Ribeirão Preto - Days 7 - 11 (April 30 - May 4)

Day 7 - Saturday, April 30

We arrived in Ribeirao Preto in the wee hours of Saturday morning, April 30th, the seventh day of our tour. The name of this city means "black stream." We were greeted at the Hotel Vila Real by our guide, Andreza and her aunt, Denise. Denise has been Karen's friend and Brazilian sister since 1978 when Karen was an exchange student to Ribeirao Preto. Karen lived with four Brazilian families, and Denise's family was Karen's last family. Andreza was born while Karen was in Brazil the first time!

The Hotel Vila Real's breakfast mirrored other breakfasts offered in the hotels where we stayed: fresh fruit (watermelon, mango, pineapple, melon, papaya, banana), fresh juice (pineapple, orange, melon, watermelon), sweet breads, breads, cheeses, cold meats, cereal, yogurt, milk, and coffee.

We began our time in Ribeirao Preto to a visit to the "hippy fair" (a craft fair) in the square next to the city's cathedral. Crafts included necklaces and bracelets made from leather, beads, or seeds; crochet items, scarves, shoes, and hammocks. When then walked to a school where English was taught. All of the Saturday morning classes convened in a large classroom where we introduced ourselves and answered their questions and asked a few of our own.

A few English teachers and members of Karen's family joined the group for a lunch at the Choperia Pinguem, a restaurant that quickly became the favorite among many in the group. After a fun lunch, the group watched a sidewalk mime artist and walked through the downtown area to the local Art Museum. There we enjoyed modern art pieces and tried our hand at capturing one of our Brazilian Seminar speakers, Raquel, in our individual drawings.

Then we visited the home of Senhor and Senhora Mancuso, Karen's Brazilian parents. They continue to run a jewelry store in the downtown area where they also live in a beautiful and welcoming home. The group spent time talking with the family in their living room. Afterwards we were invited to have coffee in the dining room. We joined Senhor and Senhora Mancuso at the dining table and enjoyed cake and coffee. Also present were Dea, Liz and Denise (Karen's three sisters), Felipe and Andreza (Karen's nephew and neice), and, after a bit, Luiz (Karen's brother) and his wife, Helena from Sao Paulo. It was difficult to say goodbye to this lovely family.

After a short rest in the hotel, we went to the restaurant, Villa Lobos (named after Brazil's famous composer) where we were joined by family members and where we enjoyed popular Brazilian music. It was a late night!

Day 8 - Sunday, May 1

Our day began with a four-hour cultural tour of the city where we visited the city government building (where we learned the history of the city), the renovated Dom Pedro II theatre, the campus of the University of Sao Paulo at Ribeirao Preto situated on an old coffee plantation, a coffee museum, and the city's seven chapel area. While on the university campus, the group was welcomed to the city by the head of the city's cultural office. We then went to watch a band play choro music as couples danced. Many of us were invited by locals to dance and so had a dance lesson! We noticed that intergenerational dancing was enjoyed by many grandchildren and grandparents, and couples across the life cycle displayed a Brazilian finesse to their dancing. We stayed until the band ended at noon!

After we completed the cultural tour, we visited the home of Renata, an English teacher at ACBEU. Her husband and his friend welcomed us with Brazilian music and caipirinhas (a Brazilian drink made of lime juice, sugar, and pinga). Sarah, another English teacher, and her daughter joined us. After lots of conversation, food, laughter, caipirinha lessons, and good-bye kisses from 18 month-old Maria-Eduard, we left this delightful family for necessary sleep. It was an exceptionally full day.

Day 9 - Monday, May 2

In the morning we experienced a wonderful privilege: to visit Projecto Atitude, a program for teens who had been in trouble but who were now refocusing their lives. This program is the vision of Cissa, the director of Project Atitude. We toured the renovated house where the program is now located (after the first few years of being run from a cubicle in a city government building), talked with teens and staff, and heard about its goals and history.

We lunched at the University of Sao Paulo at Ribeirao Preto at a lakeside cafe with staff from the Support Group to Prevent AIDs (GAPA-Ribeirao Preto, see www.gaparp.org.br). Then we went to a classroom where GAPA staff talked about their work and faculty from the Medical School described their early studies and interventions with persons who were HIV positive. Cherie, a faculty member from our group, presented on a successful peer education program used in southwest Michigan.

Dinner was at the Bar do Val where a soloist sang popular Brazilian music and played his guitar.

Day 10 - Tuesday, May 3

We began our day at a private university where we heard presentations from two architects and saw plans and models of a private residence. Afterwards we visited the construction site. Lunch was back at the Pinguem with faculty and students from the architecture program.

We had some time to walk around the city, and in the late afternoon, after an ice-cream break, we listened to a presentation on family law by Denise, who is an attorney. This lecture was delivered in a park.

The group went separate ways to purchase momentos, visit a Brazilian shopping mall, or to rest. Some of the group went to a restaurant that featured food from the Northeast of Brazil.

Day 11 - Wednesday, May 4

After a visit to the hospital (no emergency and all is now well), we left Ribeirao Preto in the late afternoon for Sao Paulo. While two of us were at the hospital, the rest of the group rested in a room of the hotel's lobby and enjoyed Ribeirao Preto for a few more hours. The hotel staff kindly allowed the group to take over this room and asked after our group member who wasn't feeling well. Fortunately, Andreza and Denise facilitated the trip to the urgent care center!

The highway between Ribeirao Preto and Sao Paulo is well designed and, most importantly, without speed bumps! However, for the first three hours or so, it is without adequate services. So, we detoured off the highway to a village in hopes of finding a public restroom, which we did, at a small, outside cafe. Some curious members of our group determined that this bathroom did not have a roof but did have a resident bird. This stop in a village, away from city lights, did provide another opportunity to search the sky for the Southern Cross.

We arrived in Sao Paulo close to midnight. At one red light, one of the bus drivers jumped out of the bus, the door closed, and the bus took off. A few group members saw this happen and started encouraging us to stop--they hadn't seen the bus driver climb into a taxi. The taxi driver led us to our hotel, but through the main fruit and vegetable warehouse area (where, we worried, we had left a trail of overturned boxes of grapes and tomatoes in our wake as the taxi careened through these narrow alleys). It was after midnight when we settled into our rooms at the Hotel Sao Paulo Othon Classic.