Obviously, one of the most important things about my time in Brazil has been learning Portuguese and how it's used in everyday speech. A few weeks ago I was asked what my favorite word in Portuguese so far was. And I had trouble coming up with just one, but some of the words like the most are the ones that are exactly the same in English. Because the pronunciations are completely different. So, rock (pronounces "hockey"), reggae ("heggie"), and shorts ("shorchies") are all good examples of those.
Then there are the English words that are adapted that have different meanings than they do in English. So an underscore (_) is called an "underline". And others that I wish I could remember right now.
As for the Portuguese language itself, there are a couple of really interesting things to me. First, people rarely use the word for "we" that is normally taught in Portuguese textbooks ("nós"). Instead, they use the words "a gente", which otherwise means "the people". So, a common phrase meaning "We're leaving" is "A gente vai embora". Just think it's an interesting way to refer to a group of people. And people also use the word to mean "people" so it's a bit strange to me.
Another interesting this is the way that people respond to questions. I learned early on that "yes" and "no" are pretty uncommon when somebody asks if you've done something or if you have something. So, if someone asked me if I had a book, for example, ("Tem o livro?"), the most appropriate way for me to respond would be to say, simple "I have" ("Tenho"), the book kind of going unmentioned. Or, maybe my host mom asked me if I went to class ("Foi à aula?"). Instead of saying yes, the most common way to respond would be to say, simply, "I went" ("Fui"). Not that we don't do this in English, I just rarely heard any Brazilian respond "yes" or "no" to these kinds of questions. It's weirder when people are asking if you have objects, I guess.
One of the words that people often comment about when they talk about Portuguese is "saudades". Wikipedia even has a page on it! So I'll just steal from them. It's more or less a feeling of nostalgia or of missing something, but not necessarily in a sad way. More of in the way of remembering the good things about the person/place/thing that once was with you and the hope that it will be once again. I like the phrase "the love that stays" to describe it. From the Wikipedia page: "Saudade is the recollection of feelings, experiences, places or events that once brought excitement, pleasure, well-being, which now triggers the senses and makes one live again".
I kind of stop agreeing with the entry after that. It really isn't an empty feeling, but more of a fullness that one gets from remembering what they no longer have. So it's missing, but in a nostalgic and happy way. So yeah, it doesn't really translate well.
Anyways, it's an appropriate point to end on because unfortunately I've had to make an early exit from SIT and Brazil to address to medical issues at home. Nothing very serious, but I did have to miss our last trip to the South of Pará to visit with the MST, the largest social movement in Latin America. So maybe if my friends back in Belém keep me well updated and I search my brain I'll have more things to post on but otherwise this is it! I had a wonderful time in Brazil and it was a heartbreaking having to leave, but things happen beyond our control sometimes, so I'm back in Pittsburgh for the next couple of months until spring semester starts in January.
Thanks to all of you folks who read! I hope it was at least minimally informative! And not entirely boring...
Be well!
