I've decided to go with posting photos on Photobucket in addition to Flickr:
http://s1207.photobucket.com/albums/bb464/jenn2brazil/
Mas, no new photos just yet! Check back!
Quite an eventful day today, yet slightly unfocused! I took the bus to my percussão professor's stop and there was a HUGE error in planning. He told me he couldn't teach today, but could teach Wednesday. I didn't interpret that, and showed up today for a lesson and he wasn't there! Oopaaah... Turns out I'll just have an extra lesson next week, but I can't believe I confused quarta-feira and quinta-feira after three weeks! Lesson learned.
I took the rest of the day to review my Portuguese grammar before dinner. Slightly successful!
For dinner, my friend Victor cooked a traditional Dominican dinner (plátanos, abecate, ovos, pão com tomate, e queijo frito... e uma cuba libre!!)Muito bom!
At dinner, I requested that everyone speak Portuguese despite my language barrier, and it turns out that I can understand a lot more than I expected! There are some nuances I cannot pick up, but I suppose I cannot be so attached to conversation nuances in a language I just started learning. In English, I realize I thrive on understanding the nuances... which I think makes me feel like I don't know enough Portuguese, despite learning at an average rate. I am trying to not feel overwhelmed. :)
I've met some great people here, so it's going to be extremely difficult to go back to the states. I never knew people could be so awesome! I've decided not to think too much, and to worry about things as they come (Obrigada Maria, Jess, e Jess!)
Beijos
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Todo dia
My percussion instructor is awesome! He really has a great handle on how to get started on the Brazilian rhythms. Today, I learned a samba variation and ijexá. The latter is quite difficult, although it sounds simple. My hands have a hard time staying with their own parts. His name is Jorge (pronounced Georg-ie), and he often wears a t-shirt with São Jorge (Saint George) on it.
It has been difficult to express what I want to know (I'm still not that great at Portuguese), and I am certainly having a hard time understanding him. However, the great part is that I am forced to use what I know how to say and understand! Better language mapping that way.
Today is the last night my friend Maddi will be in Salvador. :*( I am really going to miss hanging out with her, and I hope I get an opportunity to visit her in Sydney in the next year.
Tonight, I plan to head out to a historical area called Pelourinho for one last dance-in-the-streets-with-the-sambistas. I've found myself to have done a fair amount of going out to venues and discovering the local drinks and food, but after three weeks in town, I am eager to completely dig-in and learn the things I want to learn from this city - the things I came here for: language, percussion, and music.
Boa noite!
It has been difficult to express what I want to know (I'm still not that great at Portuguese), and I am certainly having a hard time understanding him. However, the great part is that I am forced to use what I know how to say and understand! Better language mapping that way.
Today is the last night my friend Maddi will be in Salvador. :*( I am really going to miss hanging out with her, and I hope I get an opportunity to visit her in Sydney in the next year.
Tonight, I plan to head out to a historical area called Pelourinho for one last dance-in-the-streets-with-the-sambistas. I've found myself to have done a fair amount of going out to venues and discovering the local drinks and food, but after three weeks in town, I am eager to completely dig-in and learn the things I want to learn from this city - the things I came here for: language, percussion, and music.
Boa noite!
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Thursday, September 9, 2010
Link to my photo album: FLICKR
Do you know another photo hosting website that´s free with more space? Having troubles with uploading everything to Flickr.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/52178763@N03/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/52178763@N03/
Week two... near the end of it.
My Portuguese is improving. I´ve been practicing with my host family a little, and this morning I was able to have a full conversation (just a little primitive).
Next week I work with a private percussion instructor. The first classes are with a small group, then I will progress to the individual classes only R$35 per. Also, next week I go to the place where I will consider volunteering. It´s a social organization for children called Rhythm of Hope. I am not sure how well I will work out in this volunteer job as my Portuguese isn´t that great yet.
I move to a hostel this weekend, and there is internet included. I´m excited to be able to use the internet at night... which means I´ll be updating more often!!
Right now I am sick. I have a serious sinus infection and it´s getting worse. I went to the pharmacy with a friend from the school who speaks much better Portuguese than I do. He really helped me out and I was able to get a nasal spray and some honey with extract of ginger root for tea. I´m very excited to see if it helps! It´s been very annoying to constantly be blowing my nose.
Tchau!
