Brynn Barineau

Tag: Vitoria

  • Coconut Water in a Bottle

    Coconut Water in a Bottle

    I’d like to share a PSA I’m working on.

    “Hey kids, let’s talk about statistics!  Statistics are lame? Ok, how about, sex and statistics? Did you know there are lots of statistics about sex? Totally! People base entire careers off of pie charts illustrating issues about sex.  What issues?  Well, you could have data about how likely it is for someone above a certain age with a certain medical history to have a baby.  You could then pass this information along to doctors.  Doctors in turn pass it along to patients.  These doctors might even chuckle when the patient talks about continuing to use birth control for the time being, because the doctor knows the odds of pregnancy are so slim contraception isn’t necessary.  Then the patient and his partner, believing the doctor knows what he’s talking about, think it’s ok to go a few weeks without birth control.  Four months later the couple is researching baby names and picking out colors for the nursery.  Look kids, my point is that the only statistic about sex that really matters is ‘A small chance is NOT the same as no chance.”  Say it with me, ‘A small chance is NOT the same as no chance.’ ” -This message was brought to you by the US Department of Agriculture, for years bringing you numbing statistics such as raising child from birth to 17 costs $221,000 (not including the cost of time, sanity or college).

    A little wordy for a 30 second spot?  Maybe.  I could just make t-shirts that state in bold and all caps “A SMALL CHANCE IS NOT THE SAME AS NO CHANCE” and give one to, well, everybody .

    It’s an important lesson my husband and I have learned, because, obviously, the story above is ours.  I am currently 18 weeks pregnant.  We’re expecting a little girl August 26.

    Despite what my PSA might imply, we are excited.  Although, to be completely honest, it is has taken me a couple of months to reach that stage.  We always planned to have a family, but we were going to wait another year or two.  Being a person who sticks to any well-made plan the way others adhere to religion, I was thrown by this schedule change.  “Buying an apartment comes before having a baby!”  Then I looked at the big picture, the one where you see your entire life laid out, and I realized that having a baby after college, after grad school, after marriage, after employment, even if it’s still one year earlier than planned, is actually pretty darn good life planning.  Also, I started looking at baby stuff and discovered there is not a single item of clothing that does not become totally adorable when miniaturized.  OMG, baby socks!!

    Now that I’m far enough along, I’m comfortable posting about my pregnancy to the world.  This means Coconut Water will have lots of posts in the coming months about having a baby in Brazil.  Having read about expats in Rio, I already know having a baby in Vitoria is about half the cost as Rio for the same quality of care.  There will be posts about my doctor (love him!), raising bilingual kids, costs, hospitals, finding a nanny, coordinating family visits, etc. Between the new job and the new baby, I have so much to write about but right now I need to go edit essays.  So many posts, so little time.

  • Coolest extracurricular activity ever!

    Coolest extracurricular activity ever!

    I’ve spent the last couple of days editing essays.  I’m drowning in essays.  During a break, I watched a clip of the Daily Show where they showed a commentator ranting about how teachers are paid too much for a part-time job.  I envisioned ramming a two-inch stack of ungraded essays down his throat until he chocked.  It made me happy and reminded me that I still had about 20 essays left to grade.

    When not being used as a weapon, my student’s essays are also an endless source of amusement.  I fill entire dinner conversations relating what pearls of wisdom my kids have come up with.  The essays are also helping me compile a list of potential extra curricular activities available in Vitoria for any future Brazilian-Americans I have in my house.

    It’s fascinating to see what activities teenagers in the US and Brazil share and what activities are unique not just to Brazil but to Vitoria.

    It’s no surprise a kid in Vitoria can be a soccer player but I also have competitive basketball players, skateboarders and surfers as well.  Judo is pretty popular.  There are ballet studios and acting lessons. With my guitar players, drummers, pianists and singers, I can supply any event in Vitoria with a band.  One of my students has taken cooking lessons and runs a small business catering desserts for parties.  Another is a financier in the making, having taken classes on the stock market and started his own investment portfolio.

    But I think my favorite hobby, of all the hobbies I’ve read about, is competitive oceanic fishing.  It’s not my favorite because it’s anything I’d like to be proficient at myself but because it is such an utterly foreign activity to the suburban, Atlanta culture where I grew up.  Competitive oceanic fishing!  Maybe there were some kids in my school who regularly caught trout from the Chattahoochee River but nobody was heading to Australia to compete catching marlins.  Which is exactly what one of my students did.

