Brazil!

Bem- Vindo Brasil! Our arrival to South America began with a quick stop in Macapa to pick up 3 US Embassy representatives. They joined us the rest of the way to Manaus informing us of cultural and other educational things that we needed to know before our arrival. Manaus is a city in the Amazon that is deeply rooted in culture throughout the river and the surrounding area. Upon stepping foot into the sauna, I mean city, I boarded a tour boat that would take us through the Amazon. The vast brown sea was quite the view as it was surrounded by wilderness and jungle. We even saw a “schoolboat”, same concept as a school bus, but it picked the children up from their floating homes and took them to school on the other side of the river. The most amazing view that I had seen thus far was the merging of the two biggest rivers in the world. Where the Rio Negro and the Amazon meet, it looks like oil and water because of the distinctive color differences in water. When we got to the jungle part of the Amazon, we transferred to smaller canoes and went on a short hike through the man made path that led to huge water lilies and the “mother tree”. Born and raised in Southern California the “nature” and BUGS were a bit much for me, so luckily only a few hours later I was on an airplane on my way to Rio de Janeiro.

    Before Rio, I had my ideas of what to expect. After being there, I now realized that when people said “Rio is a big city”, I pictured and American city. This was not at all what I found. Rio seemed like the most extravagant and populated American city..on STEROIDS. But just with any other big city, it was thriving with culture and life. If you have seen the movie “Rio”, then you know exactly what the city is like! The movie does a phenomenal job portraying Copacabana and the beauty of the city. Our hotel was located 2 blocks from the beach, and walking distance to much shopping and dining. One thing that I learned real quick in Brazil is that pedestrians in NO WAY have the right away..there were a few close calls. Being a sociology fanatic, I was quick to realize the vast stratification that is in this city in particular. Rio de Janeiro is the most diverse place that I ever ever seen. There are Germans, French, Italians, Spanish, and the list goes on. Rio also has a large black community. Down on the beach and surrounding areas, were where the “white” people live. A majority of the workers at all the restaurants, hotels, stores, and such were black. All the people shopping relaxing on the beach were white. All the homeless people on the streets were black. All the police officers were white.

    On the last day of Rio my group went to visit the Favelas. These are the slums of Rio. I have never seen such intense poverty in my life. Words cannot express the living conditions that these people survive with. It wasn't until the 1980's that they actually got running water and electricity. All of the people living in the Favelas were black. The children ran around and played with no shoes on. In the community, they had their own stores, restaurants, schools, daycare centers, and everything they needed to avoid going into the city. The Favelas are a national museum, and we were told, “the buildings, the grafitti, the people are all on display”....WHAT! ? For me personally, I had a real hard time swallowing this concept. These people are people just like you and me. How is it ok for me to stick my camera in their house to get a good picture of the “display”? About half way through the tour, I was able to understand a little bit more about the beauty and the art of the neighborhood, and that, I took pictures of.

    From the favelas to the luxurious city life, Rio is beauty. Although I had a ton of AMAZING experiences in Rio such as the jeep tour through Rio, the DELICIOUS cuisine, the breathtaking waterfalls in the jungle, the spending way too much money on Havaianas, the samba classes, seeing one of the seven wonders of the world; the Christ the Redeemer Statue, and seeing the preparations for Carnival, there is one thing that I will always remember. The Favelas. I pray that one day I will be able to return, this time as someone in a position to bring change. I felt God's presence at the statue looking over the tropical beaches, and I felt His presence through the people living in this poor neighborhood.