Welcome to La Casita Shelter

Hub and I just returned from a wonderful, but brief business trip to Buenos Aires. We went to visit La Casita, a shelter for street children and home to the Argentine boys team for the Street Child World Cup.

I've visited two shelters in Rio and I'm always curious to see how the children will behave and receive us. Upon entering the gates of the shelter, we were greeted with hugs and kisses on the cheeks by all the boys. They were very curious and were asking us where were we from, where do we live, do we speak Spanish, was I really married to Hub...It was really sweet. The children were very warm and it was a contrast to the street children I'd met in Rio.

Q&A session with Hub about SCWC

Father Elvio & his monkey

The shelter is located just outside Buenos Aires next to a tiny little parish owned by Fr. Elvio Metone, the founder and creator of La Casita. He invested his own money in building it up and that includes a dining room, assembly room, classrooms, dormitories, indoor swimming pool and football pitch. The children had dogs (stray, but hey) and a couple of scary monkeys. It kind of had the feel of a run down summer camp and it's home to about 40 boys, ages 8 to 16, and all street children. La Casita is an open shelter and the boys can come and go as they please, but most have been referred by court order.

Jose

The boys were wonderful, but they wear their troubled life on their sleeves. There are psychologists and educators on sight working with the children as well as Esidro, a former street child of La Casita who now dedicates his time to the boys and his former home. I can imagine it's a long recovery process. Most of the kids were tactile and wanted to engage in conversation, but others seemed more aloof or brimming with aggression, which we saw a glimpse of during a friendly football (soccer) match. I asked if the boys ever fight and the directors laughed and were like "oh, si!"

In addition to a great foundation, the boys have access to education. Every child receives education and the younger kids are taught in the shelter while the older kids go to the public school in the community. What's fascinating is that Argentina has a scheme where every child is given a computer and several of the boys were running around with their tablets. They love YouTube and Facebook and really wanted to be friends with Hub and I.

There's a lot of love at La Casita and the staff are working hard so that when the boys leave the shelter they can create and live a happy life. But like any great small NGO it's a financial struggle to stay afloat. I wish the best for La Casita and I pray that it survives.

Welcome to Pedra do Sal

Last weekend our friends invited us to hear live music at Pedra do Sal, a tiny little square and massive rock with a meaningful past rooted in Afro-Brazilian culture. It's located in a neighborhood called Saúde, which is where the first African migrants from Bahia settled in Rio. There was a huge slave market in Pedra do Sal, but it later became home to escaped and freed slaves. Saúde quickly became known as "Little Africa" by locals with Pedro do Sal as its epicenter. It is the birthplace of samba music and every Monday and Friday, the square fills with samba music and dancers.

A massive rock dominates the square with a set of shallow stairs leading to the top and people gather on either side. The neighbors living around the square seemed to be enjoying a live music too, windows were wide open and some peered down. 

That Saturday night we grooved to the sounds of  Fela Kuti. I had never heard of Fela, but he lead a very interesting but short life. He was a Nigerian musician known for his Afro-beats and for speaking out against political and social issues through his music. There's a documentary out now called Finding Fela! which recently premiered at Sundance.

The band and DJ were fantastic and the evening reminded me of that amazing block party in Lapa. Here's a clip of some of the music from Pedra do Sal. 

Confession: Depression by way of Firing

My sister-in-law shared a beautiful and honest post about mental health and how every one of us suffers a mental tumble in life and it's nothing to be ashamed of. My descent into depression was brought about by being fired. I find it hard to put this in writing, but I'm hoping that by the time I hit publish I'll feel a little bit relieved and more free. 

I used to work in fashion pr and I was very ambitious in my twenties. I started out in a boutique agency, but when I applied and was offered a job at a world renowned agency I jumped for joy. Literally. I remember the day I got the call and Hub and I jumped and hugged in his scruffy little flat on Broadway Market. My boss warned me that this agency would be hard core, but I really wanted a challenge, I wanted to grow and I knew I could handle it. 

I should have known that this place was cut throat when on my first day, I unknowingly informed the girl who was training me that I was her replacement and presumably she would be fired soon. Our line manager had a reputation for being a nutter, but she was extremely efficient and had been at the agency longer than anyone else. She came across as "most senior" and although she was difficult, I believed she would teach me to be a great manager. Everything was different at this agency and it was a wonderful learning curve at first. Editors that I'd been dying to reach for two years at my previous agency, immediately replied to my pitches because of my clients and my signature and that felt good.

