My Permanent Visa - Chegou! (Has arrived)

I will preface this posting by saying that I know it has been a while since my last blog.  It is not because I'm giving up on writing or have run out of ideas.  Simply put, it was my work schedule.  Now that harvest is over I can resume some normal hours again and devote time to things such as this.

Yes, I said it!  My permanent visa has finally arrived and is in my hands.  Not that it really took that long, but to me it feels like it.  Last Thursday, my pre-paid priority mail envelope arrived here with my passport and visa attached to it.  What an exciting feeling it was to have that hurdle jumped and behind me.  Realistically,  there is not much else to do as far as paperwork goes for me.  I am set to enter the country and do as I please.

Because I cant just copy my visa and post it on here for everyone to see,  I will tell you some things it lists:


Tipo Do Visto/Type Of Visa - Viper  (I dont know why its called "viper")
Prazo De Estada/Duration Of Stay - Indeterminado  (Undetermined)
No. De Entradadas/No. Of Entries - Multiplas


Those listed above are just the ones that make me so happy.  It allows me to leave and enter as all other Brasilians would.  One stipulation to fulfill the requirements of the visa is that upon first entrance into the country with this visa I have to report to the "Departamento De Policia Federal"  "Federal Police"  within 30 days.  This I assume is to register with them and probably obtain a type of government issued identification card.

Since receiving my visa I have been flashing it around the house and exclaiming myself as Brasilian now.  I think its starting to annoy my wife.  I also told her that this automatically makes me good at soccer, like samba, and not have to wear a shirt around the house anymore.  Thats all Brasilians, right??!! Kidding!

Anyways, its great that it is here.  One more thing down and on to the next.  Whatever that may be.  As for the next blog, I'm thinking about another "possible home" posting.  Yet another possible city has come up as an option for us to relocate to....................(cliffhanger!)

Brandon

Goodbye, Comfort Zone!

Thinking back, I believe I have been learning Brasilian Portuguese over the past 3 years.  Learning a language outside of the country it is spoken in is much harder than being surrounded by it daily and fully immersed.  That being said, I feel as though I have done a pretty good job so far and have made alot of progress since the beginning.  My listening comprehension is great.  I can read fairly well and write at the level of a small child probably.  Speaking is much harder though out of all of these because for a long time a new comer to a language has to formulate most of the sentence in their head before speaking it.  Getting the words in the right order and making sure to have the proper gender is a big speed bump when trying to say something correctly in the infancy of your new language. 

All of my friends for the most part consist of other Brasilians that my wife and I are close with.  For example,  I cant even log onto my Facebook page without 99% of all the posts being written in Portuguese.  Occasionally, I stream Brasilian movies, TV, etc from the computer onto my TV.  My language learning tool of choice is Rosetta Stone.  I'll speak breifly on this, but I highly recommend it to anyone that is serious about learning another language.  Even over taking classes or any other method I would say this is the way to go.  It's a bit pricey around $600, but completely worth it.  Feel free to email me if you want to discuss that any further. 

The point I'm trying to reach is that I have become very shy as to use my new skill I have developed.  Oddly enough, one I never even knew I would undertake.  That's what makes this all so exciting.  Have you even known someone to be really good at an instrument, lets say the piano, yet they were always too shy to play for people.  Put them in a room by themselves and they could belt out a whole concert but were hesitant to continue if another living being was around.  Well, thats how I feel with my Portuguese.  Let me clarify, I am in NO WAY an expert at the language.  Merely a child.  But I feel in my mind that I have learned so much and have much desire to master the language someday.  (If thats even possible) 

