Sugarcane Fields Forever

Since my return from Rio, I have spent my remaining days in a place called Jaboticabal, the city where Carol and her family are from. Jaboticabal is a cute, small city surrounded by farms, about four hours from Sao Paulo city. Carol´s parents (Cristina and "Junior") own two sugarcane plantations nearby. I spent the weekend visiting their farms, enjoying the scenery and trying sugarcane for the first time! Its a pretty amazing plant, it is where we get our sugar, and it can also produce juice, fuel, and a few types of alcohol. There are a couple of larger farms nearby which are run entirely on sugarcane. They use the plant for energy without the need for electricity. They even make cars in Brazil which run on Alcool, a fuel derived from sugarcane. Driving through this area, all you see are fields of sugarcane everywhere you look! I liked the farms, they are a peaceful break from the cities. Here are scenes of Jaboticabal, the family farm, and sugarcane: This weekend I met the woman who was my equivalent here in Brazil in regards to Carol´s exchange program in the US. She worked with Carol on this side during the application process, while I worked with her during her exchange in Massachusetts. Monica is the coordinators name; she is also the director of a language school here in Jaboticabal. I was unknowingly committed to visiting this school and meeting students, teachers, etc. I was not looking forward to this, and almost even backed out at the last minute. I´ve been tired lately and missing home, and volunteering in place with people I did not know at a time I did not commit to was one of the last things I wanted to do. I went anyway, figuring it wouldn´t last very long. Monica showed me around the school and afterward had me join one of her English language classes. As soon as I met the class and started talking to them, I started to cheer up. These people were so happy to have a native English speaker to talk to, and my visit to their class was a special occasion. I ended up having a blast and got really into it - writing and drawing pictures on the board to teach them more vocabulary and illustrate points I was trying to make. They were so thankful for my help, and stayed after the class was over just to thank me and talk some more. One woman even gave me a gift of cookies! I was so touched. It reminded me of why I am here traveling in the first place - to make real human connections, to not only see the sights but to meet the people who live in these countries and get a picture of what life is like in different parts of the world. When I began my journey in Peru, I was living and working with local people, and I really enjoyed meeting new friends and experiencing a different way of life. As I continued through the months, I got caught up in seeing the sights and felt farther and farther away from the local culture as I moved. I am very glad I had this experience in Brazil to cap off my journey and keep me focused on what really makes these countries and cultures unique and special. Tomorrow evening I will board the plane for home! I can´t believe three months is already over. Sometimes Peru and Bolivia seem like ages ago, yet hanging out at the Gulu Gulu Cafe in Lynn seems like yesterday. Overall I am excited to go home. What is the first thing I am going to do, you ask? Eat Thai food at Max´s place!!! There´s more to come.... Joan

