pra frente, pra frente, cintura, cabeça, buhdaduhdaduh

CARNAVAL!!!!!

friday was my first day of carnaval. it was so exciting from the moment i woke up. rosie came to do everyone's mani/pedi. i went crazy, of course, and put on every single color she had with her. then i refashioned my camarote shirt. for some reason, the most A-list camarote in salvador had the worst looking shirts. they were huge, stiff, felt like a hospital gown, and were covered in (what they call "propaganda") advertisements. the labels had to remain in tact, so i had to be imaginative and work around them. i ended up crocheting the sides to make it smaller all around and braiding the sleeves into a tank top. i was pleased. next came the hair and make up. all morning i had been walking around with my head covered in tiny blue curlers, they made for a great mop of extra curly hair that i transformed into a mohawk, add a dash of lime green eye shadow and some mascara and i was ready to go... oh wait! the glitter! ok now, now im ready.

we drove into salvador in 3 cars to fit everyone. maya's car broke down right before we got there. we were stuck in traffic on a one way street being used as a two way, and sitting at a 78 degree slant. her people packed car overheated and we were forced to abandon it on the side of the road. eventually, and surprisingly quite easily, we got there. the streets teaming with people, vendors, smoke, and trucks. we formed a long line, holding onto the person in front and in back. we walked a few blocks until, there it was. the ocean side avenue filled with more people than i have ever seen in one place. the people were going, the bands were going, and i was ready to get going.

we stood in a very short line to get into the camarote. i pulled out my name tag and had it scanned and was granted the privilege to enter into the VIP obis. we all climbed a flight of wooden stairs and entered into a white room filled with magenta spirally wooden trees and stands for everything; masks, jewelry, shirt accessories, popcorn, ice cream, cachaça, some kind of shrimp food... and everything was free! you could just walk up and take what ever you wanted. there were trunks filled with scarves, water bottles, pins, headbands, perfume, chocolate, bags... everything. now, this was just the entrance room to the camarote. down a long wooden hall lead to another, wider black stone hallway. this was where it started. tables filled with people working on their computers, corners filled with costumes to take pictures in, feather girls in tall stilettos walking by, and beautiful people, everywhere.

through this hallway you entered the first floor. this was filled with round, red velvet couches and bars of food and drinks. toward the front people stood looking down through the open wall at the carnaval below. on either side were smaller booths for the VIP of the VIP. you needed a special red bracelet to get in there, which i didn't have (but it was not that cool anyway). at the back of the room was a large stair case to bring you to the second/main floor. on this floor was the salon where you could get your hair, makeup and mani/pedis for free, there was a night club and the main dining area. past the dining area were another set of VVIP boxes and a viewing area of the pipoca below. they call the outside/street part of carnaval "pipoca", which means "popcorn", because everyone jumps around following the trios like a bunch of popping corn.

this venue was huge. the ceilings the height of 2 floors and so vast you could hardly see from one side to the other, not to mention the thousand people creating a visual obstacle course. it was loud, each floor playing their own kind of music. the carnaval outside was playing all kinds of music and the club inside was playing all kinds of music. i am like a moth to electric music, so i was stuck inside the club for hours, only breaking to grab some chocolate or a cup of ice and give my legs a break.

at one point i went outside to the pipoca with dave and leda to feel what it is like for most people. we jumped around with the rest of the 2 million people dancing to the band playing from the balcony of our camarote. very quickly the band was over and a trio (a giant float/bus for the music artists to sing and dance on) started coming down the street. they move very slowly but in front and behind the trios there are ropes to keep out the street people and keep in the people following the trio. once this rope comes near you, you run. all of sudden people are pushing and shoving and running. i thought a fight was going on the way people were moving, but then i realized it was the giant machine heading toward us. we easily got out of the way, being carried by the crowd and watched from a perpendicular street as the trio crept by.

our night ended around 5am eating the left over ice cream bars and dancing to a drum circle that had been formed by a large group of clowns. at 5am the streets were still going. the party had not slowed down at all. we pressed through the crowds of people and urine smelling streets, back to the car. arriving home, safely and rather quickly to a bag of fresh portuguese rolls that were still warm and lots of water.

we did this all over again the next night, only it was way more subdued. tired, hungover and more of the same, we all found each other sitting on a round, red velvet couch watching the carnaval going on around us. we happily left around midnight feeling enough satisfaction from the night before, and with more free things.

