Casa de Moises Orphanage

As for today, Marshall and I left early this morning to meet up with the volunteer group from EAB that was headed to an orphanage ("Moses' House") in Aguas Lindas, a satellite city of Brasilia about 30-40min away. Apparently the students at EAB have to complete a service project, and can come up with any idea they'd like. Volunteering and donating to this orphanage is one of these ideas. Everyone in the group (five students, two computer tech friends, and us) donated some money so we could buy cleaning supplies and candy for the kids at the orphanage. On our way we also found the Wal-Mart lurking in Brasilia that I did not know about. It was next to the store we shopped at for cleaning supplies.

Upon arriving the kids were just about to eat lunch, so we got a tour around the place and learned something about its history. Basically it started with one lady that took in a few kids, which expanded until she had to find a new location to build an orphanage. We met her cooking in the kitchen and she really seemed like a mother figure for all these kids. The orphanage has expanded with donations to include a smaller library, a computer lab, and more recently the bank donated enough money to build a second dormitory to separate the boys and girls. Right now someone is donating money to rebuild/renovate the storage area.


But our job was just to hang out with the kids! For Marshall this was a little interesting considering his lack of Portuguese, along with the two EAB students who didn't speak much Portuguese either. It was still really a great time. The kids always called us 'uncle' or 'aunt' whenever they wanted attention, too. The students painted the kids faces with face paint, but we didn't get a group picture afterward. . .sadness! I did get one of the kids playing some games (the three taller girls in front are students from EAB), as well as the adorable little girl who just walked up to Marshall, tugged on his pants and threw her arms out at him. It was sooo precious.


She was too young to be talking, but the body language said it all! And when Marshall would put her down she'd just throw her arms out again. But even more amusing, after a little bit of holding her, the founding 'mother' called over from the nearby bench to Marshall saying she needed to be changed. . . It was really hilarious.




I also got some of the older students to play SET, the 'family game of visual perception.' It's one of my absolutely favorite card games that I learned in Math Club in middle school (it has its own set of strange cards). Some of the kids were really quick learners too! I hope we get a chance to go back because we would both love to do it again, especially now that we know what to expect. Also, I must say I was really impressed by the leadership capabilities the students showed during the whole day. Things were well organized, and no teachers were directly involved!

Photo Updates!

Here's a photo summary of some of the more exciting things that have happened in the last two weeks!

I went out again for the night field collection of toads and we actually found two toads of the species we needed this time. A ROUS (rodent of unusual size), better known as a capybara, also found us, too. Just as we found the first toad alongside the lake I heard some shuffling sounds in the dark near us, which turned out to be the capybara. No shyness at all, just munching on plants along the way, coming closer and closer. It was hard to pay attention to the little toad with the capybara distracting me. But it was really difficult to get a picture, as seen below in black and white, simply because of the absolute darkness surrounding us. And my little Canon's flash just wasn't enough!































I've also finally realized that these shiny 'lizards' (in the photo) are skinks. I didn't see too many lizards in the field on Tuesday with Jorge of this week, but on Friday I made an unexpected trip with Bernardo to the burned field at the reserve. It was really great because I of course didn't have any appropriate clothes to go outside with, so Bernardo took me to his place to try some of his sister's pants, and I got to meet his dad and brother, and I ate a yummy lunch with them too. Two other students also rode with us to collect scorpions hiding in termite mounds, and they found two poisonous vipers (unfortunately we were at another site so I didn't see them), along with some invertebrates like a gigantic spider (which I did see--shudder. . .) and, of course, scorpions. They also said something about a huge crab, which I was very curious about, but haven't learned more.




And, going even further back in time, a week ago Friday (Sept. 5) Marshall's school had a "Parade of Patriotic Feelings" (their translation!) to celebrate Brazil's independence day on the Sunday after. The kids were able to take a break from their typical school uniforms and wear Brazilian-colored shirts and jeans. Here are a few shots of the 'parade' where the students carried signs with different words like respect, peace, etc. But apparently they had a little difficulty with the final sign configuration to make the Brazilian flag. . .






















On Saturday, the day after EAB's parade, I spent most of the day making some amazing chocolate chip cookies for the graduation BBQ on Sunday. Unfortunately, we didn't end up being able to attend the BBQ because of some issues with having a ride. But at least the cookies were good!