Rainy Rio and Returning Home Thoughts

"The girl from Ipanema" - a few days ago, I was the girl from Ipanema! Or was it that, "her name is Rio and she dances on the sand!" My hostel in Ipanema was right down the street from the "COP-a....COP-a-ca-BAN-a". OK, so there have been a lot of songs written about Rio de Janeiro, and a few decades ago, this was really a place to sing about. Unfortunately, these days, crime and gang violence has taken over the city. Tourism is sliding, because it just isn´t safe to go out unless you are on a guided tour. Its such a shame that such a gorgeous city with so much to offer has been corrupted by so much....corruption. (Allow myself to repeat....myself.) This beautiful beach city offers lots of outdoor sights and activities. To my disfortune, it poured rain the entire time I was there, so without the outdoor activities there really wasn´t much to do. Luckily for me, the rain cleared enough Wednesday morning for me to be able to visit the famous Christ statue who watches over the city from high up on a hill (apparently he´s not doing a very good job). I´m very glad I got to see this famous sight, no trip to Rio would be complete without it. There are great views of the city from the statue, and on a non-cloudy day you can see even more! My sojourn is nearing its end. I am now within the last five days of my trip before boarding the plane back to Boston. There are things I will miss about South America, but even more that I look forward to returning home to. Here are some of them: Things I will miss: Dulce de leche, empanadas, people waving at buses, people being kind and helpful even when I give them an attitude, stylish mullets, making instant friends simply because they are foreign too, accommodations for $5, prescription meds over the counter, buying medicine by the pill, practicing my Spanish, dulce de leche ice cream, llamas, red rooves, scenic bus rides, palm trees. Things I can´t wait to come home to: Thai food, Japanese food, Vietnamese food, cereal, broccoli, the Simpsons in English, GOOD movies (none of this "Duplex" crap), buffalo wings, Seinfeld, salad dressing, not having to wear flip flops in the shower, cashiers having change for a $20; bathrooms with soap, toilet paper, AND paper towels all in one; throwing my toilet paper in the toilet rather than a trash can, being able to argue with customer service people in English, 88.9 WERS, not hearing "You´re Beautiful" by James Blunt every day (or is it still playing?), coffee ice cream, driving (wait...no more car!), different clothes, real towels, farenheit, refrigerated milk, pine trees. Also, here are a few random observations I have noticed along the way: There are BankBoston´s in every major city in Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, and Brazil. Do they realize that BankBOSTON doesn´t even exist in Boston anymore? New York Yankees hats are in fashion down here, though I guarantee you they don´t even know what it means! I tried to counter this once, I´ll leave you with an excerpt from a conversation I had with a woman on a bus in Bolivia, wearing a Yankees hat: "You know, you should get a new hat. A hat with a `B´ on it. This hat is no good." "You mean, `B´ for Bolivia!" "No, no, `B´ for Boston." "Good idea, `B´ for Bolivia, thanks!" "OK, it can be for Bolivia AND for Boston. The hat you have now is very bad." "You´re funny."

Brazilian Beach Babe

Brazilians seems to me one of the most visibly diverse populations I have even encountered. Brazilians are African. Brazilians are European. Brazilians are Asian. Brazilians are native. Though even with this seemingly balanced mix, they of course still crack racial jokes. Brazilians wear bright colors (especially green and yellow, colors of the flag), and are CRAZY about their soccer.

I arrived in Sao Paulo City, in the Sao Paulo state, and have been staying with Carol and her relatives - her aunt and uncle, and her grandmother, who both have beautiful apartments close to each other in the city center (see me with Carol, above, and with her family, below). As I mentioned, they have been feeding me, and the food here has been a dream come true. Vegetables, delicious beef (and I don´t even like beef!), and lots of fresh fruit. One fruit here called Kaki looks just like a tomato (yes, I know, tomatoes are supposedly fruits too). Only when you bite into it can you believe it is not really a tomato, it is like an optical illusion.
Sao Paulo is a huge city. With a population of around 17 million, it is one of the biggest in the world. Unlike some of my other stops, Sao Paulo is not a tourist destination. The foreigners in Sao Paulo are there for business only, this is a business town.

Upon arrival, Carol´s mother Cristina took me to the coast, about one hour away, to experience the infamous Brazilian beaches. Carol´s aunt and uncle have a beach house (apartment, there are not many real ¨houses¨ here) at a place called Riviera. After visiting some of the nearby cities, we spent the night and had the whole next day at the beach. On our way there, Cristina took me to a shop to buy a bathing suit. Now, bear in mind that Brazilian standards for ¨too small¨ in bikini talk are far different from our own. Cristina and the saleswoman kept handing me items to try on, and all I kept saying was ¨bigger, bigger, BIGGER!¨ In the end I left with a bikini in what was probably the largest size they had, a GG. Don´t get too excited guys, if you were here you´d be wearing a speedo ; )
Our day at the beach was nice and relaxing. The scenery was gorgeous - city meets beach meets hills - very nice. Being the off-season down here and heading into their winter, we had the beaches almost to ourselves. Cristina warned me not to go in the water because it is ¨too cold¨ this time of year. Cold ocean water to Brazilians turned out to be ocean on the warmest day in New England, so I had a blast swimming in the waves with no one in my way! Here is a shot of my ocean fun, this is the closest view you´ll get of my new bikini:

Desiring some more sights, I headed to the one and only Rio de Janeiro! I´m here now, though it is pouring rain so I´m not sure just how many ¨sights¨ I´ll see. I´ll will write about Rio soon.

Joan

Iguazú Falls and Argentina Superlatives

Hello Everyone,

So, I´m writing from Sao Paulo, Brazil right now - a city with absolutely no public Internet access whatsoever. The only place you can use a computer is...get ready for this...McDonalds. That´s right, with the purchase of a Big Mac or Fries you can use a computer for 15 minutes. I think I will opt for the Fries.

