So remember how this Sunday everyone in Londrina had to vote to elect their mayor? And then the lying thieving former mayor got re-elected? Yeah... yesterday he got thrown into jail. Guess how we found out? Breaking TV news update? No. Radio? No. No, we asked some strangers in the car next to us on the way home what all the commotion was about. By commotion I mean- (1) traffic was packed on a Tuesday night around 10pm, (2) Everyone was honking their horns and waving limbs out the windows (3) Everyone was out in the streets; some had flags they were waving, (4) Fireworks could be seen and heard in the distance. So wondering what could possibly be worth so much noise and celebration we asked the guys in the car next to us what happened, to which they responded, (rough translation) 'Belinaci was nailed by the feds.' Justice is served- kinda.
Rewind to the beginning of the night... Tuesday nights are rib night at this place called Don Pablos. Made me think of 50cent wing night at Bdubs, but this was quite different. We sat outside, plastic lawn chairs and tables, super chill. There's five of us- me, Isa, and her three friends Laura and Juliana and Andres. So they order a kilo of ribs, and it comes out on this huge cutting board with garlic bread, tomato salad and this tropical potato thing, I think I've had it in Costa Rica, the name escapes me. These weren't like normal ribs, where its mostly bone- this was like a slab of meat with two big ribs on the bottom. Really really good- and I thought I was practically a vegetarian. No longer my friends. Desculpa. So, we eat all of this thing, and drink a bunch of beer to the point where Juliana wasn't embarrassed to speak English, and I wasn't embarrassed to speak Portuguese. Go figure. Fun thing I learned, friends call each other gatos(as)-cats. Gatinhos(as) to be cuter.
This saturday we're going to a huge party on a farm. Here in Universities, each department throws a big party and opens it up to the whole school. This one is hosted by the administration students, and is the most famous every year. Can't wait! Tchau gatos.
OH! Check this one out- its the hottest Brazilian commercial right now.
http://br.youtube.com/watch?v=N7ODAx_CpdY
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
hot in here
Yeah, it is. Thank god for Tom's deodorant. Best thing I could have brought from the states. As far as the job goes, I've been working on churrasqueira details for a couple different projects, both of which I have now finished. Churrasqueiras are these outdoor kitchens where they make Brazilian barbeque which is absolutely delicious. João (I finally got Pai's name down) did it for us on Friday. And I thought I was a partial vegetarian, yeah right. Today I started to work on a design for a sign for a doctor's clinic, which is super fun, I never told anyone but I always kind of wanted to do that- they're simple, fun small scaled, its good times. I should open a sign company. Maybe.
So this weekend we went out Friday night, me and Isabela met up with Jordana and Fabio, Eloise and a bunch of their friends. We sat outside and drank beer and talked. They told me about these parties which they compared to frat parties from the movies at the university. In November Eloise and her neighbors are throwing a bikini party which she is crazy excited for. I'm a little scared, especially because bikinis here are all pretty scandalous. I don't even think they have boy shorts style. Interestingly enough though, they don't have thong underwear. Eloise was explaining how her friend from NY sends her thongs... the real story behind that one I have yet to find out. Also missing from Brazilian culture- peanut butter. I'm not that big a fan, but considering it was a staple in college, I think I'll miss it- maybe, later. So, needless to say, after we went through like, more liters than i could count we got hungry and took to the streets in search of drunk food. We settled for the closest place, Rob's- which was a hot dog place. Now, I love me some red hot lovers, but this- THIS was just, over the top. Hot dogs here are cut in half long ways, and then four or five pieces are put into this big bun, like twice as big as in the US, and they put mayo, tomatoes and shredded chicken in a little spicy sauce. Sounds... creative, I know but it was crazy good. The next morning was a bit rough, I couldn't eat anything until evening, and João and Marlene were concerned. It was cute. I loves them.
The best part of this weekend was probably going to grandmas house. Yeah I know, sounds awkward and boring and not like a lot of fun- but I'm finding learning the everyday normalcy here is just as much fun as going out and drinkin, which I am clearly not opposed to. So, Fabio- who by the way if I haven't mentioned is the epitome of a beautiful Brazilian man, he's a personal trainer, and his wife Jordana, is equally if not more beautiful. Anyway, he picks us up, and then Isabela, Jordana and him take turns voting, which is mandatory here. What a concept... Grandma's house was small but cute, with a stunning view of the countryside. I met Marlene's brother and his wife, both grandmas, there were lots of people all of who are super nice. We ate a lot of amazing food, played with Kodinha (the cutest dog ever) took naps, hung out- it was great. They were very excited that I voted for Obama (absentee) and intrigued by the electoral system, here it is just the popular vote. So the elections were for the Londrina mayor, and the current mayor got re-elected even though he stole millions of reais, according to João, he sweetalks the poor into voting for him; making promises he can't keep, whining about being attacked by other candidates... hm sound familiar? I hope not.
