News and opinions on current events from “The Land of the Southern Cross”.
On Saturday one of the local politicians–in the hopes of garnering votes–sponsored a big “folklore” party at my house. And by that I mean, if you stepped out of my front door, you were literally in the party. Since I wasn’t going to be sleeping much that night (these things go into the wee hours)…
Since we moved to São Luís, our own involvement in puppet ministry has all but come to an end. We have put on a couple programs for VBS, but other than that, our foam friends are enjoying somewhat of an extended sabbatical. On the other hand, Cicero and Nice Braga–our former partners in puppet-crime–continue to…
This is a great time to be living in the city of São Luís. 400 years ago, tomorrow, the French Huguenot explorer Daniel de la Touche landed with a small expedition on this fair island. The ensuing four centuries saw the little city he founded fall into the hands of the Portuguese, the Dutch, the…
It’s election time in the US, and I hear the term “electoral noise” batted around, of course referring to the competing voices of the candidates and their minions. Here in Brazil, however, the term “electoral noise” would have a much more literal meaning. Political candidates rent sound trucks and have them drive around the city…
Once again Itacyara and I have had the privilege of hosting a team from the US. This is our fifth team since we arrived on the field in 2005, and the second to visit us from Fellowship Baptist Church in Lakeland, FL–our sending church. Every team that has come down has been an adventure, and…
Our last activity with the Kerigma youth group was a luau on one of Sao Luis’ spectacular beaches. While it was bittersweet, due to our impending departure, the ambiance was relaxing and therapeutic. Here is a picture of Itacyara and I with our outstanding group of teens: More pictures here. The Astonishing Adventures of Missionary…
I was going to include this in a Daily Dozen, but it is so cool, I decided to give it a post all it’s own. From Deep Brazil comes this video from the state of Bahia in 1927. This is the kind of thing that Brazilians see imperfectly reproduced in historical novelas. Enjoy! The Astonishing…
This one came from Rio Gringa: If you’re interested, here are the (untranslated) lyrics: Meu coração, não sei por que Bate feliz quando te vê E os meus olhos ficam sorrindo E pelas ruas vão te seguindo Mas mesmo assim Foges de mim Ah se tu soubesses como sou tão carinhosa E o muito, muito…
When the French set foot on the island that is now São Luís, Maranhão, they were met by a native tribe known as the “Tupinambás”. Daniel de la Touche, the French (Huguenot) leader of the expedition had the wisdom to make friends with the Tupinambás, and was successful in enlisting their help in several projects–such…
This morning I came across this ad from World War Two days, touting the number of countries that trained their pilots in the “Texan” airplanes manufactured by the North American Aviation Inc. Curious, I amplified the picture to see if Brazil was listed. Sure enough, there it is, third from the top on the left-hand…