Living it up in the "São Paulo Embassy"

Back in the land of
             Palm Trees

Upon arriving at the airport in Maceió two professors came to pick me up.  The university is near the airport and as they had class in the evening we went to the mall to grab a bite to eat before heading back to the university, where I sat in on two beginner English classes.  Besides the onslaught of mosquitoes in the classroom, it was a great experience.  The students were well behaved and eager to learn.  The university is the only public on in the area.  In Brazil public universities are better than private ones.  Because public universities are free, generally only students who can’t get into the public school go to private colleges.  

1 of the 5 pets I currently live with

I am currently staying with two professors from the English department, as well as two cats and three dogs, all of who are incredibly sweet.  The professors are from São Paulo and so are many of the professors that I have met from the university.  Thus far I have not really experienced the true coastal culture since most of the professors have been here for less than two years and still hold true to their Paulista roots.  In fact, the guys I am staying with call their apartment the “São Paulo Embassy” and another professor gets the newspaper from São Paulo sent to her rather than reading the local paper.  Though they tend to miss their home city as far as the accent and accessibility to various foods, theater, and so forth, they all agree that the beaches in Maceió more than make up for it (also it doesn’t hurt that there is way less traffic and cost of living is cheaper). 

Cocos!

Right now I live a mere few blocks from a gorgeous beach and I’m looking to rent an apartment within walking distance from the beach.  Every Sunday the main road by the beach is closed so people can walk, run, and ride their bikes in the street.  You can stop at a restaurant, bar, or one of the many stands to buy a coconut for a dollar.  Another common treat is tapioca.  Tapioca is made from Cassava and when prepared it takes a crepe-like form.  In fact they treat it very much like a crepe, you can get it stuffed with everything from chicken to Nutella.  No matter if you choose sweet or salty the little pockets come standard with cheese and coconut and they all (to my knowledge) are delicious (though I may need to do some more tasty research). 

I feel like all I have done so far in this country is eat.  On Friday I went to the Casa de Cultura, which offers English classes to university students as well as community members.  In addition to the university I will be assisting in classes there and giving lessons on American culture.  On Friday I went to a meeting and met a bunch of the English professors.  During a 2-hour meeting, I realized that it is not unique to Colombia for teachers to think whoever is talking loudest and the most will come out on top (though to be fair I could not understand 90% of what was going on in what I believe was a heated Portuguese debate as to what type of questions should be put on student exams).  After the meeting we went into the teachers room to celebrate some late February birthdays; or as one professor put it, I picked the very best day to visit the Casa de Cultural.  Stuffed with sandwiches, cake, and the ever popular soft drink, Guarana, I was introduced to some other professors in the Spanish department (yay for more people I can communicate with).  All of the professors at the university and Casa de Cultural have been so welcoming and their English is awesome.  I am looking forward to working with these great people at both institutions.

Celebrating Birthdays at Casa de Cultura

Eating some of the yummy food Paulo prepared for lunch