A Praia

I have not posted in a day or two for the sake of taking part in various activities we planned or just wanting to relax. We have a good amount of meetings and when we do not we take time to explore. I think twice a week would be a good amount to post considering I am keeping a daily journal as well, but I will feel it out and see how that goes. Anyways, to catch up:
With about three hours of free time yesterday morning we decided to take a walk to the beach. We take walks throughout the city at least twice a day and though we get lost or cannot find a certain store or museum, locals are more than happy to help. Their sense of community presents itself in their greetings and questions as we butcher a phrase or tout our 'gringo' jackets (rain coats). The weather surprised us after an unusual two or three day bout of overcast skies and random showers (it is winter here I guess). Sunny at a comfortable twenty seven degrees Celsius though (odd getting used to world standards), our beach trip could not have been better. The water, coco, and quejo on a stick with molasses and oregano refreshed and nourished us as competing salesmen fought for our attention. Food, drink, chairs, umbrellas, and sun screen sold for about five reals each (roughly two reals/dollar), and that was enough for two sticks of quejo. People flocked to the beach, in part because the city closes down the street every Sunday morning for runners and bikers. Crowded shores afforded many opportunities to converse with Portuguese speakers and the clear blue water, though quite salty, cooled us off from the sun more than sufficiently. Another trip to the beach even earlier this morning offered another perspective. The street where yesterday many had relaxed and conversed now hosted lines of people waiting for the bus, walking to work, or hailing a taxi. The actual beach appeared almost dormant. Only a few swimmers, joggers, and yogis could afford to take advantage of such a fine morning. After inspecting a beach directly adjacent to where we had been yesterday, we spotted a homeless man asleep against the cement wall where the beach started. Speaking with a lot of the CCS staff we have learned of the many programs in place to help people trying to make it by and how many must ride the bus starting at five in the morning for what could be couple hour commute. Living in an upper middle class neighborhood here definitely alters our experience a little bit. The drive from the airport to the home-base though definitely highlighted a lot of the inequity present in the community. While the middle class tends to expand upwards in apartments and condos, the poor expand horizontally in favelas surrounding the city. Brazil displays one of the most polarized wealth distributions in the world today. Several guest speakers and CCS staff have spoken to us about the power and wealth dynamic of the country. Salvador, which at one point housed more than two million slaves, falls far from the normal demographics of Brazil as a whole. Brazil, primarily white demographically, sharply contrasts the majority Afro-Brazilian concentration of Salvador. Salvador received regular shipments of slaves for such a long time that a lot of African culture spread and was preserved quite well in the area. Despite Salvador’s rich deposits of oil, the money flows south to Sao Paulo and Rio de Jainero because large company headquarters tend to be located in the south where the stock market operates. The North/South dynamic creates tension because of socioeconomic differences as well as deep seeded cultural ones. The growth and development of Brazil interestingly parallels and contrasts the United States’ in many categories. Healthcare, education, politics, and civil rights issues all seem to be on the brink of great change. We will learn much more about these topics as we take classes and hear other guest speakers.