They still can't get over me drinking coffee with just milk. I think it might be a social faux pas not to use sugar.
So this weekend we went out Friday night, me and Isabela met up with Jordana and Fabio, Eloise and a bunch of their friends. We sat outside and drank beer and talked. They told me about these parties which they compared to frat parties from the movies at the university. In November Eloise and her neighbors are throwing a bikini party which she is crazy excited for. I'm a little scared, especially because bikinis here are all pretty scandalous. I don't even think they have boy shorts style. Interestingly enough though, they don't have thong underwear. Eloise was explaining how her friend from NY sends her thongs... the real story behind that one I have yet to find out. Also missing from Brazilian culture- peanut butter. I'm not that big a fan, but considering it was a staple in college, I think I'll miss it- maybe, later. So, needless to say, after we went through like, more liters than i could count we got hungry and took to the streets in search of drunk food. We settled for the closest place, Rob's- which was a hot dog place. Now, I love me some red hot lovers, but this- THIS was just, over the top. Hot dogs here are cut in half long ways, and then four or five pieces are put into this big bun, like twice as big as in the US, and they put mayo, tomatoes and shredded chicken in a little spicy sauce. Sounds... creative, I know but it was crazy good. The next morning was a bit rough, I couldn't eat anything until evening, and João and Marlene were concerned. It was cute. I loves them.
The best part of this weekend was probably going to grandmas house. Yeah I know, sounds awkward and boring and not like a lot of fun- but I'm finding learning the everyday normalcy here is just as much fun as going out and drinkin, which I am clearly not opposed to. So, Fabio- who by the way if I haven't mentioned is the epitome of a beautiful Brazilian man, he's a personal trainer, and his wife Jordana, is equally if not more beautiful. Anyway, he picks us up, and then Isabela, Jordana and him take turns voting, which is mandatory here. What a concept... Grandma's house was small but cute, with a stunning view of the countryside. I met Marlene's brother and his wife, both grandmas, there were lots of people all of who are super nice. We ate a lot of amazing food, played with Kodinha (the cutest dog ever) took naps, hung out- it was great. They were very excited that I voted for Obama (absentee) and intrigued by the electoral system, here it is just the popular vote. So the elections were for the Londrina mayor, and the current mayor got re-elected even though he stole millions of reais, according to João, he sweetalks the poor into voting for him; making promises he can't keep, whining about being attacked by other candidates... hm sound familiar? I hope not.
They still can't get over me drinking coffee with just milk. I think it might be a social faux pas not to use sugar.
Sunday, October 19, 2008
bar alemão
So today, I'm recovering from a night of caipirinhas, Skol cervejas and a lot, a LOT of dancing. We went to a german bar in Londrina called ____haüss. I think the haüss in the name is probably the most German thing about this bar, apart from the 1 or 2 german beers they sometimes had. It reminded me of my parents basement, add a few jazzy lights some tables a dj and lots of interesting and fun people. So maybe its not so much like my basement...
Isabel, the one on the right drove me Jordana and her friend Eloise, (right to left) in their stealthlike black hatchback jetta. Most people like to drive stick here, also automatic is much more expensive. It was a girls night out Brazilian style, meaning there were plenty of boys we met up with. There was a lot of toasts and cheers- none as witty and well put as Marinas, but still it was nice, "Welcome to Brazil" "To Monica" "Salud" "A cerveja!" etc. I had an amazingly awesome time once I sucked down my first caipirinha. The word for drunkard here is pingusa- Pai likes to use it a lot. But that's just a sidenote I want to get back to talking about this bar and the people in it.
I've come to the tentative conclusion that stereotype stoners exist all over the world, and they are exactly the same. One of Isa's friends, Rafael was what made me think this. Long hair, beard, band T-shirt and ragged jeans. He's the guy that's super cute under all that hair, a little unkempt but not in a dirty way... the kind of kid you'd have a hard time keeping up with in a deep, intelligent discussion. He had this pipe- which from a distance looked exactly like an old grandpa's pipe only upon closer inspection... it was definitely a hashpipe (insert weezer song here). Super sneaky and smart- I'm sure we have something like it in the states, but its the first time I saw one this inventive. Also, the weed here smells really good- I think it was mixed with flavored tobacco. Delish.
