last 100 years, the church site has a long history. In 1589 Jesuits Manuel da Nobrega and Jose' de Anchieta made an arrangement with the local indigenous leader, a guy by the name of Tibirica', to establish a small church in the village. Since then the church site has been retained even though the church itself has been torn down and rebuilt multiple times. Today it is the largest church in Sao Paulo.

At the other end of the Cathedral Square sits this statue to honor Jose' de Anchieta, one of the Jesuit missionaries who came from Spain at the age of 19 to convert the inhabitants of the New World. He is also considered to be the founder of Sao Paulo and a prolific writer. Many call him the father of Brasilian literature, although I can't figure out why he's not considered a Spanish writer in South America.

Construction on the Theatro Municipal began in 1903. Today this structure hosts classical music and operatic performances yet it, like the Catedral da Se above, are in really seedy parts of town. Although not depicted well in these photos there are clusters of street kids, drug addicts and even homeless families using these historic buildings as their neighborhood. If you look closely you can see a man in a green shirt laying on the ground just below the statue of Jose' de Anchieta. Although David is in the foreground, behind him in the distance is a homeless family laying under the tree. We encountered several of them in this part of the city. Take away lesson: Sao Paulo is a hard city to live in if you are poor.

Because we were here on a Sunday afternoon, the crowds along this avenue were relatively light. This is a side view of the Theatro Municipal.

To the west of the Praca da Se is another plaza known as the Praca de Republica. On Sundays a faire hippie is held here with lots of artisan crafts, clothing, shoes, and jewelry. This building, one of Oscar Neimeyer's designs with its characteristic curves, sits just across the plaza.

Another building adjacent to the Praca da Republica. I loved the reflection of the buildings and the clouds in its facade.

Food court scene at the faire hippie.

In Country: Pousada Dona Zilah

2009-02-01T18:56:00.008-02:00

We have been staying at the Pousada Dona Zilah in the Jardim (garden) District of Sao Paulo. This is a toney neighborhood southwest of downtown. The first two nights were a bit unpleasant because we were placed in a noisy room directly facing the street, which is busy, and with beds that seemed to be alive with animals, which were bed bugs. Gross, I know.

So I asked (twice) to be moved and my persistence paid off as last night we got a good night's sleep, thankfully in a room relatively free of insects. The staff here are pleasant enough, although they have a habit of acting like they only speak Portuguese and then, in the middle of a raggedy conversation in which I am botching every single verb conjugation possible, they break into English. "Ohhhh, you speak English," I say in relief. Invariably, the staffer just nods with a slight smile. Perhaps they enjoy watching an American squirm. From their perspective, I am sure it is very funny since my Portuguese is really bad. I am talking muito malo.

As for the neighborhood, David claims to hate it. It's too swanky for him. I choose it, however, because the guide book I'm using (Lonely Planet Brazil) says Sao Paulo is dangerous, and I didn't want to lose my shirt, my daughter or my life in this city. Hence, we're situated in swank. And it's about as different from the favelas of Belo Horizonte as any neighborhood could be. The ultra-rich who live here fly helicoptors to work rather than drive. You think I'm kidding? Check this out: http://www.ainonline.com/news/single-news-page/article/sao-paulo-the-worlds-helicopter-capital/ .

And I have just learned of a newly published novel entitled Heliopolis by James Scudamore which illuminates those differences. Unfortunately books written in English are hard to come by in Brasil and I have not read much Brasilian literature since I arrived. I have scoured book stores in Belo, Campinas, Curitiba and Sao Paulo. If a book store has an English section, the titles are of the Danielle Steele ilk. And I have also scoured used book stores. In most cases, there is one lonely shelf dedicated to English titles. These, too, are often in the harlequin genre and, more often, conveniently placed next to pornography, which seems to diminish the pleasure in used book browsing, if you know what I mean.

While I'm on the topic of books, I did encounter something pretty interesting today while using the subway: a vending machine which only sold books. There it was. William Shakespeare next to Excel manuals; the Brasilian Federal Constitution adjacent to Neitzsche. And they were pretty cheap, usually for less than $15 heis (about $7 bucks U.S.). Apparently the Lula government is really trying to emphasize literacy, and enabling the citizenry to select E7 for sonnets is one way to meet their objective. Alas, all of the titles were in Portuguese so I did not partake.

In Country: Thinking About Amazonian Activism

2009-01-30T20:54:00.002-02:00

It's about 9:00pm in Sao Paulo and we're in the midst of a thunder and lightening storm. The rain is coming down in buckets and has been for a couple hours now. There it was: another close flash and huge clap of thunder. That lightening bolt seemed to have just crashed into the building next door!

Okay, back to the task at hand. I have been thinking about Amazonian activism and the World Social Forum taking place in Belem right now. As a result, I did a little checking on JSTOR, one of CRC's databases and found some articles that may be helpful in explaining why Indians protest mainstream society's degradation of the rainforest. Here are the citations:

"The Salt of the Montana: Interpreting Indigenous Activism in the Rain Forest."
Hanne Veber
Cultural Anthropology, Vol. 13, No. 3 (Aug., 1998), pp. 382-413
Published by: Blackwell Publishing on behalf of the American Anthropological Association

"Indigenous People Incorporated? Culture as Politics, Culture as Property in Pharmaceutical Bioprospecting"
Shane Greene
Current Anthropology, Vol. 45, No. 2 (Apr., 2004), pp. 211-237
Published by: The University of Chicago Press on behalf of Wenner-Gren Foundation for Anthropological Research

"Social Conflict and Political Activism in the Brazilian Amazon: A Case Study of Gurupá "
Richard Pace
American Ethnologist, Vol. 19, No. 4, Imagining Identities: Nation, Culture, and the Past (Nov., 1992
Published by: Blackwell Publishing on behalf of the American Anthropological Association

In Country: Sao Paulo

2009-01-30T09:31:00.003-02:00

Considered to be the third largest city in the world, Sao Paulo is a teeming metropolis and the economic powerhouse of Brasil. Its population stands at about 18 million, although I have read several other figures from a variety of sources. The following is a link to an interactive map of the city. http://travel.yahoo.com/p-map-481751-map_of_sao_paulo_sp-i . At present we are staying at Dona Zilah's Pousada in the Jardim District of the city. To get a sense of the scale of this place, consider that it took us about an hour to get from the outskirts of the city to the bus station last night. My travel guide book suggests it takes 2 hours to get from one side of the city to another.

One of the factors that causes this slowness of travel is the traffic. It is bumper to bumper most of the time. There is, however, a very good subway system which operates mostly underground, shuttling the masses of humanity about their daily lives.

As for its geography, Sao Paulo sits at about 2500 feet above sea level on a plateau overlooking the South Atlantic Ocean. The weather today calls for showers and temperatures at about 22 Celsius (73 Fahrenheit).

Early this morning David and Fernando caught a bus headed to Campinas; David had a dental appointment to keep. So Hope and I stayed in bed a few hours longer and will stay close to the pousada until they return.

Probably in large part because of its size, Sao Paulo can be a fairly dangerous city. People are kidnapped for ransom quite frequently; petty theft of cameras and purses is also common for tourists; and car jackings are on the rise. As a security measure to address the car jacking problem the city government recently passed a red light law. Essentially drivers are no longer required to stop at red lights after dark. Rather the driver is encouraged to slow to ensure there is no cross traffic and then proceed through the intersection. Needless to say, when driving in Sao Paulo one is taking one's life in one's hands.

As a consequence, Hope and I will not be driving anywhere today. Nor will we wander too far from the pousada until David and Fernando return. There is comfort in having a body guard for a husband!

In Country: On the Road to Sao Paulo

2009-01-29T19:36:00.002-02:00

Early this morning David, Fernando, Hope and I left Curitiba on an intra state bus headed for Sao Paulo. We had deliberately chosen to travel during the day this time (all of the other bus trips have been under the cover of night) so we could see the lay of the land. Since Curitiba sits in a bowl shaped valley, the bus had to wind its way through verdant mountain passes for most of the 410 km (roughly 250 miles). At many points we came around hilly peaks and saw banana plains undulating below us. There was lots of evidence of deforestation, including some sad examples of clear cutting, and the consequent erosion that comes with it. Even though this is not the Amazon, historically this region along the eastern coast of Brasil has also experienced a tremendous amount of deforestation since the Portuguese first began colonizing the region in the 1500s. Many experts claim 95% of the old growth forest has been destroyed. Initially the colonials cleared the land to make way for corn and coffee. Now it seems that much of it is used for banana plantations. Waves and waves of banana trees flow across the hillsides between Curitiba and Sao Paulo. As a result most of the roadside vendors and truck stops have massive amounts of bananas for sale. For banana lovers it is a veritable heaven on the road.

The bus was traveling along at a good clip when suddenly it pulled off to the side of the road. At first I did not take much notice as I thought we were at a brief truck stop, and so I continued practicing my Portuguese by podcast. But after a while I asked David, who was sitting across the aisle from me, what was happening. It was at that point that I learned our bus had been stopped by the federal police and they were even then searching the luggage compartment under the bus. A few moments later one of the officers came on board, located Fernando and sent him off the bus. Oh yes, my heart was pounding and my imagination was racing. Every bad movie and every true documentary I had ever seen about jails in foreign countries came swimming before my eyes. David, on the other hand, was very low key. I tried to model his demeanor but it was very hard to do. This was made all the more challenging when the officer began to question David about the contents of one of the bags in the compartment above his head. I passed the officer our U.S. passports, he examined them for several minutes, and then he exited the bus. Fernando was still not back yet. David suggested we would all get off the bus if the officer did not let Fernando back on. We weren't going anywhere without him.

Thankfully Fernando got on the bus shortly after the officer got off. Apparently Fernando had a lock on his luggage and the feds wanted to look inside. Of course Fernando was clean so once he unlocked it and they checked out his bag they allowed him to get back on the bus.

This was not the fate of some other guy who was pulled over in a private vehicle. Through the bus window we watched a man in handcuffs walking with a wife and small child in her arms toward a police car. Busted. Guilty or innocent, I hope that guy gets religion tonight!

After the bus was rolling again, Fernando reported that a man had shot a police officer in Sao Paulo last night. This might explain the checkpoint and a crack down on highway traffic into the city.

No, I did not take photos of this event.

In Country: Economics

2009-01-28T19:51:00.002-02:00

For the past few days I have been struck by the amount of sales, particularly shoe sales, in the stores here in Curitiba. Initially I thought it was because summer was almost over and the stores wanted to make way for fall inventory. But after asking around a bit I discovered that we are only half way through summer right now. This got me to thinking: why are all the stores advertising massive liquidation sales?

