Oi (Brazilian "hi")! I've been pretty busy in the week since I last posted. I have been quite touristy, and have now seen two of Rio's most famous landmarks—the Christ Statue and Sugar Loaf Mountain.
First, though, my circus kids had their show! I went to the circus Tuesday and Wednesday to help prepare, and then they put on the show on Thursday afternoon, for an audience of parents, school children and friends. I heard that it went very well, though I didn't get to watch any! I spent my time backstage, trying to help the kids go onstage at the right time, and making futile attempts to prevent them from watching the show through the curtains. It was a very energetic, exciting, and chaotic afternoon, and I now have much more respect for my coaches, counselors, and staff from Smirkus camp and tour.
I'm really valuing this opportunity to work with the kids. It's challenging, but it's great for me to be able to see what things are like from the "other side"—having always been a performer, now I get to see what it's like to take a leadership role as a coach. It's also interesting comparing and contrasting the circus here with my time at Smirkus—especially Smirkus camp, which in some ways is quite like the social circus program here in Rio.
I was exhausted after the show, and had a relaxing Friday morning. That afternoon, a volunteer friend and I took the cog train up Corcovado to see Rio's trademark—the big Christ Statue. It was swarming with tourists, but still had a great view, and the train ride through the jungle was cool. We had açaí smoothies at the top and enjoyed the nice sunny view. My favorite part was seeing the mountains that surround Rio—they look so different from anything I've seen before.
Saturday I had work at the circus, then spent the afternoon at a beautiful market in Lapa, the neighborhood next to the one where I'm staying. It stretched a long way down a street full of antique stores, and had stands selling clothes, jewelry, decorations, dishes, and even juggling equipment! I had a tamale-like snack and wandered around the market, "window shopping" and enjoying the samba music that appeared every few blocks.
Yesterday was touristy day #2—two volunteer friends and I bussed to the neighborhood of Urca, and took the cable car up to Sugar Loaf (Pão de Açúcar in portuguese). The first stop was Morro da Urca, a smaller hill with a couple souvenir shops, cafés, and exhibits, and a nice patio-like area. Sugar Loaf is much taller, and has some wonderful jungle paths, to my surprise! (You wouldn't expect it, since most of the mountain is bare rock). We enjoyed the beautiful view of the city and the ocean, wandered around the paths, and then headed back to Morro da Urca (nicknamed "sugar cookie" by us) for a snack and to watch the sunset. Unfortunately, it was too hazy to see even a tinge of pink in the sky (sad!). Nevertheless, we waited to watch the lights come out in the city, and then headed home.
Today it's cold and drizzly, so I haven't left the house. The three other Americans and I will be preparing an American dinner (burgers, salad, and apple crisp) for our friends here at the hostel in honor of the 4th of July. It's my second 4th of July out of the US (last summer was in Oslo), but it'll be fun to have a little ex-pat celebration, even if we don't get any fireworks. :)
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1 comment:
last July 4th , i was in china with some Americans.
They were like, " we need to celebrate"
so we bought fireworks in a little store alone the street, and fired it later at night.
we also had barbecue and beer, but Chinese barbecue!
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