Change of season

Last week was spring. I was wearing shorts and a tee shirt in Sao Paulo on Saturday, where the temperatures were in the high 80s (fahrenheit). Now I'm home, with a fire in the woodstove. I'm having a hard time making these adjustments quickly. My daydreams are all in Brazil.

Doing some physical work can be grounding. Yesterday I mowed the lawn, put the front storm door up, moved the picnic table and benches to the garage, took the porch swing down for storage. Today I stacked this pile of wood, which should keep me warm for about a month if it doesn't get too cold outside:



This is what my friends Granny Sue and Batsy refer to as a "hedge fund." In this case, that's accurate: much of the wood in this pile is Osage Orange, also called hedge. Those tins are for the ashes from the stove.

I also cleaned the gutters this morning, pulled up the morning glories and the tomato plants, fixed a faucet, did dishes and swept the front walk.

That's enough grounding for now. Back to my daydreams. Oh, and maybe some office work.

Spring weather

Faith asked about the weather here in Brazil. It has been warm here this week, around 85 today (29.4 celsius) and sunny for most of the day. However, I took these two pictures out my window about half an hour ago and now I hear thunder.




It has rained many of the days I've been here, but usually not much. In the first week I was in Sao Paulo it was chilly, around 65 degrees (18 celsius).  In Rio it was warmer. In both cities I've worn shorts and tee shirts, in both cities I've worn sweaters and long pants. A fellow at one of my workshops said that in Sao Paulo, you have to dress for five different seasons all in the same day.  

On a side note, many of the trees I noticed when I first arrived have stopped flowering. I'm so glad I got to see them!

Music, dance, poetry, clowning, puppets--and even a little storytelling!

What a nice day yesterday was. I sat in a coffee shop and wrote while I waited for my laundry to be finished, wandered around a bit, had a big lunch (wishing I'd remembered to take a picture of the buffet), and eventually met Pati at SESC where we watched a show for children called As Aventuras de Bambolina, based on the book by Michele Iaccoca. It's put on by the group Pia Fraus, which from their website I see means "a lie told with good intentions." 

It's a combination of live actors with puppets and dolls, with no words. Bambolina herself is a big floppy doll (manipulated by the actors as a puppet) who gets thrown away by a child but who continues to live on, taken in by various people. She finds her own true life in the end. It's a lovely show. The audience was packed, mostly families with small children. Some of the tinies got alarmed at a scary police siren and a couple of other tense scenes, but they calmed down and thoroughly enjoyed the show. As did Pati and I.

From there we wandered back to the neighborhood where my hotel is and had a snack at a temaki place. Yum.

Then we stopped off at my hotel so I could change clothes. We met Pati's sister Cris and her partner Fernando, and off we went to an evening of music, dance, poetry, clowning, puppets and even a little storytelling at the house of Regina Machado, probably Brazil's most-honored and respected storyteller. It was wonderful to meet her--I wish I had more time so we could sit down and talk story. Next visit, I guess.

Regina has a lovely studio on a hill behind her house, with a covered outdoor performance space underneath it. I was deeply jealous! It was all well-organized, with candles, flowers, plenty of seats, and food and drinks for sale. Old friends greeted each other in an atmosphere of pleasant anticipation.

I really wish I'd brought my camera to the sarau. There must have been over 100 people there, happy to be enjoying the arts together. I knew there was a chance I would be asked to tell a story, but I wasn't sure until Regina sat me and Cris down to discuss it a little beforehand.

I was in the second half of the show. In the first, there was poetry, dance, and puppets. Chita the clown was emcee for the second half, so when it was my turn, we played a little first. Then I told The Great Sharp Scissors by Philippa Pearce, and Pati translated. I don't think I've ever had a translator before, other than sign language. I did step on Pati's lines a few times, but she did a stellar job. Just as I began, it started to rain, so the people in the back weren't able to hear as well, but those close in were listening attentively, laughing at all the right parts, even joining in the small bit of participation I build into the story.

When I was done, there was more music, poetry, clowning, and of course dance. The evening ended with a big dance, and everybody was invited to join in. That was a tremendous end to the evening.

This was also the night to turn the clocks forward, so when I turned out my light in the hotel, the new time was 2:45. I fell right asleep, content.

Converse All Stars

I misunderstood some directions today (not related to my work) and consoled myself with a new pair of shoes. As I mentioned earlier, Brazilian women tend to have smaller feet than I do. Never mind, I found some shoes that just crack me up. I know many friends and family members will roll their eyes--how many pairs of Converse All Stars does a person really need, after all?



How could I pass these up? I've always wanted the really tall ones and these are just in time for Halloween. Make no mistake, I intend to wear them at other times of the year as well.

There's an incredible choice of Converse shoes here, much better than at home unless I get online. I even considered buying the green low-tops that say "Brasil" in Coca-cola script on the side, but I restrained myself.

Sorry about the blurriness. My camera has been a little odd lately. Or maybe I moved.

Food in Brazil, so far

I can't believe I haven't written about food. I've been eating extremely well, thank you very much. Tonight I decided to try the pizza place I can see from the hotel window.  I've had pizza a couple of times but none like this one. This is the piece I couldn't possibly finish and so brought back to put in my mini-fridge.  

I wish I had a picture of the whole pie, complete with the smell and taste, and maybe the sight of the clay pizza oven. It was delicious--and salty, with anchovies, olives, capers, tomatoes and mozzarella. The waiter served me the first piece, and when I began to serve myself the second, he rushed over and took the utensils from me. First he took the olive pits and a bit of crust I'd left on the plate, then he served my piece. I got the message: that was his job and he was not going to stand back and let me make a hash of it.

What else have I been eating? In the schools there has been a great buffet with lots of fresh fruits and vegetables. Also lots of meat. Always rice and beans. I've eaten at some of the buffet restaurants where you pay by the kilogram. Very nice, very basic, and pretty cheap. I've had temaki a couple of times as well.

Best of all have been the fruits and fruit juices. Bananas taste much better here than at home. Had I ever tasted fresh papaya before this? At breakfast in the hotel there is always a big tray of papaya, pineapple, melon. At the British School last week one day I had a giant portion of mango. I've had acai pulp and acerola juice, as well as fresh lemonade, orange juice, passion fruit juice and a refreshing pineapple juice with mint. I had a few bites of Pati's pineapple mint ice cream last week. Yum. In Rio, we had coconut juice straight from the coconut, then scraped out the inside with a bit of the rind. Refreshing.

I've eaten a couple of unusual (for me) combinations: a banana and cheese toasted sandwich with cinnamon, and a Romeu e Julieta, which is a mango paste with melted cheese on top. Both were tasty.

I've been asking Brazilians who have been abroad how they manage without all the fresh fruits and juices. It must be a real hardship.

Getting ready for Brazil

If you look at my calendar on my website, you'll notice that from September 26 to October 25 I'll be in Brazil. I'm filling in the visa forms today. I got the passport renewed in January, so I'm set.

I'll be telling stories to kids in English, with the help of puppets, harmonica and all the gathered improv and storytelling skills I can muster. I've been borrowing books and CDs on Brazilian Portuguese for a few months now, so I'll be at least a little prepared for the time outside the shows.

I was reassured this past week to read Megan Hicks' blog about her recent tour of Peru and Chile, through the same company. I'll probably write more about this when I've talked to Megan by phone.