At the beginning of our exchange year, there were eight Rotary exchange students in Natal. Then the number dropped to seven, when Haven got sent home. Now the number is down to five, because when June came, so did the despidadas (farewells). Pierre left on the thirteenth, and Veera on the fifteenth. I knew…
All posts tagged Travel in Brazil
Adventure in the Amazon
When I was in second grade, my class had a unit about the Amazon Rainforest. I remember watching videos of monkeys, seeing pictures of all sorts of different animals like sloths and jaguars and alligators, learning about the different levels of the forest, and thinking, wow, that’s amazing. Never once did it cross my mind…
See You Again
To the exchange students who went on the South of Brazil trip, March 2016: This morning I cried and cried and cried. Last night it was tears of happiness when we were dancing and singing together and this morning it was tears of sadness when we were hugging goodbye. These past twelve days have been…
On The Outside Looking In
My second host mom’s son Luis is in Newton, Iowa for his exchange. He’s in the middle of his senior year, and as such, is eligible to go to Prom. He recently asked a girl to go with him, and she said yes. How did he ask? A sign and flowers. Nelly showed me…
The Carnaval Post
Carnaval is absolutely insane. Words cannot do it justice, but I am going to do my best to try. I asked my host mom if Carnaval was to celebrate anything specific. She thought about it for a few seconds, and then told me that Carnaval was just Carnaval and they celebrate to celebrate. I did…
Feliz Natal
The most frequently asked question I’ve gotten since December started is if I miss my family. I think everyone is expecting the exchange students to have mini meltdowns and fall apart because it’s Christmas season and we aren’t home with our families to celebrate. My parents asked me this too when we spoke on…
São Paulo
The fact that I am eighteen years old is extremely lucky in some ways because Rotary would never let an underage person under their supervision travel alone, like they let me. About a month ago I went to São Paulo to stay with my host sister, Livia, who is in her early thirties and lives,…