yesterday was time for the kids to have their carnaval. we traveled down town to pelourinho, my favorite part of salvador, and took the elevator up from the lower city. the upper city was full of kids running around in costumes and giant clowns on stilts, bands of people playing drums and dancing, and a lot of string spray... you know that creamy, soapy stuff that comes in a bottle, you spray it and it shoots out like spiderman's web. everywhere you looked, white strings filled the sky and covered peoples hair. i was lucky enough to be handed a full bottle and began a war with my nephew and a random boy dressed as the scream guy. it was a blast until the white melted into soap and every part of my body stuck to itself. the night was fun and innocent, and ended early.

tomorrow is the last night of carnaval and the city of salvador re-opens after a week of indulgence and a handful of the seven deadly sins. it is amazing how a city as large as salvador can survive a week without anything being open. all the stores and restaurants have been closed. only a very few mom and pop type shops remain in business for emergency food runs... oh and of course the chinese restaurant down the street.

to see it with my own eyes...

i currently have 9 days left in salvador and 11 days total in the country of brasil. now that the time is drawing to a close, i am realizing that if i wish to see, do and feel things while i am still here... i am the only person that can make that happen. that goes for anything in life. you are the only one who can make you who you are...

leda's dance student, aldren lincoln (who was named after buz aldren and abe lincoln) picked me up on his motorcycle from the university. this was my first time on a motorcycle... and man, was it fun. my fear passed immediately and joyful laughter took its place. we curved along the bending road that followed the ocean's bay and talked about the massive camarotis (cah-mah-doe-chi) that are being built for the upcoming carnival. we arrived in porto de barra (bah-ha), parked the bike and walked down to the umbrella filled beach...

the day was peaceful, sussa... we talked in portuguese (because he could not speak much english) about many things, laughing at each other's accents and grammar. the water was so crystal blue, you could see straight to the bottom no matter how deep and a perfect cooling warm. we swam for ages in the bay's calm, undulating water. about 3 feet in the sand beneath you plummeted, and suddenly you could no longer touch. over and over we would count to three and dive down, kicking our feet to the far depths to grab a hand full of sand, then push ourselves off the bottom and surface to laughter and the sparkling water.

we laid more, talking and laughing. we walked a bit, taking pictures of one another. i felt like a child. i was happy. i had not a thing in the world to weigh me down. there were no pressures, no obligations, just me, the sun and a new friend. we got back on the bike and arrived at the farol, the fort which was once used as a watch base for in coming war attacks. the giant black and white building sat upon a great hill. around it's back the hill dropped off to meet the ocean below. the sun sat perfectly in the center of the sky and the water created the most beautiful swells. they looked like rings caused by massive vibrations. the surfers floated peacefully in the water and we sat on the hill watching the sun get lower and lower. just before the sun began it's setting, we climbed the huge mound of jetties that sat next to the farol. the massive ball took about 85 seconds to set completely once it hit the horizon. the waves below would smash against the rocks, spraying upward into the colorful rays. it was like a postcard, everywhere.

soon after it was dark and we climbed back on the bike and met up with dave and leda before heading home.

the night before we went to the dunas, aka dunes. they run for miles and miles in all directions just outside of lauro de freitas (where i am staying). after a 15 minute car ride we came upon these giant hills of the purest white sand. at first you think you are looking at snow, but when you realize you're standing in 95 degree weather in a tank top and shorts... you remember that bahia doesn't get snow.

we walked and walked through the nothing. there were hardly any colors at all. white, green and a few specks of dusty red. we arrived just in time for the sun set and the sky was full of pinks and purples and greys. we climbed the biggest mountain to see the view of the city and the ocean below us. dave had brought a long wooden board for sand sledding, which was way more fun than normal sledding! up and down and up and down. we were all constantly panting and smiling, we even brought one of the dogs down with us! it was quite the experience, and i'll never forget it.

yesterday was a day of rest. after so much excitement packed into 2 days (which was desperately needed), i enjoyed the idea of nothing. my body sore and my brain exhausted, i spent most of my day on the roof deck reading and spending time with myself. around 5pm i went for a walk down to the beach with alici, in perfect time for another beautiful sunset.

p.s. if you click on the pictures you can see them bigger!