Bahia - an overdue catching up

How time does fly! We are in the ever-buzzing city of Salvador, but I want to catch up in chronological order. We left Joao Pessoa on a night bus with an assortment of provisions (some beers, the local version of cheez-its, water bottles, chocolate, and a big bag of cashews - actually 'castanhas de caju' - the caju refers to the juicy fruit you saw Flora biting in previous pics- the castanha is the actual seed/nut), and we woke up in Bahia, which is considerably more lush than Paraiba. By brunch time we were in Salvador, where we were guided to Barra/Ondina (thanks Cheryl, fellow Portlander!) and stayed just long enough to stash our bulky stuff (thanks again, Cheryl and Wilma!) and buy some bus tickets to Chapada Diamantinha national park, located in inland Bahia. On recommendation (Ashi, Solila, and of course, Cheryl and Wilma!) we picked the most remote town Capao, which meant another hour of 4-wheel-drive jolting about after the end of the (overnight, again) bus route. Here's a picture of the 'town' of Capao, which is by far the most tranquil spot we've experienced on this journey. The higher altitude meant cooler weather, which was a nice relief. It's definitely a destination spot for nature/trekking enthusiasts, which as you might imagine, makes for a different 'vibe' than the beach scene. We met some fabulous folks from other parts of Bahia, Israel, Chile, Spain, Australia... Maybe some of you are reading this now! Here's a little set of videos from the grounds of our pousada Sempre Viva. Note the surreal purple trees:


As you might expect (not), the small village of Capao is home to a full-blown circus troupe, complete with a big top tent and trapeze equipment. Naturally, they offer classes for anyone interested in having a circus experience. Flora and I signed up (actually, we didn't sign anything, which is kind of a humorous relief compared to the layers of liability waivers one would have to sign to participate in such a thing in the US). We did lots of stretching and tumbling gymnastics-style, then we got to pick a circus art to focus on. I chose the trapeze, and Flora chose the silk ropes (they call them 'tissues,' which is a hoot). So here we are working on our respective circus schtiks: ((Ahhh - internet troubles again... having trouble uploading more. Well, here is Flora climbing up the tissues))






Perhaps the most famous waterfall in these parts is called Cachoeira da Fumaca (Waterfall of Smoke), so named because the stream is so small and the distance is so high that the fall appears to vaporize before it hits the pool below. Here`s a video. We`ll load more pics and elaborate more when we can.

Wish y`all were here.



Coming soon...

-the conclusion of Chapada Diamantinha
-Portuguese immersion school in Salvador
-our great apartment
-Forro, buying plywood and cheap delicious ice cream in Rio Vemelho...

Pics!

My dear and insightful friend, Cristina, gave me the feedback yesterday that she loved our blog but didn't think we updated it enough. Fair enough. So, although I'm not feeling especially wordy at the moment, I would love to share some photos with you all. Enjoy!


My arty sky photo near the land we are looking at buying!! Yes, you read that right....stay tuned and start thinking about your next vacation to Brazil...with US!


Oh, there we are again looking happy and tan and it's TRUE...we are! This was our favorite beach day so far. It was, um, pretty much perfect.


A mouth watering sight indeed! The coco vendors stock up each Friday for the weekend throngs of coco thirsty beach goers. It always makes me a bit nervous as they casually hack them open with huge machetes. But apparently, they are pros.


My best Joao Pessoa friend, Kim, and her brand new baby, Isabel (she's like one week old!). Kim is Dutch and lives here with her Brazilian husband, Francisco. I painted this painting for Isabel because I'm a firm believer in babies owning art:)

Isn't she just soooo Brazilian and wonderful!?! I'm a huge fan of the glorious street art I'm finding here. By the end of this trip, I will probably be able to publish a book with all my "graffiti" photos.

The Senses

Hello world of people who care about us!

Thanks for reading by the way, and thanks for your comments. It's extremely (overly?) exciting for us to find there is a new comment on our blog...it makes us feel loved.