That was until the long hours and the stress sank in. I had half the amount of clients than my previous job, but their demands and that of my line manager were more than I could mentally and physically cope with. My initial 9-hour work day quickly changed to 12-hour work days and I became constantly preoccupied and anxious. Emails started pouring in early and I would start prioritizing tasks at 6am from my couch. Then at work I would buckle down always aiming to leave at 7pm, which never happened and then get sucked into last minute follow ups for things happening in NY or LA. I was so burnt out that I started making "mistakes" like not following up a phone call with an email to confirm a paper trail or "failing" to get clothing samples to a celebrity shoot when the stylist forgot to collect the package from the hotel porter.

And then I had my first and final appraisal. I confessed to my line manager and directors that I really wanted to progress within the company, but that I was overwhelmed by the workload and emails. And although I appreciated my line manager's micro management skills, I felt that I would do better if I had more control over my time. That didn't go down so well and within a few days my director decided to count the number of emails all junior executives received and do a little comparison. One week later I was given a verbal warning for an innocent mistake I did make and then 3 days following that I received a goodbye letter and a severance pay for my troubles. The reasoning for my dismissal was "I don't think you are suited for this."

And the penny dropped. Nothing could have ever prepared me for the ramifications of that day on my self-esteem. I was ashamed, embarrassed and severely depressed. I worked so hard and gave that job everything I had and more, so why did I not succeed? Why was I not good enough? I saw myself as a failure and self-doubt sank in deep. Later I learned that my dismissal was illegal, but it's still taken me over two years to build back my confidence. There are still times when I look back with regret and feelings of insecurity and tearfulness overcome me. And that's okay.

The other day I had a conversation with cousin Dan and he inquisitively pointed out "that must have been the most stressful thing that has ever happened to you?" It really was and it felt devastating, but his comment made me feel a little bit better. If I think of it that way, I guess being fired isn't so bad.

Thanks for reading and I want to say a big thank you my sister Bulelwa for inspiring me to speak out. And if you ever been canned, here's an uplifting article on successful people who really bounced back. 

Photos: drawings by moi and pink slip by pinksliprick.com

Welcome to Favela Vidigal

With the pacification program in full swing, some favelas are becoming destination spots for tourists and my favorite would have to be Vidigal. It's actually becoming hot property which sits on Dois Irmaos mountain and overlooks posh Leblon beach. The streets are full of color with walls rich in graffiti art. Ever since the Three Peaks Challenge, I've been looking forward to going back. So when cousin Dan decided to come visit us, Hub and I agreed to show him this thriving little neighborhood. 

View of Dois Irmaos peak from Vidigal

Vidigal is a pacified favela like Complexo da Penha, but it feels and is much safer. We felt comfortable walking through the narrow passages and the people were very friendly, greeting us as we passed and guiding us when we got lost.

If you enjoy outdoor activities and love a bit of sweat, then you've got to go for a hike to the top of the mountain and Dois Irmaos teeters perfectly between doable and challenging. The entrance to the trail is at the top of Vidigal and hidden behind some one's house! There were lots of people on the trail which was nice including a sweet little 5-year old girl hiking up in her havainas!

Entrance to trail

Overlookin' the largest slum in Latin American: Favela Rocinha

The hike is about an hour and half up and down, so a good workout. The top of mountain is much smaller compared to Corcovado and Pedro da Gavea, but the views are just as spectacular. You can see Sao Conrado beach, Leblon and Ipanema beaches, and the largest favela in Latin America Rocinha. On our way down and I decided to go nuts with my new Luminex. 

Hostel Casa Alto Vidigal

There's a lot of property development going on in Vidigal and we saw sweet little eateries like this empanada shop, which looked really good.

Graffiti on school, so cool

Vidigal is a special place, but it's on the cusp of complete change and its own kind of Renaissance. I'm glad I got to experience it as it is today, a flourishing little slum.

In the Kitchen: Salvadorian Pupusas by Grandma

Mama Alicia. Happy as a clam.

