Trying to play catch up - 18 days

E and I have been living in Brasilia for 18 days. I don't feel like I've really summed up what we've been doing these past 2 and a 1/2 weeks and so I'd like to play catch up. First off, I'd like to say that we are both happy here. E particularlly thinks that the city is beautiful and he really is enjoying being back in his home country. In fact, he said last night, while waiting in a looooong line at a rock concert, that he missed this - people having a good time, drinking in the parking lot, chatting with friends, just having fun. He said at the end of the night that the US is not fun (I do believe he meant in comparison, or at least it's a different kind of fun).

I'd say our first week here was predominantly settling in to our new apartment, unpacking, shopping, cleaning, and trying to orientate ourselves. I also visited the school a couple of times to talk to administration since they wanted to make sure we were comfortable and not lacking anything in our apartment. We also hung out with friends in Brasilia (one of which I had been introduced to by a friend I have in the States) and another is a childhood friend of E's who lives in Brasilia. We had lunch, drove around the city in the neighborhoods where they live, met their family members, and were given a friendly introduction to the city. In addition, my friend AP took us to the post office to make sure our CPFs (the equivalent to the SSN) were "regular" and that my maiden name was changed to my married name on mine. (I had gotten it years ago in Manaus when I was single). So we had to visit voting registration for E to pay a small fine for not having voted while living in the U.S. for 4 years. This constituted a lot of running around, but in the end it all got resolved (at a cheap price) and then AP treated us to a delicious afternoon meal.

Once the other two Americans arrived we had a short tour of some major attractions in Brasilia and then went to lunch with our executive director and we spent time with her. Our second week was then spent driving around to various places to make sure that we have registered with the federal police, that the other girls have their CPFs, that we have bank accounts, etc. We also had to have our medical exams for our health insurance (and that doctor was from Manaus - small world). We've filled out information for our dental plan as well. And finally, at the end of last week we had orientation and introductions to the school - just for the new teachers. We were given a tour of the school and the elementary school teachers were given their classrooms. The middle and high school are in the process of having new classrooms built, so I don't know yet where I'll be teaching, but it'll all be worked out. At least I have my schedule.

And this last week was the first week of school; it was the pedagogical week for teachers. It was full of meetings and introductions, delicious breakfasts and lunches, a time for us to collaborate (if just a bit), and I was able to look over my curriculum maps and plan out the first quarter for the three classes that I'll be teaching this year - 9th, 11th, and 12th grade. I'm very grateful to the English department for their assistance, especially to the other 11th/12th grade teacher, a friendly/knowledgeable Canadian, and my coordinator, a North American born/raised in Ecuardor and now living in Brazil. There are not just a number of nations representated in the students at my school, but in the staff as well. There are Brazilians, a Canadian, Ecuadorian, Cuban, Spanish, Americans, and probably more.

I was given lots of resources to help me start out the year - articles, a movie, lesson plans, a workbook, and textbooks. I'll need to do a lot of reading on my own this weekend and make sure that my plans are all set for the first week of school. I'd say I'm more nervous than excited. I'm just glad to have support from other teachers to make my transition smoother. If I were on my own I'd be in trouble...With that being said, my schools follows the North American curriculum so I'm not too much out of my element.

This is basically how my last 18 days have gone. But what I should throw in here is that it's not all been work. I've done city explorations on my own, with E, and with friends. I've watched famous MMA fighters train, E and I have eaten Brazilian food that we'd missed greatly, we've taken the bus and the metro with no problems, we've gone to a huge rock concert with bands from all over the country and the US, and we've still got a lot more to do. E has returned to school; he's taking a course that he is really enjoying a learning a lot at and is busy job searching, getting his transcripts from Manaus, and finding schools where he can continue with this studies.

I feel like we have just only begun our sightseeing. In fact, I have just made plans (that still need to be finalized) to travel to a neighboring state next weekend to "get out of town" and to see more of Brazil. As of today I've only been to 5 states - Rio Grande do Sul, Rio de Janeiro, Amazonas, Sao Paulo, and Distrito Federal. There are still 22 more states to visit, and I barely "know" Brasilia. I'm beyond excited about all that I will get to experience, see, feel, and taste while in this gorgeous country. So with that said, time for me to clean my apartment and head out.