A brief search on the internet seems to have yielded some of the answers. Apparently Brasil, like most of the rest of the world, is experiencing an economic slowdown of epic proportions. Here are some of the facts:

On January 21, the central bank of Brasil lowered the interest rate one full point. This surprised many analysts who expected some lowering of the interest rate but not a full point. After adjusting for inflation Brasil's interest rate now stands at 12.75%, which is the highest in the world. However if you think 12.75% is high, try paying a loan with a 40% interest rate. As recently as 2002, this was the going rate for banks in Brasil. http://articles.latimes.com/2008/nov/26/business/fi-brazhousing26
Personal and household defaults are on the rise, registering in at 8.1% in December 2008. This is the highest default rate in Brasil since 2002.
The government has recently announced a 15 year job creation-housing construction investment plan for low income families. This suggests that Brasil is as badly in need of jobs and economic stimulus as the U.S. http://www.khl.com/magazines/international-construction/detail/item30530/Brazil-plans-to-invest-US$-152-billion-in-housing-sector/

Most of the information can be found by doing a simple Google search with the terms "Brazil economy"; and here is a link with some helpful explanation http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601039&refer=columnist_marinis&sid=aeH44ekPr1yY

It is worth noting, however, that Brasil's economy seems to be better poised to withstand the worst of the global economic crisis than other Western nations. There are a variety of reasons to support this optimism. First, because Brasil's interest rate has been so high, very few people actually purchase homes they cannot afford. Another way to say this: there has been very little speculation in the housing market here. Second, because Brasil is almost completely energy independent, its overall economy is quite resilient to price fluctuations in oil and gas. In addition, the Brasilian government holds several billion dollars in reserve in case of currency drops or inflation threats. In other words: Brasil has saved money for a rainy day.

All of these factors serve as buffers for this economy to withstand the global shocks that are sure to come in 2009. Certainly Brasil will be effected but not to the same depth and degree as the U.S., the U.K. and countries in the Euro-zone. http://www.latinbusinesschronicle.com/app/article.aspx?id=3106

In Country: Looking Ahead

2009-01-28T17:24:00.003-02:00

You wouldn't know it from the mainstream media, but there is an alternative to the economic forum taking place in Davos, Switzerland right now. The alternative event is the World Social Forum which started yesterday in Belem, Brasil. Comprised of indigenous groups and international activists, the World Social Forum is focusing on peace and justice issues, the impact of the global economic crisis on the poor, and environmental problems such as deforestation in the Amazon. Several Latin American heads of state are expected to attend, including Brasil's president Lula da Silva.

Other links include: http://english.aljazeera.net/news/americas/2009/01/200912814011816387.html

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5i4H7iUakuekLJ9vn_w0ZBNbTLcSQD95VPGFG1

http://www.episcopalchurch.org/81808_104462_ENG_HTM.htm

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5hnTIjXLrCZZjgWJptM0jvu5sWjdw

Alas, the conference in Belem ends February 1 and I am arriving in the region February 4. Alas.

In Country: Superagui

2009-01-26T19:02:00.009-02:00

Superagui is a remote island on the outer edge of the Paranagua litoral. Its western shores face inland and are comprised of rugged mountainous jungle rising out of salt marsh seas. This section of southern Brasil consists of the largest stretch of intact Atlantic rain forest in the world, and is known in these parts as Mata Atlantica. Its eastern shores face out on open ocean; the next stop across the Atlantic is the west coast of Africa. With 20,000 species on record, it is second only to the Amazon in diversity and richness of plant and animal species. This portion of the Mata Atlantica is now preserved as Parque Nacional de Superagui and achieved UNESCO World Heritage listing in 1999.

On Friday David, Fernando, Hope and I chartered a private boat to pick us up from Ilha do Mel and transport us to Superagui. This is the only way to reach Superagui as there are no regular boat routes between the two islands. The only other way to get to Superagui is to hail a passing fishing boat and hope the skipper stops.

Needless to say, life on the island is slow and unpretentious. The main economy for the residents is fishing, although with the degradation of Paranagua (the city) garbage increasingly washes up on the shores of Superagui. According to Fabio, a worker at the pousada where we stayed, 60% of the garbage that the residents of Superagui pick up from the beaches comes in on the tides. This is a huge problem for the people of the barro (village) and seems to be a big source of conflict within the community. Apparently there are two sentiments among the locals. On the one hand, the residents want to develop tourism because of the income the tourist industry represents. On the other hand, many old-time locals want to keep the culture of the island insulated from outside influences. Fabio reports that the old-timers resist advice and assistance from anyone who is not a local. Probably as a result of this tension there are some interesting statistics among the population. Importantly, out of a population of 1200 people nearly 700 of them are children. Indeed we saw evidence of this everywhere. Children lounging on the beach, jumping from the public pier, riding bikes on the beach, and chasing the dogs that seem to be everywhere. My first impression was that this is a youthful community. Fabio, however, disabused me of this idea when he claimed that island life -- fishing in particular -- is very hard on the body. Consequently men die very young. This, he suggests, is the reason for the imbalance in population numbers.

Main Street, Barro do Superagui. (I am not kidding.)

What further exacerbates the problems on Superagui is another obvious contradiction. On the one hand, tourists represent the second most important industry to the island's residents. On the other hand, the locals apparently do very little to make tourists comfortable or happy when they arrive. For example, we were encouraged to take a hike through the rain forest in an effort to see a rare and endangered monkey that only lives in this region. However once we set out on the trail we encountered no less than five river crossings with bridges in various states of decay. In three instances, all that was left of a bridge was the pilings. A long bamboo stick lay against the bank. The visual suggestion: use the stick for balance so we could delicately wobble across the pilings. David and I joked about American lawyers who would love to sue the government for infrastructure we experienced. The trail, after all, is part of Brasil's national park system. Luckily for us, none of the river crossings were very deep or wide.

Alas we never did sight any of the monkeys, which are actually known as Black-faced Lion Tamarin (Leontopithecus caissara). This was a moderate disappointment but not totally unexpected since this species is, according to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN), on the red list as being threatened with extinction. Fabio, my pousada resource, claimed that 20 years ago tourists who came to the island would cart the animal home, apparently to make into house pets. According the IUCN, there are only about 400 left in the world. A Google image search will show you that they are cute but I just can't see making them into pets.

Superagui is also well known for its plant species, including the bromeliad. I did get a couple pictures of those as we traipsed through the jungle.

Another creature for which the area is well-known is the tucuxi dolphin. We encountered several pods of these on our boat ride to Superagui and again when we left the island. They are small and quick, therefore I was not able to get any good photos of them. Apparently these dolphins are one of the least studied in the world. Here is a good start to the basics about the tucuxi dolphin: http://dolphins.jump-gate.com/differnt_dolphins/%20tucuxi.shtml

An interesting article that explores the tensions between tourism and fishing, development and environmental protection can be found at this link: http://www.geographical.co.uk/Features/Brazil_Nov07.html .

In Country: Superagui Beach Scenes

2009-01-26T17:25:00.011-02:00

After spending a couple of wonderful days on Ilha do Mel we caught a small, privately owned fast boat for another island in the Paranagua litoral called Superagui. I will write more about Superagui and our experiences there in another post. For now, just enjoy the beach scenes that we encountered when we first arrived on the island.

In Country: Images of the Beach at Ilha do Mel

2009-01-25T18:39:00.011-02:00

In Country: Estas Aqui

2009-01-25T15:40:00.014-02:00

Whew! We have made it back to civilization after having spent a week on the islands of the Parana litoral. Click here for a really cool interactive map of the litoral. http://iguide.travel/Parana .

To re-cap: last Sunday we took the train from Curitiba (on the left side of the map) down through the jungle to Morretes. On this map Morretes is located between the roads labeled PR-410 and BR 277. After a couple nights in Morretes we caught a local bus to Paranagua, a large and important shipping port in southern Brasil. From Paranagua we hopped on a boat headed for Ilha do Mel, which is the island shaped like a fish in the mouth of Paranagua Bay.

Ilha do Mel, known in English as Honey Island, is great. Cars are not allowed on the entire island, hence there are no roads. Rather, everyone gets around on foot via sandy walking paths, and only a small portion of it is inhabited by the 1200 year-round residents. The fat western portion of the island is a rain forest ecological preserve and is off limits to visitors.

We stayed at Enseada Pousada, a clean place run by Sueli and Carlos located a short walk from the beach. Each morning Sueli had fresh home made breads and hot coffee waiting for us when we woke up. Each afternoon, hammocks were strung outside our room for island lounging.

After breakfast on the first morning we walked to the lighthouse known as Farol das Conchas. On the map it is the topmost (northeastern) dot located on the tail of the fish-shaped island. The lighthouse, built in 1872 in Scotland, was brought to Brasil under orders by Dom Pedro II in the waning years of his Empire. This view of the island is on the path near the light house. Surfers frequently try their skills on the waves on the left side of this morro (hill); there were lots of them here on the day we visited.

On our second day we rented bikes and rode down the beach to an old fort known as Fortaleza de NS dos Prazeres (Fort of Our Lady of the Pleasures). This fort, constructed between 1767-1769, is only one of many built by the Portuguese in the 17th and 18th centuries as they sought to defend their colony from English, French and Spanish attacks.

Apparently the fort at Ilha do Mel was constructed by the Portuguese after one particular episode involving a French pirate ship chasing a silver-laden Spanish galleon into Paranagua Bay in 1718. The Portuguese, concerned for the island residents and their ability to fend off powerful invaders, initially placed two roqueiras (stone throwing cannons) on the bluffs above the village in 1734. As Brasil became more important to Portugal, this measure was not sufficient and a series of look out towers and the fort itself were contructed in 1767 and remained in use until 1815. With the exception of one conflict with England in the 19th century, the fort never really saw military action and since 1972, it has been under the protection of the Office of National Historical and Artistic Heritage.

Clearly baroque in style, there are several features on the fort worth mentioning. Above the entrance appears the King of Portugal's crest. There are also two gruesome faces placed on each side of the doorway, apparently to ward off evil. In an era of divine right kings and the power of the Catholic Church, this makes some sense. Today they are just grim reminders of a world that no longer exists. Most of the information about the fort came from a this source: http://www.patrimoniocultural.pr.gov.br/arquivos//benstombados/File/BIBLIOGRAFIACPC/ESPIRAIS/prg2.pdf

In Country: All Things Arabic

2009-01-22T17:20:00.002-02:00

As a result of my encounter with the Arabic art work at the Museum of History and Geography in Paranagua, I have done some searching around about relationships between Brasil and the Middle East. This is a sampling of what I have found:

Many people of Arabic descent began coming to Brasil in the latter decades of the 19th century. One contemporary author, Milton Hatoum, writes fiction using his experiences being Lebanese-Brasilian in the Amazonian city of Manaus. Hatoum, a recent recipient of Brasil's highest literary prize, is considered one of Brasil's most important living authors Sadly for me, I have not even heard of him before this afternoon, much less read any of his books. Interestingly for the U.S., Hatoum will be in New York in April for the World Voices writer's convention.

According to Larry Luxner and Douglas Engle, authors of the article entitled "The Arabs of Brazil", which was written in 2005 "an estimated nine million, or five percent [of the population of Brasil], can point to roots in the Middle East. Brazil has more citizens of Syrian origin than Damascus, and more inhabitants of Lebanese origin than all of Lebanon. Of the nine million, some 1.5 million are Muslims; the majority are Orthodox Christians and Maronites" (http://www.saudiaramcoworld.com/issue/200505/the.arabs.of.brazil.htm).

In addition, the Arabic language has found its way into Brasil by way of the Iberian Peninsula and Muslims in Spain. Indeed, over 100 Arabic words in Portuguese—arroz (rice), alface (lettuce) and açucar (sugar) to name just a few - are used by millions of Brasilians everyday.

