Tchau Chinelo

Arrived in Brazil 11000 viewings of Fast and the Furious 8 later.

Daniel and his girlfriend, Isabela, picked Ohafa and I up at the airport and brought us home. It felt so good to be in a familiar place again after traveling. I consider their family to be my second family and they have welcomed me generously into their home before when I previously visited Daniel and Ohafa for a month, two years ago. They were equally welcoming and kind this time.

Language learning and speaking with monolingual Portuguese speakers can often make me feel trapped in my own brain, unable to articulate thoughts and emotions. The blessing of being with my friends is that they alleviate that feeling. Not only do they understand my accent better than everyone else, they can help me find the words I am looking for. This makes me feel more human and normal while I am having everyday conversations with those around me in Portuguese.

The first few days in Brazil, we spent the time catching up. Catching up on sleep, on emails, on relaxation time, on responsibilities, with the blog, and most importantly, with each other. Being back together with some of my closest friends was a constant reminder of what a blessing they are in my life.

Not long after arriving, we set off on a trip all together. With the help of my parents, we were able to explore Capitolio, a beautiful city in Minas Gerias, the neighboring state. Minas is like the Wisconsin of Brazil because it is known for its cheese and dairy farms. Ohafa and I set out to find the best Pão do queijo (an amazing Brazilian cheesy bread) but our quest was met with quite a bit of disappointment.

Using Isabela’s family car, we set off on our 6-hour road trip north. Daniel did all the driving, the entire trip and got us out of some hairy situations at times. Even the driveway was a challenge, imagine a curb that has two tire sized holes cut out of it and you have to perfectly align the car and speed up the driveway fast enough to not kill the car (automatic) and slow enough to not crash into the house. 

During our time in Capitolio, we had a pretty predicitable routine. Wake up, eat breakfast, make sandwiches to pack for lunch, explore, come home decompress before making a group dinner. After dinner we would settle in for some nightly episodes of Game of Thrones until bed. There were multiple times during the trip where I would stop and realize just how calm and happy I was. I was surrounded by some of my closest and most trusted friends, exploring a beautiful corner of the world. Completely devoid of stress. A feeling I haven’t had since had since starting law school.

During the day we explored. We saw stunning view after stunning view. At every moment, I tried to remind myself to enjoy the green scenery before I am in living in a city of millions of people.

Some of our more notable adventures included:

All of destinations were quite far apart which meant we had to drive at least an hour or two every day. One day, we headed to a national park to do some hiking. The road turned from pavement to dirt road about halfway through. The dirt road turned from bumpy and flat to even bumpier and a sharp uphill grade. The weather turned and turned what were already nearly impossible roads to navigate, into slippery and muddy nearly impossible roads. We turned the car around and started our descent before things got even worse. Daniel did an incredible job driving, I am so glad it was him and not me.

At one point, however, a while got caught in a rut in the mud and we began to slip until we got stuck. With mud caked on to the wheels, in the rain and on the side of a cliff in the middle of nowhere, it was a precarious situation. My only experience to go off of was what I know about being stuck in the snow. While we were discussing exit strategies such as building up the mud behind the wheels, we spotted another car. They were working their way up the mountain. They called up to us, offering us help – two local guys. Their knowledge of the roads and their extra man power helped free us. We were able to make the rest of the trip back down safely.

At least where we got stuck was beautiful

Undeterred by our adventurous morning, we decide to carry on and try to find another way to some hiking trails. We stopped at an information center and were back on our way. The way included almost exclusively dirt roads filled with dead ends and disappointment. Eventually, we called it and head back home instead. Luckily, the views during the drive were well worth the whole experience. 

Later, Daniel and Isa were washing the car and the neighbor came by to complain that we "dirtied the streets," I refrained from pointing out all the trash on the street already and that the mud would be gone in the next rain but the trash wouldn't.

Another day, we headed to the “lost paradise” which involved climbing up the side of a waterfall to arrive at the higher point of the fall. As always, the scenery was amazing and the cool water felt great on a hot day.

Another awesome series of waterfalls we got to explore was “the sun’s trail” where we enjoyed 3 separate waterfalls. Our favorite by far was the golden pond where you had to walk upstream to arrive at a waterfall surrounded by small rock statues. When the sun strikes the water, it looks gold, hence the name of the pond. It was a magical place and one of my favorite things we did the whole trip.

Ohafa actually in the water!!

This is also where tchau chinelo was born because Daniel's flip flops kept floating away.

Our final adventure was a boat tour of the giant lake. Throughout the tour we stopped at various waterfalls and ventured into small veins of the lake. We learned that the water was 15m lower than normal. Also, the reason the water is so clean is because the rock contains a mineral that purifies the water.

Bebes abordo

All too quickly, our time in Capitolio was over and we headed back to Sao Paulo. Along the way, we stopped by our other good friend, Thiago’s house. Thiago, as always, was a great host. When we arrived he already had food ready. We spent the afternoon catching up, playing games, and enjoying each other’s company.

The next day we enjoyed a traditional Brazilian barbecue before heading the rest of the way home.

ALSO:

Sorry I suck at blogging, I moved into my apartment in Sao Paulo and am in my 3rd week of classes now. I plan on writing more about classes later.

But, before classes started, some of my roommates, some other friends and I took at trip to Florianapolis. I had only known these guys for like 2 days so it was quite the adventure but it was the start of some incredible friendships and I wouldn't have changed it for the world.

I know myself too well and know I will never blog fully about it because I'm lazy so all I have to say is that it was incredible, Curitiba was not and here are some pictures with no explanation or other context.


Sorry to those who only hear from me via blog. Know that I think of you often and brag about you to others even more. Lots of love and until next time.