And finally the 'spectacular' independence day, September 7th, parade that the Brazilian government put on in the center of Brasilia. We did have some expectations of greatness considering we were in the capital of the country, but it didn't quite live up. Perhaps the ridiculously hot sun, superb dryness, and packed-like-sardines stands combined with Brazilians' nonexistent space bubble, contributed to the disappointment. Check out the video clip to find out!




However, the parade did eventually start (45 minutes late, what's new. . .) and we saw lots of military people, the women's soccer team that lost in the Olympics to the U.S., as well as some other strange groups (seen below; I have not much of a clue what they were). There was a group carrying all the flags from the Brazilian states, and Tae Kwon Do and Capoeira groups.














































About an hour into the parade we had to leave the bleacher area to cool down and grab some food. And by then it was just military things--huge tanks, etc. BUT at the very end of the parade was the coolest part! All of a sudden rows and rows of 'knights' came down the road. The pictures were hard to take considering our distance from the edge of the road by that point, but at least when enlarged it is easier to see. They also had a cool air show afterwords with stunt planes, so I guess it was worth sticking around! At the end of the air show clip that is Marshall's face that I accidentally filmed, and it is also possible to hear the announcer saying the plane numbers 5, meia, 7. . . I recently discovered that when people are saying 'half' (meia in Portuguese) for numbers they mean '6' because it refers to a half dozen. No idea where that came from!

Hiatus. . .

Things really aren't slowing down much here, especially when Marshall and I look at all the deadlines that are rapidly approaching. I'm still taking trips to the field to collect herps, and I took my first test on Monday for the Biology of Reptiles class. Can't say it went too well, but I know I did learn a lot of reptile families!! But I did find out in class that our 10-day field trip will be on the beach in Joao Pessoa, on the furthest tip of eastern Brazil. However, this would include a 40-some hour bus ride, too. . .

Marshall began teaching his own lessons last week in Mr. Meklin's geometry classes, after four weeks of observations, and is also earning 'brownie points' with his second teacher, Mr. Woolverton, by substitute teaching for him a lot recently. Hopefully this means he'll be able to take a week off and head to the largest wetland in the world, the Pantanal! We're also trying to plan our December travels, probably starting in Rio and heading all the way up the coast, then taking a boat down the Amazon River, before flying back to Rio for Revellion, the big New Year's Eve party reminiscent of Carnival.

I still have a lot of pictures to post (such as our 'fun' Brazilian Independence Day parade and my encounter with a ROUS--think Princess Bride, fireswamp. . .) but will head to bed tonight and put it off for another day!

Quiet Week

Not much going on around here to tell about since we're all starting to get adjusted to our current schedules. We --Marshall, Tina, and I-- did make a stop at the UK Embassy on Thursday night to chat with an English professor from the UnB. Though I think he was the only UK citizen there! We also finally got a glimpse of the USA Embassy, so hopefully we can stop by there sometime soon.





The rest of the weekend has been fairly quiet, trying to work on homework and studying, or at least trying to catch up on sleep! I did laundry in the sink again today--which is getting really old -- and had some problems with drying it because it started raining last night! First time in about five months. . . It was startling to hear the sound of rain hitting the roof, after not hearing it for the whole month we've been here.

Last night we also came across Lance (the idiot dog who lives here) pestering a huge toad in the backyard. I had a lovely photo shoot with the toad, and will ask the herpetology lab on Monday about the species.

Over the River, through the Woods, to the Waterfall We Went!

Sunday we left early for a trekking adventure to a waterfall in the neighboring state of Goias. After filling out a few contract forms (aka 'I accept all the risks of doing this'), all eleven of us loaded up into a fairly comfortable van. For two and a half hours we rode down a highway, then rumbled across dirt roads alongside acres and acres of cattle pastures and a few soybean fields. A few cows had escaped and impeded our path. . . But finally to the trail around 11am!


We soon discovered that we were getting wet much sooner than expected, since we started crossing the same river three different times. But everyone was really 'teamwork' oriented, and we all helped each other across the water. My camera bag fell in once, but I had plastic bags, so no harm done (fortunately!!).