In Country: Paranagua

2009-01-22T14:27:00.007-02:00

On Tuesday morning David, Hope, Fernando and I caught a local bus headed for Paranagua. Founded by the Portuguese in 1585, this seaport community is a city in decline. At present the population stands at about 138,000 people, although that number reflects a drop of about 10,000 people from a decade ago. This out-migration is likely due to the city's sagging economy and degraded water front. All of this is a travesty since the city is the oldest in Parana state and the downtown is its historic center. the Lonely Planet guide book describes Paranagua as being in a state of "tropical decadence"; from the looks of things, this is an accurate assessment.

Many of the historic buildings are vacant and hallowed out. Pigeons roost on elegant balconies. One can only imagine this lovely city in its 18th century heyday, when colonial women wore silks imported from Europe or Asia and powerful men smoked Cuban cigars.

While walking around Paranagua, we discovered a restaurant market where locals go to eat. Fernando and Hope ordered a big platter of shrimp and fish. As vegetarians, David and I ordered fresh squeezed lemonade and mixed salad with vinegar and oil, along with the standard Brasilian rice and beans. However in a moment of inspiration (although David would say it was weakness), I decided to try the shrimp. And . . . it was divine! So with my husband's chin on the ground in dismay, I tried the fish. And . . . it was divine too! So, let the record stand: on the day that Obama became President of the United States, I broke my four year vegetarian fast at Paraiso da Comida Restuarante in Paranagua, Brasil.

After lunch we headed for the Museu de Arqueologia e Etnologia only to find it was closed for repairs with no known date for re-opening. This too is a sign of Paranagua's decline. Most likely the city cannot afford to pay for the repairs. We did however discover another cultural site: the Instituto Historico e Geografico de Paranagua. Inside, the display consisted of an odd assortment of old military weapons, typewriters, urinals and portraits of Paranaguans of past greatness. To my dismay the cabinet that housed the porcelin from which colonial royalty ate in the 18th century also contained the droppings left by 21st century rats. Another sign of tropical decadence in a city that once was great.

Having encountered evidence of rodents, I decided I could not stomach much more decay. As I turned the corner to leave I found, to my delight, a small section of items with Arabic writing and Islamic influence. These objects were certainly the best part of the entire exhibition and included musical instruments, artwork and a bible (not the Qu'ran) in Portuguese and Arabic. Signage near some objects claim that these items were donated by Sheik Fayed Mohsin BM Moussa AL Hasani and Ali Hajar.

As this sign suggests, these items most likely came from the Iberian peninsula which has a long and illustrous relationship with Islam.

In Country: Morretes and the Hard Rain

2009-01-21T19:21:00.003-02:00

Sunday, the day we came by train into Morretes, was sweltering hot. Our room at the pousada had a fan but the air flow was not good and so we spent a miserable night sweating in the tropics. On Monday morning I woke up before everyone else, grabbed my camera and walked around town taking photos. My only company were some dogs, a fisherman on the banks of the Rio Nhundiaquara and a few town folks riding their bikes to work. Everyone rides a bike in this town.

After breakfast David, Hope and I walked around town some more. Morretes is a cute colonial town with well kept homes, a meandering river and gorgeous views of Serra do Mar, the mountain range that separates the inland city of Curitiba from the coastal litoral of Paranagua Bay.

As the day progressed, gray storm clouds gathered overhead. By late afternoon we could hear the thunder beginning to rumble over the mountains. And then, very swiftly, it began to rain. And rain. And rain. In fact it rained so much, so fast that the street in front of our pousada was flooded level with the sidewalk within minutes. I was not quick enough to catch it with the camera, but several of those early morning cyclists now rode through the flooded streets steering the bike with one hand and holding an umbrella over their heads with the other. It was a sight to see! Of course, I realized right away that this is normal for them; they live in a tropical rain forest, after all.

In Country: Morretes and the Loud Train

2009-01-18T19:33:00.005-02:00

Early this morning David, Fernando, Hope and I caught a train to Morretes (pronounced mo-hate-ohs). The train travels through the last remaining 5% of rainforest along the Atlantic coast of South America. Refered to in Brasil as Mata Atlantica, it's a 4,600 mile coastal band of jungle and granite cliffs leading down to the sea. The train ride lasted over 3 hours and the views were stunning. With plant leaves larger than a grown man, flowers so vibrantly red against the green undergrowth and views of the cliffs floating sublimely along the blue horizon, this jungle landscape is breath taking and awe inspiring. The train track took 5 years to build (in the 1880s) because of the rugged terrain, and is considered a feat of 19th century engineering for the country. It was originally intended to carry wood and soy beans from the interior to ports on the coast, but was converted to a tourist attraction about 20 years ago when truck transport became more efficient.

The only drawback to the entire train trip was the screeching of the train on the tracks. Because of the steep incline down the mountainside the train traveled very slowly, at times only moving at about 20 miles per hour. Consequently the sound of the train braking on the steep downgrades was deafening. Indeed I spent a good portion of the trip with my hands over my ears. For most of the morning I wished the Brasilian transportation authorities could figure out a way to grease the wheels, so to speak.

After the long, loud and lovely train ride we finally reached Morretes. Founded in 1721, this sleepy little colonial town boasts a population of less than 20,000 people. Once off the train we were able to locate a cute little pousada (similar to a bed and breakfast) right off the main street in town.

This is the view from the porch off our room. It is very hot and humid today; although I have not seen an official temperature reading, I would suspect it is over 100 degrees.

At present I am sitting in the Lan House, an internet cafe just down the street from our pousada. The sound system loudly plays Red Hot Chili Peppers, music I listened to in the early 1990s. Most of the people in this darkened room are 20 year old males. Clearly it is the town's hangout.

The internet in Brasil is wildly popular and widely available. Internet cafes like this one exist in most cities large and small, and there is lots of talk in political circles about using the internet in education. I read a statistic somewhere before arriving in country that said Brasil's population is one of the top 4 countries (after China, India, and the U.S.) to have access to the internet.

The cost per hour in the Lan House is R$1,00 which equals about 45 cents U.S. Pretty cheap, eh? If they only knew Americans pay $10 or $12 per hour for the same service!

In Country: Oscar Niemeyer

2009-01-17T18:39:00.005-02:00

On Thursday David, Fernando, Hope and I went to the Museu Oscar Niemeyer on the north side of Curitiba. Constructed by Niemeyer in 1967, the building's original purpose was to house an educational facility.

In 2002 the entire complex was converted to museum space and renamed in honor of Brasil's most famous (and still living) architect. The centerpiece of the museum, the portion depicted here, is known as the Museu do Olho or Museum of the Eye which was created by Niemeyer when the conversion to a museum took place.

This structure is a fine example of Niemeyer's classic work with its emphasis on curved lines placed in relation to rectangular shapes. It serves as an important symbol of Brasilian identity and also as an international monument to modern architecture. It is worth noting that Niemeyer is considered the last great modern architect. All of his contemporaries are deceased; Niemeyer, at 101, still lives in Rio de Janeiro.

The interior is no less strange than the exterior. This view shows the hallway between the main exhibition hall and the entrance to the "eye."

There are several current exhibits on display, including a collection of pottery artifacts from the American Southwest. Another exhibit focused on the life and works of Nise da Silveira, the first woman psychiatrist of note in Brasil. Among other important contributions, da Silveira introduced Jungian concepts and techniques to South America in the 1950s by writing the first book in Brasil about Carl Jung. Her work included the use of art and animals in the therapy of psychiatry patients. The exhibit at this museum included original images created by schizophrenic patients in the process of treatment, although there is another similar museum in Rio which was established by da Silveira in 1952. Click here for a link containing more information on Nise da Silveira and the idea of "Images of the Unconscious" in Brasil. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_go2043/is_/ai_n29076018

After exploring several galleries, we finally took our leave of the museum. On our way out, a sea serpent sculpture waved good bye to us. It is a fitting conclusion to a day at the Museu Oscar Niemeyer.

In Country: Memorial de Curitiba

2009-01-17T12:19:00.010-02:00

Prior to colonization by the Portuguese, the original inhabitants of this region were the Tupi. Indeed the word curitiba is thought to have its origins in Tupi or Guarani, two of the most prominent indigenous languages in the pre-contact era. Most etymologists relate the term to the pinion pine, a tree which is quite prevalent in the region.

Brasil's indigenous origins are frequently given the nod in public artwork, including the mural found at Curitiba's Memorial building near the Largo do Ordem. On the far right one can make out two unclothed individuals, in what is certainly a romanticized Euro-centric perspective of the noble savages of the New World. Moving across the scene to the left is an artistic rendition of the first Portuguese ship which landed here in 1500. On the far right one can see the image of the modern man -- clothed in white, which is a Brasilian symbol for cleanliness -- holding a naked woman. She represents Carnivale which is typically celebrated in January or February.The Memorial de Curitiba was constructed in 1996 in an attempt at promoting the history, art and culture of the city. It is a fabulous, multi-storied display of (mostly) modern art. My favorite was this glass mosaic piece by Soeli Ferenc. She applied small pieces of glass to larger sheets in a pyramid shape. In the middle of the pyramid sits a lamp. The soft glow of the lighting creates a soothing effect of green and brown garden shapes.

Other installations at the Memorial de Curitiba include this bronze reproduction sculpture entitled A Tocadora de Guitarra by Victor Brecheret (1894-1955). Although there is some disagreement about Brecheret's place of birth (whether in Italy or Brasil), he is considered one of the most important 20th century Brasilian sculptors to work in the Modernist style. More information about him can be found at http://www.victor.brecheret.nom.br/indexing.htm . With its sensuous shape and clean lines it strikes a strong contrast to the flowing water of the fountain placed next to it.

After spending a couple hours exploring the Memorial de Curitiba, we talked with an employee. He claimed that the idea for the Memorial came from the then mayor of Curitiba, Rafael Greca de Macedo. Although I have not yet been able to confirm that information anywhere else, it does not seem improbable as Greca de Macedo is involved in many activities to do with city planning and history of the region. Here is a link to more information about him: http://uninews.unicredito.it/en/articles/page.php?id=7944&media=print .

In Country: Curitiba Part II

2009-01-17T10:43:00.008-02:00

Curitiba, founded by the Portuguese in 1693, is another sprawling Brasilian city of nearly 2 million people. Although originally included as part of Sao Paulo state during the early Empire, in the 1850s residents in the the southern region broke off from Sao Paulo to create a separate state known as Paraná with Curitiba as its capital.

In many ways, Curitiba is regarded as the crown jewel of the country. It is the largest city in southern Brasil, it rivals Sao Paulo in corporate investments, it has one of the highest standards of living in the country, and it contains the best educated population in Brasil. Many people attribute the higher standard of living and better educated citizenry to the significant infusion of immigrants who came from Germany, Italy, Poland, Ukraine and Japan in the early part of the 20th century.

On Thursday David, Fernando, Hope and I went walking around the city. Our exploration paid off as we discovered several delightful historical sites. The first stop was the Igreja do Rosario (a cathedral) on Largo do Ordem (a town square). The church, originally built in 1737, served Curitiba's slave population. Although it has undergone reconstruction since then, the Portuguese colonial architectural elements have been preserved.

