Daniel has arrived and indirectly we are seeing Brasil again with fresh eyes. Now we're not just the Australian couple, we're the Three Gringo Amigos :) I would like to say that he's having a fantastic time but the truth is he's in bed right now, sick as a dog. Ah that fresh Paulistano air....
Had a meeting with Bueno Sensei tonight about creating a website for Aikido Harmonia - emcompassing the dojo, the NGO social projects and the aikido corporate work. I'm excited about having something new to work on, a contribution that will last for longer than my stay in Brasil.
Loving my Wednesday morning class. I have a small but dedicated group coming along and we just finished learning the first Yuishinkai jo kata this week. Keeping the theme to weapons.
Things are moving along at Casa da Criança. Paul and I have been giving the kids a one hour English class each week. We try to incorporate games and songs, keep it interesting (keep them interested!!). Janiena, the "mother" of Casa da Criança says that it is difficult for them to learn english because they don't have a good base in Portuguese to work from. The public schools in Brasil are, apparently, terrible. Interestingly, the public universities are the best, and free. Of course the kids from public schools have buckleys chance of getting into them because they haven't had a decent education. So, learning english one a week for 5 months may not make any difference to these kids, but...Maybe one kid, one day, will get an opportunity that'll involve learning english and those 5 months might just make them feel a little more comfortable about it. More like exposure to a language than learning a language.
Gabby
]]>