This adventure in Brasil has come to an end. It has been an honour and a privilege to spend time in this wonderful country with it's welcoming people. I encountered the 'Brasilian way' of people trying to understand and help me. A complete stranger gave me a kiss on the cheek for trying to speak Portuguese. Another offered to take me to watch Atlético next time I am here. Yet another invited me to join him with his running club. Every day brought something new. I've loved it all.
It's been my pleasure to teach this class and the students have made it a success. So thanks to Cristina, Alex, Jessie, Seb, Mike, Shalla, Mark, Tais, and Annalise. Thanks also to Gabriela for basically organizing everything. Thanks to Duncan, Nima, and Paloma for welcoming us into Cheer For Peace and for the good work they do. Last but not least, thanks the kids in the favelas who let us play with them.
Dusculpe Neymar
This is a link to a song doing the rounds about why some Brasileiros are not supporting the seleção. It has English subtitles. It captures what I am feeling right now. I still love soccer and the games in this tournament, but want to make sure I don't lose sight of the bigger picture.
And Finally... You Might Enjoy This
I went to the pharmacy today. Pretty routine you may think, but everything is behind the counter, so you have to ask... which means using Portuguese, because few people speak English (understandable given we are not in an English speaking country).
Feeling de-mob happy and slightly more confident in my "Portuguese" than usual, I abandoned my normal opening line ("Fala Ingles?") and went with my mangled version of the language. Both ladies behind the counter engaged me in conversation, which I followed perfectly I thought. They were particularly interested and enthused by my mere presence in their store.
I walked away feeling pretty pleased with myself for carrying a conversation and on how nice Brasileiros can be. "Wow" I thought, congratulating myself wholeheartedly, "Only 3 weeks and I can actually have a conversation." I followed this up with "my sparkling personality probably shone through as well." Yep, I was pretty pleased with myself.
About 25 minutes later I reflected on why these two ladies were so engaged with me. Perhaps it was not my language skills and sparkling personality? Then it hit me. They had asked me if I was a 'jogador,' to which I replied, very confidently, that I was indeed here for the World Cup. Jogador means player. Yes, I told them I was here as a player in the World Cup.
On the one hand, I was disappointed that I completely misunderstood my 'best' conversation in Portuguese. On the other hand, I was elated they thought I looked young and fit enough to be a player. Eat it Pirlo.
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