Volunteer in Brazil: The Blog

So I have been in Brazil for four weeks now and on the one hand I still feel like the newbie but on the other I am starting to feel like a local in the Santa Teresa neighbourhood, it all has a comforting familiarity.  This has been particularly highlighted to me on the occasions Jackie has joined me on my morning walks, I have actually felt knowledgeable in being able to say this is here and that is that, etc.  Jackie arrived on Thursday evening and is settling in well, I think she feels like her Brazilian adventure has truly begun and I am confident she will slot in nicely both at the project and here at the convent.

I am happy to report that the last week in Santa Teresa has been a peaceful one, the turbulence of the past few weeks has abated, at least for the time being, and I think this has had a calming effect on all concerned at the project. 

As you all know by now, and if you don’t …. where have you been(?!), Rio has been selected to be the host of the Olympics 2016 and I, for one, think it is well deserved, an Olympics in South America is long overdue.  I know it is tempting to say well should Brazil really be spending its money on an Olympic games or should it be spending the money instead on its community services such as schools, housing and hospitals, etc but lets all be real but for the Olympics the government of this (or any other country) would not otherwise spend the cash in any event!  My hope is that the pressure of being under the glare of the world’s media and the desire to have Brazil to be seen to have the same living standards as other world superpowers will be such that the situation of those who most need help will get it.  For me, it does not really matter whether there is a true sincerity or indeed desire for those in power in bringing about better living standards for the favela communities, just so long as real change is made, we cannot always afford to be fussy as to the whys and wherefores, I am sure if I were living in such conditions I would just be glad to have any improvement, I would not be questioning the motivations. 

The children at the project had their annual spring party on Friday also, so it was timed nicely with the Olympics celebrations.  It was an afternoon of music, games, food and general fun, it was wonderful to see them so relaxed and at ease.  They were so excited about the Olympics and so very proud that it was coming to their City!  I found it very touching as they are arguably the very segment of this City which will arguably be the very people who may, on a worst case scenario, get nothing from the Olympics’ arrival here but still their excitement and pride in the having the games in Rio touched my heart and I pray that this will be a games for all. 

Speaking of the Olympics I had quite a surreal experience here at the convent, so let me set the scene, it’s Friday night and some hours before the announcement that Rio, neigh Brazil, had been waiting for finally came in – parabens all round!  So, later that night I turned in for some much needed beauty sleep and it was around 2:25am when I stirred to the sound of, it couldn’t possibly be, a full band, I am talking trumpets, drums, guitar, you name it I could hear it!  I could also hear what sounded like hundreds of people singing, shouting, laughing and I thought someone must have slipped a magic mushroom into my rice and beans as I surely must be hallucinating! I got up, out of bed and threw open my window, which overlooks the courtyard, and sure enough I was not dreaming or tripping there actually was the mother of all parties going on on the main road which passes by the convent, I just burst out into fits of laughter and thought, wow, how surreal is this?!  I was half tempted to go running down the hill in my PJs and fluffy slippers to join in but I didn’t want to give the night watchman too much of a fright, I think he has had enough of those in the last few weeks with the gunshots to last him a lifetime … the sight of my ‘just out of bed’ look may possibly have tipped him over the edge!    

On Saturday afternoon Beth took both myself and Jackie to a music store come café come music venue, it was fab!  It was so relaxing just whiling the hours away listening to great musicians and singers and, for me, having a beer or three!  I don’t know of many places in the UK where you could just sit and nurse a drink for a couple of hours or so, but at this place this was the norm and I really enjoyed the relaxed attitude – it was all about the music and the artists.

Last night Beth, Jackie, Bea and myself went to see a film called Dancando com o Diabo (Dancing with the Devil) as part of Rio’s International Film Festival 2009.  It was a documentary by an English director by the name of Jon Blair.  As it was the opening night of the festival and the premiere of the film the director attended and gave an introduction to the film highlighting his motivations behind it and the controversy it had caused given that Rio is now to host the Olympics 2016.  It was said that there were some people who did not want it to be shown and it almost wasn’t.  He quoted from Rev. Martin Luther King, to paraphrase, that in the end we will not remember the words of our enemies but the silence of our friends, he said he was a friend of Rio and did not want to be silenced.  The film focuses on three main ‘characters’ (1) a drug lord (Spiderman) of a favela in West Rio; (2) a pastor of an Evangelic church (an ex-trafficker); and (3) two policemen.  Lets just say that the film left a different impression upon us all and it made for interesting ‘debate’ on the way home in the car (ha ha)!  Perhaps if you get the chance to see it you can judge for yourselves – it was made in conjunction with Channel 4 so perhaps it will be aired on C4 at some point, so look out for it. 

I am so happy to be able to write this blog and have nothing but good things to report.  It just goes to show good things happen as well as bad but it is just that the bad seems to get more attention!

Until next week this is your roving reporter Kate Adie, whoops I mean Anne McMahon, signing out!!

Love to you all.

Anne.xxx

This entry was posted on Monday, October 5th, 2009 at 05:12 pm and is filed under Uncategorised. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.