Next week I work with a private percussion instructor. The first classes are with a small group, then I will progress to the individual classes only R$35 per. Also, next week I go to the place where I will consider volunteering. It´s a social organization for children called Rhythm of Hope. I am not sure how well I will work out in this volunteer job as my Portuguese isn´t that great yet.
I move to a hostel this weekend, and there is internet included. I´m excited to be able to use the internet at night... which means I´ll be updating more often!!
Right now I am sick. I have a serious sinus infection and it´s getting worse. I went to the pharmacy with a friend from the school who speaks much better Portuguese than I do. He really helped me out and I was able to get a nasal spray and some honey with extract of ginger root for tea. I´m very excited to see if it helps! It´s been very annoying to constantly be blowing my nose.
Tchau!
Saturday, September 4, 2010
First Saturday in Brazil
What a busy week! I´m getting behind in my blogging!
Salvador is amazing! So much stuff going on and so far I´ve meet a lot of fantastic people. Right now I´m in an internet café, and they are playing a lot of american pop music. Song of the moment: Lenny Kravitz "Fly Away". I shall never escape this.
I´ve made a turkish friend who speaks only turque and a very little bit of portuguese. So, as you can imagine, the communication is difficult. I feel compassionate: he does not share a common language with anyone (the rest of us at the school speak english socially) and most of the other students don´t want to talk for long due to the overall difficulty in speaking. He also told me the brazilian friends he is living with don´t interact with him at home, so he isn´t able to pracitce his portuguese. SO, I´ve been trying to talk with him more and help him a lot in class. I think he is getting better... I hope so.
I´ve meet up with a few people from couchsurfing.com and it´s been really nice to get tours of the area from locals. Until I am much better at speaking portuguese, I think it´s a great idea to get introduced to the city via brazilians who speak english. I´m very happy to be able to use CouchSurfing.com as a resource for this.
Does anyone know of a free unlimited photo/video uploading service? I´m already over my limit on flickr for the month, and I don´t have the money exactly to buy the "pro package" (although it´s a really really good deal)
Also, I´ve decided I need to go to the Amazon while I´m here. I mean, what would it be to go to Brazil and skip out on that?? The fortunate thing is I may be able to meet some people who frequent there an tag along or some thing! That would be great.
Until next time, Tchau!
Salvador is amazing! So much stuff going on and so far I´ve meet a lot of fantastic people. Right now I´m in an internet café, and they are playing a lot of american pop music. Song of the moment: Lenny Kravitz "Fly Away". I shall never escape this.
I´ve made a turkish friend who speaks only turque and a very little bit of portuguese. So, as you can imagine, the communication is difficult. I feel compassionate: he does not share a common language with anyone (the rest of us at the school speak english socially) and most of the other students don´t want to talk for long due to the overall difficulty in speaking. He also told me the brazilian friends he is living with don´t interact with him at home, so he isn´t able to pracitce his portuguese. SO, I´ve been trying to talk with him more and help him a lot in class. I think he is getting better... I hope so.
I´ve meet up with a few people from couchsurfing.com and it´s been really nice to get tours of the area from locals. Until I am much better at speaking portuguese, I think it´s a great idea to get introduced to the city via brazilians who speak english. I´m very happy to be able to use CouchSurfing.com as a resource for this.
Does anyone know of a free unlimited photo/video uploading service? I´m already over my limit on flickr for the month, and I don´t have the money exactly to buy the "pro package" (although it´s a really really good deal)
Also, I´ve decided I need to go to the Amazon while I´m here. I mean, what would it be to go to Brazil and skip out on that?? The fortunate thing is I may be able to meet some people who frequent there an tag along or some thing! That would be great.
Until next time, Tchau!
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
4
Last night I went to historical Pelorinho with Anita, Edtna, Maddie, and Zdennek (I think I spelled his wrong yesterday). There was a huge crowd of people, but according to Maddie, it was a small crowd for this area. It was raining lightly on and off, so maybe that´s why...
We ate at a little italiano place, and talked for a while. Edtna is from Switzerland and is studying tourism. She has been to every continent besides Austrailia, and speaks many different languages.
I have to leave the computer for today! I will finish tomorrow!
We ate at a little italiano place, and talked for a while. Edtna is from Switzerland and is studying tourism. She has been to every continent besides Austrailia, and speaks many different languages.
I have to leave the computer for today! I will finish tomorrow!
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