Things I learned:
1. Well, lets start with what I already know- Being hit on in a bar is hit or miss, sometimes its a good thing if the person is attractive, sometimes its annoying when you're with your friends and the guys is a creep. Try being hit on in a foreign language... its pretty much just confusing and awkward, but only for me because I don't understand. I can't say I minded it too much though boys in Brazil are generally good looking, but there were of course, and contrary to popular belief exceptions. Not everyone can be beautiful, even if you are brazilian.
2. You can seriously bond with absolutely anyone when it comes to music. Its part of this amazing thread that ties every human being together. More specifically for me it was the Beatles and the Ramones. Eloise and I agreed that it's sacrilegious to not like them.
3. Caipirinhas although they're the national drink, are getting old for Brazilian young people- now they're making them with whiskey and fruit pureés.
4. A small fiat can plow through a block concrete wall... on the way home we passed by a storefront that someone had driven into. Don't drink and drive kids, where ever you are.
5. I'm not as afraid of bugs as I thought. There are a lot of bugs I've never seen before, which is maybe why I'm not as afraid of them? I killed a cockroach looking one on the floor in my room the last night... that's what I get for leaving my balcony wide open all day.
mais tarde colegas, tchau tchau
Saturday, October 18, 2008
trabalho, jogo, coma,
Trabalho- work
So, working has been reallllly fun. I´ve done some reflected ceiling plans, and details-learned the words for glass, gypsum and wood in Portuguese pretty fast out of necessity. The language is coming to me, slowly but I´m nearly conversational, I still can´t understand everything- but I´m getting there I haven´t even been here a week so I´m proud I´m making some progress.
The office is Marlene, the head arquitect, and then Carolina who is a partner of the firm. Then there´s Josi, Samara, Emerson and me- the interns. All of us apart from Marlene who is my mom´s age are in our 20´s- it´s awesome. I´m working mostly with Carolina, her English is the best. Marlene is fun, she sings along a lot at work, and is super nice. There´s not really a sense of hierarchy or authority, everyone just does work to get the projects done. This works out; no one ever feels like a CAD monkey working here, we have a lot of fun. They listen to good music. Ams, you´ll be happy to know they like U2. They listen to some Brazilian stuff too, naturally. Also they like Indian drums, which of course I also love from my IASA days at IA (Indian Student Association and International Academy, my high school- for those of you who may not have known this). Apparently there´s some artist I forgot the name already that they like here.
So- the projects that they work on are all very design oriented, they even do product design, things like lamps and furniture- all very cool. The firm seems to have a lot of house projects, everything is very ´beautiful´. I think its the favorite english adjetive here. The designs are contemporary, minimalist but with attention to details through materials-very honest treatment of them, wood is meant to be wood, concrete concrete, stone is stone.
Jogo- play
Thursday night we went out to play pool at this snooker bar downtown while Marlene went to an inauguration dinner. It was so cool to hang out with Pai (I still don´t know the dad´s name, I´ll just call him pai- which means dad), Isabel (Marlene´s daughter) her boyfriend Bruno, Jordana(the other daughter) and her husband Fabio. I love that they hang out with their parents its so much fun. Pai is crazy, he talks to me in Portuguese all the time, and is commited to me learning it- and fast so I can make jokes in Portuguese with them. He´s definitely a character. There is also no hesitation with PDA, even in front of parents; I can´t even imagine kissing in front of my parents. Their version of pool is different, the balls are smaller and the white one doesn´t fit in the holes. You save ball number 15 for the end, its like an 8 ball but you place it on the edge of the wall. You play odds and evens- not solids and stripes. To start you put the balls into a trapezoid, a triangle with the point missing. The white ball goes right up against the trapezoid and to break you shoot backwards, with the thicker end of the stick. Craziness.
There´s a lot of the same shows on TV, lots of American music as well. Grey´s anatomy is super popular, so is friends and 2 and a half men. We watched Amelie the other day, one of me and Isabel´s favorites. She also likes the strokes, like me- what an awesome coincidence.
Coma- eat
To eat we had pastel (pronounced pas-teu, a fried pocket with cheese, ham and tomato, super good. They also had me try coxinhas (co-sheen-nias), a fried doughball with meat and onions inside. It was good- just really fried, almost too much for me to handle. Beer here is called Brahma, and the pop of choice is Guarana, both are great. Lunch here is the biggest meal, there´s always salad and meet, potatoes with cheese and onions and bacon, rice and beans are a staple. There´s so many fruits here- there´s not even names for all of them in English. The juices from them are my favorite. Theres this citrus fruit sort of like a tangerine but bigger which has the best juice ever. Yum. Mayonaise, Ketchup and Mustard are served with everything, even pizza. Coffee is very strong, but good.