    I mentioned this to my husband and he said “Oh sure, Vitoria is one of the best spots for oceanic fishing along Brazil’s coast.”  Huh, a new fact about Vitoria thanks to my students’ essays.  It seems one of the perks of being a teachers is that the learning goes both ways.

    Oceanic fishing is a skill I would never have thought to offer any of my future kids.  It wasn’t part of my childhood and I would not have made it part of theirs.  Now I know.  And if the kid doesn’t like fishing, there’s always surfing, sailing, samba dancing, cooking, judo and of course, soccer.

  • New job, new blog

    New job, new blog

    Almost two months since my last post.  I know.  Bad blogger, but I have an excuse.  I got a job.  A hard job.  And the blogging had to be put aside until I found my footing.  Let me explain.

    The last time I was required to show up for work five days a week was September, 2006.  As a result, I have been blind sided, chewed up, spit out, wrung out, and manhandled by a regular work schedule.  And I’m so much happier.

    When hired as a teacher at a private school here in Vitoria, the moment called for champagne, but I have to make a rather embarrassing confession.  While I believed teaching was a better job than no job at all, I deep down thought it was beneath my potential.  I truly believed teaching was a profession people joined who didn’t think they could make it in more competitive fields.  I had a truly brilliant roommate in college who was passionate about teaching and education, but I didn’t base my assessment of the field on her.  Rather, in my facebook colored perception of reality, I based my assessment on all the mediocre students I had gone to high school with who are now, according to their profiles, teachers.  If someone who barely passed biology could go on to be a science teacher how hard can the job be?

    When I get home at night my feet are throbbing. My voice is worn out.  My patience is gone.  I don’t have energy to care about what’s for dinner let alone remain standing long enough to make it.  I drift listlessly around my apartment from 9:30 to 10 because I just can’t go to bed before 10 but I can’t think hard enough to give myself any direction.  I’m asleep by 10:30.

    It’s pretty hard.

    I now know the people in the US currently complaining about cushy teacher salaries have never really considered what teaching entails.  There’s pretty much a consensus among people who have kids that raising them is hard.  Kids don’t pay attention. They don’t think.  They lack knowledge, motor skills, and basic hygiene often into adulthood.  Ideally parents come as a two person team but often one parent ends up in charge of the kids.  Again, we agree that one parent with two or three kids, “that’s a tough job.”  Teachers have 20 kids, all to themselves, for 180 days a year.

    Think about handling a herd of those adorable, self-involved, cognitively underdeveloped munchkins.  Now think about having them all day, every day.  Did I mention you have to do more than just keep them from gluing their hair together or cracking their head open as they lean back in their chair? No, preventing physical injury is not enough.  You must also keep their attention and help them learn something they didn’t know before coming to you.  You must stimulate their creativity and logical reasoning.  You are not allowed to send the slow ones, or the obnoxious ones, or the slightly smelly ones off into a corner.  You must work with all of them.

    To sum up, a teacher must take a group of kids, keep them safe, awake, focused and then improve them.  A teacher must send the kids home as better, more knowledgeable human beings every day or she is not doing her job.  Teaching requires creativity, improvisation, patience, public speaking, stamina, organization, diplomacy, all in addition to knowledge of the subject being taught.

    Any teacher making less than a six figure salary is underpaid.

    I am underpaid. But happy.  I was wrong about teaching.  It is an immensely rewarding challenge.  One I’m thoroughly enjoying.  Not that I would say no to a six figure salary.

  • Navy v. Army: A Brazilian Rivalry

    Navy v. Army: A Brazilian Rivalry

    This week the naval school here in Vitoria celebrated it’s 50th birthday. They marked the occasion with a series of events culminating in the unveiling of two commemorative stamps by the post office.

    In case you were caught off guard by the birthday or the fact people still make commemorative stamps, don’t worry. There was a big enough turnout among the naval community in Vitoria to keep the Commandante happy. As a former naval officer my husband is part of this community and I joined him at the Marine corps concert. Despite the unfortunate artistic decision to include “Can You feel the Love Tonight,” which was neither appropriate following Carmen nor improved by the addition of bagpipes, the band was excellent.

    I’ve been to a few Naval events during my time in Brazil and it took me a while to realize my husband was in the military during a military dictatorship.

    When asked “So, being part of an all powerful military, what was that like?” he explained that A) by the time he was an officer the military was ceding power and the country only a few years away from becoming a Democracy, B) supply officers don’t go on power trips and C) the navy was not really in power during the dictatorship.

