Pictures in posts...

Are pictures in posts like the soundtrack for movies or the jackhammer outside while your trying to sleep, or read a post around funky layouts...I say movies so I decided to go back and add some to my not so many posts haha. Wow and this novel of a post makes two for the week....workweek, I'm rolling now haha.
For all my friends and fam

Camping clears the mind, Ubatuba

Throwing a little unexpected trip into the weekend always spices things up and keeps things cooking...yes I'm hungry haha. We caught a bus for a 4 hour ride to the Sao Paulo coast this past weekend to spend some quality time camping in a city called Ubatuba.

It was nice to get away from the hustle and bustle which is Sao Paulo, but also to take a break from constantly checking my e-mails for responses from possibly traineeship leads, one of which, WILL begin in the next two months for me haha, I just don't know where. This is on a completly different map than what I thought I would be doing a month ago. Going to school here for a semester would have been amazing...close your eyes picture it, yep maybe I'm crazy for leaving that dream for another, but I jumping in head first.

I have my hopes set for Asia, malaysia would be amazing not to mention having a comrade in arms, mr Mike Williams to hang out with ever time and again there would be delightful...but that's all up in the air for now as I TRy to get ahold of TN managers, and....wait, hope...pray for their responses. I'm supposed to have a phone interview in the near future for one in good ol' S. Korea, I'll cross my fingers on that. Oh, so this was about camping haha....



We took an overly priced taxi some 18 kilometers to our luxury suite under a tree, crack open our tent, noticing that maybe we should have brought a large tarp to guard us from the monsoon rains that have been falling, but we had our swimsuits so it was all good. It was nice to have the public beach to go to, brazil's coast never cease to amaze me btw, since our "campsite" was geared towards the family crowd. But which didn't stop our neighbors, once they realized we were gringos from offering us beers and beers, cuba libres, and one guy even gave me the shirt off of his back...VillaBuca! haha



All in all the weekend was a great time to just relax, clear my head, and prepare myself for my last month in brazil, but also the madness which is Carnival...some say the best party on earth, who knows...But this I have come to know, Brazilians are Happy people who dance the night away with often little alcohol...which I would say is in contrast to the good ol' US of A, and I can't wait to see what's instore...Salvador da Bahia, I can here the music already...nope that's my stomach time to eat

tchau ate mais

Peru vacation in a nutself

Brazil is without a doubt the economic powerhouse of South America. You read and hear about it in the news. Traveling to surrounding countries has made that even more apparent for me. The past several weeks for the holidays I traveled Peru with a friend. From the moment we arrived and took a taxi the difference was apparent. There is a large gap in Brazil between the people with money and those without, but in Peru that seemed even more so. I was told that the majority of Peruvians with money are those of European decent. Also, that the largest sectors for income in Peru come from Fishing, Mining, and Tourism.
As being a tourist it was easy to see how many jobs that were sustained and created by tourism. Also, it was amazing to see how influential the past civilization of Incas still is today in Peru. Inca Kola made by Coco-Cola is a popular brand of soda, and is just one example among many products that still use the Inca name. Outside of the city center and tourist zones the remaining parts of the cities looked very similar to the slums of Brazilian cities. We traveled only by bus through the country on our trip. Even though my friend was from Spain and speaks Spanish I remember myself questioning the safety of us arriving in a town after dark on our way to Nazca. Keep in mind this is even after being in Brazil for about 6 months. One thing that I have learned since being in South America is to stay out of situations that increase the chances of unwanted situations. Thankfully, nothing at all bad happened to ether of us during the trip. However, we have both heard of horror stories from people’s visits to Peru.
We traveled south from Lima to see the “Nazca Lines”. These are giant designs made hundreds of years ago that can only be seen from the sky or some high vantage point on the ground. From there we traveled to Cusco, which is situated on the mid-eastern side of Peru in the Andes. We spent Christmas mountain biking as we began our Inca Jungle Trail. It was an alternate route to the more popular and expensive classic Inca trail to Manchu Picchu. After catching a bug, getting sick, and several days of hiking we reached the small town below Manchu Picchu, Aguas Calientes, or “little Manchu Picchu” as some call it. From there we climbed the 3000+ Inca stairs to the top to visit the ruins. It was amazing to see, and even a little mystic as the fog laid like a blanket over the ruins. Manchu Picchu was worked on for ninety-years starting early in the 15th century before the Spaniards drove the Incas out. Today it remains a top attraction for people around the world, and provides jobs and revenue for many Peruvians.
After Manchu Picchu we returned to Cusco and visited ruins around the city in an area called the Sacred Valley. At the ruins of Olytaytambo the Incas made a surprised defeat of the Spaniards in their first attempt to overtake the Incas. The victory was short-lived as the Spaniards returned with more men. We traveled south from Cusco to a city called Puno. There we visited the people who lived on Lake Titicaca on top of floating islands made from reed plants and their roots. It was very interesting and apparent that there still is a large number of people in Peru that live similar to the way they have for hundreds of years. The next stop in the journey was the city of Arequipa. It has a population of about 700,000 to 800,000 people, which makes it the second largest city in Peru behind Lima (7 million). It was easy to see the larger European decent in both Lima and Arequipa as compared to the other cities we visited.
The trip was amazing yet exhausting at the same time, walking unknown hours and sleeping in buses can really drain you. It made me that much more appreciative that I was in Brazil, and all the opportunities that Americans have. I even got a little reminder from home, as I was able to eat Papa John’s pizza in the airport, which Brazil doesn’t have. After being away for a while, even the littlest things from home can mean a lot, especially during the holidays. I’m excited for 2008 and wonder if it can compare to the experiences I have had the past year. We will see, 2008 here I come.