Around noon we had our first glimpse of the falls through the trees, and were able to jump in to the absolutely freezing cold water!! Marshall and I swam to the falls and walked around the backside, which was so awesome, but so painful with the spray off the waterfall. In the first full waterfall picture (below) Marshall is just barely visible sitting at the bottom of the falls.


























































The two guides prepared the rappelling gear while we ate, swam, and sunbathed (aka sunburned). Then they came down to get the people who were going rappelling, which was supposed to be almost everyone based on the number who raised their hands before going on the trail. However, only myself and two other courageous folks decided to go! While understanding the directions in Portuguese was a bit difficult, everything went great and we all made it out alive and exhilarated from the experience!


Here I go!












And down. . .



Success!


















The last place we stopped was a very blue swimming hole with lots of fish to look at. And it was actually a decent temperature! However, it also meant that we spent the 2.5 hrs in the van in wet clothes. The ticks and many other unidentifiable bug bites also put a damper on the end of such a day. So far no ticks at home yet; two in the field though. . . Ugh! But we did get a ride home from the tour guides, which was awesome since they didn't think any buses were still going.


Marshall was really tired this morning, but said it was well worth going. I stayed home this morning to work on cleaning our disgusting clothes and finishing some homework, then I'll meet Marshall for lunch around noon. Hopefully we'll actually be able to get our CPF number (equivalent of social security number, I think) over the lunch hour too!!

Into the Wild

It's amazing that another week has already passed, and as usual, lots has happened. I went to the field again on Tuesday morning, to collect lizards at the Botanical Garden research plots and the IBGE, which is another ecological reserve near Brasilia. Both sites are in gallery forests, not the actual cerrado, which is the savanna-like area we drive safari-style through to reach the forests.












I found the only lizard in the forty traps, but we also discovered a little mammal stuck in one as well! It's so cute!





When one of the other student's got a look, he said it was actually a marsupial! Even cooler.










Wednesday was full of classes (Ecology of Fire in the Cerrado, Ethnobotany of the Cerrado, and Biology of Reptiles), but I had a long conversation with one of the students in my last class and ended up getting a ride to the bus station--which saved me at least a half hour of bus waiting. Thursday I only had one class in the morning (Phonetics and Phonology of Portuguese), so I had lots of time to do. . . not much! On campus there is only one computer lab and no where to print besides the Xerox businesses, so that'll be a bit of a problem for classes and other documents. And no Microsoft programs either. Very strange for such a large university with over 20,000 students.

But I stuck around late on Thursday at UnB because some more herp students were headed to the field that night to collect toads. I grabbed a 'pizza bread' from one of the food kiosks on campus before heading to the lab to meet the other girls. The waders I used on Monday had a hole in them, so I only had some taller boots to wear out to the field. Normally we take a driver and a university vehicle, but this Thursday one of the students drove her car. (Riding in any vehicle in Brasilia is so nerve-wracking, I don't know how Brazilians can drive here without constantly having accidents. Today I was sure the bus driver was going to run over a few people that were a little close to the road because he was not going to slow down on the turn . . .)

It took about 40min to arrive at Aguas Emendadas, a biological research reserve that has no public access. Though if the guards were to ask for our passes I was supposed to say my name was Livia, since they had an extra pass of hers. . . Fortunately the guards were lax, and we got into the park without a problem. Lots of burrowing owls were flying around the road on our way to the collecting site. Nights in Brasilia are also pretty cold, so we wore lots of layers and the girls taped up my boots and shirt to help prevent ticks when we arrived at the lakes. The ticks here are so tiny!! I mistook one I had yesterday for a mole on my ankle. Apparently they do carry a disease, but it has never been reported in Brasilia. But I'm going to buy some tick-killing soap tomorrow at the pharmacy considering how much time I spend outdoors.

Anyway, just after attaching our head-lamps, I saw something larger moving near the car-- which turned out to be a capybara!! The world's largest rodent! It was sooo neat because it just sat near the car for a bit, looking around. Then we started walking to the different lakes, and every few minutes I would learn a bit more about the area-- like the wolves that live there and crocodiles---but the girls assured me they'd never seen a croc in the 13 small lakes (actually old man-made fishing spots) we were searching.

