Author: Shayna

Q: How can you tell a Brazilian woman from a foreign woman in Brazil? A: Look at their feet. The gringas are wearing Havaianas (everywhere, not just at the beach), sneakers, …

I’ve never liked trite phrases like “You can do anything you put your mind to!” – they somehow fail to motivate me. Yet over the past year, I’ve seen …

In each of my seven trips to Brazil, I’ve noticed I always slim down a few pounds without even trying. (Obviously, I gain this weight back when I’m in …

I’ve ranted before about the lack of silence in my neighborhood – it’s especially bad on Sundays, and even worse during Carnaval season. But today it turned into a …

Before I came to Brazil, I don’t think I even knew a police strike was possible. But the Military Police in Bahia have been on strike for the past …

In addition to the Brazil Mystery series, I’m starting a new one called Daily Differences, inspired by something Lindsey said in her post: Everything is different and new every …

Christian has gone out to a samba in the neighborhood, and I chose not to join him. To be honest, it’s been hard for me to drum up energy to …

One of the first things that most visitors to Brazil notice is that Brazilians greet each other with a kiss on the cheek (one or two, depending on the …

…silence. It is never quiet where I live. For the past 3 weeks, I’ve been struggling to make the audio recordings for Espresso English. We’re not talking 30-minute monologues …

January is a terrible, horrible, no-good, very bad month for English teachers in Brazil. My group classes are on break until after Carnaval, and my individual students have been …