Homework #1

First Impressions:

I don’t have any expectations for Brazilian culture other than I heard they have really delicious cuisine. I chose to come on this trip on a complete whim with no prerequisites of what it will be like. I am excited to learn what I can about Brazilian culture and all it has to offer.

Most of the preconceived notions I have about Brazil are recently formed from all of the negative publicity Brazil is getting surrounding the Olympics. I have heard about Zika virus spreading, the shooting of a Jaguar, a highway shooting, and Olympic athletes dropping out of the competition for concerns of health. All of that negativity aside, I still believe Brazil to be a friendly and welcoming place. I also believe that Rio and Sao Paulo are different and we won’t be seeing much of the drama surrounding the Olympics.

I think at first being in a new place where I do not know the language or customs will be overwhelming with a big learning curve. I have been told everyone who is from Sao Paulo will do their best to help and through jumbled Portuguese, Spanish and English most of the time I will be able to get through a conversation.  I think for now, I will have to be open to everything when it comes to food, activities, and customizing myself to everyday life. Overtime I’m sure it will get easier and I will learn about new things that I love but for the first few days the best thing to do is just keep an open mind.

I have never been in a country that does not primarily speak English or share a lot of the same cultures as the USA so I expect this trip will be very different for me. Before now, I had been to Canada, the Caribbean, and London which all allowed me to speak English and were surrounded by a culture I was used to for the most part. That being said, I am excited to experience something so different from what I am used. Being in a country with such different culture and language will be different than anything I am used to so I can’t know exactly what to expect. I know it would be easy to just follow along the few people on this trip that already speak Spanish and have experience traveling but I know that I have to put myself out there so I can experience everything for myself.

In order to learn about Brazilian culture, I will do my best to start speaking Portuguese (or at least Spanish) when I am out instead of falling back on others who know the language.  I also think the culture class and weekend trips we have planned will be a big help in learning the culture. I think the best thing to do is just go out as much as possible and explore new things while we are here.

I am exited to see what the next month has in store for us and hope that by the end of it I will have experienced everything Sao Paulo has to offer.