    Here’s a little Brazilian history. The army has rivalry with the navy that goes beyond an annual sporting event and the dictators of the 20th century came exclusively from the army.

    Brazil has the 16th longest coastline in the world, 4,650 miles, and has one of the most extensive river systems in the world. Given this geography, the navy, already an important part of Portuguese culture before their arrival in Brazil, continued to be crucial to the develop and defense of the country. Both the Portuguese royalty during the colonial period and the Brazilian aristocracy during the empire were closely tied to the navy.

    When the republic was declared in 1889, it was the army funded by rich but not royal coffee farmers that overthrew the emperor. A people’s army was not eager to share power with an aristocratic navy.

    It was your typical armed forces rivalry. “The aristocracy always loved you best.” “Because you’re an undisciplined mess who never touches up the paint on your bases,” etc.

    The tension came to a head just a few years into the republic, in 1893, after some bungled governance and a president who ignored the constitution. Several high ranking officers and admirals sent a letter to the president (such nice manners those naval officers) calling for the constitutionally mandated elections. The president’s response was to issue arrest warrants for every officer who signed the letter.

    Rather than go to jail, naval officers in Rio de Janeiro attempted a coup and for several days Rio was under siege as the navy exchanged fire with the army. The navy failed to garner popular support, possibly because many of its officers were believed to be sympathetic to the monarchy, and those involved were forced to flee south where they were captured in 1894.

    Thus a rivalry was born. Fortunately today, both branches work in support of the democratically elected government. There’s still a competitive edge between them but it only manifests during school fencing and judo tournaments. Or who’s been issued the most commemorative stamps.

  • Behind the Scenes at Garoto Candy Factory

    Behind the Scenes at Garoto Candy Factory

    It’s not been a good week for healthy or even reasonable eating. My multi-helping Thanksgiving dinner was followed by a birthday dinner that consisted solely of red wine, red meat, and chocolate petit gateau. Topping the decadence of a rare filet wrapped in presunto is difficult but if you want to try, I suggest visiting a chocolate factory.

    Today, we visited the Garoto Chocolate Factory, the fourth and final thing to do when visiting Vitoria. Garoto is the brand of chocolate here in Brazil and while technically owned by Nestle nowadays, Garoto chocolates are 100% Brazilian.

    A factory whirring and buzzing away is one of the purest examples of human ingenuity. I was frequently hypnotized by the rhythmic filling and flipping of candy trays to the point I became completely unaware the guide was speaking. The production line is amazing. Each machine is perfectly timed, measured, programmed, and maintained. Here’s the process for one single candy, the famous (to anyone who has spent a month in Brazil) Serenata de Amor.

    Serenatas are chocolate coated balls, with crispy wafer shells surrounding a hazel nut creme filling. They are the overwhelming favorite among Garotos candies.

    First on the conveyor belt are the shells in long sheets. The shells arrive on the conveyor concave. They are flipped on a ferris wheel contraption before passing through a humidifier. They are rehydrated by 5% and I would love to know how long it took to determine 5% provided the optimum crunch.

    After their trip through the sauna, the shells are filled. Tubes running across the ceiling, labeled “clear filling”, squirt the filling into each half shell before sending the sheets down the conveyor to be pressed together. The now complete balls, still together in sheets, roll through a refrigerator to cool the filling. Then they’re cut into individual balls of yumminess.

    Finally, it’s time for the chocolate.

    We followed the conveyor belt into another room and the smell alone was enough to satisfy any chocoholics craving for months. The shells pass first through a cascade of dark chocolate, are cooled and then are drenched in milk chocolate. They are sorted and distributed along the conveyor belt to four different wrapping machines. I have no idea how these machines work. Candy went in naked and came out with neatly twisted wrapper. It happened too fast for the human eye.

    Just how fast? Depending on the setting, the machine can wrap between 850 to 1200 pieces in a minute. And there are four of these machines wrapping 24 hours a day. In a single day this factory produces 3.5 tons of Serenata de Amors.

    Of course the tasting stations along the way were gluttonous and generous enough to put you off chocolate until Easter (which the factory is already producing for), but it was seeing the production, spinning and whirring, perfectly timed that I enjoyed the most. The engineering on display gives me faith in humanity. If we can build a sauna for 3.5 tons of candy, can a pill that increases your metabolism on holidays and candy factory visits be far off? That would be pretty sweet!

