A Country Visit, Revisited

My first trip out of the country was when I was 11 years old. My dad was temporarily working in Sao Paulo, Brazil while we stayed back home in Tampa. He wanted us to come and visit him for a summer so that we could spend time together as a family.

Because I was so young I don’t remember much of the trip. I do remember feeling a bit of culture shock when I arrived. On our way to my dad’s apartment from the airport I saw a whole town that was made of cardboard boxes. I couldn’t wrap my head around it. As we made our way through the town, children would come up to our car begging for money. I had experienced older people asking us for money, but never children my own age. I was so sheltered with the blessed life my parents had given me, that I never put much thought into the fact that not all children lived the way I did.

While I was there I didn’t focus on anything positive about the new country I was in, I was so self centered and negative about anything. I didn’t speak any Portuguese, there was only one English TV channel that played the same shows over and over again ( TV was very important to me at 11 years old) and having men come up to me in the street to tell me how beautiful I was scared the crap out of me. It got to the point where I would only go out of the apartment with my dad because he was familiar with the city and spoke Portuguese {ridiculous, right?}

We did have some amazing moments in Brazil. We took a weekend trip to the coast and had a magical experience seeing the more rural part of the country. It was winter when we went so we weren’t able to go in the water, but the view of the beaches alone was worth the trip.

Looking back, Sao Paulo reminds me a lot of New York City. The streets were crowded, sky high buildings everywhere, and great restaurants. The city would light up during Brazil’s soccer games. You could hear the whole city from right outside your window when Brazil would score a goal. Every time I hear cheers from my window here in NYC, it brings me back to my summer in Sao Paulo.

I definitely didn’t give Brazil the credit it deserves. I was young, selfish, and close minded. I would love to go back and visit now that I can appreciate the country for what it is. It deserves a second chance.

I’m participating in Mama Kat’s Writers Workshop again! This week’s prompt: A country you would like to visit.

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