One fascinating aspect about Largo do Ordem is the blending of architectural styles into one central square. With the Igreja do Rosario one can see the 18th century baroque and rococo influence, primarily in the richly detailed false-front. For a slave church, the decoration is fairly elaborate. To the left of the Igreja do Rosario sits a plain (probably 1960s) 20th century building which houses a small grocery store. (The yellow building.) Then to the left of it is a government building constructed in the early 19th century neoclassical style. (The orange building behind the trees.) All of this -- the 18th century church, the 19th century government building and the 20th century grocery -- face out onto the fountain of a horse's head. It is a bizarre collection of styles and expressions jumbled together in one small location. Oddly enough, this jumble seems to best capture the idea of Brasil. Indeed, the electic mix is Brasil.

Also located in the Largo do Ordem, which means Square of the Order (as in church), is the Museu de Arte Sacra. This museum, although small, is dedicated to the collection and presentation of sacred artifacts in the Catholic Church. Remarkably, there is no entrance fee and we were the only people visiting at the time. The collection primarily consists of chalices, cruz processionals, images of Christ in crucifixion and the Virgin Mary. Most of the objects had been donated by the church to the museum and most are from the 18th-20th centuries.

One item in particular caught my attention, mostly due to its age. Encased in glass and mounted on a wall stood a 17th century cruz processional, likely to have been produced in Portugal and shipped over to Brasil during the mid-1600s. At 6 feet high, it consisted of solid silver, and was engraved with tremendous detail. In the center was a handle for the priest to hold during the ceremony. In the quiet darkness of the museum gallery, questions tumbled around in my imagination: How many hands have been positioned on that handle over the hundreds of years since it was created? And who were those men? What were their dreams and aspirations? When they held this object what were their thoughts? And what, truly, was their love for the Lord?

As I was unable to take photos inside the museum, this image example comes from another website at www.sever-vouga.net/.../artesacra/cruzrocas.jpg. Behind David, Hope and I stands the Museu de Arte Sacra. At our side is a small fountain known as the Bebedouro do Ordem, which dates to the 18th century. Apparently back in the 1700s, when Curitiba was just a sleepy colonial ranching town, the tropeiros and ranchers used to lead their horses and mules to drink in this trough. The outside is constructed of stones, while inside there is an iron bowl to hold the water. Today it is a watering trough for pigeons, which isn't nearly as romantic as its origins.

In Country: Curitiba

2009-01-14T18:55:00.004-02:00

Last night David, Hope, Fernando and I took an overnight bus from Campinas to Curitiba. We arrived blurry eyed and raggedy at 6:00am this morning to our hotel, San Juan Charm. I was concerned that we would not be allowed to check in so early in the day but my fears were unfounded. Not only did they let us check in but they prepared a gorgeous breakfast spread for us, complete with yogurt, cheese, several kinds of bread, granola, scrambled eggs, hot coffee, warm milk, fresh squeezed orange juice and really juicy watermelon. It was delightful!

The rooms are huge with lots of marble and glass in the bathroom. The lobby has a simple, elegant decor which includes lots of hard wood and clean lines. I really like this place!

In Country: Gates and Alleys

2009-01-13T08:18:00.011-02:00

On Saturday David, Hope, Fernando, Sue Ellen (his girlfriend) and I took a day trip to the colonial town of Ouro Preto. This small town of 70,000 people was originally the capital of the state of Minas Gerais, and was the center of gold and diamond mining in the 18th and 19th centuries. As a result of the mining industries, the townspeople became quite wealthy, thereby allowing them to hire many artists to construct great works of art. In 1980 the entire town was declared by UNESCO as a Historical and Cultural Heritage of Humanity site.

Almost as soon as I got off the bus I realized I needed more than one day to explore, as there are multiple museums (most of which only open at 12:00pm each day) and lots of other alleyway gems to discover. With its narrow cobble stone streets, 18th century architecture and several stunning cathedrals, this is a town worth spending 3 or 4 days in.

As we walked through the streets, I was fascinated with images of gates, alleys and doorways. So here is a small exhibition of what I found in Ouro Preto.

In Country: Meet Anderson

2009-01-09T15:55:00.004-02:00

Anderson Soares has been our escort into the favelas the past two days. This is his story: His family has lived in Lagoinha (a favela on the north side of Belo) for 40 years. When Anderson was 9 years old he left the favela and began running the streets of Belo. This is typical for children whose parents are dead or abusive. In Anderson's case, his father is an alcoholic and Anderson was tired of it. So he became a street kid. Since that option seems pretty extreme, one can only imagine the trauma he experienced in his home.

Many street kids turn to sniffing glue, petty theft, drugs and prostitution to stay alive. Others become street corner beggars who supplement their income by scavanging in the garbage for food. School is not even an option for these kids, and without education or skills they are doomed to life such as this.

However when Anderson was 12 years old he met a worker from the Rescue and Restoration House, which is affiliated with Youth with a Mission (YWAM). This is a Christian ministry which has two objectives: prevention and intervention for children of the favelas. If a child wants to get off the street, they first go to the Rescue House for 2 weeks. If a child can abide by the rules at the Rescue House (and some of them cannot), then the child is admitted to the Restoration House. After 3 years on the streets, Anderson made it to the Restoration House where he lived for the next 9 years. Now, as a young adult, he is in training to become a missionary who will go out on the streets and find other children to bring to the Rescue House.

One other important factor for these kids: if a child in Brasil does not speak English, their options are severely limited. Speaking English is a gateway out of poverty, drugs and the favelas so a lot of the work that the Rescue and Restoration House does is to teach the children English and give them job skills for survival when they become adults. Because the children experienced high levels of trauma and abuse while on the streets and in their families, there is also counseling for them. Finally the children are placed in an environment which is safe and welcoming. This physical and emotional stability brings about healing for the children and allows them to find a way out of the cycle of poverty and destruction.

Two days ago we went on a tour of 4 restoration houses in Belo, each of them affiliated with YWAM. The first was the boys house where Anderson and Fernando (from an earlier post) grew up.

The second house we went to was the girls house. Unfortunately the global economic crisis has hit missions particularly hard and the girls house is closing due to lack of financial support. This is a tragedy since some of the girls there are less than 10 years old and literally have no where else to go. Essentially the closing of the girls house ensures them a life of prostitution.

The third house we went to was for street children who have AIDS. Most of these children acquired AIDS from their mothers' during childbirth. The staff are committed to the welfare of the children but they too are concerned about their funding. The staff provide structure and stability, administer medication, and provide transport for these kids. Without this shelter, these children would be dealing with AIDS while living on the streets.

The fourth house we visited was for pregnant women on have come from the street. In many instances, the girls don't even know how they become pregnant because they have never had sex education (or any education for that matter) and so they don't know basic body functions and hygiene issues. Child abandonment is frequent because the girls don't know what to do with the babies once they are born. The house for pregnant street girls seeks to teach the girls parenting skills, financial management skills and pre- and peri-natal skills.

The work that YWAM and the missionaries at these houses are doing is real. If you have ever been cynical about missionaries in foreign countries before, I am a witness. Lives are being changed at the facilities I have visited.

In Country: About Belo Horizonte

2009-01-08T20:42:00.012-02:00

Belo, with a population of about 2.4 million people, is the third largest city in Brasil. If you count the population of the surrounding region, that number swells to 5.5 million. Since 1897 it has been the capital city of Minas Gerais (pronounced Men-us Cher-ice), and was Brasil's original planned city in the early years of the First Republic. Like Campinas, Belo is not a city that's very attractive to tourists. From walking the streets the past two days, I have found it to be a very gritty city. Drivers are aggressive and the sidewalks are treacherous. The people, however, are delightful and so it's definitely worth going off the beaten path to meet them.

Belo sits in a valley ringed by mountains. In fact, the city's name refers to the view: belo means "beautiful" and horizonte means "horizon." There are lots of hills throughout the city, and once in a while one gets a good view of the sprawling vastness of this place. We are here in the height of summer right now, so the temperature gets into the mid 90s each day. There was a bit of a respite from that heat yesterday, however, when from out of nowhere the sky began to pour buckets of rain on us. Jocelyn, David, Hope and I were walking around downtown when it happened and so we ditched under the cover of a shoe store awning and waited for it to pass.

Despite the excitement of travel and the friendliness of the people, there is a sad side to most Brasilian cities. That sadness can be found in the favelas. These are the slums which are located in every large city in the country. Favelas are vast, unregulated communities built on hillsides, in marshes or other inaccessable sites. There are no roads except dirt and gravel, and no electricity except linha gato, the "cat lines" tapped from legal structures adjacent to the favelas. Typically there is no running water, forcing the women to walk long distances to pump water from public faucets. The return walk includes carrying the containers on their heads. Children do not attend school and the police do not patrol the paths. Often children run away from their family's dwelling due to abuse or neglect. In other instances the parents abandon their children because the kids are considered too burdensome in their need for food and clothing. Food is hard to come by among the Brasilian poor, and many people scavange for grains of rice or discarded bread crumbs in the garbages each day. Malnutrition and disease are high. Although drug abuse and drug lords run rampant, the two biggest scourges to the people in the favelas are alcoholism and teenage pregnancy.

Because they are illegal communities, it's challenging to identify the number of favelas throughout Brasil, as well as to know the number of favelados, the term used to describe those who dwell in them. Many sources claim about 30% of a city's population lives in a favela. For Belo that would be about 1.5 million people living in one of the 100 slums in the city.

Over the past couple of days we have traveled to two such favelas. Today we went to visit a mission outpost affiliated with Youth with a Mission (YWAM). This YWAM facility is located directly in the heart of Novo San Lucas, which is a vast collection of 6 favelas on the hillside south of downtown Belo. Novo San Lucas is only about 20 years old, and continues to expand as more and more poor people find themselves unable to afford even the most basic housing in the city center. There is some evidence that the Brasilian government is attempting to deal with the issue, however, as some of the shacks are being torn down and replaced with government housing. In this photo, the orange structure in the center of the frame is a newly constructed government apartment building.

Because going into the favelas can be dangerous, it is necessary to have an escort. In both cases (yesterday and today) our escort was Anderson, a young man I will introduce in another blog entry. When walking in the favelas there are certain rules we have to follow. We cannot take photos of the people. This is out of respect for their dignity and out of safety for us. Young men in the favelas can be very dangerous and would kill for a camera without thinking twice about it. They have nothing to lose. We also cannot talk loudly and preferably not in English. This is to reduce the attention on ourselves. However since the favelas are communities where everyone knows everyone, word travels fast when estranhos (strangers) appear on the scene.

Yesterday we visited Anderson's mother and father in a different favela. In this case I was able to take a couple of photos of the street and alley where his family lives. The running water in the photo was open sewage. Anderson's family (mother, father, three sisters and a 2 year old nephew) all live in a two room dwelling off a side alley. Out of respect for them I did not take photos, but it was small and grim.

Because there is no garbage service, the people tend to just throw their trash in heaps over the side of the alley. Therefore rats often infest such dwellings. A young girl once told the YWAM worker that she was afraid of going to sleep at night because the rats would chew on the toes of her newborn son.