Christmas in the Andes, Peru

Never would I thought a year ago that I would be spending Christmas Mountain Biking through the Andes on my way to Manchu Piccu. Salvador and I arrived on the 22nd to Lima. Didn´t spend a full day in the city before hoping on a bus on our way to see the Nasca lines. So, it is hard for me to pass judgment on a place without spending hardly any time there, but one thing is very aparent, people don´t have easy lives there.
I was also suprised at how arid the landscape was on our route towards Nasca. Living in Brazil I have become accustomed to the standards of living there. However, I actually felt nervous on our way to Nasca, looking very much like tourists with our backpacks, etc, and from the types of towns we were passing through. Luckily so far we have had no problems except for me getting sick and having to constantly run to the bathroom.

We started our four day hike to Manchu Piccu three days ago along the inca trail. The engineering skills of the inca civilization was pretty amazing. Luckily our guide, Ricardo, is very skilled and knowledgable. Which came in very handy in my flat tires and dogs that decided to run out in front of me, causing me to fly over the handle bars of my bike. Thankfully, my overpacked backpack cushined the fall...dont know what happened to the dog though. Ok well, it is time to meet up with the group for dinner before hitting the sack since we have to wake at 4 to make the sunrise. It has been an amazing experience so far, and I cant wait for the rest of the trip to see the floating islands near Puno, and some of the deepest canyons in the World in Arequipa. later!

Chilakin in Sao Paulo

3 am in ther morning...

Sitting in SP with Jef (yes it is 1 f, jef) ,another trainee from Holland, as Stoudamire posterizes Dallas, where Dirk speaks some funky portuguese (Que isso) and we take a break from talking about how tired and hungry everyone must be in a city like Amsterdamn all lit up in Red Lights. I decide to write.

One of these days hopefully soon, it will become a habit to put my wondering thoughts down in this digital world.

After heading to the paradise which is floripa at the end of October, I finished up my traineeship in mid November 5 months to the date when I arrived in this beautiful country. The two month management traineeship that was extended to a year before I came, then re-negotiated to 5 months because it actually ended up being more of a linguistic educational experience was over. Bitter sweet. I learned a lot from the experience and wouldn't take back a second.

Got a tat, jumped on a bus headed to Uruguay with trainees Ben & Christine (canada) & Paula (Mexico)..NAFTA rockin it...did some networking in Uruguay for an evening, then to Beautiful Buenos Aires in Argentina for 5 days. Both countries had signs of their more dominate pasts, but that's another story...

Face altering bitter from the fact that I would be leaving the friends and host family I had in Porto Alegre. Even some of my salty little guys made an apearance along with my host mother as she cried when she dropped me off at the airport for my flight. My tears were for sure only from something I had in my eye, swear...haha jk. It's pretty amazing how close you can get to people in such a short amount of time. pause.pause.pause...

...pause.!?*!

Nope, you can't pause time. So, I need to savor ever minute and make more efficient use of the time I have.

Sweet from the fact that I would have the time to travel and build some portuguese skills as I moved to Sao Caetano do Sul, a city swallowed by Sao Paulo, so close to it though. Just like that food on your face that never made it into your mouth, or in my case the popcorn that was stuck on my shirt and eaten as it was found an hour later (Christine you remember haha). Thanks to the wonderful AIESEC network maintaining it's rep I had a place to stay in Sao Paulo...for free, for months

I'm staying with my friend Salvador, from Spain (Catalonia to be exact), who I met when I went to a Global Village event in Rio, Oktoberfest, floripa etc. He is an X-trainee had been working in the Phillipines for a couple of years, then got this sweet job here in SP laying down the law. Smart guy, very nice, and awesome to party with. Good friend, like my second big brother which is cool as well. And did I mention he is letting me stay for free...THANKS Salva!! Sao Paulo usually has sweet promotions to fly from with Gol. So, it is a sweet base of operations while I travel and figure out what exactly my next step will be. I don`t always know what is around the next corner, which can be kind of scary but also exciting

And is one thing that makes my life oh so sweet, sem problemas

Gringo Killer *note

"Who the fck are you" I heard as the friendly welcome greeting rang out from the hostel intercom, this happened as I attempted to check in at the "Backpackers Lounge"...this past weekend at 3am in the morning since my buddies plane from Sao Paulo arrived late into Florianopolis.