It's crunch time

It's definitely crunch time over here in the "Bound for Brasilia" household. We only have a few days left and are not ready to walk out the door at this time, though we're pretty darn close. Our upstairs is cleaned, vacuumed, and ready to vacate with the exception of our mattress/box spring that we're selling in a couple of days; we're also still using that bathroom since it has the shower. Sebastian's "stuff" has been moved from the downstairs bathroom (so I could clean it and shut it off) and moved upstairs. So I'm sharing a bathroom with two boys during our last few days in this apartment. We brought down one piece (our last piece) of furniture from the upstairs which we're about to sell in a couple of hours, and the rest of our clothes - those that are out because we'll either be wearing them the next couple days or the day of our trip. As I look around the first floor I want to say that there's still a lot in it, but that's because we're taking most of it with us. We're at 8 large suitcases, 2 carry-ons, 2 personal items, 1 trophy (that's too big to put anywhere), and 1 cat. The rest will be sold/donated/disposed of over the weekend.


I think, and hope, that I've taken care of all of the paperwork that it takes to move. I know it may seem that I'm organized and I believe that I am, but it's a lot to do. I'm VERY glad that I have my mom's support as far as her helping us with our mail. We're also very blessed to have such amazing friends that will take us to the airport and help us out once we sell our car. And now that we have a MagicJack we'll have a US phone number so we can make any calls to/from the US at no extra cost. 


Honestly, I'm afraid that putting into words all that I'm thinking and worrying about is just going to stress me out, so maybe I shouldn't. We've gotten everything done and will be ready to leave in a few days. I'm not going to stress out over things that are out of my control, and everything else we'll work itself out in the end. If we have any issues then we'll just cross that bridge when we get there. Moving itself is stressful enough; I don't need to worry myself. 


For now I just need to enjoy my last few days in the States and prepare for the fun adventure ahead of me. I love to be abroad more than anyone else I know (or close to it) so I need to feel excited and not worry because really, I can't wait to be in Brazil! [Oh yeah...and a special thanks to my new friend (really a friend of Renata's and now mine) who is going to take us all around Brasilia once we arrive. Yeah!!!]

A quick visit to the USDA

This morning I made a very quick trip up to Gainesville to get Sebastian the cat's health certificate endorsed by the USDA. All I had to do was present the health certificate (4 pages) completed by the veterinarian along with the detailed rabies shot certificate to the woman at the USDA office, along with a $36 payment, and in about 5 minutes I was out of the office with a receipt. From a quick look at the paperwork that was returned to me, the health certificate was signed and stamped with the raised symbol of the USDA. Sebastian is now really officially ready to travel to Brazil. 


Again, for anyone planning on taking their pet to Brazil, according to the Brazilian consulate's website (Miami), the pet owner traveling to Brazil with a dog or a cat needs to do the following -

International Health Certificate for Pets (dogs and cats only) issued by veterinarians must be certified by the USDA (US Department of Agriculture). The International Health Certificate must show that the pet identified was examined by a veterinarian in the ten days prior to shipment, not showing any clinical sign of disease

US Department of Agriculture
6300 NW 36th Ave, Miami, 33147
Phone: (305) 526-2926 - FAX: (305) 526-2929

If Gainesville is closer to you then Miami, here is the address for the USDA in that area -