Next door to Anderson's family's home lives a woman who served as a grandmother to Anderson when he was a child. Her name is Dona Laura and she invited us in to sit and talk. We also met her granddaughter Laura Stephane, who is 15 years old. Without access to English education or a good paying job, Laura Stephane is doomed to repeat the cycle of the favelado. That she does not yet have a baby is probably attributable to her grandmother's care. Most girls who stay in the favela start having babies at 14 or 15. This photo shows David and I with Dona Laura. I vowed to get her address and start correspondence with Laura Stephane. Perhaps that way we can break the cycle in one girl's life by offering her a vision of another way to live. Before we left, Anderson took a photo of us outside Dona Laura's house. From left to right: Maureen, Dona Laura, Laura Stephane, Rebekkah, Jocelyn, David and Hope. I don't know the dog's name but the YWAM worker today said there are more dogs than humans in the favelas.

In Country: The Longest Night of My Life, or How to Catch Hypothermia in the Tropics

2009-01-08T10:49:00.003-02:00

Bom Dia!

Tuesday night the team boarded a bus for Belo Horizonte, which is where we are now. Actually the trip consisted of three bus rides: a city bus in Campinas to the bus station (45 minutes), a longer bus ride from Campinas to Sao Paulo (2 hours), and then the longest-night-of-my-life bus ride from Sao Paulo to Belo Horizonte (8 hours). Hyperbole aside, by the time we finally caught the overnighter in Sao Paulo it was 11:30pm. The bus station itself was huge and in many ways reminded me of an airport. There were several levels with many food vendors. Numbering about 15 people, our team sprawled across the waiting area. Needless to say, it was a little bit chaotic just trying to move from one part of the station to another.

Once we got on the long bus, the trip really began. Perhaps the most significant factor about this bus trip was the air conditioner which was set on high, supposedly to induce hypothermia. In other words, the bus was a moving freezer. Once the chill factor set in, I realized why Thabiti had bothered to carry blankets along with all his other bags. As we plowed through the tropical night, I stuffed my stiff hands into my armpits and vowed to get myself a "bus blanket" before our next trip.

The speed at which our driver found himself most comfortable also ranks compellingly high in significance. Since there was a curtain separating the driver from his cargo, I could not get a reading on the speedometer. However, it would be safe to say that the speed was high. As in fast. And this was not just a straight shot from Point A to Point B. Rather the road consisted of hairpin turns on high mountain passes. It occured to me that perhaps the bus company schedules this route at night hoping that the passengers will fall asleep and therefore not realize that they are careening dangerously close to the edge of 1000 foot drop offs. It wouldn't do to have 100 screaming riders to disturb the driver's concentration.

But alas, despite the cold and treacherous speeds, we made it into Belo at 8:00am.

In Country: Faces of Campinas

2009-01-05T23:28:00.011-02:00

Tomorrow we are leaving for another city, Belo Horizonte, with Richard and his Master's Commission team. After we spend the week in Belo, we will be on the road for about a month. So, before leaving today I wanted to post one more entry about some of the random faces of Campinas. Enjoy!

Richard and the Skippy Superchunk in his home the night we arrived (December 26). We were carrying a suitcase full of goodies which included two large jars of peanut butter. Apparently Brasilians don't make or buy peanut butter so it's really hard to get in the stores. As soon as we passed the jar to him, he opened it and started spooning chunks into his mouth.

Dom Pedro Mall food court at opening time. This is the largest shopping center in South America. David went one afternoon and took this picture.

Thabiti, Andre and Rastaman on the street. David took this photo.

Jocelyn, Fernando and Hope at my favorite outdoor restaurant in South America.

A Cambui sunset.

Holiday shoppers on the street

David and Hope on the train.

In Country: Essas Coisas Acontecem

2009-01-05T10:46:00.009-02:00

Yesterday Jocelyn, David, Fernando, Hope and I went for a ride on the Maria Fumaça. The train is cared for by the Brazilian Association for Railway Preservation or ABPF and is housed at the Anhumas station just outside Campinas. At the bottom of their brochure they claim that it is "a cultural association without lucrative aims." According to the volunteers who work there, the government does not supply any federal or state funding for its maintenance.

The train has been running again since 1984, after having been shut down for several decades. Most of the engines were made in the 1910s and 1920s. In fact, the engine that pulled the car we rode in was made in Germany in 1927.

Apparently the idea of Maria Fumaça is almost as important as the reality of it. There are several songs and poems with her name, and several states boast of train lines similar to this one. The following is a link to one particular example: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdNrOyNlDF8&feature=related

The train ride itself consisted of an hour and a half of slow moving through coffee country. We stopped at several old train stations and passed many fazendas (farms). More than once the people along the tracks would wave and smile as we passed by. It is a source of pride and identity for them.

The final destination is a tiny town called Jaguariuna, where all the passengers disembark and fan out for about 40 minutes before the train leaves for its return to Anhumas. Since 40 minutes is not a very long time one is torn between visiting the faire hippie with handcrafted goods, the Dynamic Railway Museum, or lunch at one of the nearby sidewalk cafes. Jocelyn and I tried to be slick by ordering lunch, and then having the others wait for the food, while we dashed over to the faire hippie. It worked; I was able to pick up a couple of souvenirs and some sweet treats for the ride back home before returning to David and the others who were waiting patiently with freshly made juice and sandwiches.

After eating quickly we jumped back on the train for the hour and a half back to Anhumas. Along the way a funky band played for the passengers. Apparently the songs they played are well known and originate from the northeast region of the country. It consisted of an accordian, a
zabumba (drum), and a triangle. It sounded to my ears like country music Brasilian style. Many passengers sang along, and the party next to us said it is known as forró, which is both a type of music and a type of dance. The following link has some information about a recent film made about this type of music. http://www.dev.tv/PMA-PresentationEN.pdf . Also here is a link to a National Geographic's website on the topic. http://worldmusic.nationalgeographic.com/worldmusic/view/page.basic/genre/content.genre/forro_720

In Country: The Ecological Park

2009-01-01T22:26:00.009-02:00

Today Jocelyn, her son Sean, David, Hope and I went to the Emílio José Salim Ecological Park in Campinas. Originally it was an 18th century plantation built in a region inhabited predominantly by French colonials. The primary crops were sugarcane, cotton, and corn. Later, in the 19th century, coffee would become its primary cash crop. Although initially the fields were worked by the indigenous people of the region, they were soon replaced by slaves. I am still trying to wrap my head around the issue of slavery, which is huge, but will post more about it soon.

The person most closely associated with the original plantation is Luzia Maria de Sousa who, in 1817, married her cousin and, in 1820, inherited the plantation from her father. Luzia Maria and her husband were considered among the rural aristocracy of the region, which included lots of titles such as viscountess and baroness and even a visit from the emperor of Brasil, Dom Pedro II. Luzia and her husband were also quite entrepreneurial in spirit as they are thought to be the first planters in Sao Paulo state to grow and export coffee.

Today the plantation is an ecological park containing the casarao (marriage house), a granary and a small ingreja (church) along with lots of walking trails, a lagoon and other outbuildings.

Earlier I had posted about my camera-less encounter with capybaras while going to the grocery store. This afternoon I was ready with camera in hand. It was a good thing too because along with the buildings, we saw capybaras, a peacock, an owl, a hummingbird and other lovely sights.

The other thing that was really cool about this park was that it was free. There was no entrance fee to get in, nor was there a charge to go into the casarao museum. There were, however, many guards who watched us quite carefully as we toured around the park.

In Country: Feliz Ano Novo!

2009-01-01T10:30:00.006-02:00

On the way to the grocery store the other day, Jocelyn and I passed by the gates to the Coffee Museum. Since we have had a hard time finding museums open this week because of the holiday, and since the gates were open, we decided to stop and ask about the museum's hours. A mustached guard leaned against the wall when we approached. Lounging around the grassy area next to the guard shack were several capybaras, a dog-sized rodent which lives in herds and eats plants. In short, the capybaras is a very large vegetarian rat. When we approached, a couple of these odd looking animals picked themselves up from the grass and waddled across the road. The guard explained that the Coffee Museum would be closed until February, and that right now it was being used as a capybaras preserve.

Unfortunately I had not brought my camera. Who would have thought that I would encounter a capybara on the way to shopping? So this photo is courtesy of WildlandAdventures.com.

The word capybara means something like "king of the grass" which describes the main ingredient in their diet. An adult can weigh up to 140 pounds, and grows to about 2 feet high. They are fast runners and strong swimmers, and usually spend several hours a day in and around water. If they do not get into the water frequently, their skin will dry out and crack.

Found only in South America, the red area on the map shows the capybaras' range. For more information about the cabybaras this link will take you to an online biology class with Earlham College in the UK http://www.earlham.edu/~martilu/capybarapage.htm .

In Country: Meet Fernando

2008-12-31T16:52:00.006-02:00

Our Portuguese-English translator when we leave Campinas will be Fernando Rocha da Silva. The following is a brief overview of his biography:

Fernando was born in Sao Paulo, a city of more than 24 million people, and at a very early age began surviving the streets on his own. At six years old, he left Sao Paulo for the city of Belo Horizonte. Fernando spent the next six years on the streets before entering a restoration house where he lived until joining Master’s Commission in 2007. He has not seen or known the whereabouts of anyone in his family since leaving Sao Paulo at six years old.

Now at 22, Fernando has a great love for people and tremendous gratitude for the opportunities he’s been given. He is working to become the director of a restoration house similar to the one that helped him get off the streets. Fernando is entering his final 18-month training which includes principles of leadership, working with children at risk, and organizational management. One of his life time dreams has been to travel around Brasil, but he never had the means to do so. Now, by serving as our language interpreter, he is getting the opportunity to live his dream!

In this photo, Fernando is the young man in the black t-shirt. The other little boys are also street kids who have come to the restoration house.

In Country: Context is Nothing

2008-12-30T20:50:00.003-02:00

The following is a decontextualized list of things that I have witnessed in the past 5 days.

1) When driving, stop signs are just a suggestion.

2) Brasilians are very social. Even asking for directions on the street becomes a community based activity. Whether walking or driving, the typical approach to finding one's way is to just head in the general direction of one's final destination. Then, apparently with great random, stop and ask for directions. Sometimes this may require a second opinion, so another person will also be solicited for advice. After the directions have been agreed upon by all parties, resume traveling toward the destination. After a while, it is appropriate to again stop and ask for directions. Usually this second stop is accompanied by an explanation of the first set of directions earlier in the journey. This second inquiry may also require more than one person's advice. And, of course, it is always necessary to acquire agreement about the directions from all parties before resuming the journey. On occasion, the names of one's children or the place of one's birth may also be inserted into the conversation. Travel in Brasil is like attending a very large party.

3) In the States, handicapped parking spaces are provided for individuals with physical challenges. In Brasil, this courtesy is extended to senior citizens. In some grocery store parking lots the word idoso, which means senior citizen, is placed between choice spots near the doorway. In addition, once inside the store one can find separate cash register lines (known as preferencial) especially for pregnant women, women with babies, people in wheelchairs and senior citizens. This afternoon, because I am still functionally illiterate in Portuguese, I managed to stand in the caixa preferencial line for . . . oh, about 10 minutes . . . before it was pointed out to me that I was neither pregnant, carrying a newborn, navigating a wheechair nor old enough to qualify as a senior. It's not clear to me what was more embarrassing: standing in the incorrect line or having to be told that I was standing in the incorrect line.

