Products of Culture

Sometimes we have a lot of feelings. And sometimes we eat them. Brazilians accomplish both very well.

The Brazilian diet typically consists of fruit, beans, rice, cheese, and a lot of meat. Thus, the churrascaria was born. This style of barbecue originated with the gaúcho or “cowboy” culture of southern South America. Churrasco often manifests itself in conjuction with the rodizio, a type of service in which waiters come by with different samples of the restaurant’s specialty. This might be cuts of meat, slices of pizza, or rolls of sushi.

Many chains providing authentic Brazilian steakhouse experiences have appeared around the world. In the U.S., for instance, one may go to Chima, Fogo de Chão, Texas de Brazil, etc. One of my best rodizio dinners took place in Clarke Quay, a riverside village along the Singapore River. My friends and I were the first ones in the restaurant, so the passadores, or meat waiters, gave us their undivided attention. They even brought pineapple out on skewers, which was a novelty for me.

My friend, Kobie, with picanha (top sirloin) to his right and abacaxi to his left

A few days ago, I went to a restaurant in Recife called Skillus. This is a steakhouse that offers a buffet and/or rodizio, except that instead of 16 different types of meat, the waiters bring over 16 different kinds of pizza. For less than $10, it’s a good deal.

João, our pizza waiter

I managed to document 11 varieties of pizza:

Vegetarian Pizzas

             Marguerita                    Napolitana                        Queijo-do-reino           Mussarela

These were mostly classic flavors. The queijo-do-reino had a rich, savory taste.

Meat Pizzas

 

 

                                 Carne de sol (beef)                  Frango catupiry (chicken & cheese)

I did not eat many of the meat slices, for two reasons. Most of them had pork, which I avoid. More importantly, I needed to have room for the very unique dessert pizzas:

  Dessert Pizzas

From left to right:

Brigadeiro: chocolate sauce and sprinkles

Romeu e Julieta: quava spread and cheese

Cartola: banana and cheese, sprinkled with brown sugar and cinnamon

            (This is my favorite)

Bem Casada (“Well Married”): chocolate, condensed milk, and doce de leite

Pineapple?

They claimed the last one was pineapple, but we were a bit deterred.

Crusty, saucy one

This may be kind of cheesy

You can make me melt

Now please excuse me while I jog to Porto de Galinhas.

Loftily Aloft

One of the hardest parts of beginning a trip is leaving the family dog behind. On a linguistic side note, he’s a Bichon Frise named Pamuk – Don’t worry, we were not trying to put Orhan Pamuk on a leash. Pamuk is the Turkish word for “cotton.” Pamukkale means “cotton castle,” and it’s a fitting description for the beautiful mineral deposits it designates:

(Image Link: http://www.mymilez.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/Pamukkale-Turkey.jpg)

They don’t let tourists roam the natural springs as freely as they used to, probably due to clumsy people like me.

It is heartwrenching to sense Pamuk’s anxiety when his pack starts to pack. He has gone as far as sneaking his first and favorite toy into our luggage:

 

  Perhaps he is thinking:

Another luggage

It is hard to fetch alone

I’ll wait by the door…

Despite having to part with “Pammle-wammle,” I try to appreciate the journey before even landing at the destination (to use a go-to cliché). I saw some magnificent landscapes during a recent flight along the U.S. East Coast. 

 

This sort of looks like a brain:

 

Green river delta

Pouring fresh into the world

Taking in the brine

And this scene evokes electronics:

 

Circuit board city

Engineered by carbon forms

Silicon replaced

The media through which I can share these images are a testament to the above theme.

Sometimes, it is hard to see anything terrestrial, whether natural or man-made:

Fluffy floating foam

Illuminated below

In a frozen sea

To briefly sum things up, leaving home and flying through the air can be just as emotionally laden as arriving in a new place, or visiting one that is familiar.

Until next time – “Over and out.”

P.S. Many thanks to Meryem Ok (a.k.a. “Eraser Butt”), who has helped me with revisions and edits.

For example:

“What’s a good word for ‘beautiful’?” 

“Meryem.”

Take Off

When I was about six months old, I boarded a plane to Ankara, Turkey. Since then, I have not stayed away from an aircraft for long. Traveling inspires me. By exploring new places, I have learned about the mixing of the waters in the Amazon, the differences between Hindu and Buddhist temples, and Turkey’s role in Europe and the Middle East. With every border crossing and time zone change, I satiate and further increase my curiosity not only about our world, but also about people’s perceptions and various ways of interacting with their surroundings and others.

My exposure to different realities has resulted in a runaway imagination. As a child, I once saw an alien from "Spice World" floating among the clouds during one of my airborne trips. It creeped me out because it wasn’t moving at all. Incidentally, I had recently reenacted the “Spice Up Your Life” dance in second grade with some friends. I was Posh.

Like many, I have often heard the saying that women are from Venus. Sometimes, I feel like a planet with a very high albedo, reflecting to the point that I build up a lot of superfluous energy. Writing is my way of letting out the excess steam so I can achieve some semblance of stability. Although in the end, change is inevitable.

Memory can be a fickle thing, as one experience overrides the next. One day, I stopped to think and realized that I have been to eight countries. I have also written quite a bit, dabbling in both prose and poetry. My most recent venture is in haikus.

So, for now, I will leave you with this:

Up above I go

Tiny beings live below

Solving big problems

The seat belt sign has switched on.