Study abroad programs for college and gap students
Photo Essay: CET Brazil
Written by Saradine Pierre, (UNC Chapel Hill) Student Correspondent CET Brazil, Summer 2018 For this program, you have the option to live in a homestay with a Brazilian family or an apartment with Brazilian roommates. I chose to live in the apartment. Our apartment is in a nice neighborhood known as Perdizes where there are plenty of little restaurants and shops for us to visit.
When we first arrived in São Paulo, the group decided to get together to have lunch. For my first Brazilian meal I had rice and beans (arroz e feijão) with chicken and spinach. I also had a pastel, which is a fried crust that can be filled with a combination of meat, cheese, and vegetables.
The first week of our program just so happened to be the week where many of the Brazilian students have their final projects and exams. Larisse, my Brazilian roommate, has been incredibly busy, but she was able to find the time to buy me and of my suitemates lunch!
From our living room we get a beautiful view of the São Paulo skyline!
My room also has a lovely view! One thing I noticed about São Paulo, and Perdizes neighborhood in particular is that it is common to see tall high-end apartment complexes alongside more worn down, dilapidated ones. It’s interesting to see how people of various socioeconomic classes are able to coexist in such close proximity.
In addition to a Portuguese language class, we take a class on current social issues in brazil at the local university, PUC-SP (Pontifícia Universidade Católica de São Paulo). During our tour of the campus, we saw that PUC would be having one of the Brazilian presidential candidates, Guilherme Boulos, speak at the university. I along with several CET students went to see his talk later that evening.
Colorful paintings adorn the walls of PUC. PUC takes pride in being a university that accepts and encourages various art forms. Many of the art pieces on campus have political undertones. The mural in this picture pays homage to Marielle Franco, the activist who was shot and killed a few months ago in Rio.
Funny enough, someone in the program had a birthday the first week of the program so directors of the program decided to surprise him with cake! We all got together and sang happy birthday in Portuguese to celebrate.
While there are plenty of activities planned, one of the best things about this program is the amount of freedom you really have. Since we only had one class this day, I and several other CET students decided to visit the Pinacoteca Art Museum on our own. Right next to the museum is the incredible Parque da Luz. Before visiting the museum, we spent some time wandering around the park and admiring the beauty of São Paulo.
As a part of class on current social issues in Brazil, we went to the Immigration Museum of the State of São Paulo. It was interesting to see that, similar to the United States, Brazil is a nation of immigrants.