So, that´s all I have time for now, sorry if I rambled, I´m very observant. Here is a link to pictures-
http://picasaweb.google.com.br/monica.musialowski/Londrina1#
Tchau tchau até logo.
So, working has been reallllly fun. I´ve done some reflected ceiling plans, and details-learned the words for glass, gypsum and wood in Portuguese pretty fast out of necessity. The language is coming to me, slowly but I´m nearly conversational, I still can´t understand everything- but I´m getting there I haven´t even been here a week so I´m proud I´m making some progress.
The office is Marlene, the head arquitect, and then Carolina who is a partner of the firm. Then there´s Josi, Samara, Emerson and me- the interns. All of us apart from Marlene who is my mom´s age are in our 20´s- it´s awesome. I´m working mostly with Carolina, her English is the best. Marlene is fun, she sings along a lot at work, and is super nice. There´s not really a sense of hierarchy or authority, everyone just does work to get the projects done. This works out; no one ever feels like a CAD monkey working here, we have a lot of fun. They listen to good music. Ams, you´ll be happy to know they like U2. They listen to some Brazilian stuff too, naturally. Also they like Indian drums, which of course I also love from my IASA days at IA (Indian Student Association and International Academy, my high school- for those of you who may not have known this). Apparently there´s some artist I forgot the name already that they like here.
So- the projects that they work on are all very design oriented, they even do product design, things like lamps and furniture- all very cool. The firm seems to have a lot of house projects, everything is very ´beautiful´. I think its the favorite english adjetive here. The designs are contemporary, minimalist but with attention to details through materials-very honest treatment of them, wood is meant to be wood, concrete concrete, stone is stone.
Jogo- play
Thursday night we went out to play pool at this snooker bar downtown while Marlene went to an inauguration dinner. It was so cool to hang out with Pai (I still don´t know the dad´s name, I´ll just call him pai- which means dad), Isabel (Marlene´s daughter) her boyfriend Bruno, Jordana(the other daughter) and her husband Fabio. I love that they hang out with their parents its so much fun. Pai is crazy, he talks to me in Portuguese all the time, and is commited to me learning it- and fast so I can make jokes in Portuguese with them. He´s definitely a character. There is also no hesitation with PDA, even in front of parents; I can´t even imagine kissing in front of my parents. Their version of pool is different, the balls are smaller and the white one doesn´t fit in the holes. You save ball number 15 for the end, its like an 8 ball but you place it on the edge of the wall. You play odds and evens- not solids and stripes. To start you put the balls into a trapezoid, a triangle with the point missing. The white ball goes right up against the trapezoid and to break you shoot backwards, with the thicker end of the stick. Craziness.
There´s a lot of the same shows on TV, lots of American music as well. Grey´s anatomy is super popular, so is friends and 2 and a half men. We watched Amelie the other day, one of me and Isabel´s favorites. She also likes the strokes, like me- what an awesome coincidence.
Coma- eat
To eat we had pastel (pronounced pas-teu, a fried pocket with cheese, ham and tomato, super good. They also had me try coxinhas (co-sheen-nias), a fried doughball with meat and onions inside. It was good- just really fried, almost too much for me to handle. Beer here is called Brahma, and the pop of choice is Guarana, both are great. Lunch here is the biggest meal, there´s always salad and meet, potatoes with cheese and onions and bacon, rice and beans are a staple. There´s so many fruits here- there´s not even names for all of them in English. The juices from them are my favorite. Theres this citrus fruit sort of like a tangerine but bigger which has the best juice ever. Yum. Mayonaise, Ketchup and Mustard are served with everything, even pizza. Coffee is very strong, but good.
So, that´s all I have time for now, sorry if I rambled, I´m very observant. Here is a link to pictures-
http://picasaweb.google.com.br/monica.musialowski/Londrina1#
Tchau tchau até logo.
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
The journey begins...
I still can´t believe I´m here. This place is absolutely gorgeous. I haven´t started work yet, that will be tomorow. Today, Isabel, the daughter of Marlene (the architect), took me to see downtown Londrina, though named after London, is actually nothing like it. Very south american- a lot reminds me of Costa Rica, though I hate to make such comparisons. Lots of painted concrete, tall skinny buildings, green everywhere, cobblestone avenidas, cute old men playing music on the street.
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