Luckily, I am staying with some locals, so they are helping me out. As most of you know, I have worked with foreign exchange students for the past three years, so right now I am here visiting one of my former exchange students, Carolina Dossi! Carolina (or Carol) lived with the Tocco family in Gloucester, MA (hi Michele, Justin, and Bianca!). Her family in Sao Paulo is great and has been feeding me delicious food (the best in South America so far) and taking me to see the sights (which include the beaches, of course). More on Brazil later, I´ve got to catch up to having no Internet for 5 days...

So, during my last days in the wonderful Argentina, I visited one of the 7 natural wonders of the world (I think), Iguazú Falls. The waterfalls lie on the borders of Argentina, Brazil, and Paraguay, and can be seen from two different countries (Argentina and Brazil). Not only is their size massive, but there are actually 300 separate waterfalls! You need to take a few different paths through this tropical park to see it all, and they are an amazing sight to see.

I had planned to see the Brazilian side the following day, but crossing the border turned out to be an all-day task. With an expired visa, I headed to the Brazilian Consulate in Iguazú and argued for two hours in Spanish to Portuguese-speakers, getting nowhere. Finally, I headed to the border anyway and quickly realized that they really don´t care, they just need to give me a hard time because the US gives a hard time to Brazilians entering our country! I guess that´s fair.

So, since I was one month in Argentina, here are a few simple SUPERLATIVES to sum things up:

Most Popular: Dulce de Leche - sweetened condensed milk turned to paste, this popular spread is found on all breakfast tables in Argentina, in all pasteries, and in anything else you could think of to put it on! It is quite delicious.

Best Looking: The Perito Moreno Glacier - gorgeous. Iguazú Falls is a close second.

Most Livable City: Mendoza - a fairly simple city, I just loved its charm and was never at a lack for things to do.

Least Livable City: San Miguel de Tucuman - I never even mentioned it before, now you know why.

Best Dancers: The Tango Dancers at Cafe Tortoni.

Worst Dancer: I´d say Canadian Jeff, as he is self-proclaimed, but he never actually danced to prove it!

Favorite Snack: Empanadas - yummy!!!

Best Hostel: The Hostel Inn at Iguazú Falls - more of a resort than a hostel, with a pool, restaurant and bar, ping pong, fuzball, pool, and free DVD´s! Its great watching The Motorcycle Diaries again, now that I´ve been to almost all of the places they visit!

Worst Hostel: Hostel Clan in Buenos Aires - there is nothing like being woken up in the middle of the night to two loud drunken Irish girls bringing a guy home. Ah, the joys of shared accommodations...

Best Bus Ride: Mendoza to Chile - across the desert and the Andes, so beautiful!

Worst Bus Ride: Puerto Montt, Chile to Bariloche, Argentina - I was the only one on the bus, and yet they didn´t let me choose which movies I would watch, so I was stuck with White Chicks and Taxi (with Queen Latifa and Jimmy Fallon). AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!

Buenos Aires is on Fire!

Please restrain from calling the fire department, the city is not really burning, but its true that this place is HOT! (You have my permission to slap me if I ever get that cheesy again.) Buenos Aires is a ginormous city, though it still maintains a welcoming, comfortable feel. Known as the "Paris of the Americas", this city is filled with nice neighborhoods and European-style architecture, and there is no lack of things to do.

Buenos Aires has got a lifestyle all of its own, and they are on a completely different clock from the rest of us. To illustrate, here is an excerpt from a conversation I had last night with my hostel "roommate":
Roommate: "So, have you eaten yet tonight?"
Me: "Yes," I replied simply, though in my mind I´m thinking, ´Of course I´ve eaten, its 12:30am!´.
Roommate: "Alright, well I´m going out to eat now, I´ll see you later."
Me, thinking: ´As long as "see you later" means tomorrow morning and not later tonight, then yes, I´ll see you later.´