Almost 5 months to the day from my first post I am greasing up the engine ready to put this amazing experience I'm am having in Brazil down on digital ink so I dont forget all the little things that have made this one of the best experiences of my life, not to sound clichish at all...




No matter how many times it happens its amazing when you are going into a new exprience and the expectations that you hold initially, then how they appear when looking back, and you just laugh, or well I do, did, and will. I think I will Tarentino it and work my way back since I haven't been on my game with the updates, for myself or my friends...

Floripa

As sparks started to fly above my head as I was standing in the shower and my head touching the shower-head, I remember my first week of work.

I was standing in the shower, a pour down rain on yo ass type, when I thought I could reach up and move it over, BAM bzzzz, no you can't...I would like to meet the genius that decides to make a metal shower that has electric current running through it to heat the water, but then again that is coming from me who was looking up at and wondering why it was reading 5400W, thinking that seems to be a lot of electricity to heat the water...I'm going to give the credit to early morning groggyness, anyways it was that glorious morning when I was introduced to the Gringo Killer...


This was one of the new exciting, deadly advenurous things that would come along as I discovered the amazing country of brazil, along with being afraid of all the kids you dropped off at the pool swiming back to you because you flushed your toilet paper down the toilet instead of reading the warnings on the wall:

"Brazil's plumbing system requires that you throw all paper away in the trash, yes even the ones from your bum." (Backpackers Lounge)

We hung out the rest of the evening with some brazilians guys, with amazing ausie accents, which I was jealous initially because of their sweet portuguese skills...then found out they came from the south, which has a lot of european decent, and where I currently live. I crashed in bed carved out of a wall, in a room with two sweedish girls that I met earlier, and my buddy Salvador slept in the kitting loft area, near "WhoTheFuk are you"-guy



*note: I'm putting this in so you can just smile and remember this when you come across my faults..My spelling sucks donkey balls so its not some chat sweetness, I'm not the most knowledgeable guy and just try (They use crowns in Sweeden not Euros...haha, shiat.) to keep from perpetuating the "american" stereotype that I have came to encounter...that is why I am now Canadian =P and learning about myself and from others as I step into this beautiful world

Pluggin toilets in Rio...

I copied this post I made on the GoBig blog so as not to loss it to the archives...enjoy, at my expense =)

So around 3 and a half months ago I remember sitting in the airport in Sao Paulo publishing my first blog on here...being there having that gitty excitment of doing something that you have dreamed of doing for so long...thinking to myself, how often I should write to make sure I'm not annoying peeps with blah blah blah tales...

Well I have to say, as I complete about 25% (4 months on Oct. 22) of the time that I have here in Brazil, only doing quarterly updates wasn't the plan. So for those that my lack of bloggin has been killing (Williams..) Sit back, crack a beer, and enjoy...haha

My main motivation for staying in Brazil for an entire year was to begin to learn Portuguese. I have been able to, slowly, very slowly it feels like, but there is progress...A specific example which was an extremely embarassing moment happened when I was in Rio for the Global Village, it went something like this:

It had been about two and half months since I had first arrived when I had my first opportunity to travel. I decided to go to Rio a couple days early in order see more of the city. I flew in and Leandro, the ceeder from 98'that stayed at my apartment in Madison, picked me up from the airport and let me crash at his place. The next morning I got a short tour from him and his wife as they were going to work. Leandro dropped me off on Ipanema Beach around 7 am, where I was stoked about spending all day at the beach!

Here in Brazil as many know, there is a large income gap of the haves and the have nots. Therefore most places, including bathrooms, charge a fee in order to be able to use them otherwise people would be living in them for sure. They also are usually more clean etc etc


After all day of walking on the beach eating and drinking agua de coco, I couldn't seem to be able to find a bathroom (Which are also landmarks)that are numbered which help inform you where exactly you are) because they were all out of commission...Finally BANHEIRO 10 was open, haha...all I had to do now was survive the enourmous line of guys in their sungas, In Rio, if you aren't wearing a sunga as a guy at the beach you stand out...so when in Rome...haha

Also, here, as in other Latin American countries you aren't supposed to flush your toilet paper down the toilet because it supposedly stops the toilet...After doing my business, I try to flush the toilet, and it wont flush....beads of sweat start to roll down, as I think what am I going to do as guys continue knocking on the door, and there is only one toilet...I have one of two options

1. Leave it and run before the guy coming in next sees it or
2. Figure out how I'm going to explain this in Portuguese to the people working there....I take a deep breath open the door...and run

hahaha, no jk, I said to the next guy in line, "Espera um momento" (wait a moment)...go up to the Attendents who all stare at me as I say in portuguese, "Excuse me...I only speak a little portuguese but...Minha merda fui muito grande e eu pare o banhiero, desculpe"

They stared at me for half a second and then bursted into laughter along with the long line of people waiting to use the bathroom. Literally translated, it means "My shit was very big and I stop the toilet"

As embarassing as that moment was for me, I was able to for one of the first time communicate in the Language I want to learn and that for me, was flippin awesome! hahah Brazil...good times