4) All Brasilians, regardless of body type and size, wear skimpy bathing suits at the pool and beach. While it's quite appealing in the thin and youthful, there are some exceptions. Men, often with the bulging beer gut acquired with age, wear speedos. Women, without concern for the impact child bearing may have wrought upon their bellies, wear two piece bikinis. Not to be forgotten is the posterior view of the famous Brasilian thong, which manages to disappear into the crack of one's rear. Anyone who does not wear the speedo or the thong is known to be a foreigner.

5) Brasilians call all Americans "gringos" regardless of the color of one's skin.

6) Most buffet style restaurants provide customers a wash bowl before entering the food line.

7) Household garbage is placed in a raised cage on the sidewalk to await pickup. Supposedly this is to keep dogs from getting into it before the truck arrives. When the garbage truck does come along each day, young men run behind it for the entire route, stopping at each house to throw the cage's contents in the back of the truck. They are very thin young men. Although unconfirmed, locals claim that the garbage men are prisoners working off some of their jail time.

In Country: Missed the Museum But Caught the Train

2008-12-29T23:18:00.004-02:00

On Monday, 29 December 2008, Jocelyn and I went on the hunt for two museums. Over the weekend we had poured over locations and descriptions for some of the cultural sites listed on the Campinas city website. Although many of them sounded interesting, we had identified two of them to visit first: the City Museum and the Museum of Sound and Image. Unfortunately they were both closed on Monday. Even though our search for museums was thwarted, we did discover another important historical monument.

Our gem of the day was the Railway Station of the Paulista Company of Railroads at the corner of Andrade Neves Avenue and Rodovia Lidgerwood on the southernmost edge of the center of town. As Sao Paulo state was moving into industrialization in the mid 19th century, many plantations that had been growing sugarcane switched to coffee. Sao Paulo and Minas Gerais states were at the center of this agricultural transition and soon came to dominate the rest of the country in coffee cultivation. Because coffee is a perishable crop, it needs access to ports for speedy shipment to markets. The port at Santos (outside Sao Paulo) came to be the main port for coffee exports. At its peak, about 80% of Brasil's coffee exports were shipped to the United States, with most of it transported through Campinas and the port at Santos.

Thus was born the Campinas Train Station. The first station was built in the 1860s but was later replaced in 1884 with a more modern one. Over time, the train station went through seven important phases of development, until it was finally abandoned in 1961. Because of its importance in the economic development of Brasil in the 19th century, one of the trains that traveled the tracks of Sao Paulo and Minas Gerais states earned the nickname Maria Fumaça, or Smokey Mary.

Today the train station is part of a federal reserve, and is considered a valuable heritage site for the city of Campinas. When Jocelyn and I arrived we inquired about the history of the station and were fortunate enough to get an interview with Luiz Antonio Aquino, the chief architect working on its preservation.

Educated at the University in Sao Paulo, he has been working with a consortium of architects on heritage sites in Campinas since 1989.

The woodwork depicted here is restored original, and shows colonial influence in the high, narrow doors and hand carved detail. Note the geometric zigzag pattern of the ceiling. That ceiling is in the main hall of the train station. With a little imagination one can almost hear the train wheezing to a stop on the platform and the station master yelling: All aboard! Okay, you're right. The call would have been tudo a bordo! But you get the idea.

In Country: Context is Everything, or a Brief History Lesson

2008-12-29T21:28:00.004-02:00

Over the past 200 years, Brasil has experienced significant shocks to its political system. As the country turned the century into the year 1800 it was still a colony of Portugal, which held power across the Atlantic in Lisbon. But before the decade was over, the King of Portugal --João VI--was forced to move his family and throne to Brasil to escape the advances of Napoleon's forces across Europe. It's worth noting that this transmigration by a king from Europe to a colony in the New World was historic. Never before and never again would a king move the seat of power away from European shores. The year was 1808 and Portugal was permanently weakened.

By 1822, Brasil had declared its independence from the Portuguese crown. The newly designated emperor was Dom Pedro I, son of João VI. The father did not support the son however and João VI refused to recognize Dom Pedro's (and Brasil's) independence until 1825. Regardless of the family squabble, most historians refer to this time in Brasilian history as the Era of Empire: 1822-1888.

Eighteen eighty nine represents a turning point for Brasil. First, slavery was abolished. Second, it marks the end of Empire and the beginning of Republic. In many ways the new government fashioned itself after the United States, beginning with the its formal name as "The United States of Brazil." Although there was a dark side to its beginnings -- mainly in the power and influence of the military -- as a republic it sought to live up to the ideas embedded in the term res publica, which is Latin for "community." Eventually people received the right to vote and there was a separation of church and state. Historians refer to this era as The First Republic: 1889-1930.

Yet 1930 represents another important transition in Brasilian politics. Like many other countries, Brasil was impacted by the global economic collapse brought on by the 1929 crash on Wall Street. In Brasil this was known as the "Crisis." Perhaps even more importantly however was the military coup d'état which installed Getúlio Vargas as dictator for the next 15 years, an era known as Estado Novo (New State): 1930-1945.

The next segment of the Brasilian political roller coaster spans the complicated years from 1946-1964, when elections were reinstated and many freedoms, including freedom of the press, returned to the populace. Ironically, Vargas was elected president during these years but was hounded by that same free press and ended up committing suicide in 1954.

Freedom was short-lived however and another right wing coup d'état, accompanied by a new dictator -- Marshal Humberto Castelo Branco -- came to power in 1964. This dictatorship lasted from 1964-1985.

Since 1986 Brasil has once again enjoyed democracy. Currently Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (usually referred to as Lula) is president, after having been elected for a second term in 2006. Lula is fairly popular, hence his re-election, and comes from a modest family. His background is comprised of union organizing, and he was a founding member of the party who eventually overturned the last military dictatorship.

Much of this information, except the most recent material, can be found in Robert M. Levine's The History of Brazil. New York: Palgrave MacMillan, 1999.

In Country: Late and Languid

2008-12-28T14:49:00.004-02:00

Bom Dia! We have arrived in beautiful Brasil.

After what turned out to be two days of travel -- by plane, bus and VW bug -- we are now situated in a modest apartment in Campinas. As I suggested in an earlier pre-trip posting, Campinas is a city of about 1 million population. The weather is humid and warm at 84 degrees, with gray cumulous clouds floating across a vivid blue sky. Really it's just a typical Sunday south of the equator.

Our apartment belongs to an American woman, Kendra, who teaches at the American school with my sister-in-law Jocelyn. Kendra is on holiday with her boyfriend and she was gracious enough to allow us to use it. In terms of size, the apartment is quite modest. At about 850 square feet, it contains a living/dining room with a small patio overlooking the pool 14 floors below us. There are two small bedrooms and two bathrooms. The laundry room is in the kitchen which has very high ceilings to allow just-washed clothes to dry while hanging suspended from a clothes hanger system consisting of levers and pulleys. In a word, all is efficient.

The time is 6 hours later, so when it's 9:30am in California, it's 3:30pm in Campinas. There are several times zones in Brasil, however, and I will try to keep you posted when we move to a region with a different hour.

Yesterday we woke early -- around 9:15am -- and walked to the faire (pronounced 'feta') hippie. Otherwise known as a hippie street fair. Because Campinas is a fairly middle class city, there are not a lot of tourists here. Thus the street fair was not comprised of trinkets for rich Europeans and Americans as one might expect, but rather there were lots of antiques, soaps, shoes and other household items on display. In my groggy jet lagged state, I forgot to grab the camera before we left so I don't have pictures.

After strolling through the hippie fair we stopped for coffee at an upscale cafe. Brasil is known for the coffee, which is strong, and for the cup size, which is small. As a point of comparison, a large cup in Brasil is still smaller than a small cup in California. Consumption is not the same here.

Then we headed on to the fruit market, where we picked up some fresh mangoes, papayas and oranges. When we stopped at one of the stalls, the vendor and his wife cut open a mango and served slippery sweet slices to us on his knife blade. Afterwards, their son produced a basin of clean water to rinse our sticky hands. Their good marketing paid off; I filled my grocery bag with fruit for just over $7 reis, or about $3.00 U.S.

Eventually we made our way back to Richard and Jocelyn's modest house in the Salles Apolis neighborhood, where we spent the rest of the day relaxing and enjoying the family. In deed we did not make it back to our apartment until 1:00am this morning, which is why I named this entry "Late and Languid", for that is all we have done today: slept late and laid around languid.

Pre-Trip: Bibliography

2008-12-22T00:49:00.001-02:00

Several people have asked what sources I am using for research. In an attempt at responsiveness, here is a running bibliography of the books and articles I have read so far:

De Jesus, Carolina Maria. Child of the Dark: The Diary of Carolina Maria de Jesus. Translated by David St. Clair. New York: Signet, 2003.

Johnson, Randal. "Brazilian Modernism: An Idea Out of Place?" Modernism and Its Margins: Reinscribing Cultural Modernity from Spain and Latin America. New York: Garland, 1999. pp. 186-214.

Levine, Robert M. The History of Brazil. New York: Palgrave MacMillan, 2003.

Martinez-Diaz, Leonardo. "Latin America: Coming of Age." World Policy Institute 2008. pp. 221-227.

Peebles, Frances de Pontes. The Seamstress: A Novel. New York: HarperCollins, 2008.

Pendergrast, Mark. Uncommon Grounds: The History of Coffee and How It Transformed Our World. New York: Basic Books, 1999.

Shaw, Lisa and Maite Conde. "Brazil Through Hollywood's Gaze: From the Silent Screen to the Good Neighbor Policy Era." Latin American Cinema: Essays on Modernity, Gender and National Identity. Jefferson, NC: McFarland, 2005. pp. 180-208.

Skidmore, Thomas E. Brazil: Five Centuries of Change. New York: Oxford University Press, 1999.

St. Louis, Regis et al. Brazil. 7th ed. London: Lonely Planet Publications, 2008.

Tiller, Ann Quiggins. "The Igniting Spark-Brazil, 1930." The Hispanic American Historical Review. Vol 45, No 3 (Aug 1965), pp. 384-392.

Tyson-Ward, Sue. Brazilian Portuguese: A Complete Guide for Beginners. London: Hodder, 1997.

Whitaker, Robert. The Mapmaker's Wife: A True Tale of Love, Murder, and Survival in the Amazon. New York: Delta, 2004.

Williamson, Edwin. The Penguin History of Latin America. London: Penguin, 1992.

Pre-Trip: Changing Plans

2008-12-12T03:12:00.000-02:00

After some consideration, I have decided to change the itinerary somewhat. The following is the revised plan:

The structure will include 1) arrival and departure dates for each location, 2) the location itself, 3) lodging contact info, and 4) travel away from that location.