Recently (Last Thursday),  I challenged myself to step out of my comfort zone and use what I know in a real life situation.  I was at the Farm Progress Show in Decatur, IL.  This is one of the biggest farm shows in North America and brings all companies and people from around the world to show off their products and services to any who want to see it.  Brasil has always had a strong showing from spectators that get flown here to see what its all about.  My company (Pioneer Hi-Bred) always sponsors a big group of Brasilians to come to this event.  Well,  it was lunch time.  I had made my way to a lunch table with a fellow co-worker and sat down to eat.  There were two men across from us that were defiantly speaking a foreign language but in a tone so quiet I could not tell if it was Spanish or Portuguese.  Finally, after a few minutes of strained eavesdropping I was able to pick up a few words that told me for sure this was Brasilian Portuguese.  I spent the next 4 or 5 bites of my pulled pork sandwich trying to convince myself to strike up a conversation.  See if I could do this on my own.  Especially with no Brasilian friends of mine nor my wife around to help translate in the event of a lingual train wreck.  It started with me asking where he was from.  Then he asked if I was Brasilian.  Chuckling inside I told him no.  He spoke virtually no English what so ever so this was all in for me.  Over the next few minutes we discussed what he did and what I did.  Where I was from, where my wife was from, where we were moving and so on.  All in all we had a nice conversation over the next few minutes as we both finished up our lunches.  Yes, there were a few bumps here and there but it all turned out great.  My biggest difficulty was him speaking so fast.  My brain went into hyper-drive to collect all the words that were coming from his mouth. 

When lunch ended we both shook hands said Bom Dia and went on our ways.  I felt so good after the experience.  I finally had stepped out of my comfort zone and put my Portuguese to work with nobody around to help me at all.  It almost gave me a new sense of feeling about speaking more.  There is nothing to be ashamed of when screwing up.  Its how we all learn.  Even if those around us may laugh from time to time, they will make the effort to correct you and help you move forward in your learning.  I think from this point forward I will try to speak more to my wife and friends.  After all, one day soon we will be in the country and unless everyone there wants to learn English for me,  I think I'll be the one who has to step up and speak Portuguese.  I look forward to it.  I dream of the day I can look back and think..........wow, I didnt know much back then, but now I do.  Yes, that will be a good day........

Brandon

My Permanent Visa - Parte dois (2)

That is the line I have chosen to sum up my experience last Friday (August 12th) at the Brasilian Consulate in Chicago.  Let me try to lay out what happened in an orderly and understandable fashion.  This will prove to not be an entertaining post in any way, but an informative one to those who care to know.

To begin, if your situation is like mine (Me=American / Wife=Brasilian), then be sure to take her with you.  According to the Chicago website it makes it sound as if you can do this alone, but that is not true.  Luckily, we emailed the consulate ahead of time and they advised us that it would be wise for her to accompany me.  I will explain the reason for this later.

Now, for the document checklist that I listed in the first "Permanent Visa" post, it all turned out to be correct.  Everything that I listed was exactly what I needed to bring so there were no surprises there.  As for the "non-criminal record), the one from my local sheriffs department was just fine.  They just expect it to be on official letterhead and having it notarized by the county helps as well.  I point this out because several other Brasilian Consulate websites state that you need an official one from the FBI.  There is a procedure for this and it does cost money and time.  However, for some strange reason Chicago is fine with something local.  Mine was very simple to obtain.  I sent an email to the sheriff explaining what I needed.  He did the background check, typed something up on department letterhead, had it notarized, and had me come pick it up from him in person.  All in all that process took 24 hours.









Here is where the surprises came into play!

1.  $5.00 Authenticate my wifes "Carteira de Identidade"  (Brasilian ID Card)
2.  $20.00 Authenticate the "Compromisso de Manutencao"  (Authenticate my wife's signature)
3.  $10.00  Authenticate a copy of my American Passport, which THEY copy. 
4.  $5.00  Authenticate a copy of the Brasilian Marriage Certificate, which THEY copy. 

All of these things were not told to us ahead of time.  No websites mention needing to do the "authenticating" and also the price for each was different.  In my opinion this is the kind of messed up situation only a government can produce.  And to make things more difficult they only accept money orders from the United States Postal Service, which by the way has no office in the building of the consulate.  To save time I ran about 7 blocks to the post office while my wife stayed at the consulate as to hold our place in line.  Luckily, they accepted the documents and began the "authentication process while I was gone to get the money order.  Another thing they do not tell you is that you do not pay the $340 fee for the visa until you pick it up.  So, we have a money order for that just waiting here.

