Over at Leo’s blog, The Lions Den, he wrote a great post on fitting in to Brazilian culture, which I would almost consider part of a gringo (sorry, Leo) series he has done on hopes both dashed and fulfilled. The first half has to do with an aversion to the term ‘gringo’ and his subconscious desires towards resolution while the second half has to do with a very common sight on the streets of Brazil (which I’ve always noticed but never thought a lot about).
I think when it comes to fitting in, perhaps I take a different approach. I’ve never wanted to fit in anywhere but just as anyone else, I’ve wanted to be accepted.
As to the answer to your question…What’s a gringo to do? Keep writing…
Since I did a little write up on the Pressure Cook show today, I thought I’d offer what I consider a better option (due to the quality of the show). I used to watch No Reservations with Anthony Bourdain no matter where he went…luckily for me, he ended up in São Paulo finally. And if you like Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern, I heard through the grapevine that he’s in Brazil this month shooting an episode on bizarre Brazilian food.
With no further ado, here’s Mr. Bourdain in São Paulo (Part 1)
“How would you like to distribute 200 million dollars to your fellow citizens? That’s the amount of money the city of Porto Alegre spends in an average year for construction and services—money not committed to fixed expenses like debt service and pensions.
Fifty thousand residents of Porto Alegre—poor and middle class, women and men, leftist and centrist—now take part in the participatory budgeting process for this city of a million and a half people, and the numbers involved have grown each year since its start in 1989. Then, only 75 percent of homes had running water.”
A World Bank paper suggests that participatory budgeting has led to direct improvements in facilities in Porto Alegre. For example, sewer and water connections increased from 75% of households in 1988 to 98% in 1997. The number of schools quadrupled since 1986.
The high number of participants, after more than a decade, suggests that participatory budgeting encourages increasing citizen involvement, according to the paper. Also, Porto Alegre’s health and education budget increased from 13% (1985) to almost 40% (1996), and the share of the participatory budget in the total budget increased from 17% (1992) to 21% (1999).
The paper concludes that participatory budgeting can lead to improved conditions for the poor.Although it cannot overcome wider problems such as unemployment, it leads to “noticeable improvement in the accessibility and quality of various public welfare amenities”.
Based on the success in Porto Alegre, more than 140 (about 2.5%) of the 5,571 municipalities in Brazil have adopted participatory budgeting.
JourneyMan Pictures has ashort doc. on Youtube which mainly deals with the subject. By the way, POA is shorthand for Porto Alegre.
My Take
The great thing about this is that its democracy in action. Someone wise once told me that if the average person can’t understand the goings-on of a particular activity or idea, then that activity or idea is most likely BS. I don’t believe the US is a true democracy and therefore I don’t believe one’s vote really counts. In a true democracy, the government fears its people…not the other way around. What Porto Alegre has done is nothing short of amazing as far as both what they have accomplished and the empowerment created within its people. As a whole, Brazil could use this method to change the entire country for the better.
There’s a culinary travel show called Pressure Cook with chef and host Raplh Pagano in which he gets dropped off in an unknown location and has to make enough money by cooking to get his plane ticket back to the States.
In this particular episode, he gets dropped off in Manaus and takes on various jobs in order not to pay the penalty, which is eating the larvae of some bug. The show includes the usual, caipirinhas, Rio de Janeiro reference, broken Spanish, some naive commentary yet it also allows for a look into an area that gets little attention by the media, Manaus.
“By 10 votes to one, judges ruled to maintain an Indian reservation in the northern border state of Roraima as a single, continuous territory.
It means that a small group of outside rice farmers with plantations in the area will now have to leave.
The head of the court also accused the government of failing the Indians.
This was the third occasion the court had met to reach a decision on the question, and the delays appeared to be just another indication of the sensitivity involved, the BBC’s Gary Duffy reports from Brazil.
The Raposa Serra do Sol reservation, which stretches more than 1.7m hectares (4.2m acres) along the Venezuelan border, is home to up to 20,000 Amazonian Indians.
Indigenous leaders had feared a ruling against them would have signalled to land-owners and loggers that it was acceptable to invade their territory.”
More on this story here atBBC. For the story which preceded it, gohere. Unfortunately, in addition to rice farmers and surely logging companies, there’s also gold miners illegally mining gold from indigeneous territories, such as in this 25 minutedocumentaryon the subject.