1) 26 December 2008 – 13 January 2009
2) Campinas
3) a friend of Richard?
4) on 13 January travel by bus from Campinas to Curitiba

1) 13 January – 18 January
2) Curitiba
3) a friend of Richard?
4) on 18 January travel by train from Curitiba to Paranagua

1) 18 January – 21 January
2) Paranagua
3) Lodging: Paranagua – Hotel Ponderosa at Rua Prescilinio Correa 68Phone: 3423 2464 get room with view
4) on 21 January travel by ferry from Paranagua to Ilha do Mel

1) 21 January – 23 January
2) Ilha Do Mel (island) Nova Brasilia (village)
3) Lodging: Enseada das ConchasPhone: 3426 8040 or http://www.pousadaenseada.com.br/
4) on 23 January travel by ferry (via Dalton contact below?) from Ilha Do Mel to Parque Nacional do Superagui

1) 23 January – 25 January
2) Parque Nacional Do Superagui Transport: ferry, call Dalton (41) 8406 0579 at Pousada Superagui to arrange
3) Lodging: Pousada SuperaguiPhone: 3482 7149 or http://www.pousadasuperagui.com.br/
4) on 25 January travel by ferry (via Dalton?) from Parque Nacional do Superagui to Paranagua; travel by train from Paranagua to Curitiba

1) 25 January – 26 January
2) Curitiba
3) Lodging: San Juan Charm at Rua Barao do Rio Branco 354 Phone 3219 9900 or http://www.sanjuanhoteis.com.br/
4) on 26 January fly from Curitiba to Foz do Iguassu

1) 26 January – 29 January
2) Foz do Iquacu
3) Lodging: Pousada El ShaddaiPhone: 3025 4493 or http://www.pousadaelshaddai.com.br/
4) on 29 January fly from Foz do Iguassu to Sao Paulo

1) 29 January – 2 February
2) Sao Paulo
3) Lodging: Pousada Dona Zilah at Alameda Franca 1621 (Jardins district)Phone: 3062 1444 or http://www.zilah.com/
4) on 2 February travel by bus from Sao Paulo to Campinas

1) 2 February - 3 February
2) Campinas; drop off Hope
3) friend of Richard?
4) on 3 February travel by bus to Sao Paulo; fly from Sao Paulo to Manuas (David and Maureen only)

1) 3 February – 5 February
2) Manaus
3) Lodging: Hotel Tropical at Av Coronel Teixeira 1320Phone: 658 5000 or http://www.tropicalhotel.com.br/
4) on 5 February travel with tour group

1) 5 February – 9 February
2) Jungle Tour in the AmazonTransport: Amazonas Indian Turismo Phone: 3633 5578

1) 9 February – 11 February
2) Manaus
3) Lodging: Hotel Tropical at Av Coronel Teixeira 1320Phone: 658 5000 or http://www.tropicalhotel.com.br/
4) on 11 February travel by river boat from Manuas to Belem

1) 11 February – 14 February
2) River Trip to Belem
3) Transport: River boat with Agencia Rio Amazonas Phone: 3621 4319
4) on 11 February travel by boat from Manuas to Belem

1) 14 February – 18 February
2) Belem
3)
4) on 18 February fly from Belem to Sao Paulo (David and Maureen only); bus from Sao Paulo to Campinas

1) 18 February – 4 March
2) Campinas
3) friend of Richard?
4) on 4 March travel by bus from Campinas to Sao Paulo; fly from Sao Paulo to Recife

1) 4 March – 21 March
2) Recife
3) Lodging: Pousada Casuarinas at Rua Antonio Pedro Figueiredo 151Phone: 3325 4708 or http://www.pousadacasuarinas.com.br/
4) on 21 March fly from Recife to Sao Paulo; bus from Sao Paulo to Campinas

1) 21 March – 1 April
2) Campinas
3) friend of Richard?
4) on 1 April travel by bus from Campinas to Sao Paulo; fly Sao Paulo to Estados Unidos :(

Pre-Trip: Brasilian Modernism

2008-11-28T03:41:00.000-02:00

Brasil is complex. Of course this is true for most every country in the world, but it's the conclusion I have reached as a result of reading an article entitled "Brazilian Modernism: An Idea Out of Place?" by Randal Johnson. The article is actually a chapter from the book Modernism and Its Margins: Reinscribing Cultural Modernity from Spain and Latin America, edited by Anthony L Geist and Jose B. Monleon.

Brasil's complexity comes as a result of its indigenous and European pasts, and its identity-seeking present. In broad terms, the history of Brasil can be separated into three important segments: the pre-Cabralian indigenous past, which represents the time before 1500 C.E.; the age of European colonization from 1500 - 1889 C.E.; and the rocky era of modernization since 1889 C.E.

Each of these are rich in cultural contributions about the story of Brasil. However it is also important to recognize that the last chapter of the story -- the modernization of Brasil -- is still being written. What am I saying?: Brasil is even now in the act of writing itself. From its rich and vital roots, along with the graftings it has received from African and European branches, Brasil is a work is progress. In the words of Paulo Emilio Salles Gomes, Brasil is "neither Europeans nor North Americans. Lacking an original culture, nothing is foreign . . . because everything is. The painful construction of ourselves develops within the rarefied dialectic of not being and being someone else." Brasil and Brasilians have been for the past 80 years -- and are even now --inventing themselves.

Johnson's article speaks to that invention. It may focus on a short moment in time (1922- 1930), but it reflects a momentous movement in history: Brasilian Modernism. For context, the country was undergoing tremendous changes. The nation had only recently abolished slavery (in 1888) and it had been the last country on earth to do so. A year later, the Portuguese monarchy was deposed and Brasil was enjoying its First Republic (1889-1930). Immigrants, mostly white working class Europeans, were arriving in large numbers (1.5 million between 1905-1923), bringing with them the class consciousness and political militancy of the European proletariat. During this time the radio was introduced to the airwaves of South America, and the country received its first loan from the United States. The latter represented an "eventual rearrangement in the country's relations of dependency with industrialized nations" (Johnson 190), an economic re-positioning that continues to have importance in the 21st century. In short, Brasil was a nation on the fast track to industrialization and modernization.

Along with changes in the economic and social structures in society, Brasil was also experiencing something of an identity crisis. Having recently rejected European monarchy, Brasil was beginning to question how much of Europe it should continue to draw from in the creation of a uniquely Brasilian society. It was starting to evaluate the "contradiction between . . . world and national relations of power, [as] the key to drawing a more precise figure of Brazil in the modern world" (Johnson 193). The political openness of the First Republic allowed for Brasilian citizens to conceive of a Brasil which could step away from the political, economic, religious and artistic influences of Europe that had dominated the country for the past 400 years.

Enter antropofagia. The term refers to cannibalism, but in relation to Brasilian Modernism it carries more than one meaning. The first interpretation associates with the pre-Cabralian past when the Tupinambá -- an indigenous group from the northeast -- practiced ritualistic cannibalism as part of their totemic system. Johnson treats the subject handily, as does Theodore Robert Young in his lecture entitled "Anthropophagy, Tropicalismo, and Como era gustoso meu Francês." Translated into English that last part means "How Tasty Was My Little Frenchman" which is, among other things, a reference to who was dining on whom in the 16th century and the title of a popular film in the 1970s.

The second meaning to the term antropofagia explains the ways in which Brasilian Modernists were employing the concept. Stay tuned for "Eating the Europeans" and an explanation of the image at the top of this entry next time!

Pre-Trip: Murder, Mayhem and Mapmaking

2008-11-15T00:20:00.000-02:00

. . . and that's only partially the story in Robert Whitaker's historical biography entitled The Mapmaker's Wife: A True Tale of Love, Murder, and Survival in the Amazon. Whitaker was selected by the American Library Association for writing one of the best biographies of 2004. Having read the book, I can certainly see why.

The story begins in 1735 when a party of ten French Enlightenment scientists journey from Europe to the Viceroyalty of Peru, a Spanish colonial territory of modern-day Equador. Their task: to measure the circumference of the earth. The team of men included Charles-Marie de La Condamine, Louis Godin and Pierre Bouguer, all important members of the French Academy of Sciences.

Whitaker's descriptions of the men, their personal rivalries and public foibles are compelling, but the story really gets good when their research reaches its conclusion in 1743 and the expedition makes plans to head back to France. Prior to their departure, one of the team members - Jean Godin, the cousin of Louis Godin - met and married a local woman. Actually, it would be a misnomer to call Isabel Grameson a woman on her wedding day; she was a month short of 14 years when she married Jean Godin in an elaborate ceremony on 29 December 1741. But child brides were common in colonial South America and Isabel's father approved of the match.

What follows their wedding is the stuff of legend. When the expedition pulls out of the region in 1743, Godin is "barred from departing because of his debts . . . and take[s] a position as professor of mathematics at the University of San Marcos in Lima" (Whitaker 198). But the political climate for colonial elites in the Viceroyalty of Peru is changing and so by 1749, Godin sets out toward the Amazon basin without his four month pregnant wife Isabel. Godin's goal is to reach the Portuguese city of Para where it meets the Atlantic ocean -- a journey of 3,000 miles -- and obtain the necessary paperwork for their passage to France, then turn around and go back up the Amazon to retrieve Isabel -- another 3,000 mile trip--, take her (and their newborn child) through the Amazon to Para in Portuguese territory (yet another 3,000 mile excursion) before catching a ship back to Europe. Perhaps by now the reader can see how this is turning out: Not well. For starters, only about five Europeans have ever made this trek down the Amazon even once and Godin wants to do it three times. Add to that the complicated world of diplomacy between colonial Spain, France and Portugal and one can clearly see how unlikely Godin's plan might be.

Needless to say, Jean Godin gets stuck in Para and its environs for the next 20 years. That's not a typo from a thick fingered blogger. Isabel, however, never stops waiting to be reunited with her husband, and in 1769 she takes it upon herself to leave her hometown of Riobamba in search of her long lost husband. Without hyperbole, a colonial elite woman traveling down the Amazon searching for a husband she had not seen in 20 years is about as inconcievable as her husband's plans had been in 1749.

Isabel is accompanied by 40 other people, including two of her brothers and a nephew, along with several servants. The latter are justified because a woman of status and culture surely can not trek the Amazon without others to do her hair in the morning.

Along the way, Whitaker exposes the reader to the dangers of the Amazon. From vipers to leeches, from head-shrinking indigenous tribes to vampire bats, Isabel braves it all as she traverses 3,000 miles of Amazon jungle in search of her beloved. Early in the journey, as the reader might imagine, the updo loses its import. Many of her companions, however, lose their lives. In short, Isabel is the sole survivor when the expedition goes awry. Everyone else dies or disappears. Isabel alone crawls out of jungle near-death and, finally, in 1770, reunites with Jean Godin.

There is more to the story, including how the couple finally arrive in France in 1773 but I will leave that for the reader to uncover. In short: Jean had been away from France for 38 years and Isabel never saw South America again.

For more information, maps and links go to http://www.themapmakerswife.com/Mapmaker%27s%20Wife/Home.html. Be sure to click on the link entitled "Following Isabel" for a slide show of photographs by Robert Whitaker. These were obtained by the author during the course of his research of the territory and the route Isabel took. Enjoy!

For summary and reviews http://www.bookbrowse.com/reviews/index.cfm?book_number=1450

Pre-Trip: Vaccinations

2008-11-07T00:12:00.000-02:00

In the midst of election fever, David, Hope and I went to Kaiser Hospital in South Sacramento for vaccinations. Because of David's employment, he did not need Hepatitis A & B, tetanus or the typhus vaccination. Hope, too, is current on her vaccinations, so she and David only had to have a yellow fever inoculation. I, on the other hand, earned the great honor of receiving four shots, two in each arm to grace my shoulders with a lovely spotted orange and purple pattern that made me look like a hairless pale leopard.