USDA, APHIS Services

8100 NW 15th Place
Gainesville, FL 32606
Phone: (352) 313-3060
Fax: (352) 313-3063

Montevideo, Uruguay

In the end of my freshman year/early sophomore year of college I made the easy decision to study abroad. There was never a doubt in my mind that I would not pursue this for a semester during my college years. Isn't that what hundreds of thousands of college students do each year? I have not done any research on this topic of college students studying abroad, by all means, but I'd imagine that it is quite popular throughout college campuses - in the United States. I had already had the opportunity to study abroad for a year as an exchange student in Cochabamba, Bolivia upon my graduation from high school. I loved it. I was hooked. I couldn't wait to do it again. My undergraduate university, SUNY Binghamton, has an Office for of International Programs and I knew that I could find a program for me. But I couldn't find the exact program that I was looking for - a semester in a Latin American country where I could study in Spanish. Now I can't remember exactly how I went about finding a university to help me get to my destination: somewhere in Latin America, but I did. I do know that I actually studied abroad through the Latin American Studies Southern Cone Program at SUNY Plattsburgh. Since both of these universities are in the same SUNY (State University of New York) system, it was easy for me to go through their program. I knew I wanted to study abroad, I knew I wanted to go to Latin America, and I knew that I wanted to go through SUNY (it was easier to transfer credits, deal with financial aid, etc.). So that's exactly what I did.  


I almost went to Chile. In fact that is where I had planned to go once I decided on the above stated program in the Southern Cone. So how did I end up in Montevideo? It turned out to be an easy choice. I knew something about Chile; Uruguay was unknown territory to me, much like Bolivia had been. My other option in this particular study abroad program would have been Argentina, but that is probably the most well known country in the Southern Cone of South America and being the adventurer that I am, that could not be an option for me. I wanted to go to a country that I knew nothing about. Again, that's exactly what I did. In the spring semester of my sophomore year, I went to study Anthropology and Spanish in the Spanish language in Montevideo for 6 months. I wasn't looking to learn Spanish because I already knew it; I was looking to improve and challenge myself.


One of the images that I distinctly remember that attracted me to Uruguay was the Casa Puebla in Punta Ballena (Punta del Este). Rest assured that I visited here. It truly is a breathtaking sight, especially at sunset. I'd say that this landmark attracted me to Uruguay much like the Teatro Amazonas later attracted me to Manaus.

I attended La Universidad Catolica del Uruguay in Montevideo where I studied a Portuguese language class (yeah! :), the History of Uruguay, Uruguayan Literature (very interesting and absolutely beautiful poetry, short stories, and novels), and an Anthropology class. Spanish and Anthropology were my majors in college. I did not want to miss out on my credits for my majors, as well as my minor in International Studies, so I made sure to keep myself on track in this aspect. Each of these classes was given in Spanish with the exception of the Portuguese class, taught by two Brazilian instructors, of which one still remains in contact with me today. My Spanish, which was already quite good, improved immensely and I even acquired the distinct Uruguayan accent. I had friendly, openhearted, and fun housemates. I made friends at school and with other international students, I dated a Uruguayan, and really got to travel like I never had before. It was an unforgettable, exciting time in my life.


I took a ceramics art class that I found through the university, I volunteered at a local English language institute (even participating in a workshop), I traveled to Buenos Aires a couple of times and around Uruguay with friends and housemates, and went shopping often. The exchange rate at the time was definitely in my favor, and as I had earned a scholarship prior to my departure, I think that my plane ticket only cost me $100. During my stay in Uruguay I visited Brazil twice - Porto Alegre and Rio de Janeiro - and this is where my love for that country grew. I learned how to make mate like a Uruguayan and my appetite for meat and Italian food also increased. 


I will always hold a special place for Uruguay and its citizens in my heart. I believe that I became even more independent during my semester study abroad in the Southern Cone and on a personal note I know for a fact that I grew as an individual. 


Uruguay, siempre te voy a querer mucho.

An extended weekend in New York

These last few days in New York have been absolutely wonderful, a bit hectic (as in busy and crazy), and for sure special to me. This was our final trip to New York state before moving overseas to Brazil and we all knew it. My best friends showed up to hang out and for a party, my grandparents and aunts and uncle came in from out of town, cousins I hadn't seen in ages were at my parents' house for dinner, and we traveled a lot in just a few days. I took advantage of every minute I had with them all.

We left Orlando early Thursday morning, which means that we hadn't slept much and so dropping off our car at airport parking, checking in, and waiting to board were no fun; however, our flights were on time and we arrived early for our layover and our final destination. There was no turbulence and we both slept a little, even if it wasn't comfortable. Once we arrived, we were greeted by my smiling nieces, older sister, and stepdad. I was impressed by how green upstate New York is as a result of all the rain, and the weather was perfect. I was so glad to be home!