Brazilian publicist Paulo D’Angelo rewrote the Carta de Caminha (Letter from Caminha) and won a contest called “Listener’s Chronicles”, put on by Radio Bandeirantes. His version is modern and with added humor and I decided to translate it into English below. When researching the original letter, I came across some interesting finds which include D’Angelo’s interpretation in the form of a Brazilian PodClass, the actual 27 page translation into English of Pero Vaz de Caminha’s letter to the King, an analysis of the letter (which has an interesting section called Body Details), the text in its original archaic Portuguese along with images of the actual letter, and the text in modern Portuguese.
New Letter from Pero Vaz de Caminha
“Hello my beloved King, it’s Pero Vaz on the line. Can you hear me well? I borrowed a cell phone from a native of this new land. Everything is good, Capitan Pedro is sending hugs. We got here on Tuesday, the 21st of April, but I thought it would be better to call you on Sunday because it’s cheaper to make a call. Yeah, I know, these kinds of things exist here too.
The natives were surprised by our arrival by sea but they didn’t think we were Gods, Majesty. They thought we were crazy to step foot in the polluted ocean. Is the connection good? Well, this place is kind of funny. They’ve got cell phones, imported cars, free access to the internet and even with all these things, people are still dying of malaria and malnutrition. It’s not so easy to understand.
If we already found who is in charge?
Look, King, it’s complicated. Here, there’s more indian chiefs than there are indians. As soon as we got to Porto Seguro there was a chief who said he could make it rain and that we could jail or set free anyone he wanted. Yep, he’s one crazy chief…More towards the South, we found another tribe, a marvelous village with lots of parties and pretty nearly nude natives. Going southwards from there, we went more inland and found ourselves in the planalto.
There we found a huge tribe of Sampa indians. We met their chief who had power but didn’t know how to use it, poor thing. They say that even his wife beats him. Are you laughing, Majesty? I swear what I’m saying is true. As your Majesty can see, its a simple place to colonize, especially because the natives don’t even all speak the same language.
Yes, they are pacified. If they see a coconut on the ground, they start to kick it and forget about their troubles. They know some things, like how to read…but not all of them. The majority read pretty badly and believe everything they see in print. It’ll be a cinch! It seems there’s a head honcho but he’s almost never seen because he travels a lot. They say if you are trying to find him, all you got to do is sit on his throne.
What’s really funny is that the indians work in exchange for bananas. Yeah, bananas!!! Every month they receive a minimim of 151 bananas. It’s no joke, Majesty! I’m serious!! Just come here and you’ll see. Look, I got to get off the phone. The guy who lent me it needs to make a few calls. He’s a businessman. He said he has to tell his guys theres a new arrival of farinha. Funny…they are so happy to be working…Each time new merchandise arrives, they run up the hill and let off some bottle rockets.
It’s a very rich land, Majesty. I think this time we hit the nail on the head. This here is going to be the country of the future…”
I know a lot of Brazilians moving back home. If it’s bad everywhere, they’d rather be where it’s bad but it’s good, as the saying goes…(The US is good but it’s bad, Brazil is bad but it’s good.)
“MARCOS SILVA DE PAULA, a 37-year-old Brazilian who moved a decade ago to a Brazilian enclave in Astoria, Queens, can offer a ground-floor view of the city’s economic turmoil.
For many years, Mr. Silva De Paula made a decent living in what is something of a throwback profession — he shines shoes for a living — but he is now planning to return to Brazil with his wife, Miria, and their 3-year-old daughter, Kimberly. Both Mr. Silva De Paula and his wife, who works part time cleaning houses, have seen their incomes plummet in the past year, and in leaving, they will be following in the footsteps of many Brazilian friends who have already made the one-way trip.
Many immigrants are suffering economically these days, but as the recession deepens, Brazilians are among the few who have the option and incentive to return to their homelands. The reason is that Brazil’s economy, while clearly affected by worldwide troubles, has been relatively strong in recent years, so much so that even before the recession, its strength had drawn immigrants home.
On a recent evening, between bites of a Brazilian farmer’s cheese and his wife’s homemade cake, Mr. Silva De Paula sat in the kitchen of his two-bedroom apartment and talked about his decision to move back home.”
The Fita do Bonfim (Ribbon of Bonfim) which is also known as the fitinha do Bonfim (little ribbon…) is a typical souvenir and amulet from Salvador, Bahia.