There are two species of toads that stay around during the winter here, and we saw tadpoles for one of them in a lake. We look for the toads by shining the flashlights around the water and looking for big red eyes, and I was actually the only one who saw any last night (just one). But it wasn't the species we were collecting, unfortunately. A few lakes later another girl said she saw a red eye in the water and tried to direct the other girls to it at the other end of the lake. After shouting back and forth for a bit ("I see it, just a little more forward. . .back, to the left. . .") the other two girls started shouting that it was actually a crocodile! So we rushed over to check it out. It was actually just under a meter long and I poked at it with a stick to try to see it better. Super awesome! But it was the joke for the rest of the night to send Mariana (the one who saw the eye) into the water the next time for another 'toad.'

The girls were so nice and I had a great time conversing with them. I even got a ride back home, around 11pm, and they said that was early; normally we wouldn't arrive at the university until 1 or 2am!! But since there weren't any toads in the first lakes we didn't have to spend as much time. I'm definitely going out again with them, though maybe not every week because I have an 8am class on Friday morning (Tropical Ecology), and we have in-class presentations every other week. Today we collected data in the field (IBGE again) from the fire project, comparing the herbaceous vs. tree cover in areas of cerrado that were burned 50 years ago (control), every 4 years, and every 2 years. It was interesting, but the professor is really absent-minded and we went around in circles more than anything. But the other two (only two!!) students were pretty nice at least.

Now I shall head to bed, and get to sleep in past 6am tomorrow!! Saturday is the best morning of the week. . . Sunday we hope to go on a trip to some waterfalls with an adventure tour group in Brasilia, where we can rapel 40m down the falls! Cool! Entao, boa noite!

UnB First Week

The end of last week did at least show some improvement on the beginning. Tina and I met up with some Argentinians on Thursday for lunch and I realized just how difficult switching between Portuguese and Spanish is now. . . I ended up with Portunol more frequently, but it felt great to speak some Spanish after the struggle with Portuguese. Thursday afternoon I went to Marshall's school and watched his first after school math study session, before we got a ride part way home with one of the teachers, Priscilla. We decided to get dinner at the mall area where Priscilla works, a wrap place she recommended (Wrap n' Roll). It was really delicious, but superbly expensive. . . On our walk home we saw a cool bird at the lagoon area (the white spot in the trees to the left in the picture below) and the typical 'bird' where we live that makes way too much noise as they go by (aka, airplane).

Friday morning I had my last new class of the week, Tropical Ecology. I really was thinking to drop it based on the number of classes I have already (and it would give me more travel time), but after the first class I don't know if I can! It was the first class where I understood 100% of what the professor said, and even answered all his questions in class. It was a definite confidence booster. There were only three people, including me, in class, though the prof said five were enrolled. Apparently it is also a graduate level course. . . Basically it seems like UNI's ecology lab because we go out to the field every other week and do lab reports and in class lecture or presentations the rest of the weeks. I'll probably keep it for now, and wait another week to decide.

As for the weekend, we wanted to spend it working on homework and reports (Tina, Marshall and I), but Dulce had other plans, as usual. Though Saturday was filled with many aggravations, I did have a decent time at the Fair of Guara, where they have very cheap clothes (I bought a cool dress for R$10 and two shirts each for R$5!!) and various food products.












We all (Tina, Dulce, Jose Marcel--prof friend of Dulce, Rafael, Rafael's dad--pictured below , and I) had lunch there as well; a fresh water fish that was quite delicious, along with some fried manioc. A nice break from rice, beans, and meat!!! Saturday evening was a little less eventful, but Tina and I did manage to stay awake (unlike Marshall) long enough to wait for Rafael to return and take us to the Fair of Ceara. We watched a small part of the a great forro band and had a few snacks. Sunday wasn't too eventful either, except for the party celebrating Jose Marcel's birthday.

But today I went collecting for turtles! Though I saw no sign of a turtle, I had an amazing time with the two herpetology students. They were super nice and knew a lot of other species around the two lakes we visited in the National Park of Brasilia. We saw tracks of anteaters, deer, and maned wolf. Even better, as we were leaving a deer jumped on the road in front of us and stopped alongside the vehicle. It was so neat! Lots of birds to see as well, though I only know their Portuguese names right now. I'm excited for more adventures in the field this week and later on, especially in the rainy season starting beginning of November because they'll be more turtles to catch. Today I only have Biology of Reptiles class, so I'll spend the rest of the afternoon working on homework. Ate mais!