Miscellaneous

Since my past two days have been consumed by class and naps, I’m going to take this opportunity to write some miscellaneous observations and stories from my past week in Brazil!

First of all, MONEY.

Brazilians use the “real” here, pronounced “ray-all.” Apparently, in years past, the conversion rate was 2.5 reals to 1 dollar, but because of a recent economic recession here in Brazil, the conversion rate is 4 to 1. It’s a weird phenomenon for me as an American abroad, because I kind of feel like I’m benefitting from the misfortune of an entire country’s economy. I try to be cognizant of that fact while shopping in the adorable boutiques in the city, but it’s kind of hard to reconcile. It brings up complex ideas of how I (and other Americans) fit into the international community, and how we deal with the privileges we carry with us every time we go abroad. 

Weather! The weather here has been pretty wild. When we arrived, it was incredibly humid and super warm, and my hair has continuously been a tangled ball of frizz. I look every morning in the mirror with whispies making up more volume than the hair actually in my ponytail, and I kind of just reconcile myself to my appearance.

But I've loved the warmth and the dampness--my skin feels clean and refreshed after the dry, dusty heat of Ahmedabad. I also love the sudden bouts of pouring rain and the chance thunderstorms as I walk home from the bus stop. Perhaps it's the overwhelming fear of drought instilled in me by my Californian childhood, but I've loved soaking in the hydration during my stay in "The City of Small Rains" (that's what my tour guide called it apparently?? No proof found on the internet of this nickname, but whatevs).

 What else... Oh fun fact. In addition to being called "The City of Small Rains" (once again, v dubious origins), Sao Paulo is also called the crime capital of the world.

Surprisingly, I've felt extremely safe this entire time--perhaps excepting my time in cracolandia. I am lucky enough to be living in one of the safest and wealthiest neighborhoods in Sao Paulo, and walking around alone (sorry, parents!!! pretend you didn't read that) has posed absolutely no problem for me. Perhaps another contributing factor to my (perhaps misled) conception of comfort in this city has to do with my quickly-growing recognition of the areas around me. I can find find my way without intense directions with a radius of about 45-minutes walking from my house and school. I recognize landmarks pretty readily, and I feel like an honorary Paulista (aka resident of Sao Paulo). I'm really hoping that this lessening of my nervousness doesn't lead to a carelessness that could be dangerous. But hopefully my bright-eyed trustworthiness and love for this city don't do me dirty.

*except for Sao Paulo!!!*

I have reiterated over and over how LOVELY I found Sao Paulo and Brazil in general, and I've been shocked to learn that others on my trip actually feel quite uncomfortable here and crave the bustle and sensoral stimulation of India. 

While part of me is like,

I must remind myself that every single individual perceives and experiences different environments in completely and totally different ways. I'm constantly shown that there are a plethora of realities in this world, and that every person possesses his or her own. I guess I'm just always shocked by the fact that even when a person and I completely identify with one another, and have certain similarities, and get along chummily, we may still disagree on truths that we each hold to be fundamental while they're in fact simply opinions. I keep learning that certainties I hold to be universal are actually quite fickle and that it's up to me to prove to others (or to prove to myself) why my opinion, beliefs, and perceptions are valid. 

Which sorta kinda almost segues into my next point in a way. Like I said (for the bajillionth time)--I love Sao Paulo. I feel like I'm my best self here. It's close to my euphoria on the beach in California, and on the first truly spring day in Boston. I'm affectionate, adventurous, carefree, and happy. Oh and humble, obviously. 

But like legitimately, my friends have been shocked by the extent of my bubbliness here in Brazil. One of my friends commented that she's pretty sure my insides are made out of "warm fuzzies."

And I guess that's when I realized that my worries about identity and not being my best self in India, while valid, aren't necessarily super important. Because perhaps more than just striving to be the best me (optimistic and sunshine-y all the time), I need to treat myself to the places/people/activities that actually bring out my best self effortlessly. Instead of killing myself over trying to be happy in a city or with a 'friend' or in a circumstance that truly depresses me and breaks down my joy, I will make more of an effort to travel to/live in locations; surround myself with individuals; and engage in experiences that actually make me feel good. And let me tell ya--Brazil is def that place.

Okay, one last story (slash maybe two) to express why I know that this place is my spirit city (after New Orleans, of course). So I was walking home yesterday from the subway stop when I noticed an injure pigeon standing completely still in the middle of the street. My animal-lover alarm started blaring when I noticed that a taxi was speeding in that lane right towards the pigeon.

I attempted to mentally prepare myself for the scarring carnage I was about to witness when the taxi literally swerved into another lane to avoid the pigeon.

Phew.

BUT THEN!!!

A gigantic bus is right behind the taxi!!! Danger danger!! And then--the gigantic city bus swerves into another lane.

Literally, this sedentary pigeon meditating on its imminent death is sitting in the middle of a road, and cars are swerving around, causing a traffic jam, trying to preserve its precious little birdy life. 

UNTIL. 

The driver of the taxi gets out of his car, picks up the pigeon!!!, and escorts it to the sidewalk, where he affectionately and tenderly places it on the ground. He then returns to his automobile, gets in, and drives away, while the rest of the cars continue on their daily commute.

Oh my god. This was literally my reaction.

A CITY WHERE PEOPLE CARE ABOUT ANIMALS AND OTHER LIVES. I am coming straight from a city in which my driver ran over a f*cking dog then tried to convince us that "it would get up in five minutes, it was fine, it's leg was just hurting a little."

Reaction then:

But seriously, I love being in a place that values the lives of other creatures, because I truly believe that contributes to the way we view humans as well. Cruelty towards living beings is, in my opinion, an extremely pertinent issue, and I am so relieved and happy to see that other people care about animal lives in the same way I do. UGH wonderful.

There's also this incredible story about how Brazilians 'employed' shelter dogs to be retrievers of tennis balls at the Brazil Open in order to promote awareness of shelter adoption:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/street-dogs-trained-to-be-ball-dogs-for-brazil-open-to-raise-awareness-for-animal-adoptin_us_56d5b6dce4b0bf0dab336847?

Legit read it and prepare to weep.

Anyways, I am just loving my time here and really enjoying myself. While today was kind a stressful day with the class discussions and topics we focused on, as well as some emerging homesickness from videochatting my best friends for the first time since leaving the United States, I am constantly reminded of how lucky I am and how wonderful my circumstances truly are. Thanks for following my journey, loves (:

From your fave (honorary) Brazilian Babe,

Aubrey