Our first day was spent in the company of my parents and two sisters and two nieces. We caught up, had lunch, ran to the bank to open up an account with HSBC since this bank has branches in Brasilia, and then we finally took a 3.5 hour nap after not really sleeping since the night before. That night we met up with friends. I love the first night of sleeping in my parents' house.


While in upstate New York we took a day trip to a state park in a small, quaint town located on Seneca Lake called Watkins Glen. With my young nieces in tow, we walked a 1.5-mile long Gorge Trail. And then we walked back down after reaching the top and resting. The stairs winded up along the cliff, behind waterfalls, and into the shade of gorgeously green trees. We hiked, took pictures, and enjoyed our time talking and walking together. Once we had made it down the "mountain" we hiked over to a local Italian restaurant for pizza. 

That evening, exhausted and with aching legs, E and I went to my best friend's house for a get together with some of my closest friends from high school and college - those that were in town. We chatted it up, drank some wine, and remembered "the good ol' times". Oh, and I laughed like I hadn't in years. E had to drag me home eventually because we had reservations on a bus to take us to New York City the next morning.


Up and at 'em the next day we were. We had breakfast and grabbed the muffins my mom had made so we had something to snack on during the bus ride if we wanted to. We had a fun filled day in Manhattan, packed with sightseeing and walking; the weather was ideal and the company couldn't have been better. E and I went to NYC with our friends Stephanie & O. We started off the day with a trip to Madame Tussaud's wax museum, went to Katz's Deli for lunch, spent some time downtown - shopping, eating, and pushing through the crowds. We also went sightseeing at The Met, the NY Public Library, Chinatown, Times Square, and ended our night at an outside restaurant in Bryant Park. Again, it was amazing how everything was so perfect. 

Salvador Dali

Janis Joplin

Pele

Lenny Kravitz

At Katz's Deli

The Metropolitan Museum

Our final days in New York were spent with family. We BBQ'd and spent valuable time with each other....catching up, taking pictures, eating my parents' delicious lunches, and watching the boys play soccer. That Sunday night my older sister camped out with her daughters in their tent (her husband had to go back home because he had to work the next day) while my youngest sister and I slept in her tent. Camping was fun despite the concerns I had. Yesterday we rode the carousel since my oldest niece kept asking to see the "horsies". Too cute. We also went shopping; can't forget the final items of clothing and small souvenirs.


Overall my extended weekend was unforgettable and I'm grateful to my parents and family and friends for making it all happen. THANK YOU from the bottom of our hearts. We love you.


and E

Elle Serbia June 2011

i never want to be fucked up like this.

Fk Partizan

Sava, Belgrade, Serbia

Dancing to BALKAN BALKAN BALKAN OVO JE BALKAN on chatroulette with a German dude is so much fun! Me gusta tú. If you see this, mister, please like or reblog this. I LOVE YOU!

Family & friend.
On a Salash in Serbia.

Elle Serbia June 2011

Wordless Wednesday: Travel to New York

In celebration of my return to my homeland -New York State - for vacation, I'd like to show off some of my favorite pictures.

All of these images were taken by me between 2008-10 except for the one with me which was taken by some random tourist.

The Amazonense's first time experiencing snow

Niagara Falls (taken from the Canadian side)

New York City Subway System

Brooklyn Bridge

....John Lennon

Washington Square

Times Square

♥

Guess where I'm going this weekend?

I swear that our "errands" at the Brazilian consulate are endless. So off we go again to Miami to take care of some (please-God-let-it-be-the-last-time-we-go-there) business.

I know, I know, it's not so shabby.
Plus, it's not like I'm working, right?

And then the following day we need to be in Hollywood, Florida so E can attend the open tryouts hosted by Bellator Fighting Championships. Wish him luck!

Hard Rock Hotel - Hollywood

The Bellator Cage

Accents, Languages, and Confusion

Me (answering the phone): Hello?


Man: ochkochbogoshvendochkoshcarbogsh


Me: Excuse me?


Man: something along the line of, are you selling your car? (but this time I understood the language of the man to be Portuguese) how many miles does it have? is the price negotiable?


