I want to title everything - Random stuff..

So I'm going into week three and things are slowly getting better. Work is getting more promising and I'm more comfortable with my neighborhood. I took a little walk around for a few hours on Sunday to find where things are and what is within walking distance. There still is a lot to wander around, but I try not to get too lost so I tend to stay closer to home. My Portuguese is still pretty rough, but recently I've tried a new tactic of just talking. Not focusing on being 100% correct, but just going for it. My Portuguese classes have started up again as well so that will help. I have class two days a week for 1.5 hours. This is nice, but that also means I have homework again and I really really really don't like doing the homework! After Purdue, I'm not interested in any more homework.

I've also started looking into some trips around that might be fun to take. Brazil is certaintly a huge country (5th largest in the world!) and I want to see as much as I can. Of course all of South America is tempting to go explore as well! Everything seems so close and accessible now that I'm already down here. So I'm starting a small list of places and working on crossing them off. Although I realized that I have a small problem. I'm almost out of pages in my passport... I have to get to Sao Paulo to the embassy to get new pages added - it will cost me $82 which I think is crap! Now the trick is finding time to go when the embassy is open! I'll manage though I'm sure :) It's sort of a fun problem to have really. Anyway - here are some photos from my recent weeks. Enjoy!

My first real dinner in my apartment. Spinache linguine with tomatoes, onions, and chicken breast. It was actually mighty tasty. And yes, that is freshly grated Parmesan cheese on top.

This single's bar is mighty close to my apartment. It makes me a bit uncomfortable... I think the name bothers me most of all.

I stumbled upon a store that apparently sells naked mannequins. If they sold clothes as well, I couldn't tell.

I should be living here I think... more my scene anyway

Translation: Floors, stairs, decks, tacos... I'm missing something I'm sure.

This one is for you mom! I live right next to a fancy clinic where they apparently have microscopes and such to do their fancy tests!

The Indaiatuba Rodeo?! Heck yes I'm going to try to go!!

My building has the worlds smallest pool. There is no trickery of the lens here, the pool really is only about two chase lounge lengths long... and 90cm deep.

Wanting to Remaining Authentic

I believe a large part of keeping a blog authentic is when you share the less-than-perfect parts of life. It would be easy to only post the shiny, happy moments with friends and humor. However, that wouldn't be all true - and it wouldn't be real.

When I moved to India in college, I broke down and cried on my first night there. I had been traveling for over 27 hours at that point. I was tired, I was hot, I was scared. I cried and questioned what I was doing there and why I ever left home. I got through that and had one of the most incredible experiences of my life.

It took me two weeks - 14 days to the day to cry here in Brazil. I knew it would happen at some point and part of me expected it to happen sooner. I wrote this to Ben in an email which I think really sums up the way that transitions like this feels:

I knew it would be hard, but knowing that doesn't make it less hard nor does it mean that I'm not allowed to feel overwhelmed, scared, lonely etc. There aren't tools for this - I learned that in India. There is only time.

You can equip yourself with as much information and knowledge as possible to help you ease into a new place and new stage in life. But no matter what you know, the feelings that you have when you go through it are something you cannot prepare for because you don't know what you will feel. You don't know when you'll feel them or where you'll be or what will trigger the waves of anxiety.

I was sitting on the bus on the way home from work and for no real reason I was fighting back tears. It's really sudden, but the feeling usually subsides just as quickly. It's challenging to be sitting with a group of people in a bus or car and all of a sudden you are choked up because something reminded you that you don't quite fit here just yet. I think that might be a large part of the challenge is simply not fitting and not knowing how to make yourself fit.

I miss my family. I miss my friends. I miss my friends that feel like family. I miss the familiar things. I miss understanding conversations.

However, because all thoughts should end happy - I'm loving my new friends here. I'm loving my new family of friends. I'm learning how to make things familiar. And in time... I might be able to have a conversation of my own. It can only get better from the tears.

