I think it would be fitting not to write much in this entry. The pictures and the video should do the job pretty well.

I travelled about 300km south to Pelotas, a is a student city, which I happened to visit on a "carnival" weekend . There was a big show with some of the big Brazilian pop stars on the Saturday, so of course the party began on Thursday night already. 

The Thursday night party was a big barnyard party with bands playing popular music on traditional instruments. After them, the dub-step started. Southern Brazil has a culture distinct from the rest of the country. They're called the Gauchos (cowboys). Young and old people alike often dress in traditional clothes: cowboys boots, pants that sit very loose but are tucked into the boots and fastened to the waist by thick leather belts, round hats or a beret. It was a big party, I managed to get someone to show me the local "sokkie" and sober Jovi had to drive the "kids" home (my first time driving on the right hand side of the road)... well, I thought we were headed home. It was 2am, apparently the time that the fun begins in Brazil. I only made it to 3am, then went to sleep.

I started a mini-project of taking snap shots of random people who happened to be drinking mate wherever I happened to be passing by . It led to making new friends and long conversations in some cases. My opening line was, "Hi, I'm an exchange student of journalism writing an article about the custom of drinking mate in Brazil, could I take a photo of you and your mate?"

I didn't party on the Friday night. Saturday there were a bunch of students that moved their braai, couches, tables and chairs out onto the street, a street in the city centre and had a braai just like that right there! At least they were polite enough to put a reflective triangle in the road. It was one the best braais I have had so far and I sort of learned how to dance samba, but don't worry I didn't record myself attempting it this time, I recorded the pros at work insead. Here's a short video of a few Brazilian girls who probably learned how to samba before they could walk: video