Snapshots Pt. IV

Three and a half months in Brazil.

-Our local mall might as well be called English Land. Basically no one speaks it, but you see it everywhere you go. Most of the stores have English names that the employees all pronounce as if they were Portuguese. A store called Hope is pronounced "hope-ee." Many other names don't really make sense at all, like "World Tennis," "Mr. Cat" or "Deny Sports."

Most stores play exclusively English-language music. Basically every t-shirt with writing on it is written in English. Young people gravitate toward shirts with tongue-in-cheek phrases on them about how they love to party, have sex, etc. Other shirts have screen prints of urban life and say something about New York City or, just simply, "Philadelphia." And still others don't really grasp the translation at all, such as the one I saw yesterday: "Life is for deep discourses and strong motions…"

T-shirts displaying American name brand logos are popular here, in particular, Nike, Ambercrombie and Fitch, Jack Daniels and especially the Gap. Wear any of these here and you're going to be the bomb. Bring one of these here to sell and you'll be amazed how much you can get.

-In general, knowing English here is impressive, lucrative and above all else, cool. I try to keep my voice down in public because it is guaranteed to draw attention. In a bad neighborhood, that can be risky. In the mall, it just triggers stares and whispers.

-Before leaving America, I interviewed with several banks, trying to figure out what would be the best option for me being outside of the country for so long. I went with Capital One and I've been pleased with it ever since. If you're someone who travels internationally a lot, their no foreign transaction fees and no ATM fees is the only way to go.

-It's always fun to hand a sales clerk here my credit card or driver's license. The look on their face shifts completely. They study it, then flip it over, then flip it back and study it some more. Dani and I went to the movies the other night and the concessions girl laughed at my card and then showed it to a co-worker beside her.

-ATMs in Brazil are few and far between. This is mostly for safety. Using an ATM on the street, should you ever find one (I can't), is highly discouraged. Instead, ATMs can be found in banks, airports and, most conveniently, shopping malls.

-Earlier this week I noticed the ATM I usually use had an exchange rate that was noticeably more favorable to the dollar than the actual exchange rate. I withdrew some cash and ended up netting a little over US $16 out of thin air.

-Our electricity bill this month happens to be US $16.08. It's amazing what having no air conditioning, heat, dishwasher or clothes dryer will do to your bills.

-From the list above, I miss the dryer the most (in this weather anyway).

-Dani and I recently watched all six episodes online of the TLC show 90 Day Fiance. It follows four American men who bring their international girlfriends over on a K-1 Visa. The visa stipulates that the couple has 90 days to legally marry or the foreigner has to return home. Before moving here, Dani and I considered every option in how to stay together. We almost went the K-1 route.

We watched the show as a joke. We wanted to see how much of a nightmare Paola, an elitist from Colombia could be. Or how much Aziza from Russia had to swallow her dissatisfactions with Mike from Cleveland in order to enjoy the new life she dreamed of.

We didn't expect the story of Kirlyam, a sweetheart from a tiny village in Brazil, to impact us the way it did. Kirlyam fell in love with her Mormon missionary Allan and moved to Los Angeles to be with him. She had a heart of gold that came out in her rudimentary English. Hearing her tell her family in Portuguese over Skype how much she missed them sent me back to a year ago when I heard Dani wiping the same tears from her eyes in the next room as she talked to her parents. And in Kirlyam's face I saw the same pain that I feel when I think about home and the people I love, the things that they're doing that I'm not there to see. And Dani and I watched it and we weren't laughing anymore. And the tears rolled down our cheeks.

-Nothing is quite as satisfying as when I press the Purchase button for an airline ticket to the US of A.

-When I think about returning home, I honestly think about the places where I want to eat with my friends and family as much as I think about the people themselves. It will be a reckless time of Mexican feasts, Thai food and Ben and Jerry's ice cream. First on the list will no doubt be Five Guys.

My first three months here I sort of blocked Five Guys out of my mind. Then about two weeks ago I had a dream about it and it's been on my mind ever since. That first bite in particular, when the meat and cheese are hanging out over the side and you barely get any bread in your mouth. I think about that now every day.

-Since living here I have dreamed about Five Guys, Bojangles and on two different occasions, Ben and Jerry's.

-Dani and I watched the opening battle from Saving Private Ryan in honor of Memorial Day. US holidays mean more to me now than they did when I was there. The 4th of July will be tough this year, as it was last year. September 11 was especially difficult last year. I think for me that will always be the most patriotic day of the year.

-I worked Memorial Day in order to take off this Thursday. It's a federal holiday here because the World Cup begins with Brazil taking on Croatia. I'm no soccer fan, but I'm getting more and more excited as the day approaches. And honestly, I watched two of Brazil's practice matches where they easily dismembered Panama and Serbia and it's exhilarating when they finally score. I'm sure that "Gooooolllllllllllllllll!" call from the announcer helps a little bit.

-Thursday is also Valentine's Day here.

-I want Brazil to win. I have no interest in the US Team other than hearing the National Anthem, which I haven't heard since I left.

-Is Brazil ready for the World Cup? Is there going to be chaos? Honestly, I think it's a coin toss. It's going to be a spectacle either way.