UM OLHAR AMERICANO SOBRE O BRASIL

Nessa última edição de 98 do ¨What's Up?¨, o pessoal do News Club se esforçou para preparar um boletim
totalmente voltado para os nossos assuntos internos. Por isso, a entrevista de primeira página traz uma conversa
descontraída com dois recentes reforços do nosso time. Estamos falando das instrutoras norte-americanas, Barbara
Van Fossen e Kelly Crosby. Simpáticas e receptivas, elas estão na ABA desde agosto, e relatam as primeiras
impressões que estão tendo do Brasil e da nossa gente. Aproveite para aprimorar seu vocabulário, pois a entrevista
está em Inglês.
News Club - What did you know about Brazil before coming here?
Barb - The World Cup showed the world that Brazilians love soccer. I had met some Brazilians other places I have
lived and they seemed to have a deep love and pride in their country. I had observed an ESL class with many
Brazilian students, prior to coming to Brazil and I was impressed by their confidence to state their opinion and stand
up for what they believe in. One of the big things I knew about Recife was that there was no chance of it ever
snowing here and there were beautiful beaches. I happily found this information to be true!
Kelly - Before I came, I had many Brazilian students, mostly from São Paulo. They told me as much as possible
about the northeast, although most of them hadn't been here before. They also taught me some Portuguese, which
really paid off in August, when I was struggling here with the language. I had been to Foz do Iguaçu in 1994. I also
was trying to learn from books, the internet and Brazilians.I knew that there would be so many things that I would
only be able to learn from being here.
NC - What was your first impression about Brazil ?
Barb - My first impression is a mixture of amazement and sadness. I am amazed with the amount of love here.
Families are very close and eager (ansioso) to spend time with each other. Everyone seems to pitch in (colaborar)
and help in family situations and by doing this a good time can be had by all. Another great impression I have of
Brazil is that many of the things I hate to do, such as cooking, cleaning, washing clothes, and ironing, can be done
for me! Having someone come to my home and take care of me is like a dream come true (realizar). Another part of
Brazilian life that I am amazed with is the women's love of fashion. I am often shocked at how daring (ousadia) the
women can be in their tight, small and sexy fashion. It is beautiful and Brazilian women wear it with flare. One can
not come to Brazil without the beaches being part of their memories. The beaches are absolutely breathtaking and I
can't spend enough time there. I think it is wonderful that Brazilians spend much time at the beach. Amongst all the
beauty I have experienced some sadness from living in Brazil. It is so unfortunate that many children have to sleep
on the street, beg (pedir, implorar) at the cars or tables, steal from people and are unable to get a good education and
later in life a decent job. The violence and lack of safety I have experienced living here has been a challenging part
of getting to know your wonderful city and country.
Kelly - My very first impression was that I would be spending a lot of time lost in Recife. Oh, how confusing the
roads are ! But then I noticed the people , how diverse they are in all aspects, and how they look to each other with a
lot of curiosity.I noticed that the ocean is central to so much here: Entertaiment, food, culture and economy. I also
had a hard time dealing with the sight of kids and adults on the streets, robbing (roubar) people, selling gum and
washing windows, and asking for food and money. This isn't just something that happens here, I know, but it'll
always be hard for me to accept and get used to.
NC - Now that you're here for 3 months, what do you think about Brazil and Brazilians ?
Barb - 3 months is so early to say. I'm enjoing my time so far but there is much I would like to do and eager to get to
know people better. I sure enjoy Recifolia, my frequent trips to beaches, the food and getting to know some of my
students and their families. I'm looking forward to exploring more of Recife and hope people will let me know their
favorite place to go.
Kelly - I think that 3 months gives me a better idea of life and culture here, but the more I know, the more I realize
that I still have to learn. I try to learn from everything I do. But I think Brazilians are people with a passion for life.
This is something that I find really impressive. I think our cultures are more different than I had expected, which
sometimes surprises me. Everything from gesture to food to music and dancing, fashion, language and the list goes
on and on...wow !