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Oi! I cannot believe it has been two weeks since I have been in Brazil. Crazy, but good. This weekend went quite well with an array of activities. Let us begin with Thursday, quinta feira.
Roman, Tatiana, and I met Julio at Teatro Guaira to go to the federal police station to register. It went very smoothly. Roman and I got temporary IDs. Temporary as in they are pieces of paper. However, in a month or so we should receive hard copies. And these IDs have our pictures and say we are foreign students. Also, we were given almost like a social security number, but its a foreigner registration number. In Brasil, the citizens actually have two social security numbers. They receive the first one when they are born, like Americans, but then when they turn 15 or 16 they receive another number. They need these numbers when buying things like houses, cell phones, cars, etc. I do not fully understand the idea of having two, but maybe I will find out more about this. Oh, and one other interesting thing about the police station was that I was finger printed. I do not think I have ever been finger printed. New country, new experiences. lol
After the registration, our group went to one of the fifty malls there are in Curitiba. Literally, they have a plethora of malls in the city. Its awesome because they are different in style and target audience. Anyhow, we went to look at cell phones for Roman and I. We ended up just getting the sim card because we were sure we could find cheaper or even free cell phones to use rather than spend at least $40 on a phone we would use for 6 months. After the cell phone adventure, we went to the food court and ate. Oh my goodness... Tatiana and I went to this French place called Chef Verge and it was amazing. I got a roast beef croissant sandwich and guava juice and I about died. It was so simple, but oh so good. There was this special sauce in the sandwich and it was just amazing. Probably one of the best, if not the best, roast beef sandwich I have ever had. And also I realized I absolutely love guava juice. It is amazing. Roman...got Subway. haha. But in his defense he is vegetarian, so in Brasil his eating options are much more limited, so he takes advantage of the food places he can eat at. After the mall, Julio kindly drove Roman and I to Portuguese class. Class went well, but we found out for sure we are getting a new teacher. The new teacher actually came to our class that day. I can see both sides as to why getting a new teacher is good and bad. Its bad because we have developed a bond with the teacher we have now and she is amazing. She is so sweet and very helpful. However, having a new teacher is good because it helps us experience someone else's Portuguese because of course not everyone will speak like our old teacher. Anyhow, it was quite funny because when the new teacher came and sat in on our class. Sladgan, the guy from Montenegro, was joking around saying the teacher looked like a lesbian. I am not exactly sure why. She was dressed sort of like a hippie, but I did not think she looked masculine. But yes Sladgan was cracking up and joking about this, and then he told Ksenia, my Russian friend, that the new teacher wanted to be her girlfriend. I don't know why I thought this was so funny, but I could not stop laughing. Ksenia was not amused and just rolled her eyes at Sladgan. Oh and for the record Sladgan is pronounced like Sludge-in. In case you were wondering...lol.
After class Ksenia, Fareed, Keri, Carlos, Roman, and I went out to eat at this restaurant near Keri's apartment. I think it was middle eastern, but I am not sure exactly. They had pasta and these things called Schwarmas. I got a beef schwarma and it was sooooooooo good. Thursday was an amazing food day for me. lol The Schwarma is similar to a wrap, but the tortilla is browned some and on the inside there was carne, beef, with a nice sauce and some veggies. It must have been the spices they used, but it was just amazing. And the meat was cooked very well. Needless to say I ate here again with Roman on Friday. haha
After dinner, we went to Keri's apartment and had dessert and tea. I always forget how much I enjoy tea. I figured out that I really enjoy black tea specifically. For dessert we had this special cake that they also have in Russia, but normally eat around Easter I believe it was. We also had goiabada com queijo. Goiabada is a sweet guava jelly dessert and it is very common to eat with cheese, which does not sound super great, but it was very good. I also tried Brazilian peanut butter...It was not as bad as I thought it would be. It has a very natural and sweet flavor to it. However, I prefer American peanut butter.
Once dessert was done, we played Skip-bo and spoons. HAha. Very American I know I know, but Keri is American and it was still a cultural experience for everyone else. It was really awesome hanging out with my new friends and getting to see where someone else lived. Keri's apartment was super nice.
On to Friday...
On Friday, Roman, Keri, Carlos, Israel (Carlos's nephew), and I went to the zoo. It was raining, but I had an awesome time taking pictures and learning about animals names in Portuguese. I think the animals I enjoyed seeing the most were the giraffes, hippos, and the alligators. There were lots of birds, which could be cool, but I don't like birds. I did appreciate the variety and difference in the bird species though just to throw that out there. After the zoo, again Roman and I went back to that one restaurant and this time I got the chicken schwarma, which was very good as well. I took the bus home and pretty much bummed the rest of the day. I went to bed around 10 and slept till 10 the next day.
On Saturday, I went to the grocery store with Susan. Comparing cultures time! In Brasil, the food at grocery stores is not made to last but a couple days, so here you have to go to the grocery store at least once a week. But of course in the states, you can stock up for a month. The food is fresher, but it does get a little annoying having to go to the supermarket every week. I enjoy walking there because its only six blocks or so, but then coming back we always have to take a taxi and then costs more money. Anyways, the trip went well. I did not really buy anything "new". I am figuring out what I like and what I do not. For example, the apples and bananas are absolutely incredible, but the grapes are not at all. I may need to find the right type, but so far no luck in finding tasty grapes (uvas). Oh, and the other thing I bought was nail polish. I like the quality of the nail polish here as well as the price. I think I paid less than $2 for nail polish that you only have to apply one coat and it looks awesome. It still looks awesome, which is great too.
