Last Day in Brazil

Today was our last hurrah.  We debriefed and shared in the morning. Did a white elephant gift exchange at lunch. Saw more sites of the town (no pictures) We ate our last meal together, laughed, cried, hugged, wished everyone good times and saw the June festival.  All music, food, drinking and crowds!

We leave the hotel about 10 am to get to the airport.  We leave Salvador about 1:30 pm and arrive in Sao Paulo about 4:30 pm. Pick up our luggage. Change from the domestic side of the airport to international. Wait.  We leave Brazil at 9 pm and arrive in Atlanta about 5:45 am. Get our luggage, go through customs, recheck our bags. Wait.  I will leave Atlanta about 9:30 am and arrive in Miami about 11:35am. Get my bags and I am home.  Can't wait to get home but do not want to leave

Interesting Practice

wall of limbs

In Salvador, when people have injuries, aliments or issues with various parts of the body or organs; they pray.  If their prayers are answered and they are cured, then they place a replicate of the organ or limb, sometimes a picture o the person or a letter - thanking for having their prayers answered.  This is only a fraction of what was in this room.  Look closely

close up

a

Salvador homes

 In Salvador it is such a steep mountain edge that the homes and stuff are build on the side 

a

b

c

Collaborating with teachers from Brazil

Today we met with teachers from Brazil who have spent time (5 months) in the ILEP program at universities in the US. They participate in teacher education courses and spend time in public schools.  We developed bonds and friendships.  Our major task was to develop a collaborative project with a group of people. Even though all the Brazilian teachers teach English as a foreign language, I found 2 who were interested in environmental issues. On from Sao Paulo - Edmundo Gomes Jr and Lizia Goncalves Fernandez from Curitiba We are developing a collaborative project with their schools and mine where student teams from all schools research, share and edit a project/ presentation on a topic written in English and Portuguese. They will correct the content as well as the language translation.  We are at the rough draft stage

Old Town Salvador

St Francis church

The group visited the old section of Salvador. They were having a festival. It has very steep hills, small shops into the hill, many levels.  The light house is built on a fort at the apex of the bay. The town flows outward into the hills in a triangle.  The lighthouse was the first thing built. We visited a Franciscan church of St. Francis.  Some of the pictures of of the cloisters and  a panoramic of the gold gilded church  

festival entrance

festival street

cross in front of church

lighthouse

panoramic inside of church gilded in gold

Sunrise over Salvdor

Sunrise at 5:30 this morning.  It is from the 8th floor but block by some buildings

5:30 am

5:40 am

5:45 am

5;55 am

6:00 am

6:05 am

6:10 am

6:15 am

In Salvador, Bahia

We are in a new state Bahia, Brazil in the city of Salvador.  It is on the north east coast of Brazil. Hopefully I will get up early to catch a wonderful sunrise.  This hotel is the same chain as the Royal Tulip but not as nice and old.  This city is a mixture of poor and rich/new.  The poor live is put together homes on the sides of the mountains right next to or above the hotels, apartments and shopping malls. We are site seeing tomorrow so more images.  These images are from the hotel restaurant window.  It is one of the largest bay areas in the world.

bay area

modern buildings next to bay

bay

Last Day at school

Today was our last day at school.  We went back to classes we saw and shared with some new ones. Everyone loves having visitors especially if they can realize that they are understood with their English.  Many advanced students felt really good about themselves since we understood their English and saw what their teachers were trying to teach them.  Our greatest impact was to make learning real, successful and gave them the desire to keep learning.  In the evening we supplied dinner for the faculty, created a video of our visit for them to keep and gave our host some presents an certificate. Tomorrow we leave for a new city Salvador, home to much of the African slave culture.  We will spend one day seeing the cultural sites, 2 days sharing with Brazilian teachers and a day of debriefing, then start our journey home on Wednesday. I am home sick already but have learned so much.

What it is like to live in Ceilandia

We visited our host teacher's Adriana's house. Ceilandia is one of the poorest areas in all of Brasilia.  The homes have bars and barricades on the entrances and all around their house. Everyone shares adjoining walls from house to house or businesses.  The streets are not really paved. If they have cars they are also locked behind bars under the house or carport.  Since there is s much dirt everywhere, the floors are tiles or ceramic.  Mopping is a daily chore. Everything is dusty.  The houses are clean but simply decorated.  What we considered old heavy wood furniture is what the poor use. Having money means lighter furniture.  Our host teacher does not live at home and has an apartment (they have to buy so like a condo) because it is safer for a single person to live. The school is also unsafe. It have a iron gate, bars everywhere and a guard at night.  Te students all have said many of them have been robbed coming to school or at their public day school.  Some of the teachers fins it unsafe as well.
They do not have room mates. Food is amazing but so rich in meat and milk based stuff. Some fruits and veggies. Lots of sweets again mostly made from milk (doche). Thursday is our last day at the schools, No sure what we have. Another long day sharing with lots of students.  We are providing dinner for the faculty and doing a video presentation about our visit.

bathroom

Adriana's room

back yard

kitchen

living room

memory center

master bedroom

street view

 

front of house

Cilc – Centro Interescolar de Línguas de Ceilândia

We taught today at CILC – Centro Interescolar de Línguas de Ceilândia. This is the poor public school. We had 3 classes from 2-6:15 pm but aw about 8 teacher's classes, sharing about of state and city and what school was like.  Students ask silly questions like what is our favorite music, clothes, movies etc to what was our school's like to what do we like about Brasilia.  Some even asked about politics and violence. Many have been robbed at school or around school. Then we taught 2 classes from 8-10:20 pm without a Portuguese teacher in the room.  Students just loved it.  We are sharing pictures and songs with them all.  They love the little school related key chains I brought.  I have given out over 200 of them.

typical classroom

students with Dr. B Level B3

students with Dr. B Level B5

sharing

students with Dr. B Level C2

Hallways between classes

student watching

math work

Birthday Party

CooPlem Idiomas School Day 2

Day School Faculty

Dr. B explaining

Eating Girl Scout Cookies

Teenage Intermediate Level

Sending Love

Pirenopolis

teenagers dressing like demons

  Today we went to another state Gionas, which was 2 hours west of Brasilia (capital city like DC but bigger).  We are staying in satellite cities around Brasilia.  In Gionas is a very old area 300 years + Pirenopolis. There were waterfalls near the city (mountainous) and in the city proper.  The old road are paved in cobblestones on their edge.  We visited the shops throughout the town.All of Brazil is preparing for the June 24 major holiday.  Teenagers dress as demons to beg for money.  The old cathedral that was rebuild after a fire years ago.  The town symbol is the bull.  The area had lots of cows (Brahmas, hybrids and others)  You can see the town waterfall is used a pool. It is in the center of town.  The other waterfall is a mile away.

cobblestone streets

cathedral rebuild after fire year ago

water fall over a mile away outside of town

water fall closer

statute of town mascot

water fall pool in center of town

toilet on the floor of a restroom