Imagery aside, the vaccination we each received on Tuesday was for yellow fever. Yellow fever is a virus which is transmitted through the bite of infected mosquitos in South America and sub-Saharan Africa. This map shows the region in South America for yellow fever transmission. Because we will be spending about 6 weeks in the "zone" and because there is no cure for yellow fever once it is acquired, we each received the vaccination.

Yellow fever is not common in the United States today. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention reports that "Between 1996 and 2002, five people from the United States and Europe who traveled to South America or Africa contracted yellow fever and died. They were all unvaccinated." Although it is now rare in the U.S., recent history offers several famous yellow fever outbreaks in the Americas, including Philadelphia in 1793, New Orleans in 1852 and 1905, Havana, Cuba in 1898, and Peru in 1995. A recent PBS program entitled The Great Fever features these historic events and can be found at http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/fever/.

Globalization has also raised the ante for governments seeking to limit the transmission of yellow fever. The World Health Organization concludes in a 1998 report that "yellow fever is an important public health threat, which needs more attention" (WHO 15). The report presents the unique challenges of urbanization in the Amazon basin, and can be found at http://www.who.int/csr/resources/publications/surveillance/Yellow_fever.pdf.

Despite advances in understanding the origins of the disease, a yellow fever alert has been issued by the Brasilian Ministry of Health (MOH). According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention "As of June 11, 2008, 45 confirmed cases of yellow fever have been reported [in Brasil], including 25 deaths. Among the most recent cases, two human yellow fever cases have been reported in the State of São Paulo ..." http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/contentYellowFeverBrazil.aspx. With a 2008 estimated population lurking at 190 million people, this handful of yellow fever cases in Brasil represents only a fraction of the number of people who live there. However, while I want this to be a trip of a lifetime, I am not interested in seeing it be the trip that ends my life. Therefore, although the MOH does not require yellow fever vaccinations, it does recommend them in light of these recent developments. Hence, the shots.

Science aside, the side effects I experienced from the vaccinations were interesting, if not annoying. Chiefly, I ached. In addition to general achiness and dizziness, I could not raise my arms above my shoulders. This posed some challenges to writing on the board while lecturing, which reduced me to explaining my condition to my classes. Being the great people that they are, the students were receptive and empathetic to my temporary disability. Between four shots and the emotions brought on by an historic presidential election, I was pretty much a wreck on Wednesday, November 5.

Another, more compelling, side effect has been the loss of control of my arms. They seem to have developed minds of their own and have taken to flailing, jiggering and generally being independent from my will at the most inopportune moments, such as when serving food, drinking tea or shaving the back of David's head. Yes, he really was putting his life in my stuttering hands this evening. It must be love. Sigh.

Muscle aches, known as myalgia, are an early symptom of yellow fever, and because the vaccination consists of injecting live antibodies of the disease into one's system, I suppose this is just a small taste of the real thing. In this case, I prefer the sample rather than the whole meal!

Pre-Trip: The Plan

2008-10-22T00:07:00.000-02:00

After considerable research and reflection, I have arrived at a tentative itinerary. The first few weeks focus on the southeast.

The middle portion will be spent in the indigenous Amazon region of the northwest.

The final month will take place in the Afro-Brasilian region of the northeast.
****
26 December 2008 – 13 January 2009
Campinas Orientation

13 January – 18 January
Curitiba
Transport: bus to Sao Paulo; bus to Curitiba 6 hours
Lodging: San Juan Charm at Rua Barao do Rio Branco 354
Phone 3219 9900 or http://www.sanjuanhoteis.com.br/

18 January – 25 January
Paranagua and environs (18 – 21 January in Paranagua)
Transport: trem (regular) train to Paranagua, departs 8:15am, only runs on Sundays; sit on left side
Lodging: Paranagua – Hotel Ponderosa at Rua Prescilinio Correa 68
Phone: 3423 2464 get room with view

21 January – 23 January
Ilha Do Mel (island) Nova Brasilia (village)
Transport: ferry 2 hours
Lodging: Enseada das Conchas
Phone: 3426 8040 or http://www.pousadaenseada.com.br/

23 January – 25 January
Parque Nacional Do Superagui
Transport: ferry, call Dalton (41) 8406 0579 at Pousada Superagui to arrange
Lodging: Pousada Superagui
Phone: 3482 7149 or http://www.pousadasuperagui.com.br/

25 January – 26 January
Curitiba
Transport: ferry with Dalton to Paranagua (60 minutes); trem to Curitiba
Lodging: San Juan Charm at Rua Barao do Rio Branco 354
Phone 3219 9900 or http://www.sanjuanhoteis.com.br/

26 January – 29 January
Foz do Iquacu
Transport: fly (40 minutes)
Lodging: Pousada El Shaddai
Phone: 3025 4493 or http://www.pousadaelshaddai.com.br/

29 January – 2 February
Sao Paulo
Transport: fly from Foz do Iguacu (1 hour)
Lodging: Pousada Dona Zilah at Alameda Franca 1621 (Jardins district)
Phone: 3062 1444 or http://www.zilah.com/

2 February
Bus to Campinas; drop off Hope

3 February – 5 February
Manaus
Transport: bus to Sao Paulo; fly to Manaus
Lodging: Hotel Tropical at Av Coronel Teixeira 1320
Phone: 658 5000 or http://www.tropicalhotel.com.br/

5 February – 9 February
Jungle Tour
Transport: Amazonas Indian Turismo
Phone: 3633 5578

9 February – 11 February
Manaus
Lodging: Hotel Tropical at Av Coronel Teixeira 1320
Phone: 658 5000 or http://www.tropicalhotel.com.br/

11 February – 14 February
River Trip to (Santarem)
Transport: River boat with Agencia Rio Amazonas
Phone: 3621 4319

14 February – 17 February
Alter do Chao
Transport: bus stop at Av Rui Barbosa or Av Barao do Rio Branco (45 minutes)
Lodging: Albergue Pousada da Floresta; get a cabin only
Phone: 9651 7193 or http://www.alberguedafloresta.com.br/

17 February
Bus to Santarem; fly to Sao Paulo (by way of Manuaus); bus to Campinas

17 February – 1 March
Campinas

1 March – 5 March
Belem
Transport: bus to Sao Paulo; fly to Belem
Lodging: Machado’s Plaza Hotel at Rua Henrique Gurjao 200
Phone: 4008 9800 or http://www.machadosplazahotel.com.br/

6 March – 10 March
Sao Luis
Transport: bus 12 hours; 3249 2488; Av dos Franceses, Santo Antonio
Lodging: Pousada Colonial at Rua Afonso Pena 112; ask for view room
Phone: 3232 2834 or http://www.clickcolonial.com.br/

10 March – 15 March
Fortaleza
Transport: fly from Sao Luis
Lodging: Hotel La Maison at Av Desembargador Moreira 201
Phone: 3242 6836 or http://www.hotellamaison.com.br/

15 March – 18 March
Recife
Transport: bus 12 hours from Fortaleza
Lodging: Pousada Casuarinas at Rua Antonio Pedro Figueiredo 151
Phone: 3325 4708 or http://www.pousadacasuarinas.com.br/

18 March – 21 March
Olinda
Transport: taxi or bus from Recife
Lodging: Pousada do Amparo at Rua do Amparo 199
Phone: 3439 1749 or http://www.pousadadoamparo.com.br/

21 March – 1 April
Campinas
Transport: fly from Recife to Sao Paulo; bus from Sao Paulo to Campinas

Pre-Trip: Home Base

2008-10-18T17:38:00.000-03:00

The home base for our trip will be in a city outside Sao Paulo called Campinas. It's in Campinas that David's older brother Richard lives with his family.

Richard's move to Brasil involved a slow evolution. About 15 years ago he began bringing Brasilian youth to the United States where they would participate in a two year exchange program known as Masters Commission. Gradually Richard also began taking youth from the U.S. down to Brasil to complete an exchange program there. A school was established and a halfway house was opened to assist children attempting to transition out of the favelas (vast slums in many of the large cities). As Richard became more and more involved in the Brasilian end of the exchange program, he realized he needed to move there. And so he did in the fall of 2007, with his wife Jocelyn and four of their six children. The two who remained behind are in colleges in the U.S. At top is a recent photo, from left to right, of Jocelyn, Richard, Chris, Adriana, Sean and Rebecca. The photo below includes Richard and some of the favelados (slum dwellers) enjoying an afternoon game.

Campinas, the city where Richard and Jocelyn live, has a population of about 1,000,000 and is in the western interior of Sao Paulo state. Campinas is not a tourist destination. Although it was founded in the 18th century, it doesn't sport amazing cathedrals or glorious national parks. Rather it is a participant in the financial, industrial and agricultural products processing boom which is fueling the Brasilian economy's emergence on the world scene. According to the Brasilian Tourism Ministry, 9% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and 17% of the industrial production of São Paulo State are from the Campinas region.

Historically, Campinas rode the wave of Brasilian coffee production in the 19th century, in part because it served as a major transportation hub between rural production areas and coastal shipping ports. Today, Campinas boasts a Coffee Museum which, according to the BTM, "aims to preserve and promote the memory of the coffee production culture in Campinas." I recently picked up a book about the history of coffee, so I will report back on this topic again later once I have finished reading it.

Pre-Trip: Explaining the Project

2008-10-17T23:49:00.000-03:00

Brazil is a nation of superlatives. It represents one of the top five emerging economies of the 21st century. In geographic size, it is the fifth largest country on earth, only eclipsed in size by Russia, Canada, the United States (including Alaska) and China. It contains the largest population of people of Japanese ancestry outside of Japan, and the largest population of people of African ancestry outside of Africa. Brazil was also the recipient of the largest number of African slaves to the Americas during the European slave trade, and by 1830 Brazil had the largest slave economy in the world.

Lest one think that Brazilian history only reflects the worst of humanity, it's also important to recognize that many creative art forms have emerged from the confluence of the indigenous, African and European people who call Brazil their home. This is, after all, the birthplace of samba, capoeira, Carnival, and cinema novo.

Therefore David (my husband), Hope (my daughter, age 6) and I will be taking a trip to this nation of superlatives. After arriving by air in Sao Paulo, we will tour from the Europeanesque beach resorts of the southeast to the indigenous Amazon rainforests of the northwest. With distinct hopefulness that we not slip into the waters and be eaten by a ferocious Amazonian pirahna fish, we will then travel on to the Afro-Brazilian northeastern region before heading back to California.

Thus it is with honor and gratitude that I acknowledge the role that Cosumnes River College's Professional Standards committee, President Francisco Rodriguez and the Los Rios Community College District have played in partnering with me on this project.

In the course of our journey, we will interact with poets and pastors, mothers and musicians, slum dwellers and slave descendents. In all, this trip will consist of 95 days, span four time zones, and cover 10,000 kilometers. That's about 6,200 miles in pursuit of an understanding of the indigenous, African and European influences on contemporary Brazilian society.

We are all in this together. I hope you enjoy the ride.