Stretching at work?! (Days 10-12)

Twice a day there is a trainer of sorts who comes into the office and performs about 10 minutes of "gymnastics" with all the office staff. We do stretches and light resistance training with stretch bands. Sometimes we have other props. Twice a day this happens; and twice a day I nearly loose it laughing as a group of us stand in a circle trying in vein to touch our toes.

These trainers do this for the entire plant, including the line operators to keep them moving and to help avoid fatigue. As silly as I feel while I'm doing it, it feels nice when I'm done. It helps perk me up around 3pm that is for sure! It is amazing what just 10 minutes of standing and stretching can do to keep you alert.

Planning to have dinner with Sandra, Carolina, Pia, and a few others tonight. We are going to a seafood place and I'm pretty excited! I'll try to remember to snap a few pictures.

An assortment of items (days 8-9)

A few photos...

This is Sandra - she is awesome

This is a very tasty snack/dessert made with Acai berries, bananas, honey, yogurt, and granola. It is basically a really thick smoothie that you eat with a spoon. Sandra and I shared this at a cute little cafe in Peruibe. This is the coastal town where her parents live and where I spent my first weekend in Brazil!
This is the "warning" posted in my shower. I'm not sure how warm and pleasant water is something that requires a warning sign though.

I bought this shampoo believing it says "chaos therapy" and thinking that was a wildly cleaver name for a shampoo and it must clearly be to help tame frizzy and unruly hair. After purchasing and further investigation "Cachos" is in fact not the same word as "chaos." It is, however, the Portuguese word for "curls." So in the end, I still probably purchased the best shampoo for my wavy locks and I am only mildly disappointed that Chaos Therapy isn't on the market.
Sandra and I walked a farmers market today where I enjoyed my first pastel! Pastel is like a large, rectangular shaped empanada-esque food. It is filled with a variety of meats or cheeses and then served with an option of salsas and hot sauces. It is quite unhealthy I'm sure (as friend bread tends to be...) but is also quite delicious! I am enjoying a frango pastel in this picture (shredded chicken and yummy spices)

These are the biggest figs I've ever seen. I will be purchasing a lot of these as I thoroughly enjoy a good fig, and they are like $2 a box...

Mangostein!! I couldn't believe my luck in finding this delicious fruit! They are just as expensive here as in the States, despite not being imported (around $1.75 each) but I bought two anyway. There are just beyond yummy and I cannot wait for them to get nice and ripe!

Apartment tour 3/3 (day 7)

So I was finally permitted to upload the last bit of my apartment tour. I hope you enjoy it. I'm warming up to the place a bit and slowly getting the things I need to be happy here.



Today I did my first big grocery shopping trip. It was an adventure for sure. I basically ended up with some fish (I have no idea how to cook), some eggs, a package of veggie burgers, a loaf of bread, onions, tomatoes, garlic, pasta, tomato sauce, hot sauce, olive oil and salt. I had to buy like a kilo of salt though and it took me a really long time to find just plain salt, as in NaCl, not salt and monosodium glutamate and more. At this point, I'm not even hungry any more. Cereal and bed sound pretty good.

Hope all is well at home - miss it a lot!

First days at the work (days 4-6)

My first few days at work have been an adventure in language skills and professional development. I've had dozens of conversations with the administrative assistant about my apartment situation, legal issues around registering with the federal police, getting my insurance arranged, etc. And there is still much to do in all of these areas (makes you wonder what the HR department does all day when they never seem to be able to help you). I spoke withe the plant manager about my role and my expectations. I've been on a handful of tours around the plant. I've eaten in the cafeteria, and I've twiddled my thumbs a good bit too.

