Last month, 42 exhange students and I took a 4 week bus tour organized by the Rotary District 4760, along the coast of Brazil. From all corners of the world my fellow exchangers came. The Unites States, Poland, Austria, Switzerland, Sweden,Thailand, Taiwan, Belgium, Denmark, France, Hungary,Brazil,RussiaGermany,Equador,Canada, Finland, Norway, and Mexico. Today I can literally say that I have connected with every single exchange student that went on the trip with me and although we came from different regions of the world our similarities are much stronger than the differences, as this is what has been revealed to me. Through similarities of experiencing a new part of the world, missing friends and family back home and starting a new life with out the people that we have loved, makes us one big family. During the trip we were also accompanied by a lovely pair of chaperones and their Brazillian daughter as well as two coordentors, Rotary International and our district 4760 formed a trip around the essence of Brazil to show us how the rhythm of life really is lived in some parts of Brazil.
Our trip began in the famous city Rio de Janeiro where we stayed for three nightsin a hotel overlooking the Avenue Copacabana as well as Ipanema beach. There we played volleyball on the scorching sand and bought trinkets from the venders. We were aroused by the the sights of Pao de Acucar (Sugarloaf mountain) as well the statue Jesus Christo Redentor the largest standing statue of Christ in the world.What was particularly interesting to me was the(Favela Rocinha )the largest shantytown in Latin America and if I am not mistaken in the world. A favela is not known under legal entity as the land has been squatted on and there is no such thing as a structural goverment.The society is plagued by tight living quartersand live with poor hygeine caused from the lack of a sewage system and running water. In most any of the Favelas in Brazil whether or not in Rio de Janeiro or Belo Horizonte it’s typical that there is only one avenue to enter and to exit for the sake of traffic control.
After Rio, we went north up the coast, stopping along the way at many exotic and historical sights.Vitoria, was impressive because there was a chocolate factory, and we also visited a convent on top of a hill. Arraial D Ajuda, had a beautiful beach with native children dressed up in their traditional clothes with faces painted. They had bright decorative feathers laid at the sides of there skirts and pinned in there hair. Itacaré, was breathtaking if I would decide to live in Brazil for part of my adult life Itacaré would be the spot, it is a small hippy town on the coast where the nights are vivid with people playing music, and singing around bonfires. Life can’t become more real than that, it was sublime to the utmost peak of extasy.
On our trip, there was a five star hotel awaiting for our arrival in Lençois. It was surrounded by natural scenery of plants and large trees the sight overtook us. We stayed there for two nights and in that short sum of time a variety of splendor sightseeing was taken advantage of. From exploring caves, swimming in a lake with a waterfall, and discovering a mud hole. Every second was worth while play time. Salvador, was a very large city. One of our destinations was the (Marcado Central)Central Market this is where we did most of our shopping since everything could be found at affordable price. Maceio, Porto de Galinhas, Recife, Natal, and Canoa Quebrada, were also places that we visited. Last on our tourof the Northeast was Forteleza, a beach from Paradise as well as the last crystalline brazillian beach that I will be seeing for quite some time. I treated myself to a pinapple fruit cup full of delicous juices and for a small pain of 4 reais($1.70).
From there we caught a plane and flew southwest to Brasillia the capital of Brazil and then back to Belo Horizonte by bus.
Rotary really offered us a memorable experience to treasure the marvalous views of Brazil. A trip that wouldn’t have been half as fun without my family of friends. A journey that ended in tears of sadness and joy. For the best friends that I have had in my life were made on this tour. A new journey of friendship has begun in my life with 3 splendid young lady’s with lives completely different than my own, but yet with more understanding between one another about who we are as individuals than with people we have known all of our lives. Through the obvious parts that link us together at the hip and the not so obvious we are one family and their presence in my life has changed my opinion on friendship and how a healthy relationship should be.