So I mumbled a response along the lines of, talk to my husband because he's the Brazilian, I gave him the price and answered that yes the price is negotiable. Really I didn't want to talk to the potential buyer because E knows how to negotiate, I had company over, and because my company are Spanish speakers and I had just spent who-knows-how-long speaking Spanish. I can't then be forced to switch languages, can I? And plus, he had a strange Brazilian Portuguese accent. Maybe he's from the Northeast? I know I always need to get used to the accent of a Brazilian who is from a region that I am unfamiliar with.


Have you ever tried speaking Spanish and then need to switch like a light being turned on to speak Portuguese? It's not easy. 


I started studying Spanish as an exchange student Bolivia, right out of high school. I had studied Spanish in high school, but we all know that you don't learn to say much more than "Me llamo...."  and "Tengo xx anhos [I don't have the accent mark so I cannot write this correctly]". I became quite fluent after returning from Bolivia as I majored in the language and studied and worked abroad. But then I went to Brazil after college. That's when my language skills got all messed up. I initially used Spanish in Brazil when I wasn't supposed to; but hey, it was an easier language to fall back on because people generally understood me. My neighbor once told me that I sounded like a Hispanic; that was a better compliment that being told I sounded like a gringa when I spoke Portuguese.


Now that I'm fluent in Portuguese and speak it on a daily basis, my Spanish has really suffered. In fact, I have difficulty creating a sentence in Spanish without mixing in Portuguese words. Or should I say throwing in? Either way, I speak portunhol very well. And yet I still try to speak Spanish Monday - Friday as I have a few students from Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic who either don't speak English almost at all, or at least don't with me. This has forced me to be more confident and try to separate the two languages in my mind, but it's not been a walk in the park. I have to think before I speak and try to slow - that's the part I dislike the most. I want to speak quickly like I do in English and Portuguese.


That brings me back to my conversation today. I tried so hard to speak Spanish to my visitors this afternoon that stopped by because I know that my friend feels more confident speaking Spanish. Plus, her mother-in-law is visiting from Venezuela and I know she understands a great deal of what I say in English, but does not speak it. They're so patient, kind, and understanding, but I feel like a mumbling fool sometimes as I try to get my brain to transfer from English to Portuguese to Spanish. 


God knows I spoke espaporinglish (a word a Colombian student of mine created as we used to speak a mixture of the 3 languages when we had get togethers with her family and Brazilians) to the my guests today and then spoke portunhol to the Brazilian on the phone. But I guess that's all part of being a trilingual. At least I can have fun with it sometimes. You gotta laugh at yourself once in awhile :).

Vet Visit #1

This afternoon I took my cat to his first veterinarian visit before he crawls onto a plane in a few months and moves far far away from the only home he's ever known. Well, when I say it that way it makes it sound like it'll be a tough move for him. The truth is, maybe it will. 


Although Sebastian was well behaved at the vet's office - even when the doctor felt him up to make sure he is healthy (which he is) and when he got his rabies shot. He didn't make a noise. Good boy. He jumped up on the scale and stayed long enough to be weighed. And how much does he weigh, you ask? 15.4 lb!! Woah. He's a big boy. But like the vet assistant said, it's not that he's fat; he's just tall. The issue with the weight is that I can take up to 10 kg - cat and kennel combined. As of now we should be fine, but that means he can't gain weight. For all you Americans out there, 15.4 lbs is 7 kg.


The problem that Sebastian gave me were on the way to the doctor and the way back. He cried and cried, non stop. Maybe he gets car sick. Well, he's going to have to get used to it (my poor baby) because he's about to take off on the trip of his life. Honestly, I'll think he'll be OK. He'll be with his parents, he'll be breathing in calming kitty spray and should calm down once he's settled on the plane. I hope. I'll make sure to buy him a comfortable carrier and take his toy with him. I also will ration what he eats before he travels so he doesn't have to use the litter box.


I'll take Sebastian on one more vet trip; next time it will be to get his international health certificate and to have a final exam a week before we depart. I feel confident that everything will go well like it did today and my kitty will be ready for his flight. Let's hope we're as ready as he will be :),

Travel. Travel. I love Travel.

