A year ago....and now

A year ago...

1-jan-2010, 12.a.m 

In my hostel room

sleeping 

my phone starts ringing, I try ignoring it, it still goes on,half  heartedly open my eyes,its my friend who hasn't called me in quite some time...

me- hey...

friend- heyyyyyy!!! happpppppyyyyyyyyy newwwwwww yearrrrrrr!!!!!!

me- oh,yeah, erm, wish you the same.

friend- where you? what you doing?

me- sleeping.

friend- what you are sleeping on new year's eve? what wrong with you? blah,blah,blah...

After some 15 mins of  conversation,before I went back to sleep, I thought maybe I would something special the coming year.

A year later

31-december-2010, 11.30 p.m.

at home

with my sister watching some cheap ass episode of emotional atyachar, where a fat, ugly foul mouthed bitch and a short purple strapless, price tag not removed dress wearing bitch are trying to hit each other with stones for a fat, bald, pimp like looking gay guy or whatever that the story was, only god should know.

when the clock hit 12, we just turned our head and said happy new year,since we had already eaten the cake, we were supposed to cut at mid night, so there was nothing else to do.

I got 2 text messages,4 calls(excluding my boyfriend), 3 from guys who had asked me out, or were still asking me out and other from a female I haven't met at all, I don't know why she called me, maybe even she felt the same after the awkward conversation.I know,sad set of people who remembered me.

Where the hell were my friends? where they all partying??? I couldn't find out cause I had no balance to call or even text.

Just thought another one of those new year's eve and was fast asleep by 12.30.

Is it better then what I did last year?

hmmm.. I don't know, and who the hell cares!

I will definitely party this year!!! :P

Brasília's Metro

I don't know why stumbling across a map of Brasília's metro made me even more excited to arrive in the city, but it did. I guess it just makes it more "real" since I am seeing a layout of the city that I will soon be calling home.

The map that I found is of the metro's numerous routes and they are color coded like other major cities do (i.e. New York City and Rio de Janeiro). I like this particular map because the city's neighborhoods are labeled and this should help us orientate ourselves better.

The school where I will be working is located in Lago Sul, adjacent to Brasília's Botanical Garden. I really like that fact. We haven't found an apartment yet so I can't way where our neighborhood will be, but I hope that it's relatively close to the school and the garden.

Source: Companhia do Metropolitano do Distrito Federal

No More Chances for Polygamy



Consulado-Geral do Brasil
Consulate General of Brazil



We finally made it to Miami and registered our marriage. 3 years and 8 months after the fact. Our marriage has now been authenticated by the Brazilian consul and will later be legalized at a notary office in Brazil once we arrive there. Because it had not be recognized by the Brazilian consul before today, E was still considered single in Brazil even though he married me in 2007. Now he's married in both countries so there are no more opportunities for him to be a polygamist. Sorry E.

Today's process was relatively quick and painless. We woke up at 5:30 a.m. (that was the painful part), drove 3.5 hours to Miami (and later had to make the trip back), found the consulate AND cheap parking easily, and were attended to without problem once we arrived on the 26th floor where the consulate is located.

I was fully prepared with any document and photocopy that was required and this helped us waste no time. We paid our registration fee and handed in our application and attachments to the consul. After about an hour of waiting, we were asked to look over the information that the consul printed out to register our marriage and I verified that everything was correct. It was - mostly. E's birth date was written as 4/29 instead of the Brazilian (international) way, 29/4 (day/month). I pointed this out to the consul and she made a quick correction and then we waited for our authenticated copy to be written up.

Finally, after about an hour and a half of being at the consulate, we were given our official marriage certificate. Minutes later, however, while in the elevator, E asked to see it and I realized at that time that his birth date had not been corrected. It was still printed as 4/29, even though mine was correct. We went back and pointed out the discrepancy to the consul. Apparently we weren't the only couple that this had happened to so we waited in line (again) for the error to be corrected. Once E's birth date was written in the "correct" manner, we left with our official document and a copy that E made before we left the building.

