sexta-feira, 30 de agosto de 2013

Recado das intercambistas:

O tempo passou rápido e nossas intercambistas já estão de malas prontas para voltar à terra natal. Lauren e Paula, que estiveram na unidade de Vitória, adoraram a passagem pelo Brasil. Veja  o que elas contam nos bilhetes abaixo, produzidos na aula de português:



Queridos,
Obrigada por um maravilhoso mês!
Eu me diverti muito, Todos são muito legais. Eu estava muito nervosa antes da viagem, mas quando chegamos aqui eu me senti bem. Eu fiz grandes amigos e manterei contato com eles. Minha família aqui foi muito receptiva e foi divertido estar com eles. Eu sentirei muita falta do Brasil e das pessoas, e voltarei um dia.

Lauren Cooper
_________________________________________________
Olá. Quando eu cheguei no Brasil eu estava nervosa. No Rio estava confusa, mas eu gostei muito da praia e das pessoas. A casa de Laura estava mais confusa porque havia muitas pessoas lá. Mas a família foi muito simpática e receptiva. Meu primeiro dia na escola foi intimidador e divertido. Durante o mês eu estava aprendendo muitas coisas sobre o Brasil e a cultura. Eu gostei de meus amigos novos e senti parte da turma, como parte da família de Laura.

Paula Assou

Lauren Cooper e sua turma!

Paula Assou e sua turma!


sábado, 24 de agosto de 2013

Only 9 days left!

I can't believe we only have a few days left in Vitória! It makes me sad because I love it here but I'm also excited to share everything that I've learned with Marymount and my family.

Last weekend I went to Minas Gerais, a neighboring state, with my host parents and grandmother, Jacopo, and Mareike. Minas Gerais is famous for its Pão de Queijo, ("cheese bread") so we ate a lot of it during that weekend! I'm pretty sure it has become one of my new favorite foods.

While we were in Minas, we stayed in Mariana and we visited Ouro Preto, which means black gold. Mariana and Ouro Preto are both historical towns so we got to see a lot of different churches that we're built by rich families during the colonial period in Brazil. My host mom, Raquel, taught me about the baroque and rococo architectural styles of the churches and about Aleijadinho, a famous sculptor of the Baroque movement.

Antonio Fransico Lisboa was born in Ouro Preto in 1738 and was given the name Aleijadinho, which means "Little Cripple," because he had a debilitating disease that affected his hands. I learned that in order to create his sculptures he used pedra sabão ("soap stone"), a type of stone that is common in the region and easy to mold.

Church of the Third Order of St Francis in Ouro Preto. 



Marieke and I outside of a church in Mariana


quarta-feira, 21 de agosto de 2013

Eu entendo mais do que eu posso dizer...


Slowly but surely I am starting to understand portuguese. Being surrounded by the language all of the time is a completely new way of learning for me but I’m up for the challenge. Everyone is being very supportive of Lauren and I in our attempt to learn, even when we mispronounce things.  


This past Sunday was Father’s Day (Dia dos Pais) so my host family had a barbecue and we went to Mass. I’m having so much fun with my host family and I’m very grateful to be able to spend time with them. For Father’s Day I gave my host father a mug from New York City and he loved it even though it was wrapped terribly.

On Thursday, Maria Clara and Teresa came to my host house to visit Laura and I. I honestly never imagined I would see either of them again especially in Brazil. It felt good to be reunited! When Teresa and Maria Clara came to New York, they were both in my Algebra 2 math class and we had a lot of fun. 

(Laura, Maria Clara, Teresa, and I)

terça-feira, 20 de agosto de 2013

Oi!

Today was a beautiful day to go to the beach. Especially after taking two tests: one in portuguese and the other in spanish (two languages I don't speak haha).


Then we walked across the beach, and Lola and I took pictures. We walked on to these rocks that gave you a great view of the beach. 

But then it got really cold...muito frio! Then to end the day we got ice cream and pizza and we had a great time! Tchau!

domingo, 18 de agosto de 2013

3rd weekend in Brazil!!

I'm still having an amazing time here! This weekend we did a lot of fun things. On Saturday morning we went to the school for Family Day! It was really fun. We got to go onto the school's private beach, and play volleyball, play paddle ball, and even got facials which was so fun and relaxing! After we left the school, we went back to the house, and relaxed after having a great lunch made by my host mom, Ezila! It was so yummy :). Later in the evening we went to Shopping Vitoria, which is like the US equivalent to a shopping mall! We went to the movies and did some shopping! After we finished shopping, we went to this really good Japanese restaurant! By the time we got home, we were all so tired from such a fun and exciting day! On Sunday I got to sleep in, which I love when I get the chance. We spent the morning relaxing, but of course I had to do some of my summer reading! In the evening we went for our run/walk along the beach. We have been doing that a lot of the nights during the week. I usually don't like to go running that often, but running along the beach makes it so much better! I'm so sad we only have quinze (15) more days here, but I know every minute will be great!


