Hotel, motel, Holiday Inn

It's been a while since I've posted I know, family reunions, birthdays and Carnaval! But I've loved reading all the comments from my last post. 


But now that things have calmed down I'd like to talk about sex, not like the song, but more in a cultural context.

In Maringa, and in most of Brazil, motels are a common site. But be warned, these are not the sleazy, water-bed, shame-inducing kind. The kind that would seal your reputation as a floozy and make others think that you are either a prostitute or an adulterer.

Motels in Brazil are stylish - yes, that's right stylish, modern establishments that offer comfortable settings for couples to relax and enjoy, er, special time together.

It's normal here for children to live with their parents until they get married (I know!), so when they are in the courting stage, couples need a little privacy, and this is where the motels come in. As well as offering hourly rates, you can also reserve a room for the whole night and get a room service breakfast.

On my first visit to a motel here, I was apprehensive, I didn't want anyone to know where we were going. For me, it still carried the negative connotations from my culture. My husband thought it was hilarious that I made this association and explained to me that motels over here are different.

From the outside all motels are the same, they look like huge garages. When you drive up, the electric door opens, and then closes behind you. A voice comes over the PA system and you choose your room, which you then drive round to and guess what inside the motel looks like, lots of garages! You pull up and drive in, the room itself is entered through a side door from the garage. 
 
Most of the rooms seem to be pretty standard, containing a jacuzzi, lcd tv with plenty of channels to get you in the mood; the stereo also has several well-thought out soundtracks if you like accompaniment. 

The spaceship-themed bed

 

The shower - big enough for two!

The serving hatch that they push breakfast through - they buzz first of course!

I love the fact that this often conservative, sometimes god-fearing society indulges this side of its charater which offers any couple a little privacy and intimacy in a dedicated environment. 

If you are ever in Brazil with your loved one, I thoroughly recommend visiting a Brazilian Motel. 
 

The simplicity of happiness

As an update to this post I wanted to add this link a news story about a man who lived for a year without money and said it was the happiest of his life: 

http://news.uk.msn.com/uk/articles.aspx?cp-documentid=151109920




The longer I live here the more I come to understand that the human spirit needs very little to be happy.

Understanding the poverty that exists here has been a journey for me.  At first my snobby first world head was appauled and kept complaining about how awful it is that people live like this and I must help them.  But getting to know these people I have realised that they are some of the happiest people I know.  They never complain and seem to be very accepting of their lot in life.

Last Friday my husband and I went to help his father organise an event for teenagers at their church.  There were quizzes, dinner and a sleepover - which luckily we didn't stay for.

My mother-in-law (centre) with the women volunteers - the sisters are behind

The whole thing went really well and on the way back we gave a lift to two sisters who had voluteered their time to cook the dinner - which was for about 50 people.

They live outside Maringa, in Sarandi which is know as a 'favela' (a slum) and where most of this city's poorer workers live.  These two women were so happy and full of stories about their lives and how wonderful it was to be alive etc.  I felt so humbled seeing how simply they lived and I was glad to have had the opportunity to get to know them first-hand.

I am looking forward to many such encounters in the future.

I'm an alien

Since moving here in December 2008, I have been on the long road to gaining permanent residence here, i.e. a legal alien.  I made my first visit to the 'Policia Federal' in Maringa, in April of last year and was told to await a home visit, which sounded to me like they were going to approve where I lived and deem it suitable 'alien accommodation'. 

A couple of weeks ago after returning to Brazil from my honeymoon, I finally had a visit from the PF representative.  Of course she came on the day when I was still in my PJs, with honking morning breath, gossiping with my mother-in-law, yes she is that nice.

I had slept in, left my bed unmaid.  It's always good to make a great first impression when your future is at stake.  Or maybe it's better that it was messy, more realistic, who knows.

Simone, a tall blonde, came through the door and introduced herself.  "Hi", I said hoping that my Portuguese would see me through all the answers I was about to give.  She asked me all these questions about how I'd met my husband Paulo, and it began to feel like a scene from Green Card, remember that awful 90s movie with Andie McDowell and Gerard Depardieu?

Soon enough I had turned it into a scene from MTV's Cribs when she asked to see our bedroom.  I apologised for the unmade bed.  "Don't worry, it's the fifth one I've seen today", she said slightly miffed.

Unfazed I proceeded to show her through my entire wardrobe, explaining how I categorised our clothes, which were my favourites and which ones I couldn't wear here as I thought they were too chic.  I realised almost immediately that my capsule collection of Issa, McQueen, Basso & Brooke and Vivienne were hardly going to see the light of day in this small town, where popular brands are Guess and Tommy Hilfiger, but at least I could look after them!

Aside from giving a lesson in British fashion I managed to learn a bit about the other foreigners living in Maringa.  Apparently we are some 3,000 strong and consist mainly of students who attend the University of Maringa, where my brother-in-law works as a physical education teacher.  Also working there is an Englishman called Peter who has lived here for about 20 years and is married to a Brazilian woman.  I know that there are several other English and some American citizens living here, but as yet I have yet to meet any of them. 

All in all it was an interview that I will never forget.  I now have to wait up to six months to know whether my apllication has been successful. 

Fingers crossed.

In search of Gisele...

Last year when I told all my friends I was moving to Brazil, they all thought I was crazy. I think they thought I would be dancing around doing the samba, wearing Havianas, exposing my bum in a revealing bikini!

The fact is that most of us think that that is what Brazil is like.

Not that it has 10 of the world's best companies or that it's the world's third largest emerging economy or that there are more natural resources here that humans need to survive than in any other country on the planet and most of those haven't even been tapped yet. http://www.brazzilmag.com/content/view/10705/

I love spending time with my friends here having a Churrasco (Brazilian bbq, see pic) at the weekends but no matter what we talk about, if there is a new guest, the inevitable question comes up. 'What did you think Brazil was like before you got here?'

I have to admit that I was one of those people. I mean of course I have read The Alchemist and I've got Bebel Gilberto's album, except she's not famous in Brazil - you'd be better off swatting up on Marisa Monte or Jotta Quest if you are trying to impress a Brazilian.

The fact is that when I arrived in Brazil, and got to the small town of Maringa, Parana, (pop. 331, 412) I half expected to see Gisele, Adriana and Alessandra there to greet me. I was of course quite relieved to see that Brazil is full of ordinary looking women as well as very beautiful ones.

My Brazil has been a breath of fresh air. It's been about funny stories of me confusing Portuguese words, it's been about learning a new culture, and about getting to know my new family.

Brazilians have, in my opinion, an unrivaled sense of hospitality. They are incredibly warm and inviting and have the purest of party spirits. The whole way of life here is about food and family and family and food. Hardly a day goes by that I don't get invited to some one's house to just hang out and have some delicious food and talk about anything you want.

After four months here, I am starting to find out that we still have a lot to learn about Brazil.