Overall it was a productive day in Miami. I feel a sense of accomplishment and more confidence as I move forward with the immigration process. I was nervous that we'd be missing something or that we'd be asked to return the following day to pick up our authenticated marriage certificate, but fortunately this was not the case. So.... our next step: E's passport renewal.



Downtown Miami



Year 2010

2 days left and its the end of another here. Though I had a VERY bumpy start, after having cried on new year itself, I wasn't expecting anything better, but the year is coming to end in the BEST way possible. New class, new friends, exams gone well.Everything is just perfect right now.Loving every bit of my life.When I think and look back, I will never forget,having my first sip of beer( naturally, everything else followed..:P)my first time bowling,I beat my boyfriend!:) it was the only time, as usual I sucked at it every other time,beginner's luck does exit,organizing first "SUPRISE" birthday party,the cutest birthday cake..:):):) and the mask to make me feel like a birthday princess :) love you guys so much!,5 continuous exams(phew!!!) and clearing all of them(*full happy*),chennai,getting drunk and singing loudly,sleepovers-sitting on terrace, middle of the night playing uno,cooking and eating at 2 p.m. and all the rolling with laughter at stupid jokes till stomach hurts!laughing my ass out in library whole day, on the previous day of exam,start of this BLOG! Overall a memorable year.

hoping for a even more fun year ahead,
wishing you all a very HAPPY NEW YEAR.
CHEERS!!

200 days

So we have about 200 days before we move to Brazil. Even though our departure is months away, I'm trying to feel the excitement of the new opportunities for BOTH of us, of upcoming travel to a city we've never been to, and at the same time, return to a country that we both love.

In short, I have fewer than 200 days to sort, discard, donate, sell, and pack. In a nutshell.

Sounds like a lot of work, but I don't mind any of it, even driving back and forth to Miami in one day so we can finally register our marriage.

Christmas on Both Sides of the Equator

Different cultures means different celebrations. Even Christmas. Or 'Natal' as they say it in Portuguese. As I grew up in New York state, Christmas to me means snow, freezing temperatures, FAMILY, presents, a Christmas cake for Jesus on the morning of the 25th, sledding (at least for my older sister), stockings, Christmas movies, a warm house, and a general relaxing festive atmosphere. Since I didn't give it much thought, I just figured that everyone else had the same Christmas experience as me. I was wrong. I discovered this when I first went abroad at the age of 17 (Bolivia 1999). That was a learning experience for me because I went to midnight mass on the 24th and then celebrated the holiday with my Bolivian "family" at an aunt and uncle's house afterwards.  Christmas was a 6-hour holiday, from 9 p.m. on the 24th to 3 a.m. the next morning. Then it was over. No Santa. Some presents. Definitely no snow. December in South America means summer so the weather was hot. Not what I was used to growing up in upstate New York.

Needless to say, I knew what to expect when I spent Christmas 2004 in (Manaus) Brazil. Christmas would be HOT and it would probably be celebrated on the 24th. I spent that holiday season with E since we had just started dating the month before; we've now spent every Christmas together since then with the exception of 2006 since he was preparing to emigrate here. Our individual expectations of the holiday can be summed up in these two pictures.

On the left we see the Christmas of my childhood, and on the right we see a typical situation in a tropical country like Brazil (the picture was taken there). Now where would Santa Claus feel more at home?

E's Christmas may not seem too different from mine from the outside, but when you experience it first hand, you feel the unfamiliarity in Brazil's celebration of the holiday. I am expected to not only dress up, but to wear new clothes. I am also expected to wait until midnight to have dinner. I get that the 25th is really Christmas, but why start the festivities on the 24th (which they consider to be Christmas) and then wait to eat until the 25th? Dinner is delicious, but is it really worth the wait? Brazilian children do get to open their presents on what we consider to be Christmas Eve; I'm sure American children would love that. Basically, the celebration begins on our Christmas Eve and lasts late into the morning on the 25th. Why not, the 25th is not really Christmas in Brazil anyway.