It is the culture here to take a siesta (nap) in the afternoon, eat a very late dinner (sometimes around 11:00pm), and THEN go out for the night. Also, this is not just reserved for weekends, it is like this here every night of the week. By now I´m probably really dating myself, because a few years ago I could have pulled all-nighters no problem, but now midnight is simply past my bedtime. Call me an old lady, I don´t mind. Though, it is a little embarrasing running into people in the hostel and having them ask, "What was the matter? Why didn´t you go out last night?" "Uh, I was sick". Luckily, this excuse was actually very true. I´ve had a bad cold since I got back from Uruguay, and its obvious to anyone who speaks to me, as I completely lost my voice. I sounded like a smoker of 25 years or more two days ago, and yesterday my voice disappeared completely. The good news is, I´m back with Amanda and Jeff! They took a different route to Buenos Aires, and were able to help me around since I couldn´t speak and I don´t know sign language. I also met a really cool girl named Gen in Uruguay, so the four of us were able to hang out together in the city.

Now to specifics. I had the good fortune of being able to attend a soccer (fútbol) game in Buenos Aires. Soccer here is not just a sport, it is a very important part of their culture, and they take it very seriously. Not only did I attend a soccer game, but it happened to be the quarter finals vs. Paraguay for the championship of South America. I got my ticket through a tour company at the hostel, and ended up in row 9, front and center! Argentinian soccer is known for its crazy and dedicated fans. (Think Red Sox vs. Yankees at Fenway) The energy in the stadium was intense, and the crowds never stopped singing, chanting, or waving their flags throughout the entire game, even when the other team scored! There were streamers and drums and confetti at every turn. The game was not as climactic as I´d hoped for, it unfortunately ended in a tie, 2-2. (Haven´t they heard of overtime? What is with these people!) I took a short video with my camera of the cheering fans, here is the link, I´ve never done video before so hopefully this works (you may need to give it a couple of minutes to load before you view it): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QS52m-FHHv8

Another cultural experience unique to Argentina, and Buenos Aires in particular, is the Tango. It is a very seductive, passionate dance, and is amazing to watch. Besides the tango dancers you sometimes find in the city streets, we wanted a true tango experience, so we made reservations at the oldest and most traditional tango club in town, Café Tortoni, to see a real tango show. With our table front and center (thanks Gen), I ate my chocolate mousse cake and enjoyed watching the live musicians, singers, of course dancers do what they do best. I´ve now headed north and have landed in Iguazú, known for some of the most spectacular water falls on the planet. These are my last few days in Argentina! Before I go, here are a few more comments:

NOTES ABOUT MATE:

A key component to life in Argentina, Uruguay, and southern Brazil is the Yerba Mate (pronounced mah-tay). When I was in Peru and Bolivia, "mate" simply referred to herbal tea. Here, however, "mate" is very specific to "yerba mate", a type of tea which is very strong and bitter, and contains caffeine. This tea is very much a part of daily life and culture these countries (similar to our coffee in the states). Everywhere you look, people are walking around with their mate cup and a thermous full of hot water to refill their beverage.

Drinking this tea is done in a very specific way. Mate cups are most commonly made from hollowed out gourds (gourd = mate in Spanish), and sometimes wood or metal. Loose tea is packed into the cup up to the rim, and the water is then poured into the cup. They drink through a metal straw (a bombilla) which contains a filter at the end (a great idea for herbal tea in general! I bought some...). Each cup is only a few sip-fulls, then the cup is refilled. When drinking mate in a social setting, the cup is filled with the tea and hot water and passed to the first person who drinks the whole thing. When they have finished, the cup is refilled and passed clockwise to the next person, who drinks it all and continues the process. I haven´t experienced this yet myself, I´m not crazy about the tea, but I hope to try it sometime.

Everywhere you look in Argentina and especially Uruguay, people are walking around with their mate cup in one hand and thermous in the other. There are even special bags made of leather which hold the thermous and cup so you can carry it like a purse. You can´t actually buy mate in restaurants, this drink is a homebound custom. Its an interesting and unique part of their culture.