My job is pretty straight forward. Reduce 'give-away' or over pack in the factory. This is when we fill more than the declared amount on pack. For example we have 1kg cartons of detergent, we actually fill it with 1.05kg of detergent. This is 5% 'give-away'. The economics of this are huge when you multiply out 5 grams by the volume produced at the plant. The reason it is going to take me a year, is because the solution is not so straight forward. Also, the plant is using this project as a guide for training their managers on Six Sigma. The plan is for me and a few others to begin six sigma training using 'give-away' as our project. Ideally this will result in the group being black belt certified in six sigma in addition to saving the company, millions -quite literally.

I also took a mini-video tour of my apartment so people can see where I am living. I had to do it in 3 parts partially because of my camera's limitations, and partially because of user error. However the 3rd part isn't cooperating and will not upload (probably more user error). I'll work on getting the 3rd part up, but enjoy the first two! I'll try to remember to take another tour when my things arrive and I have made the space a bit more 'homey'.

Hope all is well at home! Miss you all!!

Apartment Tour 1/3



Apartment tour 2/3

First Few Days (days 1-3)

Well.... my first days in Brazil were quite a whirlwind, a wonderful whirlwind, but never the less a whirlwind.

As I mentioned in my other post, my friend Sandra came and picked me up from my apartment and took me straight to her parents house along the coast just south of Sao Paulo. It was a wonderful visit. Her family was so kind and compassionate, I couldn't have been invited by more hospitable people. Sandra has twin sisters who were there as well along with one of the sister's husbands. So it was a full house of 7 but we managed really well. I almost forgot - 2 dogs also! So lots going on all the time. Sandra was very kind and played translator for me all weekend because my Portuguese is pretty bad. We did a lot of eating and hanging out. One day Sandra and I walked the beach. It wasn't very nice weather, warm but overcast so it wasn't good for laying out. I learned very quickly that I will need to buy a bikini. No one, I mean no one wears a one-piece here. It doesn't matter your body shape, you are in a bikini. So in the spirit of being in Brazil, I will need to invest.

Today we came back to Campinas a bit on the early side and did some things locally. Sandra took me to the mall and I bought two new books to read (because I don't really have much to do and reading is a good activity). I was surprised by the English book selection, for a foreign country it was quite extensive. We also talked to a few cell phone providers about my options for a cell phone. It is going to be a bit expensive I think, but I will just have to be careful with when and how I use it. Basically only to receive calls and make a few - text messages will be a minimum I think. After our mall experience we headed out to have dinner with another friend from the Hammond days, Camila. It was great to see her and it sounded like everything is going well in her world.

Now I am back in my apartment, but I think I'm going to ask to be moved... this isn't really going to work for the long run. I'll do a detailed post about this if/when I have resolution.

Tomorrow is my first day at the plant, I am pretty nervous! I have no idea what to expect, but I am sure glad that I have a stock of Clif Bars, because who knows what tomorrow will bring!

I made it!!!

I landed safely in Brazil, breezed through customs, and was picked up by my Unilever driver without any issues at all! I am in my apartment/hotel now and it is quite nice, very simple and basic but it will work well enough.

I was able to contact with my friend Sandra very easily as well and she invited me to the beach with her to visit her family for the weekend. So, my first day in Brazil, I am already on vacation!!

Pictures and more details to come - but for now, I am safe, I am happy, and I am feeling good about this adventure!!!

And so it begins... Another Adventure!

Tomorrow at 9:45PM I will be sitting on a plane (in business class!!!) on the tarmac at John F. Kennedy airport in New York. This plane will take me to the other side of the world - literally to the southern half of our globe. I'm off to Brazil to start my next rotation with Unilever.

I have my visa (after some struggles...)

I have my ticket (after some struggles...)


I have a place to live (after some struggles...)

And I have a job (after some struggles shouldered by other people whom I thank a thousand times over...).


I don't speak the language, yet. I don't know the technology, yet. I don't understand the culture, yet. In a year - hopefully I will speak Portuguese, I will know the technology, and I will understand the Brazilian culture.

I think I am ready.


I'm not ready. I'm never ready... but here we go again!