Saturday night I went out with Susan, Hellen, Hellen's French/Portuguese boyfriend who I forgot his name, and Benwa who is French and I am sure that is not how you spell his name, but that is what it sounds like. We went to a Samba bar called Democratas. It was quite a good time. The music was really entertaining and lively. Lots of energy in the place. It was 3 stories and you could look down and see people dancing as well as the band playing. I thoroughly enjoyed people watching. The funniest thing I saw was two couples who were on the opposite side of the third floor. The girl in each couple was getting her Samba on, moving her feet and going with the rhythm. The boyfriend of each couple... was not. The two guys were just awkwardly standing there. Like really awkward. Not even watching their girls and smiling and looking as though they were thinking "You are so beautiful." or what have you. They stood awkwardly and had these interesting expressions. I looked over at them multiple times and could not help but giggle to myself. Besides, people watching I danced a very little bit because I was really not sure what was going on. I had hoped my people watching would have benefited me with dancing, but not so much. Regardless though I had a good time. Also, it was really great because Benoit, the french guy who I now know how to spell his name, and I talked for quite some time. Not because we had a long, deep conversation, but because I probably said "Repita, por favor" after every fourth thing he said. haha. It was really good though because he spoke very little English, so I had to speak and understand Portuguese. I was super excited that I was able to carry on a pretty good conversation for the most part in Portuguese. The one extreme mishap during the conversation was when I accidentally told Benoit that he was boring. Haha. I meant to ask "Are you bored?", but I did this incorrectly and I instead told him he was boring. Luckily, he understood what I meant to say and I apologized. I would do something like that... Anyhow I found out that Benoit is 20 as well and he studies architecture at PUC, which is where I will be taking my engineering classes. So, I will probably see him again.
Now to today's date. I went to bed last night at 5am. lol. I had taken a nap and slept for a half a day the day before, so this was not a huge deal. The huge deal was, however, that I had to get up around 9:30. I took a bus over to where Tatiana lives and then we went to the market that they have n Curitiba every Sunday. It was incredible. There were so many people, booths, and things being sold. It was also a beautiful day, but very very hot. I was so overwhelmed, I did not even buy anything. But I definitely will soon. At the feira (market), we met up with one of Tatiana's friends Manuela. The three of us went to this restaurant near the feira and ordered this famous Brazilian dish called barreado. Oh my goodness, so far this is my favorite Brazilian dish. It comes with rice and then you put this shredded beef on it that has cooked for around 10 hours or so in these clay like pots. Then, you put farinha(special seasoning that looks kinda like flour but is flavorful) on it, and then you add bananas to this dish. haha I know bananas. I tried the dish first without the bananas, but then wanted to try it the Brazilian way and it was amazing. I am not sure what the bananas did, but the flavors really work well together. The dish was expensive, but definitely worth it. And it was cool because we shared it between the 3 of us, so it was like R$9 a piece. After the restaurant, we went to Manuela's house and had some ice cream (sorvete). Haha I know all this food, but really I have actually lost weight with all the walking and the smaller portions. Anyhow, we had some ice cream and then gathered some drinks and Manuela's guitar. We went and picked up the girls other friend Karen and then we headed over to this park that is near the Eye museum. It is called the eye museum because part of the museum's structure is in a shape very similar to that of an eye. I have not taken a picture yet, but will before I leave. Being at the park was so awesome because we just laid out a blanket and just sat, talked, and people watched. Manuela played her acoustic guitar and sand some. She sang beautifully. The only song I knew that she sang was "Ring of Fire" by Johnny Cash. haha. It was great. There were so many people at the park and everyone, I mean everyone except us, had a dog with them. There were all types of different dogs running around everywhere. It was so cool. Dogs are very popular in Brasil I have noticed. And of course people baby their dogs like in America and put them in clothes as well as put bows on the ears. Also, I noticed just out around town there are a lot of stray dogs and I mean a lot. But I guess they do not have an animal shelter or animal control. Also, none of the stray dogs I have seen like vicious, so I guess it is a not a huge deal. the dogs just mind their own business and walk around like people, sleeping in shade and such. Very interesting. I have not seen any cats yet. Not one.
Right before we got to the park my allergies started acting up, so I could not full on enjoy the park experience as I had wished, but I had a good time despite my nose. Oh and the other interesting thing was we brought beer and so did other people. haha It is alright to drink in the open. People were walking around with beer cans and bottles just having a good time being social. It was really interesting. People were not trying to get drunk and be ridiculous, they were just relaxing with friends and their dogs on a lovely Sunday afternoon. Apparently, parks are more of a thing in Curitiba than in other parts of Brazil. Its very common here to go and hang out at the many different parks they have, but my Brazilian friend told me in other parts of Brazil people do not go to the parks and socialize and what not.
Again, overall I had a great weekend. Tomorrow I have class and I think Roman and I are going to try a vegetarian restaurant. Should be good. So until next time...
Tchau tchau
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