If you have never been to the consulate in Chicago before I can tell you that it is somewhat confusing to find.  But, as of this last visit I have some great news to report to those of you going for your first (or tenth) time.  It is easier to find now.  Gracing the front of the building is an enormous Marilyn Monroe statue.  I would estimate it at 60' tall.  It is of that famous picture of her where her skirt is blowing up.......  Just see the pictures..........

Lets wrap things up.  The consular said it would take about 1 month for me to recieve my permanent visa.  That is MUCH less than what the website states.  So I'm very excited about that.  The only stipulation for it to stay valid is to enter Brasil at least once a year on it, however that will be no problem since we will be living there.  I do find that that information clashes with that of the website though.  The website states that to keep it valid that the holder must not remain out of Brasil for no longer than 2 consecutive years.  Ehhh......whatever.

I would call this all good news.  My biggest fear was getting there and they would say we were missing documents!  That would be another COSTLY trip up to Chicago.  Gas, parking, taking a day off, food, etc......it all adds up.  Also, instead of having to go up there again to get the visa we can pay an extra $20 for convienence and send my passport with a pre-paid envelop to the consulate and they will mail it back.  This is much cheaper than making the trip again.

Cross your fingers........in a month I'll put a post with the visa in hand!

Brandon

Brasilian "Cafe da Manha" VS American "Breakfast"

These past few evenings I have come to the hard realization that writing a blog is tough!  I mean, how do I expect someone to use their valuable time to read something that I wrote if I don't really make it worth their time to actually read?  Well..........maybe I'm not accomplishing that goal, but let me assure you all that I AM TRYING!!  I expect this may be an easier thing to do after we finally move to Brasil.  Then,  I'll have new experiences to share.  Until then,  I will just have to do my best.

*Footnote*
*Yes,  even if you are reading this while stuck in the bathroom,  I still consider that time valuable.*

Anyways..........I have decided to do a comparison of what I consider to be the most enjoyable and important meal of the day.  Breakfast!  I, as many of you, expected breakfast around the world to be huge.  Its time to wake up and BREAK THE FAST!  Lets load up!  2 or 3 plates per person because lets face it,  there is no way it will fit on just one.  Let me tell you,  it is not in fact that way everywhere.  The reality of this was nothing unlike taking that breakfast frying pan and pounding me straight in the face with it.  The kind of hit that strikes your nose in such a way that your eyes tear up and you cant help but cry.  

                                                                             Lets start with the American breakfast.  

We order up some eggs, pancakes, toast, bagels, waffles, sausage, etc.....  We even throw steak in the mix every now and then.  Yeah, bring me some steak and eggs! And sausage.  And bacon.  Hell, schedule me and EKG for afterwards.  I don't care!  Actually this sounds a little bland.  Why don't you dump a gallon of gravy on everything and for Gods sake leave the salt shaker!  It's no wonder we need a nap after breakfast.  Sleep all night, wake up, eat like we are being prepared for the slaughterhouse, and then take a nap.  Even as I sit here and carve another notch in my belt,  I still have no sympathy for us Americans who complain about being overweight.  We even have a chain restaurant that dedicated its whole menu to bacon!  (actually a GREAT idea, but for the sake of my blog ill demonize it)

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Brasilian

Brasilian "Cafe da Manha" (breakfast) is much different.  It normally consists of some fruit, bread, maybe even on occasion a type of "grilled ham and chesse" sandwich.  They will take a piece of bread, throw a slice of ham and cheese on it, fold it over and heat it on a skillet.  Its actually quite good for breakfast.  I enjoyed it alot.  The bread isn't just plain.  You know, some raisin breads, white bread, cinnamon type bread with either a butter spread or cheese type spread.  There are fruit juices which are nice and some cafe (coffee) to drink.  To me it seemed to be rather light but in the end you wind up feeling satisfied.  You feel full, yet still able to go on about your day.