Unless we are in Brazil or with my family, we have worked out a way to celebrate on Christmas Eve (for E) and Christmas Day (for me). Seems to work out. I believe that we will forever do this. I don't think I can ever give up my Christmas Day present unwrapping (with maybe a trip to church), and a lunch on the 25th. I also don't see E envisioning Christmas as any other day than the 24th and wearing new clothes on that day is important to him. But we can do this. A bicultural relationship means compromises and bicultural celebrations. I know that as far as I'm concerned....I'll always be dreaming of a white Christmas.

Consulate, we're ready for ya....

Phew. I am finally done with compiling our (small) stack of documents and photocopies that we need to take the consulate in order to register our marriage. Of course it was not without help that we were able to do this. Thank you, again, to Zack and Glaucia (and her kids!!!) for taking time out of their day to help us out out by being our witnesses (attesting to the fact that E and I were both single before we got married).

After an enjoyable meetup with Glaucia (the second "witness") and her children this afternoon, we went to my bank (which will remain unnamed since I didn't have an issue with the branch closest to my house when I went to see the notary only two days before) to get Glaucia's signature notarized. The notary we met today refused to notarize her signature since she is not a member of the bank even though I am and I was with her. Really? I explained to him that it was for me (the customer) and that just two days before another notary at another branch of the same bank had just "put it on my account" and not bothered my friend about whether or not he was a customer. The guy told told me that it is not the bank's procedure to notarize the signature of a non-member and sorry he wouldn't do it. Ugh. We then went to my friend's (nearby) bank thinking we would have luck there; however, her bank also refused since the document is in Portuguese and the notary didn't understand what it was she was notarizing. She said the bank would be liable should anything go wrong. Finally, we ended up at a small store around the corner from the bank and there the owner gladly notarized her signature for only $10. Now I have everything that I needed notarized done, so I guess, all well that ends well, right?

E signed his part (which did not have to be notarized, go figure) and I made copies of each document, our passports, our birth certificates, and our marriage certificate.

All done. We're just waiting on E to get his work schedule for next week so we know which day we can make our trip down south. I love progress.

Making Progress

I have now collected almost all of the documents that we need to move forward with registering our marriage, hence moving towards the goal of applying for my permanent residency (spousal visa). Once I filled out the necessary forms, I had to have my signature notarized for the statement that I had never been married to a Brazilian before I married E. We also need two Brazilians to testify that we were both single before we married (though how they would know I have no idea). Apparently the Brazilian consulate takes their citizens' word for it. Anyway, a good friend of ours agreed to be one of the witnesses so we took a trip this morning to the bank to have his signature notarized at the same time that mine was notarized for my letter of never being married to a Brazilian before. I'm grateful that we were never married before because then we would need to show divorce papers and that appears to be a pain in the behind. Like I said before, the consulate is not asking for too much from us, it is just time consuming because we need to rely on others for assistance (for signatures and notiarizations). For more information regarding registering your marriage in the Brazilian Consulate in Miami, you can read about it here. Sorry it's in Portuguese; I couldn't find a translation on their website and it seems that each consulate is unique in what they require for marriage registration so it's not worth it to direct you to another consulate.

Basically, to register our marriage in the consulate in Miami we need (as it applies to our case):

1. The original and copy of our marriage certificate
2. E needs a Brazilian document (like his passport or birth certificate) which has his parents' names on it
3. For E (the Brazilian) - the notarized document that has two signatures from Brazilians confirming he was single before he married me
4. For me (the foreigner) - the original and copy of my passport or my driver's license and the original and copy of my birth certificate; a declaration (letter) that has been notarized confirming that I had never married a Brazilian before
5. The application to register our marriage in the consulate
6. A $20 money order

I am relieved that I can check most of this off of our list as what needs to be completed. Since I am more uptight organized than E, I have taken on this "chore" rather than ask him to do it. Plus, I did all of the immigration paperwork for him to live/work in the U.S. so I feel almost like a pro at this.