History
The original ribbon was created in 1809, having disappeared by the beginning of the 1950′s. Known as the ‘medida do Bonfom’ (measure of Bonfim), its name is owed to the fact that the exact measurements of 47 cm long, the length of the right arm of the statue of Jesus Christ, ‘Senhor do Bonfim’, situated on the high-altar of Bahia’s most famous church. The image was sculpted in Setúbal, in Portugal in the 23rd century. The ‘medida’ was made of silk, with the design and the name of the embroidered saint and complimented with golden or silver tint. It was worn around the neck like a necklace, where saints and medallions were hung, working as a type of currency: upon making good on a promise, the faithful carried a photo or a small sculpture of beeswax representing the part of the body which was cured with the help of the saint. As a souvenir, these ribbons would be acquired, symbolizing the church itself.
No one knows when the transition occurred from the old style ribbon to the new one (worn around the wrist), although the new ribbon was popularized by the street vendors of Salvador around the 1960′s, when it was also adopted by the Bahian hippies as part of their style of dressing.
Colors
Sold in diverse colors, the Fita do Senhor do Bonfim possesses a side that few actually know: each color symbolizes an Orixá (or deity of the Yoruba religion). Dark green is for the deity Oxossi, light blue for Iemanjá, yellow for Oxum…Whichever the color, the ribbon holds a symbolic, aesthetic and spiritual representation typical of the Afro-Brazilian culture. Practically speaking, the colors represent various positive words (such as blue for prosperity).
Usage
The famous fitas have been used by Brazilian designers locally and nationally in many different ways. To see an example, check out this page from Namira. Aside from their fashion statement, the user must have three knots tied and if the ribbon falls off naturally, the wishes will be granted. According to Travelvice.com…
“Multiple chances for a miracle, or chances for multiple miracles, are obtained as the wearer makes a wish each time one of three knots are tied to secure the fita around the wrist.
No wish will be granted unless the cloth is permitted to wear until it disintegrates naturally, and falls from the wrist of its accord. If you remove or cut the ribbon yourself the wishes will not—never?—come true and invites bad luck and misfortune upon you.
If you plan to stay the course and leave the ribbon on, it’s a serious commitment. The typical fita is rumored to fall off after a handful of months, but I’ve read stories of ribbons staying intact for anywhere from six months to two years after they were tied!
There was one Internet source found that said you must never purchase your own ribbons, but only accept them as gifts. Additionally, some sites mention a third party should tie the knots for you, as you make your wishes.”
My personal favorite use of these fitas is the canga (which a friend of mine is wearing)…
In the case I wrote about on the 2nd of Febuary, 2009 on the murder of law student Ozires del Corso, the suspect of the heinous crime has been captured and jailed. This happened on the 16th of February, thanks to the help of his girlfriend, who was also shot and violated during the senseless crime. The man thought to be responsible for the murder and rape is Juarez Ferreira Pinto, 42 years, an assistant of general services (whatever that means, I take it to be ‘handyman’). The story of the arraignment (in Portuguese) can be found here.
In other news, I was contacted by someone who knew Ozires and I will replicate the comment left on the original post here.
“I am in complete and utter shock at the moment as I have just found out this crime has taken place. Ozires was such a wonderful young man. I got to know him in New Zealand as his host mother looking after him during his time here to learn English. He was such a spirited wonderful person. We had lots of great conversations about the world and what it is like. To end his life in this manner is just not fair. He had so much to contribute to the world and he would have done very well with his abilities to communcate to people at all levels. It is with deep sadness that I write now to tell you all what a special person he was. I cannot put into words what a great guy he was and how sad we are feeling. My sincere wishes go to his parents and family at their tragic loss. Please please know that he will always hold a special place in our hearts and we are as a family also shocked and in grief with you all. Why oh Why do things continue to happen like this. The world is so full of horror and we need to stand up and get our voices heard around the world to stop this. His spirit will live on we love you Ozires or Oz as we call him. Sue and Steve Ellis Wanganui New Zealand”
Either I’m going through a musical phase or what I find, I post (as long as it seems worthy)…and I happen to be finding music-related things lately. If you’ve been following the site, you’ll know that in the last few months, I’ve introduced a few topics relating to Portugal. My sense is that certain topics, although not about Brazil per se, should be shared with my readers as they shed light on Brazil in some form. Below is the synopsis for a free documentary on music in Portuguese, seen through Portugal with an eye on African and Brazilian influences. Unfortunately, the actual video in full doesn’t have subtitles but the 7 minute trailer does. If you’d like to take a shot at measuring your Continental Portuguese proficiency, see the second video at the end.
