Category: Culture

For a long time, I would get annoyed at the way people walk on the streets of Salvador: 1) Slowly 2) Illogically – sometimes people seem to change their …

It’s interesting to come back to one’s home country on vacation before returning to the normal rhythm of work, play, congregation, laundry, rent payments, etc. somewhere else! Being here …

This poem was published in Caxixi issue n. 2, in March 2001. I found a copy in the FICA archives and it is just too good not to share! …

Just before my departure from NY, a bunch of us went to a concert with Brazilian musician Jair Oliveira. One of our friends – from Bahia – was excited …

5 ways NYC beats Salvador 1. The public transportation system. The subway can take you practically anywhere, AND we have buses and taxis as well. It’s unusual to wait …

What I like about New York The incredible diversity of the city. There are so many ethnicities and subcultures! My neighborhood has a Brazilian, Greek, Arab, and Italian population. …

  This is going to be much harder than I thought. It’s not about reverse culture shock – objectively musing about how tough it is to eat dinner at …

It’s funny being fluent in a second language. I’ve hit the point where Bahians sometimes hesitate because they’re not sure whether to ask me what part of Brazil or …

I had an amusing moment of exaggeration yesterday. For a long time I’ve kind of puzzled at the fact that foreigners go wild over capoeira, practice and research it …

“Who are you?” a boy asked his father. The father replied, “I am the link between you and your grandfather.” There’s so much to learn in capoeira that the …