Uruguay (no gay jokes, please)

Colonia, Uruguay is in essence a visual definition of the word "quaint". The phrase, "Omigod, its so CUTE!" exited my mouth on numerous occasions in this town. Colonia is a mere three-hour boat ride from Buenos Aires, Argentina (only one hour on the high-speed ferry). A cute waterfront town along the Rio de la Plata, the river which separates Uruguay from Argentina, it comes equipped with colorful homes, beautiful colonial architecture and cobblestone streets. With its small size, you could see all of it in a matter of a few hours, depending on how much time you want to spend at the gift shops.
Since my hostel had bikes to use for free, I used one to ride around the small town after my nap in the early evening. I came upon a parade of motor bikes (not motorcycles, more like motor scooters). I thought, "what the hell," and joined in with them, cycling down the main street. It turns out I was protesting a new plan to require cyclists to wear bike helmets. Have you ever heard of such a thing? Good for them, freedom to choose! I grew up without wearing a hlemet adn im prefectlee oKay.

After one night in Colonia, I took a 2 1/2 hour bus ride to Montevideo, the capital city. Uruguay is one of the smallest countries in South America, so distances between cities are short and the road are good. Outside of the cities and along the bus route is endless farmland, marked with cattle and rolling hills.

Montevideo is a small city with some beaches and a nice port. There are many great beaches in Uruguay a bit further north, but this time of year is out of season for them, so there weren´t many tourists headed that way. I spent one full day and another morning and night walking around the city. I even visited a more wealthy neighborhood called Carrasco, which is the area the group was from in the movie "Alive", about the Uruguayan rugby team who´s plane crashed in the Andes in the 1970´s. They survived for 72 days in the snowy mountain winter before hiking out of the mountains to get help in "the green valleys of Chile". Here are scenes from Montevideo:
I was going to spend a night at a farm in Central Uruguay before I left, but with a bad cold and a hard time getting through to the farmers, I decided just to come back to Buenos Aires. I´m taking a rest day now and hanging out with the hostel cat, who is currently asleep on my bed (don´t tell Sam).

Only three weeks left : ( Hasta Luego!
Joan

Patagonia!!!

So, all throughout this trip I´d been saying how much I wanted to go to Patagonia, but I wasn´t sure if I´d make it. After not making it to the jungle and as a result saving a week of time, I was much more hopeful. At (literally) the last minute, I lucked out a got a flight to my ultimate southern destination, El Calafate and the Perito Moreno glacier!

My Patagonian experience started in the north with the gorgeous town of Bariloche, located along a lake in the Nahuel Huapi National Park. This town seems like the North Conway of Argentina, a place where local families come for a vacation along with the foreign tourists. I swear I saw the Argentinian version of my family walking down the street, the guy even had the same coat as my dad! There are tons of outdoor activities to do here, lots of hiking, camping, and beautiful mountain and lake scenery. And of course, many cute, unique shops.
I wish I could have stayed longer in Bariloche, but when I went to the airline office to find out if there were any flights I could get to the south, my only option was at 2:00 that day! I took advantage of the opportunity and flew to El Calafate. This town is nothing to speak of in itself, it mainly exists for the tourists travelling to see the glaciers, which there are many of in the area. I managed to see the most famous of them all.

On our way to the Moreno glacier, we took a less-travelled road, along which you could see much wildlife. We saw many eagles, ostrich-like birds, black-neck swans, and other feathered creatures, all very big and distinctively different. (Plus, at the glacier itself, we saw a condor!). The Moreno glacier is the most famous and frequently visited glacier, as it is stable and does not progress from its location. The glacier itself actually moves from 30cm to 2 meters per day, though it also breaks off and tumbles into the water from the front, so it loses as much as it gains. It was progressing much further until the 1970´s, part of the reason for this decline in movement is global warming. Other glaciers are moving faster, and changing the landscape right before our eyes!

Seeing this massive natural formation was just incredible. As the glacier moves, it cracks like thunder, and if the echo reaches you in time you can see giant slabs of ice falling into the crystal blue water! Looks can be deceiving, its hard to fathom just how big the glacier is when you are looking at it. Moreno stands at 50 to 60 meters high above the water, and continues another 160 meters below the surface! It extends through the mountain valley for up to 30 kilometers.

On my way back north, I stopped in another Patagonian town called Trelew, which is home to a great Paleontology museum. There were lots of dinosaurs in this part of South America back in that period, and the MEF museum displays many great fossils found from this part of the world.

I wish I could have spent more time in Patagonia, it abounds with natural beauty that you just can´t imagine until you see it for yourself. Patagonia is worth three months in itself, its definitely a place I hope to return to someday.

