Fake English

You know how we're always imitating other languages the way we think they sound?
Have you ever heard anyone do that for English? Very rarely do people go around imitating English, but for those who don't know how to speak it, I imagine, many of my family members... Now I know what it sounds like to them when I speak English!! This video is a short film in fake English, which I thought was fantastic because it actually SOUNDS like English, but it's completely fake :-P

Measuring Discrimination: Race and Data in Brazil

Until I get the time to post all the exciting stuff I've been talking about, I'm going to keep linking interesting things. :-)

As some may know from reading the blog, I interned at the Inter-American Dialogue in Washington, DC a few years back and think it's a great organization with fantastic resources for those who are interested in anything Latin America. And since Brazil has been the country most talked about in LatAm recently, they have loads of great articles on Brazil.

If you've got some time on your hands or if you're working and have headphones and like me, can multi-task with this sort of stuff, listen and/or watch, this webcast of theirs on Race and Discrimination in Brazil

Here's a spiel from their site on the webcast:

A discussion on what Brazil’s new census data on race and class reveals about the changing situation of the country’s African descendant population.  Our featured guest is Marcelo Paixão, a distinguished Brazilian scholar who teaches at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro and directs the University's Laboratório de Análises Econômicas, Históricas, Sociais e Estatísticas das Relações Raciais (LAESER). Judith Morrison, the BID’s senior advisor for Gender and Diversity, commented on Dr. Paixao’s presentation.

If you know me at all, you know that this is a topic that is near and dear to me, and I'm one of those people who only really worries about color when it comes to... shoes. 


Dr. Paixão discusses some really fabulous data on the changes in the situation of those who traditionally are in the lower socio-economic ranks in Brazil, but also some really sad information on the slow process of it all as well. 


It's worth watching if not just listening if you're interested in Brazilian race relations and economics! 


Measuring Discrimination: Race and Data in Brazil

My Life Story by Rio Gringa

I have lots to tell you all and have a great profile/interview to post, but I can't tell you some of it yet, so in the meantime, I'd love to share a link with you all.

A lot of people constantly ask me why I'm back in Brazil, or how I got to where I am professionally, or what my life was like in the US... A few weeks ago, my friend Rachel, author of the fabulous blog on everything Brazilian, Adventures of a Gringa, "interviewed" me on Skype, and then wrote a great and very complete yet to the point, profile of my life.  I felt very honored she would take so much time to interview me (it was like, a 2 hour conversation!!), and then to sit and condense everything and write such a great and accurate profile.

So in order to respect her work and answer your questions about yours truly (saving me some breath myself :-P), I encourage you to hop on over to her blog and read her profile on my 'Exile in the Motherland,' as she put it. And then, obviously check out her other posts if you haven't read her blog (but if you're reading mine, you've probably already read and sign her feed, lol)

Also, if you read it and have any more questions for me, feel free to do so in the comments here, since I don't follow hers continuously!

beijoss, and exciting updates soon!

Inhotim - Outdoor Artwork, Botanical Gardens, Delicious Food, Oh My!

Last weekend, my girl friends (+ one boyfriend), and I went to Belo Horizonte, capital of Minas Gerais, my home state! I was super excited for the weekend for 3 reasons:

1. I was spending the weekend with my ladies. 

2. We were going to this place called Inhotim nobody had ever really heard of but everyone said was great. 

and 

3. I wasn't going to have an accent. 

I loved the trip for all three reasons (but really number 3 the most - it felt so good not to restrain myself from speaking with my Minas accent and not having anyone make fun of me!) and was able to document most of the Inhotim experience! 

A little more about Inhotim. It's a 90 some-odd acre outdoor museum and botanical garden, about 100km outside Belo Horizonte. There are galleries spread all over the property, and inside these galleries are mostly fascinating work done by contemporary and modern artists, most made especially for Inhotim. The gardens are spectacular and at some points I'd forgotten I was in Minas, because everything was so green (it hasn't rained in the region in months)! 

It's been open since 2006 to the public, but has been in the works since the 1980's!! So it's very well planned and structured. 

How to get there and how much will it cost you? 

We took a bus from BH-Inhotim, which is in the town of Brumadinho. You can go to BH's bus terminal and look for the Saritur ticket stand, and ask for tickets to Inhotim. On Sundays, at least, there is one bus that goes at 9:15 AM and one that returns to BH at 5:30 PM (which works perfectly because that's when the park closes!). This bus is about R$12 each way. 

Then, once your there, tickets to the park/museum are R$20 (R$10 for students/elderly/children), and you can pay R$10 for rides to the galleries that are further away (worth it. the rides are on golf carts!). Dining can vary. There's anything from hot dogs, to pizza to lush and spectacular restaurants all in the midst of the botanical gardens. 

Here are our pictures from the trip (click on the collage to view pictures or see the album here.) - hope you enjoy and I recommend you go, and take me with you!! :-) 

beijoss, 

poly.