  • O Convento Nossa Senhora da Penha

    O Convento Nossa Senhora da Penha

    I mentioned in a previous post the four attractions of Vitoria: 1) eating the regional fish stew more appetizingly called Moqueca, 2) visiting one of the beach towns just outside of the city, 3) visiting the 16th century Convento de Nossa Senhora da Penha and 4) visiting the Garoto Candy Factory.

    My husband and I recently did number three. We took a morning and wandered around what turned out to be a nun-free convent.

    The Convento da Penha is surprisingly not a convent at all. At least, when I heard “convent” I imagined a group of grumpy yet ultimately tender hearted women wearing black and all possessing phenomenal singing voices. I’m not Catholic but I saw the groundbreaking documentary Sound of Music and it’s contemporary follow-up Sister Act.

    Unfortunately, there are no nuns there today, nor have there ever been. The paintings of monks everywhere only confused me further. Clearly, “convento” has a different meaning in Portuguese.

    Because there was no soaring soprano, we had to be entertained by history and an interesting yet disturbing “Wall of Miracles.”

    The Wall of Miracles. People who have had their prayers answered by Nossa Senhora da Penha will post thank you messages on her wall. (No kids, Nossa Senhora is not on facebook. There’s an actual wall.)

    It’s a lovely concept that ends up being darn creepy. Many people have said thank you with pictures of the gaping wounds and mauled limbs that were saved. Or with locks of hair. Few things creep out like 30 year-old locks of hair. Gross!

    One of the older “thank you” walls, comfortingly free of human hair.

    The city of Vila Velha is just across the bridge from Vitoria. For those who know Rio, the relationship between Vitoria and Vila Velha is more like Zona Sul and Barra than Rio and Niteroi.

    People who live in Vila Velha talk about the low cost of an apartment by the beach and those in Vitoria say “Yeah, but you have to live in Vila Velha at least an hour away from anyplace you’d actually like to be.”

    Here’s one of the Convento’s original telephones they’ve successfully restored. There’s a fund accepting donations if you’d like to help with the restoration of the original snack bar.

    It’s worth visiting the Convento if only for the spectacular views of Vitoria and Vila Velha. My only complaint is that after spending an entire morning there, I still don’t know which Mary sighting Nossa Senhora da Penha refers to. Can anyone help me out here?

    Next stop on our tour of Vitoria, the Garoto Candy Factory tour! Our tour is scheduled for a week from Monday. We’ve been instructed to wear long pants and no jewelry. Sounds more hardcore than my tour of Hershey World.

  • Dear Rio, It’s not you. It’s me.

    Dear Rio, It’s not you. It’s me.

    Dear Rio,

    I don’t really know where to start. It’s not easy to write this. I guess let me first say that you will always have a special place in my heart. The fours years we spent together were some of the happiest and most challenging years of my life. The sunny day strolls around Lagoa. Sipping coconut water next to the beach. We had some wonderful times together.

    It’s not you. It’s me. Well, no. It really is you. I mean, you do have some serious issues. Let’s be honest

    It’s both of us. We both know things weren’t perfect. In the end we’re not compatible. Even during the happy times there was always tension just below the surface.

    You are a blast. The definition of fun loving. Up for a dance party or round of beers every night of the week. And you do like the people. Always inviting more and more, until I can’t hear myself think. With you it’s always the more the merrier. Now, I’m not complaining. It’s who you are. But it’s not who I am.

    You don’t need me. With your amazing looks and fun loving spirit you will always have a string of lovers. Rio, you are truly breathtaking. A sight to behold. But I’m looking for more than just a pretty landscape. It’s what inside that counts with me.

    I know you have a violent side. You never showed it to me and for that I am thankful, but I’ve seen what you can do to others. I have to think about the future and I don’t want to raise kids in that kind of environment.

    Also (we’ve always been honest with each other so I have to tell you) you’re letting yourself go in some areas. All the pollution: air, water and noise. The crumbling sidewalks and potholes. The perpetual traffic jam. You’re not two centuries old anymore. For your own sake, and for those who love you, it’s time to start maintaining yourself.

    Now comes the hardest part. You deserve the truth and you deserve to hear it from me. The thing is, I’ve started seeing someone else. We’ve only been together about two months but, well, I think it was love at first sight. Her name is Vitoria and she’s everything I’m looking for.

    It has nothing to do with you. I need to stop denying who I truly am. The truth is, I love it both ways. I enjoy the activities and culture of urban life and the security and quiet of small town living. Vitoria, she gives me what I need.

