Day 8 - Free Day

Day 8 - Free Day

Monday June 2, 2008

Today is our off day. Walked on the beach and did laundry.

Free Day

Being here in Brazil I realized that personal space is not an option. Well the since of personal space is different than ours. And as a group living eating traveling as a group there are a lot of compromises that are made. Time constraints, roaming constraints language constraints.

It was recommended by the faculty that we shouldn't travel alone, stay in groups of at least two or 3. I really had a desire to walk alone. Roam alone discover alone and have privacy and personal time. But I honestly didn't know how to negotiate those types of boundaries in a situation like this.

On the alternative, relying on others allows us to find out more about each other and build relationships with other that would have never been formed. Today Nicole and I walked on the beach in the morning and reflected on the trip so far. That free day was really one of the best moments of the trip so far. The time to reflect and take in the atmosphere. To take the time to process all that has been given to us. And just to relax.

I feel we as Americans when we travel have the need to cram as much as we can in a day. We quantify everything and at times we lack quality experiences because of the rush to consume as much information, places, and experiences as possible. I didn't realize how unnatural that mode of living is and how stressful it is until recently and watching the way we have to rush and pressured by the time constraints.

Brazil is on its own time an maybe because of that people are happier. It seems that people seem more relaxed here. It is natural here to see a man sitting on the street doing nothing but watching people or an elderly person just sitting watching... as well as the young.