b b2

Hi, my name is Bruno Haesbaert and I come from San Francisco. I go to Lowell High School with two friends that joined me on this trip to Leon. Today was our first ¨whole¨ Free Day in which we all had to agree on what and where we would go together or into two groups being led by one of the Global Glimpse Leaders. There were 2 free time slots being before and after lunch. We had dinner after followed by our usual English Tutoring.

We had a later breakfast time and got 30 more minutes of sleep but unfortunately for me, I was sick that night so I didn´t sleep very well. That morning a few other Glimpers also felt sick so we concluded that it may had been the food from the day before. I usually have a big appetite but from the stomach aches I had, I didn´t eat much to allow my system to go back to normal. Even though I was feeling a little ill I was able to make it as the leader and accompany my friends where they went.

We had brainstormed ideas on what to do the day before, at our nightly meeting but it was still a little hectic with a few issues to resolve. We were able to stay on schedule though with going to the center to have an artesian braid the hair of several girls and one guy that wanted it. The artesian would make long, beautiful and personalized braids with the choice of five color strings, several small stones, and a dream catcher if you wanted it. While we waited, we were allowed to walk around the other tents that sold souvenirs like: T-Shirts, jewelry, fans, etc. The prices are nice here because the dollar is more valuable making the merchandise come out to be 2-6 dollars.

After that we went to a new cyber café that had internet, calling and wifi which fit all of our needs. Our leader Farima picked up everyone´s recently washed clothes while we were at the cyber and took care of other errands too. We had lunch at Quiero Más and had a seminar on poverty back at the hostel. It was another hot day so at the end of the seminar, several of us passed out near by into a nice nap before our next outing.

Another request by us was to go to both the central market and the super market to buy more goods. We quickly stopped by the market to find a pair of boots for one of the girls that needed a new pair since hers were wearing out. At a nice negotiation with the locals we quickly set foot to the super market which is similar to our smaller Safeways and such back in the United States. The main differences though, are the products. You will find many different brands and fruits but big companies like Coca-Cola and Cheetoes are sold here too. While I was there, I picked up some tea and yogurt to help my stomach get better and it was effective. I was shocked when I saw the biggest Papaya I had ever seen! I have gone to Brazil several times so I recognize some of the brands they sell here but never had I seen a papaya that I could lay out on my hands at a little more that shoulder length.

Thinking we were struggling with time, we rushed back to Quiero Más to only be 10 minutes earlier than the group that stayed back at the hostel. From there we went to teach English at the near by University and came back for our nightly meeting and had lights out at 11pm.

I didn’t have a preference of what day to be the leader but unfortunately I was sick. The day before I pulled out a nice dance move to inherit the crown of leader and even though it was tough being sick, I had fun seeing everyone getting to buy and do what we wanted. My goal was to make sure no one had their possessions stolen so we made sure to walk closely and not have valuables in easy access. Besides a slight misplacement of a bag everyone returned with their bags safe. It was nice to get compliments later on my strong will and I hope to continue with that for the rest of the trip.

Thanks.