I can't believe that I haven't devoted a post entirely to my amorous relationship with TRAVEL after all of these months of writing. Or have I? I've written so much about South America, and Brazil (of course!) in particular, but have I mentioned, apart from my introductory page, how addictive travel is for me and how I feel like I need it, like a junkie needs heroin? Well, maybe not that much. But I get cranky when I don't travel. That's a fact. I get stir crazy.


Now I guess it was the post I wrote the other day about the four cities E and I have lived in that made me want to continue talking about travel, and specifically about where E and I have been together. When we met - in Manaus - years ago, Mr. Bound for Brasilia was not the least bit interested in travel. Really. I mean, he travelled from his house to mine, from his school to mine, from my house to his family's sitio, and believe you me, as nice as those city buses are, they sure do take some time to arrive at their destination. However, we all know that's not the travel that I'm talking about.


The first trip that we ever took out of town together was to President Figueiredo, Amazonas and we visited this town just once, but it was unforgettable. I remember distinctly that it was during the World Cup in 2006 so there was a lot of football watching and drinking and relaxing. I had been to this municipality previously, but not with E. And for sure we had a good time swimming in the Rio Negro (a tributary of the Amazon River). 


The issue, though, that I have with posting pictures about my travels is that if you remember I've sold my scanner and am therefore unable to scan any of the pictures that I have from our trip. Along with that, most of my pictures are not stored on my laptop. I was going to "steal" from my husband's Facebook album of pictures that I took, but it won't let me do that. *pouts
But that's OK. I mean, what is Google for any way? 

For your viewing pleasure...

P.F., Amazonas

And then probably just a few weeks after that trip, we visited another small town in the state of Amazonas called Balbina. We went with friends on this trip and stayed at a cute hotel that was quiet and quaint. We visited waterfalls and went swimming in the cool Amazon River. I still have pictures from this mini vacation that I've saved in our first album. Of course I can't scan them, so I found this on-line to show off the town of Balbina.

....because once we moved to the U.S. we had a great time travelling and exploring. 

Our first real trip within the United States as a couple was to Miami Beach; I knew that E would love the beach, the nightlife, shops, and restaurants. I was right. We had a blast!

Miami Beach

Along with travelling around Florida (all over Central Florida, to St Augustine, and Miami), we've also driven and flown to New York a number of times. As I'm from upstate New York and my family continues to live there, I was able to show E the hospital where I was born, where I graduated high school and college. Since we'd met in Manaus and I'd experienced E's city, lived in his hometown, and met all of his family members, it was important that my husband see where I come from. 

In New York we've travelled from Buffalo to Long Island (basically, from the western most part of the state to the eastern most). We crossed the border to Niagara Falls a couple years ago to see the waterfalls and last summer spent an extended weekend in New York City and L.I. We'd actually been to NYC a couple of times previously together, even watching the ball drop one New Year's Eve.

Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada

E's favorite part of NYC

In addition to our trip to New York last summer, we also took a cruise to the Bahamas - to Nassau to be exact. It was literally the perfect vacation. We cruised, we swam, we drank, we relaxed on the boat and on the beach, and went snorkeling (one of our favorite outdoors activities). We can't wait to go again! Look at the amazing view of Nassau...

When I look back on our 6 years and 6 months together (anniversary today), the memories flood in, as well as our multiple trips and vacations as a couple. This makes me grateful and excited for more! ...oh yeah, and I hope I'm not forgetting anything or leaving any travel out.


Wait, how can I forget our trip to Louisville, Kentucky last summer for my sister's wedding! The weather was perfect, the bride gorgeous, the wedding was beautiful and the setting breathtaking. E and I visited the Louisville Slugger factory, the Mohammed Ali museum, Churchill Downs, and just spent valuable, priceless time with my family.

Churchill Downs - Kentucky Derby

And how could I forget our most recent trip? In December 2010 we visited Atlanta for an extended weekend. We went for my interviews with the international schools in South America, but we definitely took advantage of the time we had in Georgia and visited some great friends (both couples are Brazilian/American), went to the Coca-Cola Museum, and walked a little bit around downtown Atlanta...

Next month we'll be back in New York state and the following month we're heading back to Brazil.