My first morning in Brasil I awoke and headed down to the table to expect the typical American type breakfast.  I had no idea it was any different!  What a shocker this was.  All I can say is thank goodness the Brasilians make up for lunch and dinner for what they lack in breakfast content!  Their cups used for drinking are also unlike ours.  They are always very small.  It does not matter for what beverage.  Whether it be juice, coffee, water, beer........they are always petite servings.  In a way I guess it does show a bit of class when compared to our American drinking ways.  Our coffee mugs have the capacity to hold enough caffeine that short of the government legalizing cocaine is the only way for us to function as usual.  Beer mugs, pop cups.........all large here!  Brasil...........nope!  Small.
I guess the big question is which one do I like better.  Well, which one do you like more, Brandon??  I can honestly say that I cant answer that.  The Brasilian way is so fun.  There are lots of small light food items to choose from.  The small cups of coffee are actually enjoyable to drink.  I really do like it.  However, yes there are times where I want the American breakfast.  Bring me my plates of proteins and carbs with a huge bottle of syrup and gravy to dump all over it!  Lets just hope to find a HEALTHY balance.......


Brandon

Potential Homes - Part 1

Wow that is huge!!!! 

*Factoid - Did you know that Brasil with the exception of Alaska is the same size as the United States?  Yeah..........its true!

With our destination within Brasil still unknown, I often wonder where exactly we will wind up. Being that my wife would like a job as a professor at a federal university, it gives some idea of where we could go but that exact answer wont come until next year.


My "Potential Homes" posts will each highlight a possible city that we may wind up in due solely to the fact that they have a federal university with possible career opportunities.. The first city I will feature today is Maringá which is located in the state of Parana. The university that could bring us there is Universidade Federal do Parana. This is in the south of Brasil (where we would like to be). Some facts about the city:


Maringá is a city in southern Brasil that was founded on May 10, 1947.

Maringá is the third largest city in the state of Parana.

The city has a population of 357,117

It is a regional centre of commerce, services, agro-industries, and universities.

Language lesson for Americans!  (In my best Mr.Rogers voice) Lets all learn how to pronounce Maringa, ok kids????

Ma  (like mama)

rin   (ummm......like the sound of a bell. Ding  Just without the "g"

ga    (as in that no talent hack who will probably rot in hell for all eternity "Lady Gaga")

Ma - Din - Ga

And now two videos to show the city.  One with pretty pictures (who doesnt like pretty pictures??) and one informative. 

                              
All in all I would have to give this city a thumbs up. Looks nice to me. Could the gringo survive there? Absolutely! At this point I cant say that it is at the top of my list but would not be a disappointment if we had to go there.

Next "Potential Homes" post: A cidade de Florianopolis. My favorite!

Boa Noite,

Brandon

My Permanent Visa

I spent alot of my work day today trying to figure out where to start with my first blog post.  Was I going to talk about a food or a favorite city of mine?  Maybe I could talk about some of the stark contrasts between the two countries and cultures.  But,  after much thought I figured I should just write about what I am doing RIGHT NOW.  And what I'm doing right now is applying for my permanent visa for Brazil.  For the sake of explanation, lets just compare it to a green card.

The permanent visa will allow me to enter and leave the country as much as I want as well as earn an income there.  The motivation of getting this taken care of now is so we have less to worry about when the big move comes closer and also so I dont have to sit around and play "house wife" once we arrive in Brazil.  I will have the green light to seek and start employment.

There is a check list of documents I have to get to send in to the Brasilian Consulate to obtain my visa.  These include the following:

1. My Passport
2. Fill out and print the "permanent visa" request form online
3. Delivery Receipt.  (Printed and used to claim visa)
4. Photograph (to specs.) for visa
5. Photocopy of drivers license
6. Non-Criminal Record (more on this later)
7. Carteira de Identidade (Wife's official Brasilian identification)
8. Compromisso de Manutencao form (Wife's official letter saying she wants to bring me)
9. Brasilian Marriage Certificate 
10. $340 application fee

All of the above is due by August 25th.  This is because I already filled out the request form and you have to turn it all in within 30 days.