So, one of my dear friends wrote me an email asking about what we are eating, what it smells like, what it sounds like, etc, etc...so here it is...THE SENSES Blog...

I am writing this from our apartment. It's 8 am and there is a sweet ocean breeze flowing through the room. Lane just returned home from his morning run dripping with sweat. I "slept in" till 7.
We can almost constantly hear cars zooming by in the distance on their way to the beach, and just in case we EVER forget we are Brazil, there is the occasional "stereo truck" to remind us where we are. Picture it... a truck covered in huge speakers which creeps slowly through neighborhoods sporting a guy on a microphone making live, um, "announcements" of sorts, yelling at us, really. It's ridiculously loud, and we often comment about how long that would fly in Portland (ha!), where even the silent IKEA display trucks seem slightly offensive to our advertising sensitive selves! Here...it's just part of life. And on Sundays, if we are lucky, we can catch a glimpse of the old man who, wearing a full suit, hat and sunglasses (it's like, 95 degrees mind you), walks slowly down the streets pushing a "stereo cart"....seems he is spreading the word of god REALLY loud through REALLY bad speakers. Never a dull moment.

On to food...we are consuming a year's worth of tropical fruit in our four months here, getting it while it's cheap, ripe and local. If we only had a compost pile! We are also getting our fill of "agua de cocos," hands down, the most perfect thirst quenching beverage around. And on our tiny burners in our tiny kitchen, Lane is quite good at cooking beans, eggs, and newly on the scene...grilled cheese. Unfortunately, I still burn most things... When we venture OUT to eat, it usually involves carefully choosing items off a "self service" buffet. At the end of the line, we weigh our plates of food and pay by the kilo. Before we knew any better, we had some shocking moments at the scale, wide eyed, with bowls full of REALLY expensive ice cream and sushi! Of course now we are savvy buffet diners...choosing "lightly." All in all, the most plentiful and easily available food items involve meat, bread and sugar. Yikes! The exact items I usually try and avoid.

Which leads me to tell you about my latest love of....AEROBICS! Yes, it's true, I came all the way to beautiful exotic Brazil, and what did I do? I joined the gym!! To be honest, it has been my saving grace on multiple levels. My nightly trips to the land of spandex and techno music are not only keeping me healthy, but they are giving me something to DO when Lane disappears to his teacher's house most evenings. Can you picture me? Yes, I'm the tall gringa in the back trying to keep up with the Brazilian ladies as the teacher shouts out commands in Portuguese, competing of course with the SUPER loud (it's a theme here) American music. "Bridge Over Troubled Water" set to techno beats?? What! I love it and the whole scene makes me laugh. I usually do about three classes every night, some combination of step aerobics, yoga, "super shape," "super mix" "aero fight," and possibly the most hilarious...the mini trampoline class. Happily, I've made a couple of "friends" there who graciously listen to me as I attempt to communicate in Portuguese. It's sweet.

Was that a detour from "the senses?" Maybe not.

On to the weather!!! I'm SENSING that the weather here in Brazil in shifting. Just like it is starting to feel like Spring in Portland (I hear), it is starting to feel like a Brazilian version of Fall. It can no longer be assumed that every day will be endlessly sunny and overly hot. In fact, it's quite cloudy at the moment, and feels like it just might rain. Yay! (I'm such a Portlander). But seriously, the shift to slightly cooler temperatures and the occasional tropical downpour is just fine with me and my perpetually sunburned skin.

To end, another slight detour from the senses theme, but a good story none the less. Yesterday we were invited to volunteer at a publicly funded (they are rare) language school. We were enthusiastically greeted by Fatima, the teacher, and led into a stark windowless classroom. There, we found about ten ladies, ages ranging from 20ish to 60ish, sitting nervously in their desks. We sat up front with the teacher and were prompted to...."speak English". OK, I can do this! Eventually, the slight awkwardness of it all wore off, and we got into a flow asking and answering questions about where we were from, our professions (they guessed Lane was a guitar player), our religions (!), and our musical tastes. It was really fun and also extremely rewarding to give something of ourselves back to people here. We are planning to return today and hopefully a few more times before we pack up and move to Salvador (11 days from now...very exciting).