Registering our Marriage

I am working on the paperwork to register our marriage with the Brazilian Consulate in Miami. This is the first step to me getting permanent residency in Brazil, so it has to be done now. It's very inexpensive, but it takes some time because we need notarized "testimonies" from Brazilians stating that E was single before he met me, as well as a simple letter written by me that attests to never being married to a Brazilian before. We also need to collect some documents (which we already have) and complete a simple form. As far as the country of Brazil is concerned, E is still single and as a result, we have to register our marriage at the nearest consulate since we were married in the U.S.  It's not too much, just a bit time consuming since we need to count on other people to help us through this stage. I will feel relieved when this is completed and we can then renew E's passport and apply for my residency.

We will probably take a quick trip to Miami sometime next week (after Christmas) to take care of this business.

Indignação

Ontem fui ao Kazebre, show do Raimundos, Dead Fish e Velhas Virgens.

Falei várias vezes no meu twitter que eu iria fechar o ano com chave de ouro... Com um show de qualidade e com amigos muito queridos.

Curtimos o show do Dead Fish e logo que acabou íamos em direção do caixa pra comprarmos fichas para bebermos algo.

Ali se formou uma multidão, um empurra empurra geral (deveras né, pois no meu ponto de vista foram vendidos mais ingressos do que a capacidade do local) e nisso com aquela confusão toda resolvemos voltar e ir ao outro caixa.

Já era tarde demais, só ouço meu amigo dizer roubaram minha carteira.

Pronto... fechou o tempo para todos nós, voltamos onde estávamos e procuramos enlouquecidamente a carteira do Caio.

Achamos um monte de cartões e sucessivamente uma carteira que era do mesmo dono. Juntamos tudo e levamos na portaria.

Foi aí q nos surpreendemos na quantidade de carteiras que não paravam de chegar a todo instante.

Infelizmente a do Caio não achamos, mas acabamos tendo a certeza que lá dentro do local havia uma ou mais pessoas de má índole e sem caráter algum, que foi lá justamente, somente para furtar as pessoas. Eles pegavam a carteira no bolso das pessoas, tiravam o dinheiro e jogavam tudo fora.

Porra KAZEBRE, eu freqüento essa casa a 9 anos e nunca passei por situação tão medíocre quanto a de ontem.

Sem contar o pouco caso dos seguranças olhando pra nossa cara e dizendo que não podiam fazer nada.

Pra que servem esses seguranças? Só pra pegar a molecadinha com maconha?

Não sou a favor de drogas, na verdade tenho um imenso repudio pela mesma.

Mas antes deixar a molecada fumar maconha do que deixar um otário fazer o que fez ontem, lesando várias pessoas que saíram de suas casas para curtir um show com os amigos em uma casa que ERA BEM RENOMADA.

Isso é apenas um desabafo e um grito de justiça... Afinal viram que foi muito fácil fazer isso ontem, quem é que garante que amanhã ou depois essas pessoas não voltem lá para fazerem a mesma coisa.

Sinceramente, pensarei inúmeras vezes antes de ir ao Kazebre novamente.

Minha Indignação não tem tamanho diante de tanta desorganização e pouco caso da casa.

Acho que no mínimo o Kazebre deveria fazer um pedido formal desculpas às pessoas que foram lesadas na noite de ontem (18/12/2010) e já tomem as medidas necessárias para reforçarem a segurança do local evitando que a palhaçada de ontem volte a acontecer.

Sem mais... Por enquanto.

.

books, Books, BoOkS, BOOKS

I love books. Seriously. I LOVE them. My husband can vouch for this because he's always making comments about how I'm always reading, and that I have a lot of books. I actually bought a new bookshelf this year because I needed another home for my books, and I still have school books next to that shelf and on the computer desk.

