Study Abroad in Brazil week 2

Oi, tudo bem?

I am starting this breakdown from Friday of last week up until Tuesday because it's a lot of information. This timeline was pretty fun! We only had class once on Wednesday due to Brazil playing against Mexico on Monday.

Friday
I was at the hotel all day writing and listening to music. As I've said before, I am working on my other stories this summer and Being a Model is one of them. If you're new click here to read about Being a Model. I wrote 994 words for BAM and that is a good number for me despite not writing fiction since December. Words just flow when I'm working on this story. Unlike my other stories, this one has more description and extrospection than introspection meaning my main character is focusing on the details of the external world more than what's going on internally.

Saturday
We went on a walking tour to learn about the history of Rio De Janeiro starting from the 1500's with the slave trade. We went to the parts of the city where the shore used to be (they filled in the water with land to build what is now Rio) Ships would come in with African people(six million in total), many who would die from disease and starvation. Our tour guide showed us an area that was excavated. Archaeologists found over five hundred thousand artifacts from the 1500's like pottery and glass among other items. He also sang a song explaining how the history of slavery is romanticized and retold as an event not as harsh as it was. Next, we visited a cemetery/museum for archaeological items from slaves. Lastly, we went to an area in Rio call Little Africa. This Afro-Brazilian community has a lot of rich culture where African religions and music is very strong. It's also the place where samba and Carnival was born.

​I took a nap/laid in bed for a couple hours.

Me and my roommate plus other students talked and watched Identity Thief on Netflix. 

Sunday​

Got up in the afternoon and started writing today's post.

Wrote few hundred words for Being a Model

That's all I remember!

Monday
I stayed in bed so i didn't watch the Brazil vs. Mexico game but I kept up with the score.

My study abroad group planned a potluck so we had dinner and dessert that night. We had spaghetti with ground beef, potatoes, white rice and Spanish rice, salad, garlic bread, drinks, chocolate cake and ice cream. During the dinner we discussed many different topics. We  went over the first week of class and talked about racial classifications and our experiences. It was a great conversation and I discovered new perspectives and worldviews surrounding self-identification when it comes to race/ethnicity/nationality. I love these types of conversations because it allows you to step out of your perspective  and understand another's experience. Without these discussions, we wouldn't be able to understand the world.

Afterwards, we went to the park, took pictures of a mural and walked around for a couple hours.

Then off to bed.

Tuesday
Today was also fun! In the morning it was discussion section and language class in the morning with our teacher assistant (TA) and the professor for the program. We worked out a issues we were having in class due to the use of Portuguese for the majority of class time. 

Around three o'clock me and two other students went to a restaurant to watch the Columbia vs. England game. There was plenty screaming and disappointment throughout the match. Then out of nowhere it started raining! Thankfully we were in a shaded outdoor area and by the time it stopped, the match ended.

Walked to the mall with eight floors and a movie theater on the top floor. I bought an apple pie from the McDonald's there and it was AMAZING, better than the U.S.

When I got back to the hotel our translator helped me turn on the oven because it's gas not electrical so she used matches. I was scared and burned my finger a little.

Then off to bed.​