Saturday, November 16, 2013

Gabriel Gerhardt -- Brazil




26/10/13
October update
                Hey everyone. It has been a really big month. This month I got to go the city of Sao Paulo itself which was awesome. I got to see a lot of the sites like the Mercado principal which is like their version of the Boston market, where you can buy almost any food you want from Brazil. I also got to see Liberdad which is like their China Town. You can buy a lot of awesome things there that are really cheap which is rare here. The government puts a lot of taxes on everything so all the prices are really high. My father was telling me that 30 % of every Brazilian´s salary goes to paying taxes.
                 I also got the visit a different state, the state of Minas Gerias which was awesome. It one of the bread basket states so it is a really big industrial center and agricultural center. I really reminded me of Cobleskill with the rolling hills and all the farms. It was really nice to get out of the city and out into the country.
                Ju Jitsu has been great. I have made a lot of friends and my Ju Jitsu has improved a lot. My professor says  that I am really strong on the ground but I still need to work on my posture which I will learn in time. One of my teammates has invited to his wedding in December which I am really looking forward to. I really want to see if a Brazilian wedding is any different from an American wedding. Also in December I will be able to compete in my first competition in Sao Paulo, which I  think will be awesome.   
                My school is also celebrating Halloween so they have asked me to help organize the event and make a presentation on Halloween all in Portuguese which maybe hard but I think I will do just fine.
                 So, one more month down, one more chapter in my exchange, and a ton of memories to remember when I am done. Hope everything is going well with you guys at home I look forward to hearing what you guys are dong at home.



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13/9/13
September update
My trip so far has been really good. I really haven’t been having any problems with the language I can understand what they are saying pretty well, but I have trouble sometimes pronouncing the words. To improve this I have asked for help from my English teacher and in return I have been helping out in my school with the English classes.
I also started going to the gym and I am starting Ju Jitsu. It is really fun and I love to do it. It is a great way to keep fit and meeting friends. I also can practice my Portuguese there which is great. I think I have learned more Portuguese there than I have in school because I am forced to really pay attention to what they are saying and forced to ask question.
My school is great everyone is really receptive to me and helps me out a lot. The students like to practice their English with me and in turn I practice my Portuguese with them. The teachers like to ask me a lot about the US foreign policy though which is like a balancing act because I don’t want to say the wrong thing. I like to ask them a lot though about their politics specifically about Vargas there leader during the 1930s because  I find it interesting how if  you ask one Brazilian what they think of  Vargas they say he was the best thing that happened, if you ask another he was the worst thing that happened. 
Rotary here is really big, every town I go to I see a rotary sign or symbol. They are also are big into an organization called ROTEX which is a club for ex foreign exchange student. They organize trips and community service projects which is awesome because I can participate in them and get to see more of the sites.
I love it here and so far I haven’t been having any problems. Hope everything is going well there.  

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