CWW São Luiz do Paraitinga

I'm only able to put pics without kids or ones where only their backs are showing.  

We went to Sao Luiz do Paraitinga for our Classroom Without Walls trip.  It was my first trip out of the city of Sao Paulo, but we were still in the state of Sao Paulo.  We left at 7 am on Monday for a 4 hour bus trip with 83 6th graders. We spent most of the trip split into two groups.  I was with four other teachers, 42 students, and some Quiron guides. 

All the chaperones for both groups

Day 1:  We went to Guto's farm and learned how to set up tents, then we went floating down the Paraitinga river.  We had lunch at Cantinho dos Amigos which was a big buffet restaurant which was perfect for the kids. We split the kids up into groups and did a scavenger hunt around the town to look for popular buildings.  We had dinner at the camp and had a campfire with marshmallows and then the kids went to bed pretty easily - yes!

Day 2:  We had taken the kids' cell phones before we left school with the expectation that they would get the phones for about 30 minutes before dinner to call home etc.  Because they didn't have their phones, they didn't know what time it was so.......  at 5:50am I heard a lot of girls talking in their tent, but they stayed in the tents and did not run around so we will count that as a win! 
One great thing about Brazil is lots of fresh juices: laranja (orange), morango (strawberry) and maracuja (passionfruit) They also serve LOTS of cake.  Seriously, like 4 different kinds of cake for breakfast and at least 2 kinds for every snack.  I LOVE cake, but it was too much cake for even me!

The guides loaded us up to go to the Rio Paraibuna to go rafting.  It was a level 1, but because the water was so low, we got stuck at every rapid. We all had lifejackets and helmets on, which was important because several kids were tossed out of the boats.

We checked into the Pousada Primavera which was super lovely. 

We walked into town and watched the fanfarra practice.  They are an award winning band that is in competitions all over the country.  Most of the kids loved it. 

 Day 3
We went to a farm and the kids got to plant some baby lettuce.

We went to a local crafts place and learned about the Carnival traditions and we all got to make a hat or tiara.

MY TIARA

We went back to Guto's farm and listened to a story teller and the kids got to make a wall with a traditional mud technique.

On the last day, we donned our hats and tiaras and had a parade through the town.  We had a band accompany us and townspeople watched from their doors and waved to us. 

I bought my first Brazilian craft at the Pousada.  They handcraft these locally.  Can't wait for Christmas!

We got home around 5pm on Thursday and had Friday off of school to recover.  Awesome!!!

A Day in My Life

I have been in Sao Paulo for a little over a month now and I seem to have found my "normal".

I leave my house at 6:53am to walk to the bus.  Two other teachers (Carrie and Shannon) and I ride the school bus that picks up kids in our neighborhood.  It is a very sweet deal!!!  It takes about 50 minutes and we don't have to hassle with getting an Uber - or PAY for it!  The kids are mostly sleepy and quiet in the morning.  There is a tiny Korean boy who I pegged to be about Natalie's age (4) and he is NOT a morning person.  I asked him his name a few times and he doesn't respond so I call him "Itty Bitty". His face as absolutely no affect and he doesn't react to anyone or anything.  The bus assistant buckles him up and he doesn't even move his arms for her. She puts him in a seat with a 5th grader who is also not a morning person and he lays down on Itty Bitty and uses him as a pillow.  Itty Bitty just takes it.  It's hilarious.   My goal in life is to get Itty Bitty to smile at me - it might take until June!

We get to school around 7:50 and school starts at 8:10.  We have two classes in the morning, then lunch and advisory, then two classes in the afternoon.  I teach 2 classes (a class of 12 and a class of 14) on odd days and 3 classes (My classes are 20,20 and 21 - crazy days!) on even days. There are bathrooms between my class and another teacher's class so that is convenient!  Our classroom doors go straight to the outdoors so I get to enjoy the outside frequently :)

Lunch is awesome!  The kids get 45 minutes to eat and have recess.  So do the teachers!  and teachers actually all eat together.
The school lunch is amazing and FREE to students and teachers.  They have a lot of variety of food, but if you don't want what they are serving that day, they always have rice and beans (so good).  They have different salads and soups every day - the soups are great!  I look forward to lunch every day!  Lunch is Brazilians biggest meal of the day - mine too!  so I don't have to eat much for dinner.

I coach Math Counts on Mondays after school and have tutoring on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and on Tuesdays I have Portuguese lessons after Tutoring.  On Wednesdays, the kids get out at 2:40 and we have faculty meetings.  On Mondays and Thursdays, I ride the 4:15 bus home with kids and other teachers.  I have to walk a third of a mile home from the stop and get home around 5:15.  On Wednesdays, the bus leaves at 4:45 and on Tuesdays I take the 6pm bus.    Since I get home so late, it is hard to go out walking.  I am trying to get more comfortable walking in the dark.  I live in a really safe area and there are guards at every building so someone would notice if I got into trouble.  The park is crowded at night and it has lights so as long as I get in there before it gets dark (because I have to walk through some woods)  then I'm ok.  I really don't eat much for dinner - usually grilled cheese, eggs, or frozen pizza.

On weekends, I usually go to Sunday Brunch with friends and maybe out to dinner on Friday or Saturday night.  Usually on one afternoon, I go shopping or exploring with friends.  I already have 2 trips in Brazil planned!  Carrie and I are going to Ouro Preto in October and I am going to Iguazu Falls with Susan over Thanksgiving.

Update on Itty Bitty.  I found out his name and used it to see if I got a reaction - no.  He sniffles a lot so I give him tissue - he takes it, but doesn't look at me. I unbuckle his seatbelt and get his backpack on when we get off the bus - again he lets me, but doesn't look at me.  I've seen him at lunch and he is laughing with his friends and speaks perfect English!  ha!  Very different than the Itty Bitty we see on the bus, he really does not like mornings!