One week off...

... so that I may enjoy this:

And this:

And also this:

How I long for tomorrow! I really need some time to rest. January was supposed to be for holidays, but I've been working hard since the New Year's eve. =P

Hope you enjoy your Summer/Winter as much as I will enjoy mine. ;-)

Credits: all videos by Sander. Thanks!

City Park/ Stadtpark

"A promise is a debt", we say in Brazil. So here are more photos of Beagá, as the inhabitants of Belo Horizonte name it.

Parque Municipal is a place remembered by most of those who, like me, spent their childhood here. However, the older I am the more I like it. Unlike anything we have in Belo Horizonte, it is a green spot amidst the chaos and the turmoil of our downtown. Yeah,you can still hear the noisy traffic, but if you get in involved by the nice atmosphere you're probably going to forget it.

Built in the style of Belle Epoche, it was meant to be similar to NY's Central Park in its original concept. However one very "visionary" major, sold more than half of the area of the park, so that business buildings and hospitals could be built in one the most expensive areas of the city... 

Besides the gardens, there are some playgrounds and (coff... coff...) attractions for kids. Curiously they are the very same ones since I was a kid... which is quite a lot of time, hehe. But children still enjoy them, which is something parents and educators should keep in mind - children need (and like) simple things in life. =) 

Clockwise we have:

1. Ray: enslaved ponies, which mom and dad never allowed me to ride, 'cause it costs a fortune to have a short and boring trip; 
2. Thinking: Pop corn trailer and instant photos, two other things I wasn't allowed as well. The first, due to poor hygienic conditions (mom is a nurse, you see); the latter because it is more expensive than a trip to Mars and dad had a great camera and liked to have his own shots. 
3. Heart: this was my favourite attraction and it's called star. Nothing very exciting, it just moves fast (for a kid) and up and down, so it was my equivalent of extreme sports. 
4. Star: another favourite. It's called "Big Castle" - self-explanatory, isn't it?

Unfortunately, I haven't been in Parque Municipal for years, due to its bad fame of violence and pickpocketing. It seems things are better now. \O/ 

Check out more pics of the City Park here. =) 

New Favourite Book

I don't know if anything by Carlos Nejar has been translated into other languages, but, my friends, if it does have and you find it, don't hesitate: take it with you.

A Engenhosa Letícia do Pontal was a book a friend gave a couple of years ago. I always had other priorities, but I wanted to read it now anyway, 'cause I can't take it with me. And Rodrigo, the friend who gave the precious gift, is the kind of person, who I really trust if he advises me to read something.

So now this is my favourite book of all times. Yes, I like it better than Goethe's Faust or Whether, which is something. It's a difficult book to read, for sure. Prose, that you should read like poetry. Sometimes the metaphors are so powerful that I must stop to breath, before I carry on reading.

I am not D. Quixote or Dulcinea, 
Only Letícia from Pontal [...] 


Fighting against the universe, Percival. 
And having in each being, for her war, 
The two-edged sword on the saddle
And for endorsement the dream's arsesenal. 

Bad translation by myself, anyone who want to venture to have a better version, please write it in the comments and I'll update the post. ;-) Original version can be found in the Brazilian blog.

Next time, I promisse I'll have more photos of Belo Horizonte.

Goodbye Central Market

Mercado Central, like we call the main market here, is the place I probably like most in town - but it's the one I think I'll miss less. ;-)

I usually go to Mercado Central due to the best value of foods and ingredients.

But I must confess, I feel a immense pleasure in inhaling the smell of spices and discovering new herbs. Contrary to the popular belief, traditional dishes of my land have a very mild flavour - and the everyday's ones have garlic as their main seasoning.

But Mercado Central offers many other things than food. Ones are usefull... 

 ... and others useless ... 

... although very nice, anyway!

And this is my favourite section: cheeeeeeese! Lots of Queijo Minas (a particular cheese from here).

On my farwell visit, I even went to the animal's section, which I usually hate passing by - it has a horrible smell and the treatment of the poor creatures aren't the best... 

I'm sorry for the bad quality of the pics. For one, I was very shy, because lots of people were staring at me, like it was something very odd (and indeed it isn't very common to have someone taking pics there). Then, I'm not a talented person in taking photos. Photography isn't my thing, you know. ;-)

If you want to have a look at other pics of Mercado Central, visit HERE.

Starting the farewells

So, I bought the tickets... I was more than sure now, as if I need any more assurance, it's time to bid farewell to lots of people - and to lots of things.

I think it is important to say goodbyes properly. It makes easier to adapt and to start again. Let's start with my city. I know that can't even say "see you later", because it'll be unrecognizable, after all the make up for the World Cup.

All these thoghts hit me when I got lost (yeah, I live here for 28 years, but getting lost is pretty much part of who I am) and found myself suddenly in front of the prestigious "Sao Domingos", an ice cream parlour famous for having the best ice cream in town, but that I had never been there. So why not now?

Reason: one simple ice cream cone costs . 2.50 USD

The tiled wall faced me tantalizingly, so I entered. Nice thing about saying goodbye: for the first time in my life I had no doubts which ice cream flavour I would choose: pistachio.

The 2.50 dollars were worth: second best ice cream of my life (Berliner mango&chocolate one stays unbeatable). Plus it makes think, while I savored it, about things to say goodbye. So here goes a list:

5 things to do and say goodbye to town: 

1 - Make a sightseeing tour and take my own photos (actually this was Thomas' idea a couple of years ago);
2 - Go to the zoo and the Japanese Garden;
3 - Go to Mangabeiras Park and make a picnic;
4 - Go to Praça da Liberdade (Liberty's Square) and the Municipal Park - favourite public places in town;
5 - Hippie Market and Municipal Market - they're not common markets, they're more like bazaars...

So there we go!

Mohamad at Eton

This is the short video about a Palestinian refugee living in Lebanon, who won a scholarship to study at Eton, one of the most prestigious schools in England.

One may look at the title and think I'm the only interested, because I'm a teacher, but the story is really moving.  Spare some minutes to enjoy it. =)

Source: AlJazeera.com