Life, Brazil and Resilience!!!
Copacabana, Rio de Janeiro: 26oC, hottish, sunny, and slightly overcast. Yes, today is the day that Yasmin gets her ear pierced. Even though I am feeling sick, I am up early, out in the street by 5:30 a.m., and working out until quarter to seven. I am back home by seven, and I have classes straight through until half past […]
Copacabana, Rio de Janeiro: 24oC, hottish, sunny, and slightly overcast. I was up at 4:30 pm and in the street by five. I was back home, showered and changed by 6:30, and was ready for the first class at 7 am. Now, Tuesdays and Thursdays are my heaviest days in terms of classes. However, I still had time to call […]
Copacabana, Rio de Janeiro: 25oC, hottish, sunny, and slightly overcast. Rio is experiencing a relatively warm Autumn, with temperatures averaging 22 and 26 degrees Celsius. It feels warm in the sun but cool in the shade. I recently watched a video on YouTube from someone in England who was saying that they were experiencing scorching weather, with temperatures reaching 29 […]
Copacabana, Rio de Janeiro: 25oC, hottish, sunny, and slightly overcast. It is Tuesday, and my first class back with an old pupil. Dona Vera, I think she is eighty-four years old; she had fallen down a month ago and broke her arm and shoulder. She was rushed to hospital by her next-door neighbour and her maid and went immediately into […]
Copacabana, Rio de Janeiro: 26oC, hot and sunny. Just a note from yesterday: I do not think that my ex-wife and my daughter really appreciate living in the south zone of Rio and the sacrifices that go into and are needed to maintain them there. If you ask them, yes, they will act in a way of appreciation, but I […]
Copacabana, Rio de Janeiro: 28oC, hot and sunny. OK, it is Sunday, and the flat is full of women. Sunday is usually a sacred day for me, on which I either like to do something for myself or stay quiet. As the flat is full of people, mainly women, I thought it better to accept a barbecue and birthday invitation […]
Copacabana, Rio de Janeiro: 28oC, hot and sunny. It is Saturday, and today will be a full house. Yasmin’s aunts, Nalva’s sisters, and one of Yasmin’s cousins, Caio, will be coming to commemorate her birthday. I got up at 7 am and worked out for about an hour and a half at the park. On the way back, I had […]
Copacabana, Rio de Janeiro: 25oC, hottish and sunny. It’s Friday and, technically, the start of a long weekend. If I were a civil servant in Brazil, I would be free to travel or do nothing at all. However, as a freelance teacher, I am always at the beck and call of my students. If it’s necessary to reschedule a missed […]
Copacabana, Rio de Janeiro: 25oC, hottish and sunny. It is Corpus Christi, a religious bank holiday that I do not know what it represents in the Roman Catholic religion as I am neither Catholic nor very religious. Traditionally, the Brazilian population was Catholic, with the most prominent Catholic following out of Italy. I believe today that the Catholic following has […]
Copacabana, Rio de Janeiro: 24oC, warmish, sunny, and slightly overcast. It is Yasmin’s birthday; she is sixteen today; where has the time gone? The issue in the morning was that as she had school in the morning, I wanted to see her before she went, but I did not want to miss doing my exercise. So, I got up at […]