My grandma Mama Alicia just turned 90 years old on Monday, which is truly a blessing. She's lucid, healthy and still handing down valuable life lessons, traditional values and recipes from the motherland. We spent a week together over Christmas and I got her to teach me (again) how to make El Salvador's national dish pupusas. It's a stuffed corn tortilla that's much thicker than a Mexican tortilla. It can be filled with anything, but traditionally it's cheese, beans, shredded pork or a combination. Here is my Mama's recipe which makes approximately 20.

Prepare your stuffing in advance and feel free to be creative. You could stuff it with pretty much anything from spiced eggplants to fancy lobster. The only thing is it to make sure your filling is finely minced or mashed and pre-cooked. The stuffing can't be chunky otherwise it will break through the tortilla. 

The base is a simple mix of water and maseca, a flour made from dried ground corn. Grandma doesn't use measurements, naturally, but I will try to translate the visuals as best I can. Gradually add water to about 2 1/2 cups of flour and hand mix until you get a workable dough. Like this, not too dry or too wet.

Start heating up your frying pan or griddle pan on a high heat. The pan should be dry, so no oil or grease necessary. Take a bit dough about 1/3 cup and start rolling it into a ball. Then flatten it out and start forming it into a little cup.

Put about 1-2 tablespoons of stuffing into your cup then fold over the edges. Smooth out the edges so you have a nice rounded stuffed ball.

Giving it a go under Mama's watchful eye

Then gently flatten it out by tossing/passing it from hand-to-hand. Once you got a nice little pancake, transfer the pupusa to a paper towel. Continue to flatten it out with your fingers, concentrating on the edges. Make sure the edges are thin about 1/2 inch and this will prevent the fillin' from spillin'.

Once it looks like this you are ready to cook. Basically you want it to be thin, but still holding in the filling. And be gentle...you should see your filling beneath a thin layer of dough as oppose to smushed into your dough. 

Place it on the pan and cook each side for about 5 minutes or until little dark spots start forming and the dough looks cooked. Polk-a-dot spots are pupusas' signature look, so don't get scared.

The wonderful thing about pupusas is they are so versatile. The dough is gluten-free and low-fat and they can easily be made vegetarian or vegan. Keep it healthy by choosing a lean stuffing and pair it with a side salad like curtido, a spicy pickled cabbage salad, as is the tradition in El Salvador.

Do serve them on a festive plate for added pleasure

Oozy goodness

I feel so lucky to be able to add this recipe to my repertoire, to have learned it directly from my Granny and continue to hand it down to our future kids. Feliz Cumpleanos Mama Alicia.

New Year, New Beginnings

Happy New Year.

 

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday break. We've been in the US and it's been lovely. In a few days it will come to an end, but I'm ready and really excited to be returning to Rio. It's the height of summer there and will be a nice contrast to these subzero (polar vortex?) temperatures. The heat will also help in sweating out this Christmas pudge.

So I feel like we won't settle back into our Carioca life until the end of this month and that's when our resolutions will really kick in. Have you made any? I like to make them every year even if I can't remember what they were by the following ball drop countdown. So this year I've decided to write them down. Publicly. Perhaps this way I'll be held accountable and can also report back in 2015.

Hub and I both agreed to learn Portuguese fluently. I've been trying to make an effort to speak even to our bilingual friends, but I need a new more proactive game plan. As soon as we land I'm going to sign up to private lessons, visit lyricstraining.com on the daily (a quirky recommendation from an Expat) and listen to podcast lessons on Hub's iphone.

 

Kick bad eating habits that have lead to my pre-diabetes. I've made some changes to my diet, but to be honest with myself I haven't been consistent about them. I struggle with making the right choices and the concept of moderation. I also had my bloods checked before the move and reality check, my sugar levels have not changed since March. This year I really want to give up refined sugar and bad foods (fried, processed, high sat fat) and never look back.



And dedicate more time to you Jordan's Diary. I love writing to you, sharing my thoughts, recipes and ramblings with you. Me + you = more time gabble in 2014.

I feel another great year is upon us. We have so many exciting things to look forward to like Cousin Dan flying in on Monday, Carnival, the StreetChildWorldCup (and the FIFA World Cup for that matter) and a wedding...So here's to 2014!