Have you ever dreamed of fishing in the Amazon? Pictured the pink dolphins, anacondas, and seen piranha leaping out of the water every few seconds? Can you imagine the fifty-pound bass hanging off the end of your line? The Brazilian fish weighing down your boat? Well, if you have, let me bring you back to reality. It’s not like that,at least not for me. I found that out this morning, when I woke up at five in the morning to go fishing.
We fished off the rocks, mostly with a line and hook, although some people used a rod. For bait we had a fish that would get pieces chopped off of it when the time was right. One guy was using a net, and that worked pretty well. Not many people were catching anything longer than a few inches long, but finally one of the younger kids hooked a nice-sized catfish. I successfully made it the entire time without a single bite. I did manage to hook two rocks, though.
We broke for breakfast at seven ten. I ate quickly, as students are wont to do here, and since I figured I wouldn’t catch anything after breakfast either, I volunteered to help clean up around campus after breakfast. My partner was a guy named Eric, and we chatted off and on while doing our duties. When our tasks were done, we helped the girls weed the flowerbed. That was my first encounter with the insects of Brazil. They have these ants here that can leave a serious mark on your skin. I managed to kill the ant, though, and that made me feel better.
I talked some with the other workers for a few hours, and ate lunch, and then came the marquis matchup of the day; the students would be playing soccer with a local Brazilian team downriver! The ride took about half an hour, with a cool breeze to go along with it. When we got there, we warmed up, and then started a few minutes later. I mostly watched, but I did get to play a little. There weren’t any “real” referees, and the field wasn’t regulation, but it was a great time for all nonetheless.
Our men’s and women’s teams were quite good, but the Brazilians came out on top both times. I’m really amazed at how hard the players on both sides down here in Brazil can shoot; I was scared that the goalies would break something while deflecting shots. There were even a couple of goals that actually tore the net off of the crossbeam!
On the boat ride back, I rode on the top with some of the other kids, and we talked the whole way. When I first pictured myself in Brazil, I was imagining straw huts in the wilderness, with people who knew three or four words of English, and paddled to work each day with their tiny canoes. I’m an idiot. If you live in Brazil and you’re reading this while laughing your head off, I apologize. We talked about Iron Man, the Avengers, the Hunger Games, the pros and cons of having a mustache like Hitler, and swapped stories of mass confusion. All in all, I had a blast with those kids.
As we approached the dock, we were allowed to jump off the back of the boat. I attempted a layout-180, which didn’t turn out too well. However, as I was heading back to shore, I suddenly realized that I was swimming in the Amazon. With the scary fishes. And the sharks. I’ve never swum faster. Later that night, we got a rare treat: movie night. Apparently, they have it every six weeks, and i just happened to be here for one of them. There were a couple movies to pick from, but I watched The Princess Bride with some of the other high schoolers. That was a great movie, and everyone liked it, including me. I also suddenly have an strong urge to learn how to fence.
To sum up my day: I fished (or tried to), I swam in the Amazon river, I played soccer with my new buds, and I spent a bunch of quality time with a lot of really cool friends, making this one of my best days ever. Absolutely smashing. I just can’t figure out one thing, though; how many is a Brazilian again?
