Oi gente! Saturday after I posted my blog I spent the afternoon studying. Bethany called around 7 and asked me to go with her to meet some others from the program at Shopping Barra. We ended up going to a Tex Mex restaurant nearby, which ended up being a dissatisfying experience both because of the food and the price (shocking I know, who knew a Mexican food in Brazil was a bad idea?). We sat and talked at a bar afterwards but by 11PM the majority of the group was tired from the night before and we split a cab back to Garcia. The crazy pigeon by our table that chased its tail and contorted its neck into unnatural positions and the 80’s music videos are in a toss up to be named the most absurd, but entertaining feature of the night.

Sunday was a family day. It’s fascinating to me how empty the streets get on Sundays. I honestly did not see anyone on the street today except Conchita because I was walking with her. I spent the entire afternoon and evening at Conchita’s sister, Guta’s, house. Conchita, Isa and Luciana go there almost every Sunday for lunch and visiting with the extended family. I showed up after they had just finished eating because I had a skype date with Chase beforehand, but they saved plenty for me. (There was baked fish, rice w/ ham/veggies/cheese, a shrimp dish, a salad, fried potatoes, etc.) Conchita made a dessert out of condensed milk, sugar, and other goodness that she insisted that I try in addition to a truffle with maracujá (passion fruit) filling. After lunch we gathered around the TV and watched Pride and Prejudice, then 2 hours of a special event going on this weekend to raise money for a children’s charity, Criança Esperança. It’s amazing how much TV is watched in this society and how captivating and influential Brazilians find it. The actors from the soap operas show up everywhere: on magazine covers, on advertisements on store fronts, on commercials, on talk shows, and of course, on Criança Esperança. Although the quantity of TV was mind-numbing, it was great to see Conchita cracking jokes and socializing with her sisters and cousin. When we walked back to our apartment (which is just across the street) she told me that she used to live in the same building as Guta as did many other relatives (stacked one on top of the other) until she moved about a year ago, followed by a few others. She lived on the first floor of the apartment and solicitors and visitors would knock on the window trying to sell something or get information about other people living in the building. One of her sisters was also robbed by a man who later broke into another apartment building on the street and raped a woman living alone there with her daughter and robbed her DVD player and other small appliances. In the apartment where she lives now she feels much more secure because it is gated in with 24 hour surveillance.

I have to run but I'll write more soon. Until then check out the website for the HIV home where I went today: www.caasah.com.br.