That's all for now folks. Here are some of my latest creations...

rooftop video

Sinking In

Since I last wrote, I have found my groove. The culture shock is wearing off, we are settled in our own sweet space, and my back is almost completely healed. Yay!! My Portuguese is even improving with the help of a three hour group class and a couple of private sessions every week, in addition to my flash cards and constant inquiry of, "Come se diz....(How do you say...). Indeed, I am surrendering to the simplicity of my life here. I typically, wake up shockingly early (5am!) before it's blisteringly hot outside, go running/walking on the beach followed by a swim in the ocean. All this, in the presence of a beautiful sunrise. After our typical breakfast of coffee and papaya, I either go back to sleep (rough life, I know), or practice Portuguese, paint, write, do yoga, lounge around by our rooftop pool, or walk to the fruit market. It is truly a relaxing life we've got going on here. Interestingly, I realize it's my tendency to want to DO MORE, to make some huge difference in the world, to have some amazing journey filled with incredible life changing moments at every turn, so believe it or not, I struggle a little with "just livin' on the beach." However, Lane lovingly reminded me that during these times of worrying or wanting something more/different, I am quite simply, NOT being in the moment. SO true.

So, I'm getting it...slowly. I'm pausing to feel the temperature of the sun on my skin (thank you Cvita), to listen to the waves, and to be thankful for this luxurious chapter in my life. I'm getting over my fears of speaking this language even though I'm terrible (the Brazilians love you for trying, and, hey, I'm good entertainment for them). And again (see by last blog entry), I am finding joy in the details, like the plethora of tiny, perfectly groomed, white fluffy dogs who stroll along with their Brazilian owners on the "boardwalk," as I call it. Who knew?

Here's a bit about the boardwalk...The boardwalk is where I do much of my people watching and strolling. It is basically a wide sidewalk which runs parallel to the ocean, in between the lovely large white beach and the relatively busy road. It's a block from our home. There are restaurants and bars scattered along it serving fish, hamburgers (very popular here), beer and coconut water (personal favorite) to the throngs of bikini wearing Brazilians lounging in plastic chairs stuck in the sand. There are also the required hippies selling their handmade wears and the frequent rolly cart full of fried bread items or ice cream. It's touristy in a "Brazilians on weekend holiday" kind of way, but not very international. We definitely stand out a bit (not too many gringos with dreadlocks here:)) The boardwalk goes on for miles, is lined with palm trees and hotels, and is hands down the local "strip," the gathering place for droves of teenagers, families, beer drinking buddies, scantily clad joggers and the occasional samba band or soccer game. And, for now, it's our strip too.

A few days ago, we were invited to go on a day long drive with our new English friends who I met in my Portuguese class. They live here now and have invested in property up and down the coast. They were great tour guides as they really knew all the great secret spots, AND they were hilarious, AND they insistented upon giving us beer all day long. We had a blast seeing the A-MAAAZE-ING beaches (see pic below) which surround Joao Pessoa. We also discovered that land here is super cheap, like SUPER cheap...hmmm?

Flora and I rented a flat with a veranda that has a view of the Atlantic; there is a saying in Portuguese about house guests being like fish - after a few days, things are not so fresh. We are so thankful for my teacher's family's hospitality, yet we felt the need to give his teenage son his
bedroom back; we are having fun in our own place, shopping for local produce, cooking in our tiny kitchen, wearing fewer clothes :)... Flora set up an art studio which can migrate back and forth from the veranda to the breezy living room.

A block from our place, we saw and heard a Samba group playing on the ocean boardwalk, and we went down to check it out. It felt like we were among our people (freaks, that is). Many onlookers simply stood and watched. Flora and I danced uncontrolably, and the women dancers from the group pulled Flora into their circle where she held her own with confidence and ease. A few minutes later, they pulled me into the circle. This place, and its people, seem quite tolerant of 'estrangeiros' who want to stand and observe the culture. Those who want to dive in and participate are welcomed with enthusiasm.

