Brazil is a beautiful country known for the Amazon river, great weather, beautiful beaches, good coffee and of course beautiful women, but while we only see the positive, there are problems in the country. I have created a blog entitled, “Uma Jornada Espiritual”, to expose many of the corruption that is occurring in Brazil and to show those not familiar with the “true” Brazilian lifestyle what is really going on in the country.
What I have been doing is reading through news sites about Brazil and writing news stories. This is important but what I was interested in was hearing it from someone who has lived in Brazil and experienced what is going on. For my interview, I spoke to Mara Pereira Dacunha, a native of Sao Paulo, Brazil. Mara said she lived there, “with her two uncles and aunt.” Sao Paulo is one of the largest cities in the country and is the home to much of the countries commerce and finance. When you see or visit the city, it resembles any large city in the United States. “I lived as a young girl with many grateful things in my life. I grew up with everything. I had a mansion not so far from Sao Paulo. I was the only child. My aunt and uncles took me in when my parents passed away.” I asked Mara about the education system and how she was educated in Sao Paulo. “I did not go to school there. My uncles sent me to boarding school in Fribourg, Switzerland. I learned many things, such as different languages and cultures.” At sixty-five years old, with much familiarity and first-hand experience in the country, Mara mentioned that Brazil has changed a lot since she was younger. “In the past I remember going to dinner parties and going to the city and not worrying if anybody is going to really steal from me. Now when I see on the news, there are so many people in poverty, especially poor kids on the streets with nothing to eat. Gangs and violence is what is worrying me.” With all the history in Brazil, I asked Mara if the increase in population of people coming from all different cultures affected the country. “During my time, the war was a huge affect in Brazil. Many Germans and Austrians moved to Brazil to get away from the chaos. As you see now many Brazilians are not dark anymore. For example, my family and I. I have blonde hair and green eyes. My mother was Austrian.” It is interesting to see how the cultures of a country are changed by the influx of people from different lifestyles and ethnicities.
Currently, Mara is living in Florida and she talks about her love for her lifestyle and the changes she made moving to the United States. From what she told me about her childhood, I was curious as to why she decided to move out of Sao Paulo and if it was difficult adjusting. “I was married with three kids, we moved to the Florida for my husband’s job. It was really hard at first. My kids only spoke Portuguese and would get teased at school because they did not know how to speak English.” Many people come to the United States in search of a better life or because they could make more money than in their home country, to send home and support their family. I was curious if she would return back to Brazil or if she thought this was a good move and saw the states as her home. “It was beneficial. It gave my kids the opportunity for many things. They still live today with the Brazilian culture in their homes, such as food and music.” From the way the movies depicts the United States, I wasn’t sure if the move was planned or if it just happened suddenly. Aside from her moving her family because of her husband’s job, I was wondering if this was where she planned to be ten years ago and she said that she did. When asking her about her present life and if she wants to continue living in this country, she said, “Yes, I am a peaceful woman that is just there for her family. To see my grand kids and my kids grow up successful and happy. That makes me happy.”
During the past two months, the stories I have written about have been about corruption in the government and education system and murders. I have never been to Brazil so it was nice to hear from someone who has experienced the culture and has seen the changes for herself.
