NOS VAMOS

ROLLING ROLLING ROLLING ROLLING!!!!!!
DATE: Tuesday, April 16, 2013
LOCATION: Mafra / Rio Negro / Canoinhas

Today was a bittersweet day and "impossible" to forget. We had to say goodbye to the great people we meet in Mafra / Rio Negro and head out to Canonihas.  After an exhilarating 2 hour car ride we arrived in Canoinhas, which means "small canoe". After dropping off our things at a local hotel we met up with some Rotarians at a restaurant to dine on the typical Brazilian buffet lunch.

Once our bellies were stuffed we headed to a local brewery called Cervejaria Canoinhense. The establishment used a traditional style of making beer and  even used recycled bottles. The decor of the brewery was unique. Our group leader classified the style as "artisanal". I think she just pulled the term off the sign. The brewery offered four types of beer and seemed to be frequented by the college students from across the street.

Karen Buffet Livre and Two Platos Christopher stand outside the brewery

After partaking in the local libations, we were off to meet members of city council and the mayor. I know, great event to have after drinking, right. Thankfully none of us consumed enough to show up on any breath-a-lizer test and none of us were driving. On a serious note, Brazil has a zero tolerance policy for drinking and driving. If you are caught driving with any alcohol in your system you face fines and suspension of your drivers license. Once we arrived at the city council building we were meet by local administrators and the head of city council. We learned some interesting facts about the function of city council in Canoinhas and were even allowed to sit in their seats. Upon completing our tour of the city council chamber we walked over to the city hall building. There we were greeted by the mayor and members of his administration. He gave us insight into several different aspects of life in Canoinhas including it becoming a desirable place for big city dwellers to move to in order to improve their quality of life as well as the laptop program were they gave out 6,000 new laptops to students in their school system.   

City Council Building

City Council Chamber 

Please don't let me have the 1st secretary write down your comments sir nor have the 2nd secretary have your request stamped denied

City Hall Building

The Mayor of Canoinhas sipping on Chimarrao

Later on in the evening we were invited to one of the local Rotarians house's to indulge in a southern Brazilian churrasco (barbecue). There was a lot of meat, freijo (a type of black beans and rice), cachaca ( a type of liquor), music, and dancing. Thanks to Marcos, (a.k.a "Big Country") for helping us with the additional translation. Overall, it was a beautiful evening. On the way back to the hotel I experienced something for the first time ever in my life. As I sat in the back seat of the car gazing into the abundance of stars in the night sky, I was amazed at how many more stars I could see in the countryside of Brazil than in the countryside United States. There seemed to be clusters of stars everywhere. As I was trying to wrap my mind around this thought, out of seemingly nowhere, a shooting star streaked across the night sky leaving a small white trail. At that moment I was in awe of  what GOD had created and I felt deeply great full for the GSE opportunity to visit the beautiful country of Brazil.