Lula:
* He is missing one finger, his left pinky, which he claims was severed in a factory accident when he was 19.
* Lula’s father left his mother for her cousin, and Lula’s mother followed him and moved in with the two of them, and the three of them - husband, wife, and wife’s cousin/husband’s mistress – lived together in the same house for four years. Later, their story was made into a porn.
Brazil:
* There is a city in the interior of Sao Paulo named Americana which was founded by confederates from the Civil war. Here’s a description found on Wikipedia:
Americana is a city (município) located in the Brazilian state of São Paulo. In 2000, it had around 203,000 inhabitants.
The original settlement evolved around the local railway station, founded in 1875, and the development of a cotton weaving factory in a nearby farm.
After 1866, several Confederate refugees from the American Civil War settled in the region.
Apparently, they even celebrate the 4th of July!
* Brazil has the 2nd highest Christian population in the whole world.
*Joaquim Osório Duque Estrada, the famous erudite personality of Brazil, composed the verses of the Brazilian anthem. The anthem is believed to be hard to understand, even by literate Brazilians, as there are many rare words and several complex sintatic constructions in the anthem.
I have a student (who I think I have mentioned before) who hates all tings Brazil and he saves his most heated rants for Lula. (He's quite a bore...) He claims that Lula purposely chopped his finger off and claimed it was a workplace accident so he could collect the disability pay.
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You know, no offense to Lula but I don´t know if he´s that smart... or stupid. Depends on how you look at it.
ReplyDeleteI live close to Americana. I have never been there. I have always been told by everyone there is not much to see. But maybe that's not true.
ReplyDeleteI read that they have a couple of museums. I imagine the history is more interesting than what´s there now. You should visit and post pics!
ReplyDeleteI have visited the Museum of the American Immigration in Americana and also the American Cemetery in the outskirts of the city.
ReplyDeleteIf you like history, it is a great trip and a lot of fun facts.
If you don't like history, there is nothing for you in Americana.
I learned interesting things such as the fact that the first Watermelon seeds in Brazil where brought in by the American immigrants and they introduced fried chicken and collard greens (Couve) into the Brazilian culture as well as BOLO DE FUBA ( Corn Bread ) which are today widely known in Brazilian homes and little people know it is an influence of the American immigrants.
Next to the cemetery, there is an active Baptist Church that promotes parties throughout the year to celebrate the American culture with music, food and typical dances, the ladies wear dresses "Gone with the Wind" style and the guys wear confederate soldier costumes.
It is really interesting to learn about these people's adventures while settling in Brazil.
Ray
Ray's posting sounds so interesting and you wanting pictures we are definitely going.... next weekend is Children's Day so it may have to wait until next month. I will keep you posted!
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