    Yes, she’s younger but that’s not the reason. I’ve never been as outgoing as you. I like quiet and tranquility. I like to sit on my balcony and hear nothing but the birds. I want to walk down the street without feeling rushed and tense.

    She also makes me feel special. You can’t deny you’ve got a thing for foreigners. You just keep bringing more and more home. Did you honestly think you could keep thousands of expatriates a secret from me? For you, I’m just one of many.

    But for Vitoria, I’m special. She reminds how unique and therefore highly employable I am. Everyone wants to feel appreciated. Everyone wants to be one of a kind and for Vitoria, I am.

    I’ll end with goodbye and thank you. Thank you for the good times. Thank you for helping me learn what it is I’m looking for. I’ll think of you every time I’m nearly run over by a bus.

    Beijos,
    Brynn

  • The Delicious Moqueca Capixaba

    The Delicious Moqueca Capixaba

    When visiting Vitoria there are exactly four things to do: 1)spend the day at one of the nearby beach towns, 2) visit the Garoto candy factory, 3) see the 16th century Convento da Penha and 4) stuff your face with Moqueca.

    Moqueca (pronounced Mookecka) can generally be described as a fish stew. Or, more accurately, the greatest fish stew ever made. There are two kinds of Moqueca in Brazil, Moqueca Baiana and Moqueca Capixaba. The basic ingredients are the same for both, fish, onions, tomatoes, garlic, and cilantro.

    The Moqueca Baiana, from the state of Bahia, uses dende oil (a kind of palm oil) and coconut milk

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    The Dende Palm

    The Moqueca Capixaba, from Espirito Santo, draws more from native Brazilian cuisine. Traditionally, it’s cooked in a pot made with black clay and tree sap. The stew is colored using arucum, a natural pigment made from the urucu flower. Moqueca Capixaba uses olive oil instead of dende and doesn’t have coconut milk.

     

     

     

     

     

     

    The urucu flower

    Which version of Moqueca is tastiest? Well, that depends on which Brazilian you ask. Unfortunately, I’ve not had the Baiana version in order to declare definitively that the Capixaba version is better, but I can say the Moqueca Capixaba is not just a dish. It’s an experience.

    If ordering a Moqueca, I recommend having a very early, light breakfast and foregoing food for the rest of the day. If you’re a calorie counter, you might as well plan on not eating for the preceding 24 hours. You should also have the afternoon blocked off for napping. There is no strolling or sight seeing after this meal.

    You’ll be able to choose what kind of fish you want, but in Espirito Santo it’s almost always a kind of hard, white fish. My husband and I always order dorado. That is a hearty fish. We also like to have a shrimp sauce. As you can see the restaurant in Ubu is pretty generous with their shrimp.

    In addition to the stew, you’ll also get white rice, piraõ (a fish juice goo, very tasty) and Moqueca Banana (amazing!). Our favorite place also includes a delicious and totally unnecessary fried shrimp appetizer.

    Everything is brought to the table in a steaming, bubbling collection of black pans. The steam rising off the stew is so thick for a few seconds you can’t see across the table. Serving yourself is like dipping into a witch’s cauldron.

    There is no better way to spend an afternoon than gorging on Moqueca followed by a long, quiet nap on the beach. It’s become our Saturday routine, weather permitting. We always love company, so shoot me an email if you’d like to join us sometime.

    The Moqueca pictures were taken at Moqueca do Garcia, on Ubu beach, directly in front of the sea. Find Ubu and you find Garcia.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

  • Ubu, our hidden gem

    Ubu, our hidden gem

    For me, one of the greatest pleasures life in Vitoria has to offer is the opportunity to visit a gorgeous beach, on a gorgeous day. Can’t I do that in Rio? Yes, but I have to share the beach with 1 million other people. I don’t really like to share. That’s why I prefer this little, hidden gem called Ubu.

    The coast of Espirito Santo is lined with small beach towns. The relatively small population of the state will head out every weekend and drive to one of the three or four beaches within an hour of their homes. If you’re willing to drive an hour and half, you can have the beach to yourself.

    Yesterday was a perfect beach day. It was the kind of day against which all other beach days are judged. A blue sky with a few clouds like stretched out cotton balls. The temp was in the 80s and a constant strong breeze made everything perfect. There were not more than 30 people on the beach. A gorgeous beach, on a gorgeous day and we got it all to ourselves.

    I’d tell you how to get to Ubu, but then you might actually come.

    And did I mention the moqueca restaurant in front of the beach?

    The famous Moqueca Capixaba deserves and will receive its own post. To be continued…