The issue that I'm now being faced with is that I can't realistically ship all of my (beloved) books to Brazil with us. Plus, I don't think E would appreciate it if we were spending all of our shipping/moving allowance on my books. Completely understandable. The dilemma then is finding a home for my books - either in boxes on their way to Brasilia, in the hands of friends and families, or in the trash. I know this all seems too soon to worry about, but I am a planner and I want to have an idea about what we're taking with us and what it is we'll leave behind. Plus, because books are heavy, I'd prefer to ship them before we move. I know the United States has a special "media mail" rate and I am going to find out if I can do the same, but to Brazil.  I'll send my books my boat; I don't care as long as they get to their destination safe and sound.  So, I need to start thinking about this now.

I guess I have my work set out for me.

Where am I going?

I am moving to....



(this video was recorded for "60 minutes" on December 12, 2010)

Destination: Miami

"Welcome to Miami. Bienvenido a Miami." or even better, and as the husband  (E) would appreciate...."I'm in Miami b*&^%."

In order for me to move on with the immigration process of moving to Brazil, we have to register our marriage first (something that I've been meaning to do for years) and then we can proceed with the spousal visa for me. None of this is new to us since we've been through the immigration process with the husband (E) here in the U.S., but now it's my turn. Soooooo, we have to make a visit to the Brazilian consulate in Miami for that.

In addition to registering our marriage, the husband (E) needs to renew his Brazilian passport since it's going to expire in March 2011. Once our marriage is registered with the consulate and the husband's (E's) passport is renewed, we can request the spousal visa.

I feel good about starting all of this as soon as possible because it would make me nervous otherwise. Plus, who wouldn't want to go to Miami during the winter?

Not me. Especially after the col weather we've had in Florida during the month of December.

Dreams do come true

All I can say is that dreams do come true. Of course you have to work hard to make it happen, but if you do it will pay off. Like Paulo Coelho said (and he's Brazilian), "Quando você quer alguma coisa, todo o universo conspira para que você realize o seu desejo" [When you want something, the entire universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.] Well in my case, my dream has been to teach English at an American school in Brazil. I will now be able to do just that.


I am excited to announce publicly that I was offered a teaching position as a 9th grade English teacher at a bilingual international school in Brasilia, the capital of Brazil. I have accepted. I will be teaching. We will be departing in July 2011 and will stay for at least 2 years, if not forever....Even if we decide not to stay in Brasilia long term, we may still remain in Brazil.

Cathedral Nossa Senhora Aparecida (Brasilia)

Besides the fact that I am ecstatic about returning to Brazil to live, the school looks absolutely fabulous and I believe that I will be a perfect fit. The director agrees with me. That's why she hired me even though I'm going with the hubby (E) and he is not a teacher (apparently that complicates things in the eyes of American schools in Brazil). Anyway, the school has students from about 30 nations (the city of Brasilia is home to 113 embassies from all over the world) and offers students the opportunity to receive a Brazilian diploma as well as an American one. I will be the only 9th grade English teacher and will be teaching all of the Brazilian and International students.

The school's administration has decided that the quickest and cheapest way for me to legally move to Brazil is by obtaining the permanent (spousal) visa. So this is what I am beginning to work on now. I will update periodically as I move along with the immigration process and make my move down south.

Não Há

Não há limites entre o céu e a terra,
quando o sentimento é puro e verdadeiro.
Não existe o inalcansável,
quando se tem fé e força de vontade.
Não há nada nem ninguém que seja inabalável
quando ainda se existe esperança.
Não existem miseráveis, doentes, diferentes nem esquisitos,
quando extinguimos do planeta nossos preconceitos.
Não há fracos,
quando encontramos dentro de nós o propósito.
Não há tristezas que não passe,
quando deixamos o tempo agir.
.

Study Holidays

You know its study holidays when,

•  library is buzzing with people from early morning to evening, it is actually so full it feels like a mini market!
• you frequently hear the sentences, "how much you done with macha?", "there is so much to study! and I have done so little", " I am tensed!"
• start eating really less cause you feel sleepy, not cause you put on weight!
• photocopy guy is in full demand!
• people you hardly even talk to, come talk and be sweet and ask if they can borrow your books, notes, question banks or whatever!
• stop watching movies and start using the laptop for something else!
• get up early, even tho its a holiday!