On Wednesday of last week I headed off to project with a positive attitude and was looking forward to what the day was going to bring. The other volunteer did not show up for the day so when I got there I was shown that they had gotten more paint and they wanted to finish the courtyard. I got everything ready and painted for the rest of the morning. Throughout the morning different helpers from CCI would pick up a brush and help me for a bit as well. We then headed off to lunch and I was happy that there was painting to be done and progress and it made me start questioning if I was going to leave this project or not. I then said to the other volunteers, I guess I am just looking for a sign to know what to do next. We then headed back and I went back outside to paint for the rest of the afternoon. Soon after I started the homeless man that lived behind the building came up and started saying something to me in Portuguese. I very quickly told him I did not speak Portuguese and he pointed at the paint brushes so I assumed he just wanted to help. I had seen him help them with many other things around the place so I just gave him a brush and we painted for the rest of the afternoon. I did have my guard up most of the time because earlier that week I had caught on to the fact that he was a crack head as well. After finishing the back wall and getting compliments from staff I cleaned the brushes and got ready to leave for the day. As we were walking out we heard all of this commotion at the front door. I poked my head out and the homeless man was yelling at the director about something. He then saw me, looked really mad and started coming towards me. Again yelling in Portuguese so I did not understand until he put his hand up and made a sign for money. It then all made sense, he must have come up to me and said he would paint for money I said I don’t understand he pointed at the brush I said yes and apparently the deal was made in his head. Well the director was so made and told him he knew it didn’t work that way and how dare he try to do that to me but he wasn’t having it. He just wanted his money. Long story short I had to wait in a back room until he left and then got walked out of the favela just to make sure everything was okay. I decided at that moment I won’t be going back to that project and I don’t know if it was a sign or not but it defiantly made my decision a lot easier.
The next day came and I was already switched into a new project. I am now in a community garden with 2 other volunteers and 3 locals that put their heart and soul into this garden. They do not have many resources so their garden beds are made out of plastic bottles that they have filled with water. Their only tools are two industrial sized hoes and a rake. They are the sweetest people and take their time speaking so we can try to understand them. So after looking at what they have some ideas I have come up with to improve the garden.
1. compost pile
2. paint the main wall to make it stand out
3. put steps in the hill to get up and down easier
4. possible fund raise to get them some tools
Right now they are in the middle of weeding and will be planting in the near future. The other volunteers that I am with are great as well so I am defiantly enjoying this project more. It does get very hot though and you literally can't be in the direct sun for more then 15 minutes without going in the shade for a break. I am going to have a sweet farmer tan in no time.
The weekend consisted of markets. In Centro there is a huge market that you could literally find anything you need in. Now a lot of it is just mass production products so I couldn’t get any true Brazilian items there. The next day was a lot better because we went to what is known as the hippie market. It is more of an arts and crafts kind of market that had so many things that I wanted. There were also many artists there with canvas paintings of the favelas which is a great picture to have and remember Brazil. Finished the day off with a coconut water which is much better here than in the US. The rest of the weekend consisted of exploring beaches, playing cards and dancing at night at various clubs. When Monday came around I was defiantly ready to start project again. Today is now Wednesday so I am almost 3 full weeks into this trip. I always think I am getting a hang of this life style and then something else happens. For example last night (Tuesday) we were upstairs playing cards when a storm blew in. I didn’t think much of it until the wind picked up. Then the skies opened up and I literally thought we were in the middle of a hurricane. Now because it does not rain often and the climate is usually the same most houses are very open to the outdoors. Meaning everything got wet on the first floor, Not a big deal though because all the rooms are covered or in the basement. Or so I thought. As I was playing cards apparently my roommate noticed a drip on the ceiling above my bed and all of a sudden just started gushing water. Needless to say I needed a new bed and the power was out which made it even more interesting. I am now here typing 24 hours later and we just got our power back. Always an adventure here and looking forward to what comes next!