                                          (post me begging Nadia not to take a picture of me)
                                                   Besides that, the facial was so nice!!

quinta-feira, 15 de agosto de 2013

Brasil Lovin'

I am absolutely loving Brazil!! The school is great, as well as my class. Everyone is SO kind and welcoming. This past weekend, my host family and I traveled to the beautiful Domingos Martins, where we stayed with some of their family members! We had a blast. From relaxing in the sauna, to swimming in the pool, and playing soccer with the music blasting in the background, not to mention I got the chance to try so many good new foods! I'm having so much fun here, and creating such amazing memories and friendships that will really stay with me for many years to come. Might I add, the the team I will be cheering on is  Flamengo! I am excited for the next couple weeks I have here, and I'm sure they will be just as fun! 




terça-feira, 13 de agosto de 2013

Oi, meu nome é Lola Antognini.

I am fifteen years old and in class 9B, and I love Brazil!  I have been shown nothing but kindness every where I go during my time in Rio de Janeiro.  My welcoming host family has accepted me as the new "Brazilian" member of the family, especially Ingrid.  In my new home, I try many new and delicious foods, learn new portuguese words, and have bonding time with my favorite Brazilian family!  In school, I am challenged to learn in an unfamiliar language but am encouraged by my teachers and classmates.  I was even able to teach my classmates some things I have learned at Marymount School of New York.  Every day brings new and wonderful experiences that I cannot wait to tell my friends and family about when I return home.  From the beautiful beaches to the friendly people, I cannot wait for Rio de Janeiro to be my home for the next three weeks!
The photo above is a picture of Isabel (on the far left) and I (blue shirt next to Isabel) with our new sisters (left to right: Victoria, Ingrid, Ana) and brother (Bernardo).

Christ the Redeemer
Red Beach
Sugar Loaf View

We recently had a talent show where the students could perform for the entire high school.  One of my favorite acts was a group of five dancers/ my new friends.

Oi!

Meu nome e Isabel. I am 14 years old and I'm in class 9A. I am so excited to be here in Rio and I am having a great time here. In the week that I have been here I have been to the Copacabana Beach, the Sugar Loaf, and Cristo Redentor.








Us at the airport being welcomed by my host family!

On my first day of school, I felt so welcome. Everyone was so nice and even those who didn't speak english really made an effort to talk to us. They even had a little prayer service and a breakfast to welcome us!


I am having a great time and I can't wait to see what else there is in store on this trip. Tchau


quarta-feira, 7 de agosto de 2013

This is a picture of Paula and I at the house of the Sisters yesterday! They are all so nice! 

I don't speak portuguese...

Óla,

On Saturday evening, Lauren and I arrived in Vitória and we’re greeted by our host families and Teresa at the airport. I spent the weekend with my host family and I met some of my classmates when they greeted me with a lot of food and a party on Saturday. My favorite Brazilian dish is brigadeiro! It's very sweet and I like it a lot.
All of our classes are in portuguese and most teachers don't speak a lot of english but regardless they are very welcoming. I love how much everyone tries to speak english to us, even the little kids. In Vitória, class starts at 7am and ends at around 6:30 p.m. on Mondays. I was exhausted by the end of the day. I'm not used to waking up so early for school.
Today I went to a very old monastery with my host family's friend Jacopo and we saw monkeys! The monastery was built in the 1600s by a Franciscan monk and is on top of a mountain on an island near Vitória. It is one of the oldest buildings in Brazil. The view from there was amazing.


I’m very grateful for the opportunity to learn about a new culture because I’m very passionate about cultural diversity. I also love my host family and all of my new friends. Hopefully Lauren and I can learn portuguese very quickly. Wish us luck!

terça-feira, 6 de agosto de 2013

6 de Agosto

Oi,

I'm loving it here! All the people are so welcoming and kind, not to mention the food is so good! Today I had classes, which are all in Portuguese... so, it is so hard to follow along! The only class I was actually able to understand was English. Figures... but the students and teacher still speak Portuguese. Classes ends around noon, and then on some days, you go home and come back for more afternoon classes. Today I went home, then went back to the school for a tour of the House of the Sisters with Paula. Paula and I both recognized one of the sisters from masses at Saint Igantious Loyola, that we had during the year. Even though all the sisters speak Portuguese, they are still so welcoming. After our tour of the sister's house, Paula and I took a tour of the school. Colégio Sagrado Coração de Maria is such a big school, that I actually got lost today while trying to find my class. After our tour, Paula and I had a Portuguese class. This was interesting as neither of us really knew, or knew how to pronounce any Portuguese words except for basic ones, such as; oi, boa noite, bom dia, desculpe, and so on. We learned so many new phrases and words such as; "meu nome é..." (my name is...), how to pronounce and figure out first and last names, count in Portuguese, learn different salutation phrases, in the formal and informal tenses, and the Portuguese alphabet. Overall, Paula and I are having a great time!!