Now lets talk about government!  I dont care what country you are from, government is difficult, unorganized, and too big!  They require many different things...........but never the same things.  For example,  the Brasilian consulate website in Chicago says that you need to obtain a "non-criminal record" from your LOCAL police department.  Now, the Brasilian consulate website in Washington D.C. says that you have to obtain a "non-criminal record" from the F.B.I..  By the way, the F.B.I. requires fingerprints, weeks of waiting, and a $36 fee.  When I emailed the consulate to ask for more details on this document they emailed me back pretty much saying word for word what the website said.  They DIDNT directly answer ANY of my questions.  This happened twice!

Caralho!!!!!!  (a cuss word expressing unhappiness in Portuguese) hehehe

Lets continue on to another discrepancy in government websites.  We will be taking our cat (Zoey) and turtle (Shelly) with us to Brazil.

One website says:

According to the Brazilian Decree # 6,946, of August 21, 2009, it’s no longer necessary the legalization of the International Health Certificate for Pets, issued by local veterinarian and certified by the US Department of Agriculture.

 And another says: 


International Health Certificate for Pets (dogs and cats only) issued by veterinarians must be certified by the USDA (US Department of Agriculture). The International Health Certificate must show that the pet identified was examined by a veterinarian in the ten days prior to shipment, not showing any clinical sign of disease

 COME ON!!!!!


Now do you understand my frustration?   It is things like this that will make the whole journey a little more difficult but in the end, totally worth it.  

I anticipate many bumps along the way.  Especially since we still have to acquire material items here that we want to take, finish all of my legalization paperwork, finish my wifes PhD by next spring/summer, get her a job (and then me afterwards), find a place to live, and arrange for shipping our belongings to Brazil.  Its A LOT to do but not impossible.  We arent trying to move to the moon......just Brazil.  

Some people ask me why I want to do this.  Wont you miss your family?  Why would you want to leave the U.S. for Brazil?  Are you stupid?!  Well, yes I will miss my family.  Yes, I will miss some of the things here in the U.S..  But,  I love my wife.  I love the home she is from.  This offers a sense of adventure.  Something I never saw coming in my life.  No, the grass is not greener on the other side, but its definitely different.  Im ready for different!  Im sure there will be some time where I'm scared out of my mind and WANNA GO HOME!  But, I know this will pass.  Home is where you make it.  Next to my wife I know we can make a good comfortable home where ever we may be.  I look forward to making that home and bring my family there one day to share it with them.  I want them to see what I see.  Enjoy what I enjoy.   And in the end be happy for us even though we will be a few miles away....hehehe.  

So here I go.  Starting the long journey.  And its starting with this paperwork.  Oh, and the wedding was a step as well, but we are starting the BLOG journey from here!


Brandon

What this is and what it isnt.....more or less (mais ou menos)

I generally have a routine at night after I return home from work.  It consists of:

1.  Shedding my work clothes and having a nice cleansing shower.
2.  Putting on some comfortable clothes.
3.  Preparing a good dinner with my wife.  (Tatiana)
4.  Settling onto the couch for an evening of good ole' cable TV entertainment.

Its how I unwind.  It works for me and fortunately for my wife as well.  (Thank goodness she's not the type to want to go dancing or some other dumb activity that involves being active like some women like.)

But I digress........................

What the ultimate purpose of this blog will be is for me to share my (our) journey from where we are now to our future home and destination........Brazil!  I hope that the things we will need to accomplish and all the red tape we will have to go through will help someone in a similar situation one day.  My other goal is to entertain/inform others about Brazil.  Things I have discovered, will discover, and much more.  I was relatively untraveled until meeting my wife and getting a look at the world outside of my own.  Its beautiful, mysterious, scary, and a lot of other adjectives......

I will not be an everyday poster.  I will just post what I deem to be relative and interesting.  Hopefully,  I will choose wisely.

Enjoy.............