I am still far from being fluent in Portuguese, but every day brings us both an increment closer. A free English class in my teacher's neighborhood starts this week, and we're looking for more ways to plug in and give something of ourselves.

Meanwhile, though this blog is not really the place to go on and on about my favorite pastime, here is a little clip of a "game" at a local gathering.

School of Life

It's hard to know where to start when each day seems to contain a similar amount of emotions, new information and learning typically experienced in a week. And, then there is the question of what to focus on: the macro picture of where we are and why (still in Joao Pessoa, still here for Lane to study with his teacher), the micro details (how the kids here make kites out of toilet paper and miraculously fly them in between a maze of electric wires, for example), or the emotions...oh the emotions! Perhaps I will start there as my emotions seem to be OVERLY present these days. And really, isn't it all (big picture, details, emotions) intimately interwoven anyway?

To be totally honest, I ,Flora, (right hand raised) have been struggling. And for those of you who know me, you know I tend to sort of sail through life with a somewhat magical amount of ease and serendipity. So, when the going gets tougher, I am quite out of my element, but certainly in the element of becoming stronger, learning (again) some fundamental life lessons, and one would hope, coming out a better person on the other side. Here's the deal: I hurt my back the night we left Portland by simply bending over in a somewhat twisted fashion. Yikes. This injury has kept me from doing yoga and/or dancing with the exception of Carnaval night (paid for it the next day). It was also kept me from carrying heavy bags (thank you Lane for all your schlepping the magority of our stuff), and from generally doing anything other than walking and sleeping for unusually long hours. So, this paired with my almost complete lack of understanding of the Portuguese language, has left me feeling, well, mute and still...clearly out of my comfort zone.

Feeling mute and still, we have been residing in the home of Lane's teacher for the past eight days. There are seven of us here: grandma, two teenagers, teacher, wife, and us...the gringos. Despite their generous hospitality, it has felt quite cramped, and well, awkward, considering I can't verbally communicate with them...lots of smiling, lots of "obrigadas" (thank yous). I feel a bit like a teenage foreign exchange student in her first week away from home, but thankfully I have my fiance with me this time around. However, my fiance has a very clear reason for being here involving many hours of classes everyday and amazing one-on-one time with his teacher. I, on the other hand, have been wandering around the house feeling a bit lost and with a little TOO much time on my hands...all very interesting considering how much I was looking forward to just "be-ing" here. How do you do that again?

So the lessons come everyday...how many times do I have to learn that what I focus on becomes greater? Feeling sad, homesick, cramped, overwhelmed, culture shocked, mute, still, isolated, etc...encourages more of the same. I have been drowning in these emotions at times over the past week, and it is only when I shift gears in my thinking (and doing) that everything feels lighter. And, thankfully, this shift is happening. I am meditating. I am learning how to play the guitar. I am reading, painting and writing. But more importantly, I am focusing on how lucky I am to be immersed so intimately in another culture. I am noticing things like Grandma's sparkling eyes and her deep contagious laughter. I am noticing the sweetness in how I was patiently taught all the names for cups (there are a lot by the way: coffee cups, wine glasses, beer mug...). And, so clearly, I am noticing how generous this family has been: sharing their meals as we all sit together three times a day, sharing their space as we have thoroughly taken over the teenage son's room, and sharing a glimpse into their everyday Brazilian lives: simple, loving, full of laughter. Really, the beauty of each day here (and everywhere?) is in the smallest moments and details, and in the loving kindness of people. So, what was I complaining about?? Wow, this is like a pep talk to myself!

OK, so in the midst of writing this blog entry, we actually went into town and rented our very own apartment, allowing my nagging American self and it's desire for my own personal space and some air conditioning to shut up. We move in tomorrow: the beginning of a new chapter...and with an ocean view to boot.

Here are some pics and a video.



Did I mention the orchid garden in the back yard or the movement studio attached to the house?
























Lane doing his homework.