Lusophony – The (R)evolution
“In Lisbon, a new generation of musicians, producers and DJs is asserting itself. Tuned in to the aesthetical and technological developments in music, it nevertheless carries a distinctive trait inherited from the culture which they are a part of: the Lusophone world.
It is this trait that uphold the uniqueness of our artists in a historical context in which homogenization in the creative sphere thwarts all originality. Lusophony, the (R)Evolution is a calling card for the Lusophone musical identity.
It all began in the 15th century, when Portugal embarked on its maritime expansion.
A small country of around one million inhabitants travelled across the Atlantic and reached Brazil, ventured round Africa and Asia – of India, Japan or Indonesia. It wrought an empire, one of the foundations of which lay on the slave trade. This dark side of history (present from the empires of Antiquity up to the present age) created in Portugal a community of Africans who brought their customs, rituals, music and dances with them to Lisbon. Around the1450s, 10% of the population of Lisbon was of African origin. With the passage of time, the miscegenation between blacks and whites gave birth to multicultural peoples – it’s not by chance that Brazil is the most multicultural country in the world.
Against such a background, music and dancing were elements of integration. Several types of music evolved throughout the centuries, the most popular of which being Fado – firstly a dance, then a song, its roots pointing towards multicultural blending, as put forward by José Ramos Tinhorão in his brilliant book Os Negros Em Portugal – Uma Presença Silenciosa (The Blacks in Portugal – a Silent Presence).
In the 20th century, music in the Lusophone sphere took on a role of protest against dictatorial regimes. Symbolic of which is the 25th April Revolution in Portugal – the revolution which started with a song. The country underwent a revolutionary period and protest music took on a seminal role in the shaping of consciences and the changing of attitudes. The same happened in Africa and in Brazil.
In the aftermath of the revolution, José Afonso, José Mário Branco and Sérgio Godinho used the Portuguese language to fight for change, and in the African countries, both the language and the music from Portugal (and in certain cases its Creole offshoots) had assumed their protest character by the hand of Rui Mingas, Super Mama Djombo and Bonga. Between Portugal and the Lusophone countries, music was both a fraternal bridge and a point of union. In the aftermath of the revolution, both Africans and Portuguese migrants returned hastily to Portugal, bringing with them a musical seed which would explode years later…
During the 1980s, collective work between musicians was reinforced. Paulo de Carvalho, José Afonso, Rão Kyao, Heróis do Mar, Tito Paris or Danny Silva are a few of the examples. The attempts of the artistic community to assume the Lusophone trait in their work lived side-by-side with the emergence and the assertion of a generation by way of Portuguese rock music (first half of the 1980s) and the birth of electronic music (late 1980s, early 1990s). Nevertheless, these movements of musical blending were not accompanied by the societies and integration policies.
But with the emergence of electronic music a new chapter was written. In the beginning of the 1990s, the country witnessed the arrival of a new culture brought on by electronic compositions, with Hip Hop as a driving force. In this decade, the descendents of Africans and second-generation migrants acquainted themselves with this culture, substantiated by releases such as “Rapública”. The 1990s, with electronic music as a creative driving force, revealed a Portugal in which the Lusophone trait was expressed through the aesthetics of dance music.
The Portuguese language formed a global wave through genres such as House and Nu-Jazz, by way of Brazil; remixes of Cesária Évora were a success, and hailed as innovative projects. And it is at the beginning of the 21st century that we witness a generation in Portugal which synthesizes the whole legacy brought on since the 25 April 1974. A Lusophone streak is finally assumed in the creative sphere; a new wave is aware of the heritage of the past and affirms it as a distinctive trait. Hip Hop in Creole, dance music with samplings of Kuduro, Portuguese lyrics over contemporary structures – the possibilities exist and multiply themselves. Lusophony, the (R)Evolution is a musical treasure, which summarizes five centuries of history.”
- Source (seems official and provided the videos below, click the link to see who was interviewed in the doc.)
Trailer (with subs)
Full Documentary (no subs)
To download the documentary in full, go here. While on the subject of music, Portugal and Africa, I’ll take the opportunity to slip in this mini documentary about hip-hop artist Chullage working in Portugal to curb the discrimination against Cape Verdeans. Part 1 & Part 2.