CHILE - 4 days, 4 nights, 1 lousy post

Four days in Chile, and I made the most of them. We arrived first in Viña del Mar, famous for its beautiful Pacific beaches, though the clouds and cold weather put a damper on our sunbathing plans. Without a whole lot else to do, we headed to the mall. To my disappointment, it was exactly like the malls back home, with some of the same stores and even two Dunkin´ Donuts´! In addition, Chile is very expensive compared to what we were used to, so prices were just like home, too. We made the best of it, eating some hard-to-find familiar food and going bowling.

Our alojamiento (rented apartment) was a nice treat, overlooking a canal and down to the ocean. We spent two nights and left the next day for the neighboring town of Valparaíso. By the time we got there it was sunny, so its a bit hard to compare the twin cities, but we loved Valparaíso. It was also on the water, though it is more of a port town with a lot of ship activity coming in and out of the harbor.

I was happy to learn that Valparaíso was also one of the home towns of the famous poet Pablo Neruda! Amanda and I went on a tour of his home, one of three in his home country of Chile. Pablo Neruda was known worldwide for his poetry during his life in the past century. If you are familiar with the film "Il Postino" (the Postman), Neruda is the poet featured in this movie. His home was very cool, with gorgeous views of the ocean and hillside homes, colorful rooms, and beautiful artistic furniture. Here is the man himself:

The streets of Valparaíso were very European in feel, with narrow, winding cobblestone streets and painted houses in a variety of colors. Our accommodations here were also different from usual, we stayed in an hospedaje, which is like renting a room in someone´s home. It was a really cool. Here is a street scene from Valparaíso:

I should mention that our night in Valparaíso was also my last night with Amanda and Jeff. We celebrated our time together by going to a bar that played only the best (which also means worst) of the 80´s, videos included (they LOVE their 80´s in South America, this has been a constant throughout the trip). I had a bit too much to drink and we all had a good time. Two broken glasses later, we went to bed to get up early the next day for our bus ride to Santiago, the capital of Chile. We´d heard mixed reviews of Santiago, though probably more nay than yay for the city. We figured one full day there should be enough. I found the city surprisingly nice, considering my expectations were not that high. It definitely felt like a huge city, it was very fast-paced and there was far too much smog. One great aspect of the city was a beautiful park that was great for walking and viewing the city (and for the high school kids to make out). We also visited a pedestrian road with lots of shopping and street performances, though I had the misfortune of being pick-pocketed here, with someone taking my phone right from my bag, I assume while I was walking (I´m always very careful). I guess now I have my pick-pocket story. I left Amanda and Jeff at the bus station that night with a sad good-bye (see ya later freaks! - kidding, I love you!). They spent more time in Chile while I headed out of the country which was creating a hole in my pocket. I took an overnight bus and spent a morning in another port town of Puerto Montt, along a bay of Chile further south. It was Sunday so everything was closed, but by walking around I found the town had a very quaint and somewhat New England feel. The bus ride from Puerto Montt definitely brought me through familiar New England-type woods. I am writing now from Camden, Maine....or is it North Conway, NH? Wait, let me check my passport..... Bariloche, Argentina?!?! You could have fooled me. This town does in fact feel like a quaint New England destination, though with its own unique charm. It is nestled in a national park, with lots of hiking and other free outdoor activities. I took a stroll around the lake with a girl from Iowa named Jen I met in my hostel, and we met up with a nice Australian couple later for a not-so-nice dinner. The previous night, there was a tango festival, so I got to see live tango dancers! There are tons of nice shops here and lots to do. Bariloche is considered a gateway to Patagonia, as it is in the north of Patagonia. I really wanted to head south to view the most famous glacier of Patagonia, and this morning I learned that the only way I could still do this, given my tight schedule, was to leave Bariloche....right NOW. I am writing from the airport, waiting for my flight which is a bit delayed, but it is the only way I can get there and still go to the other places I want to visit.... (((((TIME LAPSE))))) I´ve been on the go so much I can´t seem to finish this blog entry! I hopped the last-minute flight to El Calafate in the South of Patagonia to see the famous Moreno glacier. I actually made it! I´ll write more about Patagonia later.